In 1990, Nintendo released a new game for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), with Intelligent Systems as one of the developers: Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light. As the first game of the series, Fire Emblem was one of the games that popularized the tactical role-playing game (RPG) genre of gaming. It followed the story of Prince Marth (one of the first Fire Emblem characters that were playable in Super Smash Bros.) and his quest to save and reclaim his kingdom. Now, 30 years later, the game is finally going to be available outside of Japan for the Nintendo Switch (with an official English translation and for only $5.99) on December 4th of this year.

In my younger years, (est. 11 years old) I had played some of the Fire Emblem series, mainly The Blazing Blade and The Sacred Stones for the Gameboy Advance and Path of Radiance for the Game Cube. I spent countless hours playing these games and had a fantastic time bonding with the characters, story, and gameplay. Sure, it took me a while to finally beat Path of Radiance, but I loved the journey that the game took me on with all of the characters. In case you haven’t noticed, Fire Emblem has left a pretty big impact on my life. It wasn’t until the release of Shadow Dragon for the Nintendo DS that I learned about the first game of the series. Since that moment, I think I was about 16, I waited patiently for the day when I’d get the chance to finally play the game that started it all (mainly because I didn’t care for the cardboard cutout like visuals of Shadow Dragon). Hearing the reveal of the first game coming out for the Switch felt like a dream come true. And the Anniversary Edition (at the lovely price of $49.99)? Sign me up with the pre-order, please.

With the re-release of Shadow Dragon and the Sword of Light, it brings up a pretty big question: will this happen for any other previous games of the series? We’ve had The Blazing Blade and The Sacred Stones made available for the Wii U, so maybe we can get the Radiance games or even games that came out not too long after the first one? It would be a great way to introduce newcomers and veterans, that never got the chance to play specific titles in the series. While there are sites where you can download emulators in order to play specific games, but that’s not always a surefire way to experience a game. Not every emulator program will work for you and it can lead to more frustrations than enjoyment. I’m honestly lucky that I had people tell me what programs worked for them before searching on my own (in case you’re wondering, I would go to Vimm’s Lair).

While Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light will only be available for a limited time (four months, so until around April), I am thrilled to finally be able to experience the game that started the series. It will be interesting to see how the game plays without everything that was added in the newer additions to the series (character supports, weapon triangle, etc.). In other words, the game is going to have a gap in the levels of the challenge it brings. Sure, this version will allow you to rewind and retry the moves you make, but it’ll still be a fun challenge. What do you all think? Are you looking forward to the re-release of a classic and the beginning of a popular series? Feel free to let me know in the comments down below, I’d love to hear your thoughts on all of it. Until then, this is CuriousCat-13/Tracy: signing off.