Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon

 DS
User Score
7.1

Mixed or average reviews- based on 184 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 87 out of 184
  2. Mixed: 72 out of 184
  3. Negative: 25 out of 184
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  1. Yojimbo2015
    May 24, 2023
    7
    Turn-based strategy/RPG hybrid that hasn't changed much since its days on the 16 BIT systems. Pretty good taken on its own terms but Advance Wars has much, much more to offer.
  2. hector_bcn98
    Nov 7, 2022
    8
    Como Fire Emblem clásico, la dificultad era alta, algo que me impedía disfrutarlo de pequeño. Ya de adulto lo pude completar casi a la totalidad. Casi, digo.
  3. TuxDC
    Sep 17, 2022
    1
    Playing this 10 years late this is only a frustrating game. No saving so be ready to play the same level over and over. Maybe there is a generic story but most will never see much of it due to the difficulty and the bad design. I went in interested in Marth’s origin story and now I know why these stayed japan only for so long; you will be happier never trying this game at this time.
  4. sarahaj
    Jul 2, 2022
    7
    As a faithful remake of the original Fire Emblem which was released on a very limited console, this is not a bad update. I finally art style surprisingly charming, be it filled with late 2000s murky brown color pallets. I feel this falls into the same pitfall that the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl remakes had - staying faithful to the source material has it's costs. Do I think that this ruinsAs a faithful remake of the original Fire Emblem which was released on a very limited console, this is not a bad update. I finally art style surprisingly charming, be it filled with late 2000s murky brown color pallets. I feel this falls into the same pitfall that the Pokemon Diamond and Pearl remakes had - staying faithful to the source material has it's costs. Do I think that this ruins this game? No, but it could have been better.… Expand
  5. nickhorn
    Oct 13, 2021
    10
    My favorite fire emblem. It doesn't bore you to death with reading. The combat system is complex enough to be fun but not too complex.
  6. Entagonist
    Jul 2, 2021
    10
    Fire emblem: Shadow Dragon, also known as FE11 is a remake of the very first Fire Emblem game (Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light, also known as Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryū to Hikari no Tsurugi). Gameplay is good, story is good, Fire Emblem game.
  7. ArronTheG
    Nov 29, 2020
    10
    Fire Emblem is one of my favorite game series of all time, and I always hear people say that this game is bad as a remake. Instead of treating this game as a remake, it should be treated as a localization. This is the way many Americans got to experience the first Fire Emblem, and I think it's a good introduction to the series. I absolutely love the graphics although people bash them.Fire Emblem is one of my favorite game series of all time, and I always hear people say that this game is bad as a remake. Instead of treating this game as a remake, it should be treated as a localization. This is the way many Americans got to experience the first Fire Emblem, and I think it's a good introduction to the series. I absolutely love the graphics although people bash them. The pixel art is great and the gameplay is, believe it or not, Fire Emblem. For being a Famicom game, the story is surprisingly well laid out. Some new features were added from the original to this remake, including the ability to speed up the enemy turn. If this game is available to you, I suggest you play it.… Expand
  8. Sunshadow87
    Jun 4, 2020
    8
    Este es un remake, o más bien reimaginación, de uno de los FE antiguos, con la historia de Marth. Realmente es un juego muy similar en dinámicas a Awakening, creando tu propio personaje y con dificultad y dinámicas muy similares (pero sin el sistema de hijos). Un FE muy disfrutable, el cual los amantes de Awakening disfrutaran también y que se ha convertido en una entrega semi-oculta.
  9. Combusken16
    May 24, 2020
    10
    An amazing game with a compelling story and amazing map design. It's a fun game on low and high difficulties, and reclassing gives a whole lot of replay-ability.
  10. tukumalu
    Jan 22, 2020
    5
    A lazy attempt at cashing in on nostalgia with little improvement on the graphics and mechanics
  11. Vanys
    Aug 1, 2018
    10
    it's a good remake of the first NES game, the graphics are fine for a DS, it's a good game to start
  12. Tilde_Gunderson
    Mar 4, 2017
    7
    It's really funny to say "it's the worst Fire Emblem game (probably)" when the game's really functional, and decently fun.

    I don't think I need to retell you the plot or facts about this game. They're pretty standard, and you could just search Wikipedia for a synopsis on it. And that's just it: The game's really standard. It's good, it works, it plays well, and it's a bit difficult    It's really funny to say "it's the worst Fire Emblem game (probably)" when the game's really functional, and decently fun.

    I don't think I need to retell you the plot or facts about this game. They're pretty standard, and you could just search Wikipedia for a synopsis on it.

    And that's just it: The game's really standard. It's good, it works, it plays well, and it's a bit difficult at times. But as a Fire Emblem game, you could find any other English one and enjoy it a lot more.

    What's missing in it is exactly what should be missing in the first Fire Emblem game: interesting characters, and a memorable plot.

    I guess as an aside for you, the reader: This was the first Fire Emblem I ever played. I got into the series because I am a massive Advance Wars fan, and found a copy of this for cheap. I fell in love with the game, but then started playing others and quickly discovered how good the Fire Emblem series can actually be.

    The characters seemed bland and uninteresting, known more-so as, "that really awesome horse archer guy!" rather than "that guy with a really interesting backstory" or something. Marth doesn't really get much in terms of character progression, and I can't think of one person who actually had a personality.

    Don't get me wrong: you'll get attached to characters, but it'll be for functional reasons than character reasons. Sedgar and Wolf are generally known as really good units in the game, despite not following the 'pre-promotes can't be good' rule (following in Shinon's footsteps). However, excluding the end credits and death scene, they do not talk and do not interact with anybody.

    Say what you will about Virion from Awakening, at least he had a personality (albeit trash, bottom-tier personality).

    The plot's functional, but it's not particularly unique. You travel from point to point, fighting enemies. There's a bit of a cutscene explaining why you're here and who you're fighting, but not much else. It's almost feels like the developers made a whole bunch of levels, and then strung them together with the cutscenes and increasing enemy difficulty.

    You do get the reclass your units for free, allowing to change up how a certain character works, but

    Lastly, if you were introduced to Fire Emblem through Awakening, do note that units permanently die, so get ready to either lose some of your best units, or restart levels a bunch of times.

    In conclusion, if you like Fire Emblem, you'll probably enjoy this, because it's scientifically Fire Emblem in its purest form. However, if you're looking for a better Fire Emblem than one you've played before, steer clear.    … Expand
  13. Fask1ng
    Jun 10, 2015
    6
    This is perhaps the weakest entry in the Fire Emblem franchise. Although its game play and story are on-par for the franchise, they are not enough to save it from its horrendous art-style.
  14. Runner19
    May 6, 2015
    9
    this good game specialist marth come over to America and challenge are impressive me well by using my brain to think strategy, defensive and offensive. the sidequest are good, but people lose the unit just to access sidequest because there is another without losing character.
  15. Schizoidmouse
    Oct 21, 2014
    3
    Fire Emblem started on the NES, with the original Shadow Dragon. while not the most famous game it caused a big enough splash to create a string of games making one of Nintendo's longest series. Shadow Dragon took rogue like elements to a strategic RPG. This was to make a game where your characters die and do not respawn. This is a staple of the Fire Emblem franchise and the one thingFire Emblem started on the NES, with the original Shadow Dragon. while not the most famous game it caused a big enough splash to create a string of games making one of Nintendo's longest series. Shadow Dragon took rogue like elements to a strategic RPG. This was to make a game where your characters die and do not respawn. This is a staple of the Fire Emblem franchise and the one thing people can easily distinguish from other RPGs. That being said, does a remake of the original game still hold up to all the evolutions made in the years later?

    Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon for the DS is a remastered remake of the original Fire Emblem story, taking all the elements from the original game and adding in a few features in the hopes of making it stand out in the DS marketplace of mediocrity. That being said, does this story still hold up in today's market? The story is a classic but...dreadfully boring. The characters only get one chapter really, if any, to get any development since support conversations were not created until the GBA era. The story and characters development is utterly lacking in this game besides a few characters. Even then the characters go through a drastic change to fast and we don't get to see the full process.

    The main change to story was the prologue created for the easiest setting. This sentence annoys me for one reason, its only for the easiest setting. You cannot see this part of the story unless you decide to play it on beginner, which actually stops you from getting two possible units that can only be obtained in the prologue. I don't understand their decision in this as it limits the amount of story for harder difficulties. That being said, the prologue is a good way to ease people into the gameplay of Fire Emblem and adds sufficient background information about the war surrounding the area.

    The gameplay is the same throughout all Fire Emblem games with a lot of awkward and bad choices. The rock, paper, scissors aspect of the weapon wheel, the durability of weapons, death of a player, but the problem comes with the details never before put into a Fire Emblem game.

    The reclassing of units started with this game, which took the unique element in its predecessor, Sacred Stones and completely turned it into something of a monster. Any unit can be changed into a new class at any point in time within the game. This causes game breaking and at times causes units to be too overpowered if switched to a class that is suited to their stat gains.

    In Progress...    … Expand
  16. Rubinglass
    Sep 7, 2014
    6
    I can start by saying that I had a positive experience from this game all in all. It is indeed Fire Emblem, the most fundamental gameplay is there and it was fun to play through. However, the experience stopped there. It felt bland without the elements that defines the franchise today, such as well developed characters and support conversations. I can kind of appreciate that they stayedI can start by saying that I had a positive experience from this game all in all. It is indeed Fire Emblem, the most fundamental gameplay is there and it was fun to play through. However, the experience stopped there. It felt bland without the elements that defines the franchise today, such as well developed characters and support conversations. I can kind of appreciate that they stayed true to the original, but at the same time I feel like they could have made it better by adding at least some more character development and/or supports (they did add a playable prologue, which was a step in the right direction). As it was, characters popped up out of nowhere and many of those who joined you never said a single word. Their personality was in their portraits, basically.
    This made it feel empty in comparison to the other much more satisfying releases.
    I still enjoyed it, be it on quite a shallow level. Graphically it delivered, although I wasn't the biggest fan of their character portraits. The game play, as already mentioned, was smooth. I liked how you could use either the D-pad, analog stick or touch screen to move, and the levels were well designed. The little "save-spots" scattered across some levels made the game forgiving, but not too easy.
    In short, I think it was a balanced and solid turn-based strategy game, although I'd encourage people interested in the franchise to check out any of the Fire Emblem games released on consoles or GameBoy Advance first.
    You won't regret buying this game, but there are better out there.    … Expand
  17. Groscke
    Apr 2, 2014
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Excellent. A great strategy-RPG! How is a remake, it's a great opportunity for those who missed the NES to know the origin of this game...

    Play this before play Fire Emblem Awakening.    … Expand
  18. arcazeronus
    Oct 26, 2013
    9
    In terms of gameplay, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon has the same amazing gameplay from its previous games. The storyline expands the first Fire Emblem game, and it's very good. However, the sprites are looking bad. The 2.5d styled animations and other sprites are looking awful, and not fitting Fire Emblem. The sounds are amazing, but still the style of graphics made a little bitIn terms of gameplay, Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon has the same amazing gameplay from its previous games. The storyline expands the first Fire Emblem game, and it's very good. However, the sprites are looking bad. The 2.5d styled animations and other sprites are looking awful, and not fitting Fire Emblem. The sounds are amazing, but still the style of graphics made a little bit disappointment for me.… Expand
  19. smidsy
    Jun 22, 2013
    3
    Waste of time. This game just doesn't live up to the modern games at all sadly. Whilst this is a remake it's lazily done. The interface is clunky, visuals poor and generally a boring, tedious experience when compared to the GBA games.

    This could have been amazing, and really taken advantage of the DS hardware what we actually got was a lazy port.
  20. domflo
    Feb 5, 2013
    7
    Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. A game that is as Fire Emblem as you can get... if you are reading this in the 1990's. The game is a straight and faithful remake of the series first outing, "Dark Dragon and the Sword of Light", released for the Famicom in 1990. And that is where it's problems start: It is just as the game was in 1990. Sure, you have your Weapon Triangle now, sure, the graphicsFire Emblem: Shadow Dragon. A game that is as Fire Emblem as you can get... if you are reading this in the 1990's. The game is a straight and faithful remake of the series first outing, "Dark Dragon and the Sword of Light", released for the Famicom in 1990. And that is where it's problems start: It is just as the game was in 1990. Sure, you have your Weapon Triangle now, sure, the graphics are a lot better than they were back then, but at the core, this is a early 90's game. If you are ok with that, then I cannot stress this enough: Buy this game. It is a good game all by itself, but it just fails in comparison to other Fire Emblem games. A lot of the features a Fire Emblem fan has gotten accustomed to are missing in this title. Character development is almost nonexistent, the story is incredibly linear and rather dull from today's perspective, and the beloved support conversations from the GameBoy Advance games are not here either, taking away the character's depth. Despite that, however, it is still quite enjoyable as a turn-based strategy game.
    If you have ever played an other Fire Emblem, you should either be prepared to play something that feels pretty old, or you should want to dwelve into the franchises history. If you are interested in how it started, this is the way to go. If you look for a nice strategy game for the DS, this is the way to go. But if you think you get a high quality Fire Emblem with this game, you should probably stay away from it.    … Expand
  21. riferrari
    Jan 2, 2013
    4
    In general, it could have been a very good game but the gameplay isn't satisfying nor rewarding as you can't clue what is the best way to play the game and what characters you should level up or not, so I give it a 4/10 because it's a game that keeps going and it feels like you are aways on the wrong path with your characters equipment and exp, I just feel bored and many maps are too big.
  22. NocheShade
    Dec 30, 2012
    8
    Quite good.It's nothing compared to the GBA pair(Because I don't include FE6 as it's a Japanese exclusive >_< )It's still a good game with an outdated storyline and some of my least favourite characters in Fire Emblem games.Still good though.
  23. Oceanicus
    Nov 20, 2012
    7
    Not a bad game, but definitely could've been better, since its only half the original story. For the fans of the genre it may be a little easy (compared to Path of Radiance for example).
  24. Welterweight426
    Jun 13, 2012
    8
    A fun game that offers a challenge. I both like and hate how when you lose someone they are gone. It sucks when you lose a really awesome character. However, the story is pretty good and the combat is awesome. Overall, its a fun game.
  25. Teliiii
    May 27, 2012
    7
    Amazing game considering it is a remake of a really old game. The story is good, the game play is great, but the animations could have been done better and support conversations should have been added in because personally, I felt that the characters were really boring.
  26. Kirisoul
    May 10, 2012
    6
    Make no mistake, this is a polished game. However, I hold Fire Emblem to a higher standard due to the quality of the other games, and this one fails compared to them. True this is a remake of a very old game, but nearly no attempt was made to flesh the story out or update the mechanics. Playing through it, I little attachment to my characters or the plot in general, which is simply toldMake no mistake, this is a polished game. However, I hold Fire Emblem to a higher standard due to the quality of the other games, and this one fails compared to them. True this is a remake of a very old game, but nearly no attempt was made to flesh the story out or update the mechanics. Playing through it, I little attachment to my characters or the plot in general, which is simply told through a short chapter description before each mission. Fire Emblem isn't just a tactics game! There are far better TBS games out there! It's appeal has always been the RPG element, the compelling story, and lovable characters. Strip FE from this, and it becomes only a solid, but not outstanding tactical role playing game.… Expand
  27. 000Tuld000
    May 5, 2012
    6
    Good game but nothing compared to its predecessors. There's no dark or light magic users, only anima. You can change classes for your characters, such as transforming your magic user into a paladin or your archer into myrmidon. The game can be quite difficult even on a normal setting. You can't rescue your characters nor can you have them support each other. And the only way to unlock sideGood game but nothing compared to its predecessors. There's no dark or light magic users, only anima. You can change classes for your characters, such as transforming your magic user into a paladin or your archer into myrmidon. The game can be quite difficult even on a normal setting. You can't rescue your characters nor can you have them support each other. And the only way to unlock side quests is to have most of your units killed off which doesn't seem like a fair advantage.… Expand
  28. Metakev
    Jan 8, 2012
    5
    It has no excuse of being a remake of an old game, there is no support so characters have no personality, main story, besides being bland and hard to follow (follow where the f**k are they traveling) is just straight forward with no interesting plot twist or special emotiveness, graphics are ok but bland, animations are bland and dull and look terribly, the changing class gimmick has noIt has no excuse of being a remake of an old game, there is no support so characters have no personality, main story, besides being bland and hard to follow (follow where the f**k are they traveling) is just straight forward with no interesting plot twist or special emotiveness, graphics are ok but bland, animations are bland and dull and look terribly, the changing class gimmick has no use besides ruining you character development, the gameplay works the same as always it's good but unintersting, the difficulty curve is insane and changes from a piece of cake to an unforgiving situation, still the game is too easy and by the time you get the last sword for your lord, credits better roll… Expand
  29. SwoopTrust
    Nov 10, 2011
    1
    Worst FE ever made. it's bland, has no soul. Its absolutely horrendous. Difficulty is nonexistant as times, the game feels rushed, the portraits are just bland, bad CG, same for the animations. Truly a butchering of FE in all the sense of the word.
  30. nonnikchief
    Jun 29, 2011
    8
    Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon is a turn-based RPG that tells the story of Marth, a young prince who has to go into hiding after his home is taken over and must come back to defeat the shadow dragon and reclaim his throne. The story has over twenty chapters, and the levels are long and often very hard. when a character dies, they're dead permanently. they don't come back. so be careful. thereFire Emblem: Shadow Dragon is a turn-based RPG that tells the story of Marth, a young prince who has to go into hiding after his home is taken over and must come back to defeat the shadow dragon and reclaim his throne. The story has over twenty chapters, and the levels are long and often very hard. when a character dies, they're dead permanently. they don't come back. so be careful. there are over twenty different character classes, and many of them can be changed or enhanced. There are many different weapons as well as a weapons triangle, axes beat lances, lances beat swords, and swords beat axes. The graphics are fine for the DS, though not groundbreaking, and the story is pretty good. the characters are pretty cool, but Radiant Dawn's are better. the gameplay is really good and there are six difficulty levels for you to choose from. So no matter what kind of gamer you are, if you have a DS get this game.… Expand
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Awards & Rankings

19
#19 Best DS Game of 2009
8
#8 Most Discussed DS Game of 2009
5
#5 Most Shared DS Game of 2009

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
81

Generally favorable reviews - based on 42 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 37 out of 42
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 42
  3. Negative: 0 out of 42
  1. 3DJuegos
    87
    Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon debuts on Nintendo DS with a classic chapter adapted to these times. The deeply interesting story of the game with many characters to recruit and different strategies for the victories offers a unique experience. The most important feature is the online mode, simple but correct in its way. This is one of the best games to come out this year for Nintendo DS.
    Read full review
  2. IGN UK
    80
    It hasn’t toppled the Sacred Stones from its berth as the best game in the series (or, if you’re a purist, Fire Emblem on the GBA), and it feels a bit like a missed opportunity to ally the game that started it all with some of the many incremental improvements that have been introduced since. Still, though, it is a Fire Emblem game, and for some of us, that’s enough.
    Read full review
  3. Pocket Gamer UK
    90
    Fire Emblem's DS debut has been a long time coming but it's unquestionably worth the wait. Shadow Dragon provides astonishingly compulsive turn-based action.
    Read full review
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