Kicking off today’s Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Direct, Nintendo provided a ton of information on the upcoming RPG that’s set to launch in September. In 20 minutes, we learned a lot about the Dagdan Empire and its inhabitants, the Heroic Games, and much more.
Needless to say, today’s Direct was enough to get the internet talking about its place in the timeline and how it connects to previous games.
Fortune’s Weave is set in the Dagdan Empire. Its capital, Dagsion, is the stage for the Heroic Games, an event where warriors come together to battle it out, with the promise that a wish will be granted to the grand victor.
Five years after these games, the shadow of an ancient threat looms over the Empire: the resurrected god Balor threatens to plunge the world into chaos. Faced with this calamity, the four key heroes of the Heroic Games have mysteriously vanished. To stand against the threat, the goddess Sothis entrusts you with a mission of vital importance: to save the world from its imminent annihilation.
The Heroes and Beyond Dagsion
You can play as Cai, Dietrich, Theodora, and Leda, with all four heroes’ stories being available to experience without having to restart the game. Unlike in Three Houses, you can get the best experience by switching between characters to learn their stories.
As the main protagonist, it is up to you to confront the demon god Balor alone, or ask the goddess Fortuna to alter the fate of the four lost heroes. There’s a time-travel mechanic that is central to the narrative experience of Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave.
Between matches, players can explore the city of Dagsion to improve their strategies and build stronger teams. In the Arena, they can train to boost their skills and watch other battles to learn about future opponents. The Shopping Arcade lets players buy weapons and tools or upgrade their gear with collected materials.
At Temple Row, players can volunteer for blessings that help in combat, such as temporary stat boosts or damage reduction. Certification Exams allow players to change a unit’s class if they meet the required skill requirements. Townspeople offer quests with rewards for meeting deadlines, and players can recruit powerful warriors by giving gifts or sharing meals at Inns. Inns are also places to rest, eat, gain experience and materials automatically, and encourage conversations between characters.
Beyond the walls of Dagsion, the world map opens up for exploration. Every adventure consumes time and requires careful planning. Cities outside the capital offer local goods, information, and skirmish battles to gain experience. Each hero possesses unique abilities usable on the world map, and dungeons are scattered across it, providing materials to enhance weapons and other treasures. Enemy encounters in these dungeons trigger turn-based battles separate from normal combat, allowing for attack combos with allies.
Battles and Classes
As with so many Fire Emblem games, you need to approach each battle with a modicum of strategy. Positioning units on the battlefield and managing their movement (shown in blue) and attack ranges (shown in red) are paramount. Once all of a player’s units are activated, it’s the opponent’s turn, and so on, in a series of intense battles. Victory will depend on tactical finesse and team composition.
Unit classes are key to the game, shaping each character’s abilities, weapons, and movement. There are five Beginner Classes, like gladiators who excel with weapons, divine magic users, and Ornius riders known for their speed. Over ten Specialized Classes add more options, including armoured knights with strong defences, winged soldiers who can cross obstacles, and chariots that attack several enemies in a row. Advanced Classes are the most powerful, featuring cataphracts who mix speed and heavy armour, guardians skilled with white magic and spears, and elephant riders who fight from massive mounts.
The game also features a wide range of weapons, like swords, gauntlets that help with dodging, powerful spears for fighting cavalry, axes that hit hard but are less accurate, bows for long-range attacks, and magic that works well against armoured foes or can heal and support teammates. Some weapons are unique, such as swords that summon lightning or gauntlets that fire like guns, adding more ways to play. Where you place your units matters a lot. Attacking from a distance or up close can help you avoid counterattacks. The terrain can give you an edge, and allies standing next to each other can get bonuses. To win, you need to keep checking the situation and adjust your strategy as the battle goes on.
Combat and Blaze Arts
Weapon durability returns, and each move will come with a cost. Some attacks have greater power, longer range, and other effects are all here, and you’ll need to know how and when to use them. There are also Blaze Arts you can use to turn the tide in battle, but they cost health. Cai releases a burst of flames in a wide area; Dietrich’s ink-black cloak can warp him to locations on the battlefield; Leda plays her vihuela to buff allies, summon a powerful monster and more.
You can also use Fortuna’s Blessing to turn back time in battles, and it’ll give you the freedom to rethink your battle strategies.
Time Jump
Fortune’s Weave teased a time jump today, so fans can expect some shenanigans in September. We learn that Eshmel will be a playable character, and it has all to do with time travel, so it seems like Eshmel will be the one returning to the past to interact with the four heroes thanks to Fortuna.
Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave launches on Switch 2 on September 17, 2026.
