Fire Emblem is a little different compared to other Japanese role-playing games, due to its emphasis on grid-based gameplay and risk-reward management. As a result, many new players who aren't used to the kind of gameplay Fire Emblem offers can find the game a little confusing, regardless of its actual difficulty.
While Fire Emblem games can range from being fairly easy to quite difficult, any game can be tough if the player lacks an understanding of the main mechanics. Here are the best Fire Emblem games that do a good job of teaching the series' gameplay concepts to beginners.
8 Fire Emblem: Path Of Radiance
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance is neither a very difficult entry nor a very easy entry in the series, which makes it a decent first entry into the franchise. The game may lack a casual mode, but it does a good job of showing new players the different kinds of scenarios they can expect when playing through a Fire Emblem game.
Nowadays, Path of Radiance is a very hard-to-find game, and it's unlikely that the game will be ported to modern consoles any time soon. Nevertheless, this is definitely a good game to start the series for those who manage to get their hands on it.
7 Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows Of Valentia
Fire Emblem Gaiden was a wild departure from the main series, and its remake Shadows of Valentia retains those bizarre changes, making it a very different experience for Fire Emblem indeed. Beginners may not necessarily choose to start with this game due to how different it is from other games in the franchise.
However, those who do will find a few mechanics that will ease their playthrough quite a bit, with casual mode being available and Mila's Turnwheel allowing players to redo their turns. While Shadows of Valentia can be difficult in many other ways, these mechanics will keep beginners from getting too frustrated.
6 Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright
Fire Emblem Fates has three different games for players to go through, but Birthright is generally accepted as the easiest, due to lacking the challenge of Conquest and the gimmicky maps of Revelations. While that might not sound appealing to veterans, it does make it a good game for new players to check out.
As a modern Fire Emblem game, Fates has several mechanics that make the game a little easier, such as pair up. Weapons also lack durability, meaning players do not have to worry about managing their resources on top of everything else.
5 Fire Emblem Engage
The newest entry into the series, Fire Emblem Engage, is possibly one of the easiest entries in the series. With powerful Emblem rings that grant a variety of powerful abilities as well as a Time Crystal that allows players to redo their turns infinitely, the difficulty curve in Engage is demonstrably much lower than in other games.
Engage does have difficult stages at times, and its nature as a crossover game can mean beginners may avoid it due to not recognizing any of the callbacks or references to previous games. However, those who do not care about that will find that Fire Emblem Engage is a good game to learn the basics of Fire Emblem.
4 Fire Emblem Three Houses
The incredibly popular Three Houses features a lot of gameplay changes that radically redefine the concept of Fire Emblem. With elements inspired by Persona, the lack of a weapon triangle, and the addition of giant monsters and battalions, it may seem odd to recommend Three Houses to beginners.
Nevertheless, Three Houses is a great game to check out for those who are starting out Fire Emblem. With its lower difficulty curve, simpler map design, and easily customizable roster, most players will find themselves getting used to Fire Emblem's gameplay very quickly.
3 Fire Emblem Awakening
Fire Emblem Awakening is one of the most popular entries in the series and is most likely the main reason for the series' current popularity. It popularized the use of casual mode (though it was not the first to do it), and its melding of various game mechanics from all over the series gave it a lot of complexity.
Beginners may find that Awakening is not nearly as easy as some of the other games on this list. However, Awakening is a great game for beginners since it offers a snapshot of the various mechanics that appear throughout the Fire Emblem series.
2 Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is quite similar to Fire Emblem Awakening, with both featuring an overworld allowing players to find random battles to their satisfaction. In comparison, however, The Sacred Stones is much easier than Awakening, even though it lacks the option to use casual mode.
The Sacred Stones is a fairly short game that can be beaten even without tackling the optional towers or fighting the random battles that frequently appear on the overworld. With powerful characters like Seth and Gerik on the squad, it's almost surprising how easy it is to blow through some of these stages.
1 Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade
Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade, known only as Fire Emblem in the west, was the first Fire Emblem game to ever be localized in English. Because of that, it was credited with introducing the concept and mechanics behind Fire Emblem's gameplay in mind.
The game provides a rare example of a tutorial campaign in Lyn's story, which guides the player through ten chapters within which the game mechanics and philosophy of Fire Emblem are thoroughly explained. Despite the game's lack of grindable battles and casual mode, Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade is easily the most accessible game for beginners.