Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is a tactical role-playing game developed by Intelligent Systems and Koei Tecmo, and published by Nintendo. It is the sixteenth installment for the Fire Emblem franchise. It will be released for the Nintendo Switch on July 26, 2019.

Setting
The game takes place on the continent of Fódlan. The landmass is divided into three rival nations who are now at peace: the Adrestian Empire to the southwest, the Holy Kingdom of Faerghus to the north, and the Leicester Alliance to the east. At the center of the continent is the Garreg Mach Monastery, a neutral territory home to both the Church of Seiros and the Officer's Academy. The game's "Three Houses" refer to the three noble houses of the academy, the Black Eagles, the Blue Lions, and the Golden Deer, each populated with students from the three main nations.

The game is set during two time periods. The first is during the characters' time as students at the Officer's Academy. The story then jumps five years into the future to a time of a promised reunion between the three house leaders, only for their respective nations to now be seemingly at war with each other.

Development
On January 18, 2017, the then unnamed sixteenth Fire Emblem game was announced briefly in a special Fire Emblem Nintendo Direct without any footage, and with an estimated release in 2018. On June 12, 2018, the first gameplay trailer debuted during the E3 2018 Nintendo Direct video presentation, and the game's title, Fire Emblem: Three Houses was revealed. The estimated release date was also updated to Spring 2019. Three Houses will be the first Fire Emblem title in over a decade to release on a Nintendo home console since Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn released for the Wii in 2008.

The E3 trailer revealed that the game will feature some manner of free-roaming exploration outside of combat, expanding on the My Castle portions of Fire Emblem Fates and the dungeons of Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia. Cutscenes in the game are depicted in outlined CG animation, also like Shadows of Valentia, giving off an illusion of hand-drawn 2D animation. The tactical gameplay, however, is depicted entirely with polygonal models, as in Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn.

During a Nintendo Direct on February 13, 2019 new information on Three Houses was released. The trailer stated that the central character Byleth will act as a teacher to one of the three houses of the Officer's Academy. The plot will in part focus on Byleth's connection to a mysterious figure known as Sothis. The game introduces many new gameplay mechanics and features, as listed below. During the Nintendo Direct, it was also announced that the date for Three Houses was pushed to July 26, 2019.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is being developed with assistance from Koei Tecmo. The company had previously partnered with Intelligent Systems on Fire Emblem Warriors. The character designer for Three Houses is illustrator Chinatsu Kurahana.

Gameplay
Three Houses features a revamped battle menu with new options not found in previous entries. "Attack" and "Magic" are now separate command actions, alongside "Combat Arts" and a new "Formation" command.

Returning Features

 * For the fifth time in the main series, Three Houses features a player stand-in character, Byleth.
 * This is also the second time the player stand-in is also the main character, following Corrin.
 * While absent in the past two titles, Weapon Durability returns in Three Houses.
 * Weapon Arts, a battle mechanic introduced in Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, also makes a return.
 * Divine Pulse serves as the Three Houses version of Mila's Turnwheel.
 * Also similar to Shadows of Valentia, Three Houses does not feature the Weapon Triangle.
 * Expanding on the free-roaming exploration mechanics of My Castle in Fates and the dungeons in Shadows of Valentia, the player can freely roam Garreg Mach Monastery, interact with NPCs, and take part in side-activities and events.
 * Dismounting returns.
 * Supports are featured and romance options are possible, however this can only occur after the five year time-skip.
 * Three Houses will have dual audio features, supporting both the Japanese and English voice cast.
 * Paralogue chapters are featured, containing side stories that grant rewards, but ultimately does not affect the plot of the game as a whole.
 * All playable characters have an exclusive Personal Skill similar to the playable cast of Fates.
 * Returning classes include Mercenary, Thief, Knight, Cavalier, Brigand, Archer, Mage, Priest, Myrmidon, Soldier, Fighter, Monk, Wyvern Rider, Pegasus Knight and Lord.

New Features

 * There is an in-game calendar divided into twelve seasons that correspond to months that progresses day-by-day with the narrative. Certain events and activities take place on specific calendar days.
 * There is a gauge tied to Byleth that determines how many activities they can take part in during a single day.
 * Characters can change into a variety of classes, no longer restricted to a set for each character, though certain classes are gender-restricted.
 * Characters must pass Certification Exams in order to reclass.
 * Once a character has passed an exam they can change into that class at any time without the need of another item.
 * Characters learn a variety of weapon types through Tutoring, increasing their skills with Weapons, Magic, Healing, and even special unit types like Cavalry, Armored, and Flying
 * A new weapon type called Gauntlets, which focuses on fist weapons. This weapon class can only be wielded by non-mounted units.
 * New classes include Noble and Commoner.
 * Classes do not restrict weapon usage, with some exceptions.
 * Magic is restricted to some classes, and mounted units are unable to use Fighting weapons.
 * The overhead battlefield camera can be zoomed in, and when viewed in close, individual characters are accompanied by battalions of soldiers.
 * These new soldier battalions are a part of gameplay, as they can be called upon for certain attacks. In addition to character level and weapon level, it is also possible to earn experience toward the character's assigned battalion.
 * Red "aggro lines" appear as part of the battle UI, indicating an enemy's current intended target on their next turn.
 * There are new side-activities to take part in, including a fishing minigame.
 * Magic has a set number of usages per battle and does not use Weapon Durability as in most previous titles or a certain amount of HP as in Gaiden and its remake.
 * The Skill stat has been renamed Dexterity and a new stat, Charm, has been added.
 * A feature called Amiibo Gazebo has been confirmed, though its functions are currently unknown.

Characters

 * See main article: List of characters in Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Classes

 * See main article: List of classes in Fire Emblem: Three Houses

New classes include:
 * Noble
 * Commoner
 * Brawler

North America “Seasons of Warfare Edition”

 * Copy of Fire Emblem: Three Houses
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses Sound Selection CD
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses Art Book
 * Steelbook
 * 2020 Calendar

Europe Limited Edition

 * Copy of Fire Emblem: Three Houses
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses Sound Selection USB stick
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses pin badge set
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses Art Book
 * Steelbook

Japan “Fodlan Collection”

 * Copy of Fire Emblem: Three Houses
 * Soundtrack CD (33 songs)
 * Steelbook
 * Fire Emblem: Three Houses Art Book

Voice Cast
See: List of Voice Actors in Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Trivia

 * The Japanese title is a reference to a Chinese poem of the same name, which was adopted in Japanese culture. The poem uses the analogy of snow, the moon, and flowers to represent winter, autumn, and spring, respectively. (See the full explanation)
 * Three Houses is the first main series Fire Emblem game to be simultaneously released worldwide at the same time.
 * The Officer's Academy school chime is the opening notes of the Fire Emblem theme.
 * Three Houses is the third Fire Emblem game to use 3D character models instead of sprite artwork on the gameplay maps. The previous games were Path of Radiance and Radiant Dawn.
 * This is the third main Fire Emblem game to have its English voice acting recorded by Cup of Tea Productions, after Awakening and Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.
 * This also will be the second main Fire Emblem game to have full voice acting outside the FMV cutscenes, the first being Echoes: Shadows of Valentia.