Imagine having a son, a son with a really interesting nieche that you kept supporting with all your heart, ever since you taken him home back in 1990.

Your son went well, kept up with their life, and eventually found people that cared for him and keep supporting him.

The problem was.... the talents your son had were considered... too nieche, and unispiring to the rest of the world. And so your son started hesitaing, slowing down his career, and eventually falling apart, crumbling on his feet.

You tried to bring him up with some attempts, reminding him of his glorious days, and the start of it's career... but it wasn't enough.

So.... you decided to try to support him one last time. You create a Swan Song for him, a tribute to celebrate not only what he accomplished... but what he CAn accomplish. A final son in honor of your child... that eventually payed off.

Because of this gem you created, your son is now considered one of the chariot that carries an entire genre in the videogame industry, a king, able to withstand any adversity and keep on going. You saved him.

If you were Intelligent System, Fire Emblem will be that child... and Fire Emblem Awakening will be that swan song that saved him.

The Fire Emblem that saved (or ruined, depending on who you ask) the franchise. Packed with allusions to Fire Emblems past, as well as overt inclusion of older titles' characters with the introduction of the multiverse into Fire Emblem canon, Awakening was meant to be a last nostalgic love letter to the floundering franchise and its loyal fans.
Feels bad rating this low, because on release this was definitely one my favorite games ever. Trying to revisit it was a bad idea, it was hubris to think I could recapture the feelings in my wonderful memories. Unfortunately, the maps are kind of bland without the element of surprise from experiencing them for the first time and especially when compared to other FEs, and it takes a while to get units that stand out as much as Frederick and Robin.