Hands on with Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon

As the saying goes, there's always smoke before fire. Well, the smoke has been hanging in the air for a few years now in anticipation of the Fire Emblem series sparking a new iteration on DS. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon blazes onto the handheld after quite a long wait, yet our hands on with the game proves that the wait was definitely worth it.

Having never before seen a release outside Japan, Shadow Dragon is getting a complete makeover from graphics to gameplay with an array of welcome additions that promise to bring the series up to speed. A new set of prologue missions kick off Prince Marth's adventure, remade from the NES classic. These tutorial chapters are intended to ease you into the tough tactical gameplay, which has been improved in the move to DS.

The single-player campaign gives you control over Marth and an army of forces seeking to beat back the king of the dragonkin Medeus. Each chapter brings you a new battle scenario in which you take turns moving units on the battlefield and attacking enemies. Battles occur in phases, so instead of managing units according to individual turns you direct all units during a single, massive turn. It ratchets up the difficulty, yet makes it that much more satisfying when you're able seize victory.

This isn't anything new. The series has always retained this simple tactical structure. Moving to DS, however, Shadow Dragon incorporates a number of intuitive features including stylus controls and information panels on the top screen. Directing units in battle is a breeze thanks to spot-on touch controls enabling easy movement of units with a couple of taps. Information panels on the top screen give you access to vital statistics related to your units, battle condition, and terrain.

Slick controls and plenty of information at your fingertips doesn't exactly make the game easier. On the contrary, it gives you the ability to tap into a greater range of tactics. Shadow Dragon is a tough game, as we discovered in losing a challenging battle midway through the campaign. Learning how to utilise each character class - knight, mage, archer, lancer, healer - definitely helps. Six levels of difficulty provide options for setting the appropriate challenge from normal all the way to aptly named Merciless mode.

No matter how difficult the campaign may seem, the greatest opponents are certain to be online. Shadow Dragon supports head-to-head battles via Nintendo WiFi Connection, as well as local matches. Voice chat allows you to communicate (or trash talk) while squaring five of your units against a buddy's own handful. If you don't have enough units to play a match or you have weaker ones, an inventive borrowing feature allows units to be loaned to you for combat. What's great is that any experienced earned with your friends' units is yours to keep. An online store also enables you to purchase items with gold, offering more incentive for heading online.

Shadow Dragon may only be a remake, but the wealth of features being added has our attention. Multiplayer truly exceeds our expectations with voice chat, unit loans, and a full online shop. We're concerned about the difficulty, although the settings could be a work around. We'll know more definitively after the game ships shortly after the beginning of the new year.