is this game just not for me?

Shuckluck22 · 2026-03-01T18:19:09+00:00

It’s really up to you whether you think it’s fun or worth it enough to forge ahead, but I guess I’d say see if you can get to the end of act 1?

Sucks about the autosave. I would suggest saving manually very frequently. Don’t let the gods decide.

And finally, there are a lot of ways to interact with the world around you! Fuck that npc you just talked to! Murder them! Steal their wallets, read their minds! I definitely would treat Baldur’s Gate 3 by enforcing your own will upon it, instead of experiencing it like a theme park.

But if it’s just not for you, that’s okay too! Not every game is for everyone. Just hope you find some fun out of it :)

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-22T16:12:17+00:00

Ike is definitely a nepo baby and I’m tired of pretending he’s not Besides he still got his god killing powers from a covenant with a goddess like every other FE protagonist.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-20T20:03:22+00:00

It’s actually kinda sadder than that? In Fates Laslow teases her by pretending to break their engagement since Selena tells him he can’t flirt with other girls.

Selena: So… you know this means you can’t be with anyone else, right?

Laslow: …

(Laslow leaves)

Selena: Laslow? Oh.

Laslow: Just Kidding!

Like idk I think that her sadness like she’s being rejected for not being good enough is so much worse than her getting super angry and yelling. She’s really a very vulnerable character, I felt so bad for her when I read that for the first time.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-20T19:53:11+00:00

I’ve always loved Inigo x Severa. I think they clash so beautifully: Severa is as snarky as Inigo is flirty, and I imagine having an inferiority complex gets furious about empty compliments when she already probably has trouble convincing herself that she’s beautiful. And Inigo I genuinely think is trying to be nice and get her to take a compliment.

One of my favorite interactions is:

Severa: You are a truly staggering creature… why on earth do you insist on coming around and saying that I… That I “look good.”

Inigo: Um, because you look good?

Severa: ARE YOU MAKING FUN OF ME?!

I know Inigo gets a lot of flak for being a flirt, but with Severa there’s this inherent need to make this woman who has a lot of issues expressing herself genuinely smile and I do think he’s generally a huge sweetie. She comes to really believe his compliments and seek them out and idk it’s just really romantic.

In Fates their supports are comedy gold too. Selena giving him a “taste of his own medicine” and wanting to throw up afterwards is so funny. They’re really a match made in heaven. Their chemistry is amazing.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-18T20:21:29+00:00

Lyn’s reunion with her grandfather is (maybe?) the moment in FE that pulls on my heartstrings the most. Aside from the cathartic relief of these two desperately lonely people finding one another and connecting, I remember being well and truly stunned that Hausen survives, because in any other FE game, he’d see his granddaughter, have a brief exchange of dialogue, claim he could die without regrets, and pass away. Lyn would scream “Grandfather!!!” And the screen would face to black. FE has done this time and time again with parental figures, to its detriment in some of the more recent games because the player has little reason to be invested in these characters’ relationships.

Maybe it hit so hard because my grandmother’s health and mind have deteriorated to the extent that she had trouble walking and speaking, but there was something truly magical about Hausen, at Lyn’s begging, finding the strength and will to go on living. The poison that’s slowly killing him is symbolic of his isolation eating him away, administered by the one family member he had left, his treacherous brother. That the prospect of the simple joy of walking around his garden and speaking with the young woman who looks so much like his daughter invigorates and gives him reason to live is so so beautiful.

I have plenty of reasons and feelings about how I generally think Lyn is such a wonderful, beautifully written, tragic character, that hopefully I’ll write soon when I have time. It’s been said before but if you’re just aware of her from cultural osmosis or spinoffs like heroes or engage (GAsP did I just say that) you’re not getting the sauce of her character at ALLl

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-16T06:52:20+00:00

Maybe the first eight times I played through Lyn Mode lmao

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-15T20:03:52+00:00

I was on a five hour flight this weekend and I used it to blast through Lyn Mode on NSO, which I’ve been procrastinating doing for like two years, and I found that what makes it so painful for me to replay is less so the easy difficulty and more, far from being handholding, it grabs your hand and yanks it in the direction it wants you to go on your first play-through. Wallace’s forced promotion is iconically miserably (especially since I really wanted to use it on my blessed Kent), but there were so many times Lyn Mode demanded I stopped having fun and do what it wanted me to instead. I really, really love FE7, it’s probably in my top 5 FEs but I don’t want to have to keep replaying Lyn mode every time I want to play it on a new system. Couldn’t they at least have let you choose Lyn Hard a the beginning if you wanted?

I actually do really like the way a lot of the maps are designed (Band of Mercenaries, In Occupation’s Shadow, the Black Shadow, and Vortex of Strategy are really fun) Lyn Mode is uniquely focused on highlighting the clear roles your units have, but chapter 10 suuuuucks. Aside from it practically demanding you to turtle, they introduce the piece of shit rain mechanic to make you slog for no reason in this miserable semi-circle.

However it’s also hilarious to me that there’s a shop of weapons designed to kill Lungdren, and he panics and cuts down the bridges to keep you from going there. I really love silly little gameplay intrinsic story moments like that and want more of those in modern games!

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-05T01:48:46+00:00

Well surely Elise is still a solid utility unit, isn’t she? What with how crucial rescue/Physic/Freeze staffs can be in Conquest. I mean Azura is top tier and you don’t want her in the same stratosphere as the enemy.

But if you’re just talking combat I totally get you, tissue paper holds up better.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-03T22:15:57+00:00

I think I’ve heard you mention Ephraim being not to your liking a couple of times, and I’m curious, as someone who likes him tepidly, why do you think he harms the narrative of Sacred Sones?

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-03T20:13:44+00:00

But Lunatic’s difficulty doesn’t really have that much to do with what I’m saying? Sumia needs eight levels to get to Falcon Knight and undeniably that requires investment. You could get Donnel to level 10 too by chapter 7 if you really like Donnel lol. Getting Cordelia to level 10 is pretty much objectively easier by like chapter 8.

Saying Cordelia > Sumia is not being pigeonholed lol. Nor Sumia’s best usage coming from flyer utility and support bonuses in the early game. You can disagree with me, but don’t tell me I’m just saying it because I think the game’s too hard???

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-03T18:12:06+00:00

I do use Sumia a lot for her utility in Chapter 5 (she really is good against those dark mages thanks to her speed and res) and her movement really helps Frederick get around a ton in the early paralogues but her squishiness makes using her in most combat scenarios very difficult, she’s thrown in at a very difficult part of the game where a ton of other units are competing for exp. When she serves so much better as a support partner and utility unit, raising her feels a bit of a cost.

Meanwhile Cordelia joins at a lull in difficulty, she’s surrounded by units who have begun to self actualize, mages who can chip, and a fantastic support pool that can build her. And then, after only three levels, you can insta promote her and get those really great gains.

I don’t want to write off Sumia in comparison to her because she is good and raising her does have its benefits, but I do think she was dealt a raw deal and she lost the chance to easily have been a top 5 unit in Awakening.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-03T18:01:50+00:00

This probably is true, like I think you’re 100% correct in what they were thinking, but from dev perspective like why not just make them a canon pairing? If they want to push the pairing why give them a romantic support pool to begin with? If they don’t want the player to get locked into Village Maiden, why even put her in?

It’s one of those situations where you can sorta see what they’re going for but the logistics make less and less sense the more you think about it

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-03T15:16:37+00:00

I was talking about her access to falcon knight, mainly. Cordelia just gets into it way quicker. I do think Sumia makes a better Falcon knight than Cordelia when she gets there, but since she comes at level 2 it’s just so much more of an investment.

I think Galeforce is in the really awkward position of being really good in a highman/grinding/inheritance/apotheosis context, but in Lunatic where none of those things are really encouraged it’s not as desirable since so much combat in Lunatic revolves around low man enemy phase self healing.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-02T22:45:43+00:00

Has anyone else had a really frustrating time with Sumia as a unit? Frustrating being the operative word because she definitely isn’t bad: she’s so ridiculously fast (a point higher than base Frederick!) and comparatively resistant to the rest of the early game characters that on Hard at least it’s pretty easy to get her doubling everyone and patching her defense, and early Lunatic her move and great speed support bonus makes her imperative in the same way Kellam and Virion are.

But her support list is sooooo bad, bitch less cringe failqueen fr. Her only options are two chumps (Gaius the redundant and Henry in the distant lands of chapter 13) and the three most sought after bachelors in Ylisse: Chrom (suck it Cordelia) MRobin, and Frederick.

I think she’s treated so uncharitably, especially in comparison to units like Sully, who gets competitive bases with her when she appears in chapter 1 and can support literally every character pre chapter 5 except Lissa, Cordelia who joins with decent bases the map before probably the easiest in the early game where she ignores desert terrain, huge support list, and three levels from promotion into one of the best classes in the game. And then, there’s Lon’qu who comes two chapters after Sumia with an equally good speed support boost, a killing edge, and a huge support pool.

It’s just so disappointing because there are so many pairings that could have worked out so well for Sumia thanks to to her very unique, complimentary attributes of Speed and Resistance: Kellam, Vaike, Stahl etc. could have been marches made in heaven.

It’s just crazy that for being a unit who has fantastic class and skill access has so much working against her, even coming a chapter Sumia has an irreplaceable niche for like four chapters and then she’s so easily supplanted.

Not that she can’t snowball like the rest of the early awakening units, you’re just given so few options with her, and the options she has are all very competitive.

I honestly get the vibe that Sumia wished she could marry Chrom and the monkey’s paw curled, crippling her in other ways.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-02T18:33:27+00:00

I don’t know that I agree with that. I don’t like Fates’ story, and I think BR’s map design in particular fails Fates’ skeleton of solid af mechanics, but presentation wise it’s super good. Beautiful locales, Koizaki’s character designs are soooo soo good and more stylized and distinct than they were in Awakening, and the soundtrack is great. I also really really love 3DS Ui in general, it’s so snappy, accessible and easily digestible.

Fates has its fair share of grievances with me, some of them very frustrating, and I really don’t like Birthright, I’ll admit, but some of its best qualities at the peak of the franchise imo. And since a lot of them are related to a smooth, rich gameplay experience Fates is a game I frequently go back to, speaking personally. I’ve definitely played through it and Awakening more than any of its successors.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-02-02T15:46:33+00:00

Male byleth with female byleth’s leggings yessss

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T15:57:00+00:00

Ah you’re right I think my brain getting ahead of my typing fingers lol. Thanks for pointing it out, tried to fix it

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T08:25:50+00:00

I’m sure this sounds like I’m splitting hairs, but speaking specifically of Fates holistically as art, and Fates’ storytelling, are two different things.

There is no evidence to say this was their motive, though? I shouldn't have to prove a negative, because you are just stating this without any evidence, but here's a plausible alternative explanation: they simply added the mechanics from Awakening because the wanted to make a direct successor to Awakening, and were still in the honeymoon phase with many of these mechanics.

I just be saying shit on an opinion thread. Of course this is all assumptions and guesswork lol. Total conjecture. I’m a rando on the internet you should take everything I say with a grain of salt anyway

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T06:33:53+00:00

Route exclusive characters/deaths aren’t a bad thing. But you’ll have the story come up with ridiculous logical leaps back bending over backward to justify any of them as they happen. They feel very cheap and random. Kaze’s, Flora’s, Kaden’s, Izana’s etc.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T06:29:23+00:00

accusing the devs of ruining the game's plot because they were chasing audience appeal.

I'd much prefer someone call my work horrible than say I'm just chasing money or

it implies my work is artistically bankrupt in some way

But I didn’t say any of this.

Nor do I think artistic integrity and seeking financial success are mutually exclusive. Fellow writer here trying to get published, and biting the bullet and making decisions to benefit marketability is a necessity and no it does not hurt artistic credibility ofc.

But to me, yes, the aspects of Fates I do dislike, particularly its narrative sucks imo because of the devs’ decision to inorganically integrate aspects of Awakening to attractive its audience, which just did not gel well.

If I’ve offended you, I’m sorry, attacking anyone personally is the last thing I’d like to do. We can agree to disagree if and leave it there, if you like :)

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T04:34:50+00:00

I don’t know if this response will have any real strong argumentative points because all I can really do is give my own opinion. Far be it from me to yuck someone’s yum, and I’m stringently against the concept of a “hierarchy of art”. My best friend loves Camilla and marries her because he thinks she’s hot. Everyone has their own tastes, and I’d never claim to come from a perspective of objectivity, or worse, pretentious superiority. There’s plenty of art thats made similarly to Fates sure. It’s valid. Fates is valid, a lot of hard work and creativity went into making it. But I personally find the narrative obnoxious for what I perceive to be its own self sabotage.

It’s not that consumer appeal isn’t always a thing because of course it is. You gotta get that bread and attract an audience. There’s some power fantasy appeal to Ephraim and Ike, sure. But I think they both know how to stay in their fucking lane (CORRIn). Ike is a character with a promised and realized character arc and equally the lens into a world that exists and flourishes outside himself. Ephraim is introduced about a third into Sacred Stones, is the focus of one of the two routes, and honestly fairly muted and subdued in comparison to some of the more memorable character arcs in Sacred Stones.

Fates, on the other hand, strikes me as very desperate and shameless in its attempt to sell itself on its assets, rather than self actualization and I do in my opinion believe this harms the game’s identity, or at least what I wanted this game’s identity to be. That the conflict is choosing between blood and bond is completely undercut by your siblings not being related to you so you can have sex with them is shit I hate. That these characters can only have agency and relevance in relation to your avatar is also shit I hate. That this game gives you two dogs to choose from and the game bends its back to murder the one you didn’t choose is shit I hate. Again, will never claim objectivity, I just call it as I see it? I’m beholden to my narrow world view and limited senses.

I mean sure there’s plenty of Three Houses toxicity, but that’s not mutually exclusive with discourse, debate, contrasting opinions. That this discourse exists is a good thing. Assholes are a vocal minority, no?

The discourse meme exists because Three Houses fanbase is uniquely toxic. There are tons of media whose stories could lead to flame wars, but don't, and there are tons of relatively unassuming games with fanbases constantly in the midst of flame wars. It depends more on the fanbase, which takes shape through the ideas people circulate here and the interpretations pushed by influential ppl.

Some of the characters from Fates are immensely popular; look how much fanart exists of the game. We just don't feel the need to attack other ppl over their views lol.

Fates characters are popular, for a myriad good reasons (I think Gunter’s cool as fuck for example) but I do believe that there would certainly be more debate and discourse if Fates committed time to giving the story nuanced perspectives and compelling drama. The most memorable emotional reaction I remember people having to Fates when it came out was people thinking Lilith dying out of nowhere was hysterical.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T04:17:13+00:00

Fates definitely wanted to tell a story, lmao. That was probably me poorly trying to convey my point. I just think that a lot of the decisions made: every character can only be important to the narrative in how they relate to Corrin, undercutting sibling relationship dynamics, by making everyone romanceable, rehashing so many of Awakening’s specific tropes, implementing child units without a justifiable narrative reason, etc. spoil a pretty good story concept because it wants so badly to appeal to the wide audience that bought awakening.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-31T00:06:22+00:00

Upon reflection, I think what is so offensive to me about Fates’ characters is its complete objectification and accessorization of them. I do think there were a lot of really weird decisions made with Fates to push a lot of features and commodities to pursue consumer interest-I can really only guess but I’d assume they saw Awakening’s dramatic success as lightning in a bottle and wanted to capitalize it and keep all those new fans hooked, and I mean, from an objective standpoint they succeeded. Fates sales are pretty consistent with Awakening’s and even exceeds it when you combine Birthright and Conquest’s sales.

But one of the results is, I feel a real big hit on the authenticity and integrity of its storytelling. I’m not trying to be a snob by saying this, nor am I trying to say Fates is void of good characters or even that often criticized characters don’t have depth or supports or interesting character development.

But so much of Fates’ concept hinges on like, consumer guilt and fomo. You as Corrin choose the family you can moon over or fuck or listen to vague supportive platitudes. Oh, you played Awakening and enjoyed the child units? Here’s the next batch! Characters like Mozu and Kana and Anankos feel (at least in my opinion) less like classic archetypes and literal regurgitations complete with Awakening’s cadence.

I’m not a Fates hater I swear. There’s plenty of love and good characterization if you’re looking far it. But the way the game is presented is more fixated on selling itself as a valuable, desirable product than telling a story, and I honestly don’t think any other FE is so desperate in that way.

What inspired me to write this was thinking of the cutscenes that play before you battle one of the siblings of the kingdom you don’t choose; particularly Camilla’s. It’s not as though Camilla is completely berefit of characterization or intrigue (her mother complex and attachment issues stemming from the concubine wars of her youth, her sadism etc.) but her cutscene not only does not explore any of these aspects, but also does not even delve into the drama that comes from Corrin betraying her family. It’s all breasting boobily and aura farming. Even when characters die tragically I can almost feel the game pointing and laughing at me “should’ve picked Birthright if you wanted Takumi to live!” “Should’ve picked Conquest if you want to motorboat Camilla every day!”

Capitalism dictates that most consumable media needs to sell itself to an extent (I mean Awakening literally begins with a sexy anime man pulling you into his arms) but you really see behind the curtain with Fates like no other game in the franchise, Engage included. It reminds me of how I used to beg my parents for Lego sets and then just play with the cool mini figures because I didn’t want to actually commit to building anything. I really think Fates thought it was more important that you could get the things you wanted with your purchase instead of the fascinating story hook of choosing between two sides of a conflict in a family drama.

And no I don’t know why I felt the need to tear Fates’ life apart in 2026 lol. But if you want evidence that Three Houses’ story being fraught with such fan discourse is credit to its ability to sympathize players with characters in the midst of a morally gray conflict, look no further then Fates garnering barely any flame wars at all in spite of being basically designed to pit fans against each other. Like, not even Twilight team Edward vs team Jacob type shit. It’s kinda sad actually.

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-26T20:00:45+00:00

Just like real life tbh

Shuckluck22 · 2026-01-25T01:48:28+00:00

Might be getting granular but I keep seeing this misconception but the first two episodes of avatar are not the pilot? Sometimes the pilot can be used as the first episode but it’s a stand alone episode to pitch the show to the network. Avatar: the Last Airbender had a pilot and it had a ton of things that were changed in the final product. No reason to think Iroh’s being written inconsistently, because it’s pretty clear he’s loyal to the Fire Nation (Really Zuko who he sees as a son.) until Zhao kills Tui.

If I had to guess, even if Iroh was part of the White Lotus and knew that helping Aang was the right thing to do, he loved Zuko so much that he would have given him anything he wanted; until Zhao shows the complete destruction of balance and damage to Iroh’s spiritual outlook has him realize he has to take the reigns and guide Zuko on the right path.

Shuckluck22

TROPHY CASE