Dark Deity is the next Switch Tactics RPG for Fire Emblem fans

When I saw Dark Deity appears during the endless influx of Gamescom streams, I wrote it down as a competent looking but somewhat uninspired turn-based RPG. Well, here’s an interesting thing I learned today: Dark Deity is in fact a game of tactics. And based on the latest trailers, it looks perfect for the Switch. See for yourself:

Before asking, yes, for lunch I ate my own words. I will also have my eyes checked.

Dark Deity gained moderate attention earlier this year thanks to a buzzing Kickstarter which promised a strategy RPG in the vein of classics like Fire emblem and Final Fantasy Tactics. The campaign was in all respects a success. Funders exceeded the goal six times, donating over $ 74,000 towards a goal of $ 12,000. Approximately 1,500 contributors have contributed to the level that your name appears in the credits. So expect a long final crawl.

Earlier this summer, Dark Deity released by surprise on Steam, where it has since racked up over 1,000 “mostly positive” reviews. Last week, during a burst of news from Gamescom, developer Sword & Ax noted it would arrive on Switch next year.

KotakuEthan Gach, who played it a bit on PC, told me that Dark Deity “Knows the feel of the old school Fire emblem fight so far. This is what I love to hear.

On closer inspection, it is clear that Dark Deity oozes Fire emblem in good faith. There are an impressive number of classes on display, with over 50 – including traditional disciplines like “archer” and “duelist” as well as more esoteric options like “surge” and “stalker” – to choose from. Maps are displayed from an aerial perspective, more like Fire emblem games of past generations that the isometric-ish approaching in 2019 Three houses. The battles are fought in 2D, in beautiful and distinctive pixel art. You can also bond between characters over time and progress through those ranks using a letter rating system, just like Fire emblem.

But it’s also – and I’m sorry to smear the good name of Fire emblem with a buzzword — about the ~ vibes ~. The drawings of the characters! The great crescendos! I mean, come on, there are characters named Vesta and Garrick and Alden! These are basically just names taken from the first edition of Garreg Mach’s 100,001 Best Baby Names tome.

Although I’m generally a fan of recent Fire emblem games, I have a serious penchant for the flagship Switch series release, Fire Emblem: Three Houses. It’s not just because it’s an all-time tactics game.

In 2019, shortly after Three houses went out, a few friends and I took a trip to Greece, where part of my family lives. While I’ve obviously done typical vacation things – like swimming, dancing, roaming the islands, and gulping down enough ouzo that the detail of a specific amount here gets me kicked out of place – much of this trip is colored by Fire Emblem: Three Houses. I played it on the plane. I’ve played it on some of the longer ferry trips. During an apocalyptic hangover, I spent most of an afternoon curled up in the hotel’s crisp air conditioning, relaxing with Claude and the rest of the Golden Deer. On the flight home, I experienced the big twist of the game. I thought I would be back soon enough, because, you know, family.

Then the world went to shit.

I haven’t been back since. I have not seen these family members since.

To this day, even though I’m not on the road and have easy access to Switch docks and HDTVs, I’m still playing Three houses portable. It’s a little comfort. Games, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, can be as buoyant as a solid novel or movie. Even if only through the faint strand of reminiscence, Three houses reminds me of better days. So yeah I can’t wait to play another one Fire emblem on Switzerlandtch — or at least something like that.