Fire Emblem: Three Houses - Cindered Shadows

Overall this feels more in line with earlier entries in the series, stripping away most of the exciting newer features demonstrated in the original release. This makes for an experience that’s enjoyable but also rather unsurprising and straightforward. As far as story expansions go though, Cindered Shadows will likely have you hooked on Fire Emblem once again. It’s just hard not to be a little disappointed given how excellent Fire Emblem: Three Houses was.

Barring some iffy integration and the fact that new classes are locked behind DLC, Cindered Shadows and the Three House expansion pass are completely worth it. Though short, the story is a chance to learn more about some vital players in the main game and get a new look at the world itself. The combat is the best Fire Emblem combat in years, and you get some very good carryovers into the main game that make it worth going back yet again to re-shape the world.

Cindered Shadows truly takes the playstyle of pre-Awakening Fire Emblem: map after map, limited things to do to prep, and forcing budgeting for most of the time. The maps themselves are about the same difficulty as about a chapter from 17 to 20 in the base game, but without the backup of possibly having higher-end classes.

In this conclusion to Fire Emblem: Three Houses' Expansion Pass, you can expect great new characters and more interesting stories to explore, this time within the Abyss. Some maps can repeat and it's exceptionally difficult, but it's a worthy closing.

Fire Emblem DLC rarely comes in at a cheap price, and this is no different, and, disappointingly, this recycles existing maps, has very little in the customisation department, and removes many of the features that made Three Houses popular in the first place. There doesn't seem to be enough substance in this eight-to-ten-hour journey to really strongly recommend this as a must have, but for those itching to add to their Fire Emblem experience, will manage to enjoy this, even if it is a bit pricey.

Three Houses was not the reinvention of the Fire Emblem formula we had been hoping for, but it was still a solid, enjoyable game, for both fans of the franchise and strategy games in general. And as it turns out it’s also proof that Nintendo’s push for expansion passes for every game is something to be welcomed more than feared.