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The fantastic portable series Fire Emblem has finally made it to the consoles with Path of Radiance for the Gamecube. It brings almost every element of the previous games to the 128-bit world, and it certainly will seem familiar for fans. This is good news and bad news, as it's essentially the same game, only viewed on a TV screen and glossed over with better graphics (although not nearly as improved as they could have been). While it's still a great strategy-RPG, it doesn't seem to change the tried-and-true formula enough.

If you're not a fan of reading, don't pick up PoR. Between each chapter, you can expect to read through a lengthy series of dialogue, and there's not much in the visual sense. Rather than full cutscenes, it simply features 2D representations of the characters involved, along with their dialogue (without voice-overs). These conversations are generally not crucial towards gameplay, and could technically be skipped, but I'd advise against it. It's in these between-mission segments that you really get a feel for your party members' individual motives and personalities. Some are noble and brave, some have dark pasts, and others are simply mercenaries that want to get paid. Reading through this dialogue does a lot to make it seem like they're not just polygons on a grid once you get into gameplay.

Character development also serves a second important role in Path of Radiance. Like previous entries in the series, deaths are permanent. This means that when the level 20 archer that you've used so much since the beginning of the game dies:.he's gone for good. It really is a big moment when something like this happens, because it throws away hours of levelling up and forces you to change your entire strategy. Obviously, if you want to be cheap, you can always abandon the mission and restart. I never did this, because I feel it really takes away one of the games' most unique aspects. Sure, it can be a huge blow to your party, but playing this way makes it far more tense and exciting in battle.

For those unfamiliar with Fire Emblem's gameplay style, it's a strategy RPG in much the same vein as Advance Wars. Only in this, it's individual warriors instead of forces that you're moving around the map. There are several different classes of units, such as knights, paladins, rangers, snipers, and mages. Outside of these basic units, there is also the new Laguz race, which are man/beast hybrids that change back and forth throughout the duration of battle.

Like Advance Wars, a large part of the strategy is picking which unit is best to attack which. In this game (like the others), swords are greater than axes, axes are better than lances, and lances are better than swords. Magic is handled in much the same way, with the 'Trinity of Magic' being Fire > Wind > Thunder > Fire. Light magic is separate from this trinity. Combat is divided between 'player phases' and 'enemy phases', which means you get to move every once of your units, followed by the enemy doing the same.

Unfortunately, the remaining HP of an enemy character has no bearing on how much damage they'll inflict. In Advance Wars, if you knocked a tank group down to 1 unit, they'd do very little damage. In Path of Radiance, if you knock an enemy down to 1 HP, they'll still do the same amount of damage that they would if they had 40 HP. This is probably my main complaint with the combat system, and it can lead to some very frustrating situations.

Make no mistake about it, PoR is a difficult game that can't be beaten without using a great deal of strategy. It's not just a matter of choosing units, it's a matter of when to move them, which order to use them in, and when to use items. Items can be obtained from enemies, or by visiting neutral or friendly homes on the battlefield. Mounted units such as horses and pegasi can be especially useful, as they can move after they attack. With this, it's possible to employ a 'stick and move' strategy against dangerous enemies. On some maps, ballistas are available to attack enemies from afar. Staying away from enemies by using ballistas, archers, mages, and snipers is a key strategy for keeping your units alive.

Battle objectives are varied, and aren't always of the 'kill all the enemies' variety. Some maps force you to be completely defensive and prevent the enemy from capturing a specific location. Some will encourage you to avoid battle, while others involve capturing a seize point and defeating a boss character. Many of these missions will be somewhat lengthy (sometimes up to an hour long), so it's crucial to stay on top of things the whole way through to avoid having to restart.

Path of Radiance's weakest point would certainly have to be the graphics. While the infrequent CG cutscenes are beautiful and almost dream-like in visual style, the gameplay visuals lack the same flair. In the 2D artwork, the character designs are detailed and interesting. On the battlefield, they're reduced to blocky, awkward 3D models. The terrain is similarly uninspired. Luckily, the audio is befittingly epic, and fits the game perfectly. Even better is the fact that there's literally no load times whatsoever.

While it may not be very different than its portable brethren, Path of Radiance is still a great game that requires a lot of strategy and thought. If you can handle all the reading and some sub-par graphics, there's a good deal of deep gameplay to be found in this title. Fans of Advance Wars or the GBA Fire Emblem games shouldn't hesitate to give this one a try.

Graphics: C-

Sound: B+

First Play: B

Last Play: B+

Gameplay: B

Overall: 87% B