Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones for Game Boy Adv Reviews by Gamers

One of the most incredible things you'll notice while playing Sacred Stones is that you may actually find yourself caring about many of its dozens of characters; losing a character in battle means they're gone for good, so every one of your decisions has serious consequences that you'll carry with you for the rest of the game. This presents the player with something not often found in games: Serious contemplation about sacrificing their soldiers for the greater good.

While this gameplay mechanic is present in all of the games in the Fire Emblem series, I found myself caring most about the characters in Sacred Stones. Everything -- from the character design, to the battle animations, to that incredible sound you hear when you strike down an enemy with a critical hit -- is fine-tuned to perfection, raising the quality bar above all of the other entries to the series released in North America.

The game's sound is expertly designed. Sacred Stones has a very likable score, and sound effects that work perfectly to give a real feeling of power behind your characters' attacks.

The gameplay itself is absolutely incredible, with a very well balanced character development system implemented into a great strategy game. The only real fault Sacred Stones has compared to other Fire Emblem games is its lack of side missions (which have been replaced by optional towers and ruins, as well as skirmishes on the world map).

Overall, The Sacred Stones is one of the most satisfying strategy RPGs of all time, and one of the best games you'll find for the Game Boy Advance.