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Fire Emblem Radian Dawn

Customer Rating:
Good game, lots of strategy to consider on nearly every battle decision. I've played through it several times, and it's always fun.

A noble effort, yet fails.

Customer Rating:
I'm a Fire Emblem veteran, so I usually don't go for guides, but my siblings wanted to play, and I thought this would help them. I was wrong, apparently

Just to note, do not confuse this review with a review of the game. Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn is an excellent game, and well worth playing. Back to the review of the guide:

The guide is basically a diary of the author's playthrough. Each chapter chronicles what HE did on HIS game, with no variation or differing choices. It would have been nice to see different strategies for the different teams a player might like to use. For example, I like to use a party that consists of mages, with a few melee units to back them up. The author of the guide actually advises against mages, while recommending units that are so overpowered, they feel cheap to use. Yeah, they'll win the game for you, but where's the challenge? The game is balanced enough that you can win using anyone, but according to the author, the cheap way out is the only way.

There is also a lot of missing information. There are special conversations, hidden scenes, and a secret ending that are all absent from the guide. I had to find out online about one of the game's biggest spoilers that you can unlock. But is it in the guide? NO! Of course not!

In conclusion, I can't recommend this book. If you want a diary of a guy playing a game, this is it. However, there are better guides for free online. While the artwork is good, it is also available for free.

great help for a great game

Customer Rating:
I bought the game for my son, a 13 year old. He has been gaming for a few years, but for the tougher games, he like the manuals to help along the way. Otherwise, you spend $50 on a game and it sits unused because it get too tough for a younger player. He loves the game and only checks the help manual every so often. Good manual.

not a strategy guide

Customer Rating:
When people buy strategy guides there are looking for a collection of facts that will allow them to develop a better strategy. This "guide" is little more than the author's turn-by-turn diary of the way he played the game. The enemy locations and stats are often wrong and only offered for Normal Mode, so if you're playing easy of hard mode you're on your own. The maps are often too dark or too small to get a good idea of how to approach the chapter (especially the one with the bridge). There is hardly any artwork, just screen shots of the game Dan Birlew (author) played. Its almost as if Prima new this guide sucked when they released it with the name premiere edition, certainly suggesting it wouldn't be the only edition. I really wish Nintendo Power would make their own (instead of teaming up with Prima) because their efforts on previous fire emblem game guides were far superior.

Helpful but not Necessary

Customer Rating:
This book is a great help for beginners and helps you reveal secret items around every corner within the game. But if you're planning not to spoil yourself like I myself. My words to you would be, not to buy it and experience all the action without the unnecessary spoilers for upcoming battles.