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When Kenta Nakanishi lost his father at a young age, among the possessions left behind was a copy of Fire Emblem Gaiden, the 1992 sequel to Intelligent Systems' tactical role-playing game. The save file was still intact, although the manual was missing. Understandably, the game would go on to be of special importance for Nakanishi. "Back then I'd be playing it and thinking of him. Fire Emblem Gaiden means a lot to me because of this, and I've played it through many times," he recalls. Fire Emblem Gaiden is, for many, a curio thanks to its never having been released outside of Japan. It's also an offshoot - the word Gaiden is often taken to mean side-story in Japanese - that featured systems and ideas never to be repeated in the series. For Nakanishi, though, it's something much more resonant.
Which might be why Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, a revisitation of Gaiden that's been directed by Nakanishi in his role at Nintendo, feels like more than a remake. It's an embellishment, working in new artwork, new systems and an exquisite level of production to the Famicom original, yet it's also remarkably faithful to a game that still stands apart from other Fire Emblems. For Nakanishi, it's a chance to go back and fill in some of the blanks.
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