'I wish I lived in Japan!'

If you're a gamer, chances are you've heard this saying fly out of the mouths of friends. Maybe you've even said it yourself. After all, everyone knows Japanese gamers live at the epicenter of gaming nirvana. They get the hottest titles before anyone else, plus they get all those quirky titles deemed too funky for gamers stateside. Outside of modding your console and finding an import shop, most gamers itching to claim some of that Eastern goodness appear out of luck.

Fire Emblem captures this dilemma perfectly. It's a series of fun, innovative games that gamers have struggled to get their hands on. The series started in the early 1990s on the Famicom and earned critical praise for its blend of old-fashioned role-play elements with large scale strategic battles. Naturally, American audiences wanted a piece of the action. Fourteen years, six games and three systems later (NES, SNES, and GBA) only a handful of Fire Emblem titles have made their way to our shores.

Now we're getting one more.

The Facts

• Series debut on the Nintendo GameCube
• Features an in depth, complex story of war
• Blend of strategy and RPG elements
• Command new characters, including aerial units
• Discover new abilities through a character's 'hidden purpose'
• Fight strategic battles through an all-new 3D battle system

Developer Intelligent Systems will deliver a fix for GameCube owners suffering from RPG withdrawals with Fire Emblem: Souen no Kiseki. Like previous titles in the series, Souen no Kiseki, which roughly translates to 'path of the blue flame,' will have players leading vast armies into battle. Fans of the Advance War series on the GBA will recognize the formula. The two game series even look alike. Most of these cosmetic appearances can be chalked up to Intelligent Systems, which designed both the Advance Wars and Fire Emblem series. But don't start calling Fire Emblem a clone. They're more like cousins.

In fact, aside from a shared isometric, top-down battle interface, not much ties the two series together. One of the biggest factors distancing Fire Emblem from its strategic cousin is the way it delivers a story. Fans of the series have come to expect a certain level of narrative drive and emotional depth from Fire Emblem, and it sounds like Souen no Kiseki will weave just as good a tale as in times past. You'll assume the role of a young mercenary named Ike. While details on the blue-haired Ike remain scarce, you can bet he's ambitious and a little reckless. He belongs to a band of mercenaries led by his father Grail. Grail planted his mercenary camp in the kingdom of Crimea, which sits on the continent of Tellius.

Ike soon rescues a woman who ends up being the princess of Crimea. She tells Ike that the neighboring kingdom of Daein has invaded, and that she needs him to play escort while she travels to Gallia. Exactly why she needs to travel there is unknown, but you can bet she's most likely on some kind of peace-keeping mission. And that's where the poo hits the fan for Ike and where the fun starts for us. Along the way to Gallia, you'll encounter a race of half-man/half-beast demihumans. It's primarily between battles between these demihumans that the game will deliver heavy doses of narrative. You'll need to protect the princess in battle, and battle is where Souen no Kiseki outdoes other RPGs.

Battles will remain turn-based, with you leading armies of mercs against the forces of the Daein Kingdom. You'll need to juice the tactical side of your brain, as monsters, mages and madmen will all try to terminate your forces. On Ike's corner, there will be Pegasus kights, pikemen, lords and mounted cavaliers ready to take orders. New units known as 'skinshifters' will be thrown into the mix. 'Skinshifters' can transform into various beasts and monsters. Another new unit, currently dubbed 'taliesins,' will dart around clouds and attack enemy units from the sky. Souen no Kiseki will render the battlefield in three-dimensions, presenting a completely new set of strategic opportunities. The graphical overhaul promises more than just sweeter eye candy. There's a good chance terrain, rivers and other obstructions will offer a completely different experience than the 2D battle maps of old.

Like Advance Wars or even Final Fantasy Tactics, each battle in Souen no Kiseki will have a different objective. You'll need to do everything from clearing a map of enemies to securing enemy positions. Like all other installments, each unit in the game is an individual and irreplaceable. Once one of your men falls in battle, he's gone for good, so you'll need to keep close watch on your favorite units. Some of your units will be expert magic users, while others will employ long ranged or close combat weapons. It'll be up to you to decide how to deploy each unit according to his expertise. Also, characters can discover their 'hidden purpose,' which will affect the way each unit develops new abilities. Whether a character's 'hidden purpose' will fundamentally change the way he learns abilities is unknown, but you can bet Souen no Kiseki will dish out plenty of surprises.

How will Fire Emblem: Souen no Kiseki fare against its predecessors? Will it deliver enhanced graphics and equally improved gameplay? Early indications point to a new installment that sticks to what works, albeit with a sparkly new graphics engine and spruced game mechanics. Plus, we can expect the same narrative complexity and strategic depth that made us covet those lucky Japanese gamers more than a decade ago. Hopefully, we'll get a copy of Fire Emblem: Souen no Kiseki in short order. Once we do, you can bet we'll sink countless hours on the title to bring you an in-depth report.

Look for Fire Emblem: Souen no Kiseki sometime in 2005.