Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon (known as Fire Emblem: Shin Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi in Japan) is the eleventh installment of the Fire Emblem series and the first to feature online play. Originally announced in October 2007, the game is for the Nintendo DS and is a remake of the first Fire Emblem game, Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi. The game offers a graphical enhancement from Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi as well as utilizing the dual screen on the Nintendo DS and its online capabilities. The game features Marth as the main character of the game. The story centers on Marth as he embarks on a quest to win back the kingdom of Altea and rescue his kidnapped sister, Elice. Characters that were not present in the original version, such as Frey, have been introduced in this version. Fire Emblem: Shin Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Ken was released August 7, 2008 in Japan and in Europe on December 5, 2008. The official North America was released on February 16, 2009.
Changes from Fire Emblem: Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Tsurugi[]
- Online Multiplayer for 2
- Event Recap and Sound Room Extras
- Map Point Saves - One time use saves that are placed on the map. Can be loaded from as many times as desired.
- Prologue Chapter - Takes place during Marth's escape from Altea before the original game
- Gaiden Chapters - Can only be accessed if you have less than 15 characters in your entire army (this excludes Chapter 24x)
- Master Seals
- Class Swap
- Nabarl and Radd are now Myrmidons
- Shiida has an exclusive Wing Spear item that is effective against armors and cavaliers
- Pegasus Knights can either promote to Dragon Knights or Falcon Knights, although the Elysian whip item needed to promote into a Falcon Knight is only available through the Wi-Fi shop in the extras section.
- Weapon Triangle Bonus is now +5 accuracy
- Strength is used to calculate Attack Speed
- Weapon Level is replaced with Weapon Rank
- Strength and magic stats coexist
- Classes such as Armor Knights, Fighters, and Hunters can now be promoted.
- Clerics now gain experience from using staffs.
- New characters not present in the original game (e.g. Frey, Athena, etc.).
- Graphics are pre-rendered sprites
- Battle sequence is on top screen