Well, we’ve just finished our first quarter-final. We took (in my opinion) the best anime of all time and put it up against the best movie trilogy of all time. The results were  pretty mixed at first. But The Lord of the Rings ended up crushing Dragon Ball with over 70% of the vote.

That puts us on to the next round of contenders, Fire Emblem VS Marvel. Again, two fandoms that don’t really have much in common. Let’s get to debating.

Opening Argument: Fire Emblem

Let’s just be honest here. Marvel has their hand in just about everything. I actually have a sort of game that I’d play where I’d try to find Spider-Man in every sort of department at Wal-Mart. It’s surprisingly easy. How then can a video game franchise like Fire Emblem give Marvel a run for their money? By being ridiculously amazing.

Fire Emblem is truly a game series like no other. Unlike any other single-player experience that I’ve ever had, Fire Emblem challenges me in an incredibly addictive and replayable way. Every playthrough of any Fire Emblem game takes at least 30 hours (if not more) of game time. That’s not including all the times that you reset your game because of bad RNG or a poor decision on your part. And you always want to come back to it.

On top of that, Fire Emblem’s influence in the video game world is pretty far-reaching. You’ve got several main series games that are all fantastic. You’ve got one of the most lucrative mobile games of all time. You’ve even got a Dynasty Warriors-esque game. That’s not to mention their huge popularity to due main characters appearing in Smash Bros. It’s hard to argue with that consistent quality.

Opening Argument: Marvel

If you’re truly looking for consistent quality, Marvel is the first place to check out. The Marvel Cinematic Universe is the home to the most consistently great films in movie history. No film franchise, absolutely none, can even kind of compete with Marvel’s (currently) 20 films, all of which are amazing. Even the worst of the films are still solid experiences. Compare that to, say, the James Bond series. For every Casino Royale you have, you also get a Die Another Day.

I could talk forever about all of the amazing qualities of these films. To even try to limit it down to moments would be too difficult. For example, I’d say, “consider the airport battle in Civil War”, but that would fail to mention the narrative genius of that entire film. Seriously, it’s hard to choose a favorite moment of that one film, and there are 19 more to look at. So instead of fanboying over the films, I’ll point your attention to some of the other great works of Marvel.

Of course Marvel has its wonderful comics. I’m obviously a huge Spider-Man fan, so most of my favorite events come from the life of Peter Parker. There are also many table-top games, such as my favorite, Legendary. But the most important element for this particular debate has to be Marvel’s intense presence in video games. There are too many to count. Marvel more than gives Fire Emblem a run for its money in the only media form that Fire Emblem give competition. Marvel blows them away in every other.

Rebuttal: Fire Emblem

Yes, Marvel has the brand power that allows its name to be put on anything and everything. Marvel Puzzle Quest? Fire Emblem has higher standards than that. Fire Emblem gives us quality gameplay, quality characters, and a quality story in every video game package. You feel for these characters. You experience their hurt.

In fact, if I asked Fire Emblem fans who their favorite character was, I’m sure I’d get a wide variety of answers. You know what, I’m actually going to ask that. If you’re reading this, send me your top 5 favorite Fire Emblem characters. I’ll publish what results I get if I receive enough of them. I’ll even include mine.

And the best part is that these stories have a beginning and an end. You don’t have the plethora of Marvel characters that are all frozen in the status quo. Instead, you get a full arc that ends with a historical excerpt about how your characters lived out the rest of their lives. That’s good story-telling at its finest.

Rebuttal: Marvel

Come on now. Marvel obviously has the better characters. Most of Fire Emblems characters only have one personality trait or they are a bit generic. In Marvel, you have the incredibly different personalities of countless heroes. Seriously, think about how different the personality of Spider-Man, Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor are. Now compare them to Wolverine, Dr. Strange, and Luke Cage. They are all so different.

Now I’ve got to go one step further for this too. Let me know your top 5 favorite Marvel characters too. I’d love to post it.

Anyway, mentioning one puzzle game is not enough to conquer the huge video game library of Marvel. Let’s mention a few different games, all of different genres… We’ve got Marvel’s Spider-Man for the PS4. We’ve got the Ultimate Alliance series and the X-Men Legends series. We’ve got the Marvel VS Capcom series. There’s the Lego Marvel series, Marvel Heroes, and a plethora of very successful mobile games.

Even if there wasn’t that huge library of video games, Marvel would still have it. There’s so many cartoons, toys, and costumes that come along with the Marvel franchise. People want to be these heroes. And that’s how Marvel has stood out from the crowd. They present us stories that focus on characters while fulfilling out childhood dreams to webswing, fly, or throw a really awesome shield. Marvel is just better, plain and simple.

Conclusion: Fire Emblem

The funny thing about all those video games is that not a single one of them compares to Fire Emblem in terms of addictive fun. Sure, they’re all great, but I’ve put in dozens upon dozens of more hours in the Fire Emblem series, and that’s after starting it so late! And I know that the people reading this that haven’t played Fire Emblem won’t really understand. But the people that have played Fire Emblem know exactly what I’m talking about. It is, in fact, that good.

So what are you going to choose? The mainstream media saturation known as Marvel or the video game art known as Fire Emblem? Remember the glory of challenging your fate in Awakening. Remember the gut wrenching decisions in Fates. Remember the epic story of the Hero King. Remember that we like Ike. Fight for your friends. Vote Fire Emblem.

Conclusion: Marvel

Let’s be real here. Very few fandoms on this bracket can actually compete with Marvel. Fire Emblem is definitely not one of them. It’s a good video game series, for sure, but it’s nothing close to the worldwide phenomenon that is Marvel. Just think about how much Marvel has affected our culture in these last twenty years. It’s defined a cinematic age. For many of us, it is one of the largest parts of our youth.

I don’t even have to mention the memories that come with this series. The ones that hit home most are different for all of us. I think of all the Spider-Man moments, but that’s because I find it easiest to identify with Spidey. And that’s one of Marvel’s strong suits. We all have that character that we love so much. We root for our guy or gal. It’s not just Marvel, it’s our Marvel. And we’re with it ’til the end of the line. Vote Marvel.

 

CLICK HERE TO VOTE