Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is a tactical role-playing game developed by Intelligent Systems, and published by Nintendo for the Game Boy Advance handheld video game console in 2004 for Japan and 2005 in the West. It is the eighth entry in the Fire Emblem series, the second to be released outside Japan, and the third and final title to be developed for the Game Boy Advance after The Binding Blade and its prequel The Blazing Blade.
Set in a separate continuity to earlier Fire Emblem titles, The Sacred Stones takes place on the fictional continent of Magvel, which is divided into six nations, built around five magical stones said to be linked to the imprisonment of an ancient demon. When one of the six nations, the Grado Empire, invades its neighbors and begins destroying the stones, protagonists Eirika and Ephraim of the royal family of Renais set out to gather allies and halt Grado's conquest, while also trying to uncover the reasons for the war. The gameplay is similar to previous Fire Emblem games, focusing on turn-based, tactical movement of units across a grid-based battlefield. Core features of the game include permanent death for characters defeated in battle and support conversations that grant advantages to certain units in battle.
The Sacred Stones began development alongside Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance as a side project, sharing much of its visual design and mechanics with The Blazing Blade while incorporating elements from earlier entries such as Fire Emblem Gaiden. First announced in mid-2004, it was heavily promoted in Japan. When released, it sold over 230,000 units during 2004, with a further 90,000 being sold upon its North American debut. Reception was positive overall for its story, characters and gameplay, although many critics cited it as being too similar to its predecessor. The Sacred Stones would be the last original handheld Fire Emblem title until Fire Emblem Awakening for the Nintendo 3DS in 2012.
Gameplay
thumb|240px|left|A battle in The Sacred Stones: shown are Eirika and an enemy soldier during the player's turn.
Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is a tactical role-playing game where players take the role of royal siblings Eirika and Ephraim during separate campaigns as they fight hostile forces invading their homeland, along with allies acquired on their journey. The world's setting of Magvel is navigated using an overworld map, with routes going to different battle maps unlocked as the story progresses. In addition to story-related maps and dungeons, optional dungeons exist where chosen units can freely battle enemies, earning experience points. Each time a unit earns 100 experience points, that unit will gain a level and some of their stats will randomly increase. All characters can progress up to the 20-level cap. The scenario was written by Kouhei Maeda. The majority of the gameplay systems designed for Fire Emblem were carried over into The Sacred Stones, barring some minor additions. The series' titular "Fire Emblem", which takes different forms across each Fire Emblem universe, appears in The Sacred Stones as the gemstone kept by the Grado Empire, which was used to seal the Demon King's soul. Its setting of Magvel is the only setting within the Fire Emblem series to date which remains unconnected to another title. The Sacred Stones would be the last Fire Emblem game to be developed for the Game Boy Advance, along with being the last original Fire Emblem on handheld devices until Fire Emblem Awakening in 2012 for Nintendo 3DS. It released in Japan on October 7, 2004. To promote its release, a special commercial was created for broadcast in September of that year: it involved a girl playing on a Game Boy Advance being drawn into the worlds of the Fire Emblem series. Two guidebooks were also published focusing on the game, the first on October 21 and the second on November 17. A Western release was first hinted at in a Nintendo report, revealing its prospective release of both Path of Radiance and what would turn out to be The Sacred Stones. It was released in 2005 in North America, Australia, and Europe on May 23, November 3, and November 4, respectively. The Sacred Stones was the second Fire Emblem to be released in both North America and Europe. The move from the first Western game to The Sacred Stones and Path of Radiance meant that any work on localizing The Binding Blade could not be managed. The title was later re-released as part of Nintendo's promotional "3DS Ambassador Program" as a free download on December 16, 2011. It was later re-released on the Wii U Virtual Console: it was released in Japan on August 6, 2014, the PAL regions on January 1, 2015, and in North America on June 18 the same year. It was re-released onto the Nintendo Classics service for Nintendo Switch on April 22, 2025.
Reception
Upon its day of release in Japan, The Sacred Stones sold 97,842 units, achieving a sell-through rate of just over 64%. By the end of 2004, the game had sold 233,280 units, reaching #48 in Famitsus annual video game sales rankings. In North America, The Sacred Stones was among the top 20 games in the Nintendo hardware charts, with sales of 96,000 units. Although no exact total sales figures have been published, Nintendo cited the game as being among its successful Game Boy Advance titles for 2005.
Famitsu praised the story, with one reviewer saying the characters had a tasteful charm.