Fire Emblem Engage
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About
Fire Emblem Engage is an upcoming title in Nintendo's long-running Fire Emblem series. It appears to have a mechanic that will allow the player to summon heroes from previous Fire Emblem games, such as Marth, to help them in battle. After the game was announced during the September 13th, 2022, Nintendo Direct, fans quickly began making jokes about the unnamed protagonist's striking red-and-blue haircut, which some compared to internet-famous characters like Pepsi-chan.
History
On September 13th, 2022, Nintendo announced Fire Emblem Engage with the first trailer during that day's Nintendo Direct livestream event (shown below).
The trailer showcased how players will be able to summon protagonists of previous Fire Emblem games like Marth and Celica to aid them in battle. The game has a planned release date of January 20th, 2023.[1]
Online Presence
In June 2022, leaked screenshots of the game circulated online prior to its actual reveal later that year. For example, a post featuring the protagonist of the game was posted to the subreddit /r/FireEmblem[9] on June 15th, 2022 (shown below).
Many fans were unconvinced that the leak was legitimate due to the design of the protagonist, leading fans to dub the character "toothpaste-chan." On June 22nd, 2022, Twitter user and YouTuber @LuckyCrit[10] discussed the leaks, referring to the protagonist as "toothpaste-chan."
The September 13th, 2022, trailer generated excitement from Fire Emblem fans, as posts of the official trailer gained thousands of points in subreddits including /r/NintendoSwitch,[2] /r/FireEmblem[3] and /r/Games[4] in less than 24 hours.
Protagonist's Hair
After the trailer was released on September 13th, 2022, the bulk of discussion surrounding the game centered on the protagonist's striking red-and-blue haircut. That same day, video game news site Polygon[1] published an entire article discussing it, writing:
"When it came up in the livestream, viewers flooded the chat with messages comparing his look to Colgate toothpaste (since its branding uses the same colors). Others on Twitter compared it to classic Icee slushies. For me personally, the design felt very 'fourth of July turned into an anime mascot' except in a Fire Emblem game."
Online, fans of the series quickly got to making jokes, memes and fan art of the protagonist. For example, Twitter user @TheBakaretsu[5] posted art of the protagonist as toothpaste on September 13th, gaining over 320 retweets and 1,300 likes in four hours (shown below, left). Also that day, Twitter user @punpiinauta[6] posted art showing the male and female versions of the protagonist as Pepsi and Crest toothpaste, gaining over 3,400 retweets and 13,000 likes in two hours (shown below, right).
Other jokes on September 13th included a tweet by Twitter user @arktoons,[7] who photoshopped the protagonist to look like a VTuber, gaining over 6,100 retweets and 24,000 likes in three hours (shown below, left). Twitter user @Retquits[8] posted that the protagonist resembled a Tide POD on September 13th, gaining over 260 retweets and 1,300 likes in three hours (shown below, right).
![ROUND 1-CLOSING 3:88 tim Headshot 4 PJ NEXT EVO 150 T 105 120 SE 150 165 S 195 188 L+R 210 SW 240 255 W 25 fim Hendstet 13 HO 75 13 SQUADS LEFT 36 ZzzEBROOD Tyrion941 ZzzEBRoo0 [Defensive Bombardment] Its Dooopey](https://i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/002/439/244/388 "VTuber protag")
Search Interest
External References
[1] Polygon – Fire Emblem Engage proves a thousand years isn’t enough time to grow out a wacky hair dye job
[2] Reddit – /r/nintendoswitch
[3] Reddit – /r/FireEmblem
[5] Twitter – TheBakaretsu
[6] Twitter – @punpiinauta
[9] Reddit – /r/fireemblem
[10] Twitter – luckycritgaming
