Can You Marry in Fire Emblem Engage?

While Fire Emblem’s oldest fans have enjoyed the series because of its strategic mechanics and creative battle tactic prowess, many series newcomers have fallen in love with the games in quite the literal sense, with the ability to marry off the protagonist as well as other party members. So with a name like Fire Emblem Engage, one would assume players would be able to marry to their heart’s content in the game — but the truth is more complicated.

You Can’t Get Married in Fire Emblem Engage, but You Do Give a Pact Ring

Unfortunately for those who got into the series after they heard it described as “horny chess,” Fire Emblem Engage does not offer the ability to marry in the more traditional sense. The game’s protagonist, Alear, still has the ability to develop relationships with party members through bonding on the battlefield, as well as through buying their way into support conversations with gifts. But unlike Fire Emblem Awakening’s “ship and birth children into your party” mechanic, or the awkwardly charming tea parties from Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Fire Emblem Engage’s S-rank conversations aren’t really that romantic.

At the end of the game, the player has the opportunity to choose any party member, regardless of gender, to enter into a platonic commitment of sorts by giving them a Pact Ring. While the dialogue is cute and admittedly sappy, there’s no actual indication of shared romance, instead offering a more “we’ll be friends forever” vibe.

While this is certainly disappointing for fans who are craving the shippability of older titles, in a way Fire Emblem Engage does offer the ability to at least enter into a committed partnership, which is certainly something the realists in its gaming audience will look at as marriage-adjacent. But if you’re looking for that swelling-music romantic conclusion, Fire Emblem Engage might leave you feeling stood up at the digital altar.

That’s all there is to know about whether you can marry in Fire Emblem Engage!

Related: How to Use a Pact Ring in Fire Emblem Engage on Twinfinite