Fire Emblem hopefuls are going full on Charlie Day meme over a single line from a veteran 3D character model's LinkedIn that seemingly confirms a Nintendo strategy RPG is coming to Switch 2 at some point.
First spotted by Youtuber Doctre81, and then shared to the rabid fanbase at r/fireemblem, Tokyo-based 3D modeler Takeshi Maruyama's LinkedIn says he worked at Nintendo from January to April 2025 on "The Sequel of Nintendo's SRPG (Tactical role-playing game) on Switch 2."
That one little line is fueling a lot of speculation that a new Fire Emblem game is coming to Switch 2, which, given the popularity of the series, is pretty much a given at this point. But now, if Maruyama's LinkedIn is indeed referencing a new Fire Emblem game, the indication is that it could be coming sooner than expected.
"Get your clown makeup, boys!" reads one of the top comments on a post in the Fire Emblem subreddit.
"It never came off lol," reads a reply.
"WE GETTIN FIRE EMBLEM BANANZA WITH THIS ONE," reads a comment jokingly referencing a banger of a Switch 2 game, Donkey Kong Bananza.
Maruyama is an industry veteran going back to the late 90s who was lead character designer at Square Enix from 2003 to 2009 and a 3D character modeler at Sega from 2019 to 2022.
Here's the part where I burst a few bubbles, which is something I never like to do. Firstly, Maruyama's LinkedIn specifies that he was working out of a Tokyo-based Nintendo office, but longtime Fire Emblem developer Intelligent Systems is based in Kyoto. That doesn't necessarily rule anything out, as it's not uncommon for studios to outsource work particularly outside of the leadership level, but it's definitely not supportive of claims that Maruyama was working on Fire Emblem.
It's also worth noting that, with all due respect, Maruyama's LinkedIn isn't necessarily confirmation of anything. Though undoubtedly a reputable developer, he's still just a guy saying something was in development at some point, not to mention presumably through a language barrier.
That said, it could be a new Fire Emblem! It could also be a Switch 2 upgrade of the 2023 game Fire Emblem Engage, or maybe even Three Houses, considering the word "sequel" being used could be a potential mistranslation of "follow-up" or "new entry." What if Nintendo is bringing back Advance Wars? That might be even more pie in the sky than a new Fire Emblem, but I mean, categorically, they're both strategy RPG series developed by Intelligent Systems and published by Nintendo.
And then there's Mario + Rabbids, but that seems even less likely as Ubisoft reportedly disbanded most of the team behind the series after the most recent entry, Sparks of Hope, was branded a financial "disappointment" by Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, who also said at the time that they should've waited to release the game on Switch 2 due to the original console's technical limitations. Although, thinking back on his comments, he also said "we will update it for the new machine," but that's still more Ubisoft's wheelhouse than Nintendo's.
Anyway, let's all just take a few deep breaths, play some Donkey Kong Bananza, and keep an eye out for an update from Nintendo before we get too excited.
Care for something else? Here are the best Switch 2 games you can play right now.
