Honestly, if you ask a random person about a Fullmetal Alchemist video game, they’ll probably mention that mobile gacha game that got shut down recently or maybe a dusty PS2 disc they saw in a bargain bin once. It's weird. This is one of the biggest anime franchises in history, yet its gaming legacy is a messy, fragmented pile of Japan-only releases and weird genre experiments. You’d think a story about "Equivalent Exchange" would lend itself perfectly to a deep RPG or a complex fighting game, right? Well, it did, but most of us in the West only got a tiny, filtered taste of it.
The reality is that for every decent title we received, there were three others left behind in Japan. We’re talking about a library that spans the Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 2, PSP, Wii, and even the DS. Most people assume the games are just cheap cash-ins. Some are. But others? They actually tried to expand the lore of Amestris in ways the manga didn't have time for.
The PS2 Era: Where It All Started (And Stalled)
Back in 2003, Square Enix realized they had a massive hit on their hands with the first anime adaptation. They did what any sensible publisher would do: they started pumping out Action-RPGs. The first one most Americans remember is Fullmetal Alchemist and the Broken Angel. It was... fine. You played as Edward, you could transmute random objects into weapons, and Al followed you around like a tanky, metal puppy.
The gameplay loop was repetitive. You'd walk into a room, transmute a fire hydrant into a cannon, and blast some chimeras. But the story was written by Hiromu Arakawa herself, which gave it a layer of "canon-adjacent" legitimacy that most licensed games lack. It introduced the concept of "New Alchemic Theory" and focused on a girl named Armony. If you were a kid in 2004, this felt like a lost episode of the show.
Then came Curse of the Crimson Elixir. This one felt more like the anime. It actually followed the Liore arc and the Shou Tucker incident (yes, that incident) before branching off into a weird plot about the Golem of Giam. The cel-shaded graphics were a massive step up. It looked like the show. It felt like the show. But the combat? Still kinda clunky. It suffered from that early-2000s "licensed game" jank where the camera would get stuck behind a pillar while a boss was busy deleting your health bar.
The real tragedy is Fullmetal Alchemist 3: Kami o Tsugu Shōjo (The Girl Who Succeeds God). This was the final PS2 entry, and it never left Japan. It’s arguably the best of the trilogy. It had a tag-team system where you could swap between Ed and Al fluently, and the production values were through the roof. Why did we miss out? Probably because the 2003 anime had finished its run in the States, and publishers didn't think the demand was there. They were wrong.
The Fighting Games: Dream Carnival and Dual Sympathy
While Square Enix was busy making RPGs, Bandai was doing its own thing. They wanted to tap into the "Smash Bros" hype. Fullmetal Alchemist: Dream Carnival is a fever dream of a game. It’s a 2v2 arena fighter where you can have Roy Mustang and Alex Louis Armstrong teaming up to beat the hell out of Lust and Envy. It’s chaotic. It’s fast. It’s also completely nonsensical in terms of power scaling. But it worked.
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Then there was the Nintendo DS. Fullmetal Alchemist: Dual Sympathy hit the scene when the DS was the hottest thing on the planet. It was a side-scrolling beat 'em up. It made use of the touch screen for alchemy, which felt revolutionary for about five minutes until your hand started cramping from drawing circles.
Here is the thing about Dual Sympathy: it was essentially a "Greatest Hits" of the 2003 anime. It was short. You could beat it in two hours. But it had a surprisingly deep roster of playable characters in the minigames. It was the first time many fans realized that playing as a State Alchemist could actually be fun if the developers just let the player go wild with the powers.
The Brotherhood Shift and the Wii Blunders
When Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood started airing in 2009, the gaming landscape shifted. We moved away from the 2003 anime’s original stories and back toward the manga’s plot. This gave us Fullmetal Alchemist: Prince of the Dawn and Daughter of the Detour on the Wii.
These weren't action games. Not really. They were more like adventure games/visual novels with some motion-control mini-games thrown in.
- They featured beautiful 3D models.
- The writing was top-tier.
- The gameplay was... pointing a Wii Remote at the screen to "transmute" stuff.
- Most fans hated the slow pace.
It’s a shame, honestly. These games introduced the country of Aerugo, which is mentioned constantly in the series but never really explored. If you care about the geopolitics of the FMA world, these games are gold mines. If you want to punch Homunculi, they are boring as watching paint dry.
The PSP Gem: Brotherhood’s Best Representation
If you are looking for the "definitive" Fullmetal Alchemist video game experience, you have to look at Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood - Senka wo Takusu Mono (usually called Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood on the PSP). This game is a beast. It’s an arena fighter, but it’s built with a much better engine than Dream Carnival.
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The roster is massive. You’ve got the Elric brothers, sure, but you also get Ling Yao (and Greed-Ling), Olivier Mira Armstrong, and even Izumi Curtis. The combat feels weighty. When you use alchemy, it feels like it has an impact on the environment. It covers the entire Brotherhood storyline, from the beginning to the final fight with Father.
Because it came out late in the PSP's life cycle, it didn't get a wide Western release. It’s a recurring theme in this franchise: the best stuff stays in Japan.
The Rise and Fall of Mobile: Fullmetal Alchemist Mobile (2022)
Fast forward to the 20th anniversary. Square Enix announced a high-budget mobile game. The trailers were insane. The graphics looked better than some PS4 games. It used a tactical, turn-based combat system similar to Fire Emblem. Fans were hyped. It finally felt like FMA was getting the "Triple-A" treatment.
It launched in Japan in 2022. It featured fully voiced cutscenes and re-animated sequences from the manga. It was beautiful.
Then, in early 2024, Square Enix pulled the plug. They announced the end of service. Why? Competition in the mobile market is brutal. Even a brand as big as FMA couldn't survive the gacha grind if the player retention wasn't perfect. It was a heartbreaking moment for the community. All that high-quality art and voice work basically vanished into the ether, unless you count the YouTube archives.
What Most People Get Wrong About FMA Games
The biggest misconception is that there isn't a "good" FMA game. There are several. The problem is accessibility. To play the best ones, you usually need a fan-translation patch, an emulator, or a region-free console and a decent grasp of Japanese.
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Another mistake is thinking they are all the same story. They aren't.
- The PS2 games create an entirely different branch of alchemy lore.
- The Wii games act as political thrillers.
- The PSP games are the closest thing to a "playable anime."
If you go in expecting Devil May Cry, you'll be disappointed. But if you go in expecting a "playable companion" to the series, there is a lot to love.
Practical Steps for Interested Players
If you want to actually dive into this world today, don't just buy the first thing you see on eBay. You need a plan.
- Start with the PSP Brotherhood game. It’s the most comprehensive. Even if you don't speak Japanese, the menus are easy to navigate, and the combat is intuitive. It’s the best way to see the characters in action.
- Look for Fan Translations. Groups like Glowsquid and others have worked on translating the text-heavy entries. For the Wii games, a translation is almost mandatory because they are basically interactive movies.
- Check out the PS2 "Broken Angel" trilogy. If you have a working PS2 (or a solid emulator like PCSX2), these are worth it just for the Arakawa-designed characters. Just be prepared for some "retro" frustration with the controls.
- Avoid the Mobile Game Traps. Since the official mobile game is dead, you might see "clones" or unofficial APKs floating around. Stick to the console classics.
The Fullmetal Alchemist video game journey is one of missed opportunities and hidden gems. It’s a series that deserved a Dragon Ball FighterZ or a Persona-style RPG but mostly got experimental titles. However, for a true fan, seeing Ed and Al in a different light—fighting different enemies and exploring new corners of the map—is worth the effort of tracking these titles down.
To get started, look into the PCSX2 or PPSSPP emulation communities. They have refined the settings for these specific games to fix the graphical glitches that plagued the original hardware. You can find "English Patched" ISOs for several of the Japan-only titles if you look in the right archival circles. Start with the PSP Brotherhood title; it's the most rewarding entry for a modern player.