How to Download Fire Emblem Heroes in the Philippines

Fire Emblem Heroes, Nintendo's first full mobile tactical RPG, went online a few hours ago. Unfortunately for Filipino fans, the game is only available on selected countries. Nintendo did say that additional countries may be added in the future.

For reference, Pokemon Go went live internationally last July 6, 2016 but we had to wait until August 6, 2016 before we can officially download it. Miitomo launched in the US on March 17, 2016 but its official regional launch here wasn't until November 16, 2016.

Waiting for the official regional release of Fire Emblem Heroes is certainly an option but you will miss a large amount of limited time quest rewards, featured Heroes, and other content this way. If you want to play the game early without downloading third-party APKs (those from questionable sources may harbor unwanted security threats) or emulators, please follow the instructions below.


ANDROID

Instructions

• Use a free VPN service. For example, you can use Tunnelbear VPN.
• Start Tunnelbear and register an account for free.
• Go back to the Tunnelbear app and select United States.
• Toggle the Connect button to start the VPN service.
• Go to your phone's Settings and unlink your Google account from Accounts.
• Once your account has been removed, go back to the Settings main screen, select Apps, then find the Google Play Store app.
• Tap Force stop, confirm, then tap Clear data and finally Clear cache.
• Open the Google Play Store app and enter your *login requirements.
• Search for the Fire Emblem Heroes app and download it.
• After the download, go back to the Tunnelbear app and disable the VPN service. You can play the game without using VPN.

Notes

• *If you already used your Google account to buy in-app purchases from other games, your location settings may be locked. This means that the VPN may not work properly so you won't be able to see the game even if the VPN is already active. As an alternative, please try to use a different Google account that has yet to purchase anything from the Play Store. After the download, repeat the process of unlinking your Google account so you can relink your main one later on. You will need to do this again for every version update.
• Fire Emblem Heroes only supports Android 4.1 and up although some devices may not be compatible.
• The app may not support rooted or jailbroken devices.
• You can download the game for free and enjoy the game as is but in-app purchases are also an option.
• Internet connection (Wi-Fi, 3G, or 4G) is required to play the game.
• A 500 MB patch (two separate downloads) will be available after completing the first chapters in-game.
• You will need to use Tunnelbear again on every version update on the Playstore. Remember to clear the Playstore's cache so you can un-link your Google account.

iOS

Instructions

• Open the latest version of iTunes on your Windows PC or Mac.
• With iTunes open, make sure the App Store tab is selected, then scroll all the way to the bottom and click the circular flag icon in the lower-right corner.
• Pick United States from the list of available regions.
• Create a new Apple ID. You can use any email address as long as it's not currently associated with any Apple ID.
• Open iTunes on your computer and click the Account menu at the top of the screen, then choose "Sign Out."
• Head back to the main screen on the App Store tab, then scroll to the bottom and click the "Account" option under Manage.
• Select "Create Apple ID" on the lower-left corner of the pop-up window.
• Once you get to the Provide Payment Information page, choose "None" as the payment type.
• Fill out the personal information and billing address that corresponds to the country you're signing up in.
• After creating your new Apple ID, you'll need to verify it through your email.
• Sign in to iTunes with your newly-created account. Once done, iTunes will automatically redirect you to the corresponding country's App Store.
• Download Fire Emblem Heroes.
• After downloading, you can switch back to your regular Apple ID if you want.

Notes

• Requires iOS 8.0 or later.
• Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.
• The app may not support rooted or jailbroken devices.
• You can download the game for free and enjoy the game as is but in-app purchases are also an option.
• Internet connection (Wi-Fi, 3G, or 4G) is required to play the game.

Currently, the methods mentioned above will not compromise your accounts as they allow you to download the official app from the official Play Store/ App Store itself. It appears that Nintendo is only restricting users who are playing from rooted devices, emulators, or modified third-party APKs. They are also permanently banning and wiping the accounts of cheaters and hackers.