Does The Fate Franchise Really Have A Watch Order (And Does It Matter)?

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Fate’s notorious reputation has created the idea that people must experience the franchise in a specific way to get the most out of it, regardless of how time-consuming it may be. That idea has only resurfaced with the release of the latest anime, Fate/Strange Fake, but it might not be as cut-and-dried as people think.

Why Fate Fans Say The Franchise Is So Complicated

Overall, it’s easy to see why the Fate franchise has a reputation for being so complicated. In terms of length, not only is the original Fate/stay night visual novel long to the point of needing roughly 50 hours to complete, but between the games and anime, there are over a dozen different stories within the franchise as a whole.

It would be one thing if it were just that the Fate franchise is an incredibly lengthy anime franchise, but not only is the magic system and lore also fairly complicated, but many entries also expect fans to be familiar with all aspects of the franchise, even if some stories only have a minimal part in the overall narrative.

It also doesn’t help that, because of the length of their source material, many Fate anime tend to cut out or change certain scenes to fit everything within their limited time frame. Because of that, most diehard Fate fans say that newcomers must start with the original visual novel, and disagreeing with that will be seen as lazy or misinformed.

Many of these problems can be seen with Fate/Zero; as a prequel to Fate/stay night, it’s a popular choice for newcomers and played a big part in making the franchise mainstream, but many diehard fans object to that for its controversial depiction of pre-established characters, and saying otherwise is always a point of contention.

This discourse has always been present in the fandom, but it’s resurfaced with the premiere of the Fate/Strange Fake anime; the series has many references and callbacks to other Fate stories, yet the staff behind it, and even popular anime YouTuber Gigguk, have said it’s good for newcomers, and that’s only reignited discussions of how complicated the franchise is.

Why The Fate Franchise Isn’t As Complicated As Fans Say

As much of a reputation as the Fate franchise has for being complicated, it’s nowhere near as bad as people say. While the lore and mechanics can be fairly complicated, they’re usually just there to add flavor to the overall story, so a person doesn’t need a full grasp on them to get the most out of a story.

That can also be applied to when a story incorporates elements from other parts of the franchise; while understanding the entire franchise gives added context to things, in most cases, it’s only in service of explaining a few cameos and references, so someone should still be able to watch any anime as long as they understand the basic story.

Naturally, this also applies to the Fate/Strange Fake anime; as reference-heavy as the series is, any references that are actually important for the overarching narrative are given enough detail for newcomers, so while newcomers will miss out on some context at times, it should never be to the point of detracting from the overall story.

Is There A “Right” Way For Newcomers To Get Into The Fate Franchise?

Most diehard Fate fans will say that newcomers have to start with the original Fate/stay night visual novel and be completely caught up on the lore before going into stories like Fate/Strange Fake, and saying anything else will be seen as being objectively wrong to some people, especially if someone says it’s okay to start with Fate/Zero.

That being said, many of the reasons people cite for the Fate franchise being complicated are often overblown, and as long as a person pays close enough attention, they should be fine starting with any story. Stories like Fate/Extra Last Encore, a stealth sequel to Fate/Extra, are exceptions, but fortunately, few other stories are as bad as that.

It’s understandable why Fate fans would push for fans to try to understand all the lore, especially since official translations of the Fate/stay night visual novel are finally available, but the level of commitment that involves just pushes people away more often than not, and the way some fans get defensive about it makes it even worse.

As complicated as the Fate franchise can be, like many long-running franchises, there isn’t one specific way for people to get into it; anything is fine as long as a fan understands the story and, more importantly, is just having fun, and hopefully, more people will understand that with Fate/Strange Fake’s premiere in the winter 2026 anime season.