Confused by Fate? The Ultimate Watch Order Guide for Beginners (2025)

"That's Hell You're Walking Into"

Welcome to the Fate franchise. It’s famous for fantastic animation, epic battles, and a timeline so confusing it makes seasoned weebs cry.

Basically, there are three main routes of the original visual novel (Stay Night) and a prequel (Zero). The debate on "Where to start" is endless.

But if you just want to watch cool fights and understand the story without reading a 100-hour visual novel, here is the Golden Rule.

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The Ufotable Route (Recommended)

This is the order that creates the best dramatic tension and spoils the least amount of mysteries. It focuses on the adaptations by studio Ufotable (which have god-tier animation).

1. Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works (The TV Series)

Why Start Here: It introduces the world, the Grail War rules, and the main character, Shirou Emiya, properly. It’s a modern, beautiful shonen action series.

• Note: Make sure you watch the TV Series (2014), not the old movie.

2. Fate/Stay Night: Heaven’s Feel (Movie Trilogy)

Why Second: These movies (Presage Flower, Lost Butterfly, Spring Song) take a darker turn. They explore the secrets that UBW ignored. It is a horror-romance tragedy with arguably the best animation in anime history.

3. Fate/Zero (The Prequel)

Why Last: Wait, it’s a prequel? Yes. But it was written after the original story. It assumes you already know the big plot twists of Heaven's Feel. Watching it last makes it a tragic Greek drama about the fathers of the characters you just watched.

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The "Chronological" Route (Alternative)

If you hate non-linear storytelling and just want to see events A to Z:

1. Fate/Zero (Dad’s War)
2. Unlimited Blade Works (Son’s War)
3. Heaven’s Feel (The Dark Truth)

Warning: Starting with Zero will spoil major reveals in Heaven's Feel. But many fans started here and loved it because Zero is darker and more mature from episode 1.

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What About the Rest?

• Fate/Apocrypha: Alternate Universe. Watch anytime.
• Fate/Grand Order: Based on the mobile game. Watch the First Order movie, then Babylonia.
• Fate/Stay Night (2006): The old adaptation by Studio Deen. Most fans skip it because the animation hasn't aged well, but the soundtrack is legendary.

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Conclusion: Just Start

Don't overthink it. Pick a route and hit play. Once you see Saber use Excalibur for the first time, you won't care about the timeline anymore; you’ll just be a fan.

Own the Animation: The Heaven's Feel Blu-ray trilogy is a visual reference for your TV. Get Fate/Stay Night: Heaven's Feel I. Presage Flower on Amazon.

Are you Team Saber, Team Rin, or Team Sakura? Choose your waifu in the comments!