Final Fantasy VII Remake |OT| - The Reunion is coming

Tell you what went missing half way through my game - the map - no matter what I do, the map has gone from the top right.
 
I doubt that, sadly. The abundant amount of PS2 level assets are probably there for budgetary reasons.

I feel like they massively outsourced the development of the game to some factory filled with junior creators working on UE4 for the first time. Have not seen the end credits to confirm though.

I agree with this. I don't think a lot of the bad assets can be saved easily. There is one bathroom I came across (believe it was in sewers) where all the objects in it were blocky and blurry. I pulled up the bathroom from Goldeneye 64 when I came across it and it looked similar. Even if the textures are failing to load the geometry isn't there. That's why I agree with it is probably more of a budget issue. Meanwhile the bathroom in the Shinra building has everything looking shiny and high quality.

It's SE so they will probably do a PS5 remaster one day. Maybe they will redo some of these bad objects and textures then.
 
Finished it!

Did everything possible on the first play-through and it ended up clocking out at 41 hours.

I liked what they tried to do with the ending, but I'm not a fan of how they did it. Abstract pretentious kingdom hearts stuff is an acquired taste, and I would rather they just straight out made it clear exactly what happened and what it means moving forward. If it means what I think it does, then I'm very excited for the sequel. But knowing Nomura it could just be an excuse for more stupid shit nobody asked for in Final Fantasy.

Spoiler thoughts
If they are too fucking chicken to even kill off Biggs and Wedge in a game with hundreds of other interesting characters they could use in the sequels, then it's pretty much guaranteed Aerith isn't dying. Showing Biggs is somehow alive as a bait and switch is just bad storytelling.

Chapter 16 (Shinra Building) was amazing from start to finish, I think looking back on the game; the first reactor, Wall Market and Shinra building are the definite highlights. The "shinra tour guide" floors were incredible and I was lapping all that lore up!

Chapter 17 dragged it's feet a little, it had some interesting new mechanics but repeating the same thing 4 times was a bit much. I will, however, let it off the hook - as the animation for Nanaki pulling levers was wholesome as fuck.

Chapter 18 was just batshit insane from start to finish, as I mentioned earlier I'm not a fan of how they pulled a lot of stuff off and would probably have been happier if they ended it after the chase sequence. But the final battle (no spoilers) was fun, just felt like it should have been saved for a later game.

Just as I was thinking to myself "this is way too fucking hard, how the hell can they expect me to defeat the boss with just cloud?" and then having the rest of the gang come in one by one was very cool

The timing of that joke in chapter 18 really caught me off guard too, right in the middle of all that brooding boss fight shit when they go "Avalanche! Local Florist! Lab Rat Dog!" - the game needed that, and it was probably the biggest laugh the entire game got out of me.

Overall it's a hard game to score; I know it's flawed and makes quite a few missteps. But the characterisation, story and world-building are just on another level to anything else Square-Enix has done since, well, since they became Square-Enix. Plus I feel like I need to know the direction they are going from the ending before I can say for sure if it's genius or incompetence. So for me it's hovering between a 9 and a 10.

Either way, what a special, odd yet entertaining game this turned out to be.
 
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Finished it!

Did everything possible on the first play-through and it ended up clocking out at 41 hours.

I liked what they tried to do with the ending, but I'm not a fan of how they did it. Abstract pretentious kingdom hearts stuff is an acquired taste, and I would rather they just straight out made it clear exactly what happened and what it means moving forward. If it means what I think it does, then I'm very excited for the sequel. But knowing Nomura it could just be an excuse for more stupid shit nobody asked for in Final Fantasy.

Spoiler thoughts
If they are to fucking chicken to even kill off Biggs and Wedge in a game with hundreds of other interesting characters they could use in the sequels, then it's pretty much guaranteed Aerith isn't dying.

Chapter 16 (Shinra Building) was amazing from start to finish, I think looking back on the game; the first reactor, Wall Market and Shinra building are the definite highlights.

Chapter 17 dragged it's feet a little, it had some interesting new mechanics but repeating the same thing 4 times was a bit much. I will, however, let it off the hook - as the animation for Nanaki pulling levers was wholesome as fuck.

Chapter 18 was just batshit insane from start to finish, as I mentioned earlier I'm not a fan of how they pulled a lot of stuff off and would probably have been happier if they ended it after the chase sequence. But the final battle (no spoilers) was fun, just felt like it should have been saved for a later game. But the timing was well done,


The timing on that joke in chapter 18 really caught me off guard, in the middle of all that brooding boss fight shit I was not expecting.
"Avalanche! Local Florist! Lab Rat Dog!

Overall it's a hard game to score; I know it's flawed and makes quite a few missteps. But the characterisation, story and world-building are just on another level to anything else Square-Enix has done since, well, since they became Square-Enix. Plus I feel like I need to know the direction they are going from the ending before I can say for sure if it's genius or incompetence. So for me it's hovering between a 9 and a 10.

Either way, what a special, odd yet entertaining game this turned out to be.
Biggs and Wedge both died though
 
Beat it, had fun, will buy part 2.

A few thoughts... I don't think I would've enjoyed this at all without having played the original. This game suffers from the same problem RDR2 and MGS games have, you spend just as much time playing the game as you do watching exposition dumps and cutscenes.
I did notice a ton of texture problems on the pro, but that type of stuff generally doesn't bother me, some areas look stunning.
I thought sound overall was great, I don't get people bitching over the English va's. The music was phenomenal.
I liked that they kept the core equipment and materia systems pretty intact, but added upgrades and some new things.
Combat was fun, and I definitely appreciate the ability to switch modes.

A final thought. I've played the original many times over, and probably will again in the future, but I don't see myself slogging through this again. I floated through this one on a wave of nostalgia, and I imagine the next one will be the same.
 
Maybe it's already been pointed out but did anybody else notice who Biggs looks exactly like?

z268Dhx.jpg


Tiger blood, baby!!
 
I've had time to mull it over and honestly I still think this is a redefining experience of what a remake can be. I think it's one of my favorite games of the generation. Despite that, god I'm disappointed in a few things...

I hate how post game is set up, sure it's cool you can chapter swap at any time, but man, why are the new battles in the arena locked to hard mode? This alone wouldn't be so bad, but charging 500 gil per battle kinda sucks, you could easily run out if you suck like I do. The game's overall structure isn't conducive to easy grinding like most FF games. I was super hyped to find out you could new game+ in hard mode, but the MP/item restriction just seems stupid. Kingdom Hearts' critical mode is super well balanced without these dumbass restrictions, a hard mode should push you to smartly utilize all of the game's mechanics, not remove certain mechanics for artificial difficulty. I really hope they add an in-between mode between Normal and Hard. I also wish I could get two Magnify Materia. Also why did they forget the exchange all button from the OG game? Swapping high level materia between characters was harder than it needed to be.


That's all incredibly minor stuff though, the amount of joy I got from this game was unmatched by pretty much any other game this generation. Bravo Square.

On a positive note
Hoooooly shit The Arsenal Boss with Barret and Aerith, that was amazing with an amazing boss theme remix.
 
i hope they dont make the game full open world like XV. The world was bigger than it needed to be and wasnt very interesting either.

FF7 remake is linear, but not to absurd levels like XIII was, so it's good., and like others said, not only was the og linear, so are most FF games.

I think the highlight of the remake, for me, is how dramatically it highlights what a terrible game and general embarrassment FFXV is.
 
Anyone else hope that when part 2 comes out, they'll do an overworld similar to the original with "islands" of more interactive, local content? I mean, I DOUBT they'll do a fully realized world like a Xenoblade. It would be impossible to do. But, an overworld that allows you to travel freely would feel more open and justify the use of chocobos and airships.
 
I've had time to mull it over and honestly I still think this is a redefining experience of what a remake can be. I think it's one of my favorite games of the generation. Despite that, god I'm disappointed in a few things...

I hate how post game is set up, sure it's cool you can chapter swap at any time, but man, why are the new battles in the arena locked to hard mode? This alone wouldn't be so bad, but charging 500 gil per battle kinda sucks, you could easily run out if you suck like I do. The game's overall structure isn't conducive to easy grinding like most FF games. I was super hyped to find out you could new game+ in hard mode, but the MP/item restriction just seems stupid. Kingdom Hearts' critical mode is super well balanced without these dumbass restrictions, a hard mode should push you to smartly utilize all of the game's mechanics, not remove certain mechanics for artificial difficulty. I really hope they add an in-between mode between Normal and Hard. I also wish I could get two Magnify Materia. Also why did they forget the exchange all button from the OG game? Swapping high level materia between characters was harder than it needed to be.


That's all incredibly minor stuff though, the amount of joy I got from this game was unmatched by pretty much any other game this generation. Bravo Square.

On a positive note
Hoooooly shit The Arsenal Boss with Barret and Aerith, that was amazing with an amazing boss theme remix.

I completely agree, It IS my favorite game of this generation, its the prettiest game I've ever seen, it gave us the BEST FF battle system to date (which hopefully all future FF's will use for awhile) and its highs were REALLY high. Its lows were really low too sadly, but I'll take it, its wound up way better than it could have. Yes the end SUCKS, badly, I want to bitch slap the script writer for that, but I wont let it detract me from being SOOO excited for part 2.
 
I think the highlight of the remake, for me, is how dramatically it highlights what a terrible game and general embarrassment FFXV is.
Exactly. For everyone asking for an open world, Square has no good track with making open world games. Maybe if FFXV had dropped that and instead focused more in being a well written and had better gameplay, it could have been one of the best games in the series. They had good ideas there, just very poorly utilized

VII remake is smaller, but uses well the areas it has, the gameplay is great, the expanded scenes with the cast are great too. So far, my only complaint is non the technical side. in one moment, it might look like one of the best games of the gen, but then we have the slums, wich look awful.
 
So is my memory deceiving me, or did I miss the flashback with Cloud's mom?

xuk70XE.png


This was in the final trailer, she says "I've never been so proud, women must be hounding you day and night".



I don't remember encountering this scene in the game. It's the only part of the final trailer I don't recall experiencing. Did I miss it somehow?
 
So is my memory deceiving me, or did I miss the flashback with Cloud's mom?

xuk70XE.png


This was in the final trailer, she says "I've never been so proud, women must be hounding you day and night".



I don't remember encountering this scene in the game. It's the only part of the final trailer I don't recall experiencing. Did I miss it somehow?


Ive definitely seen it, somewhere around Aerith's house.
 
okay thanks guys, I must have somehow spaced out on it
 
So is my memory deceiving me, or did I miss the flashback with Cloud's mom?

xuk70XE.png


This was in the final trailer, she says "I've never been so proud, women must be hounding you day and night".



I don't remember encountering this scene in the game. It's the only part of the final trailer I don't recall experiencing. Did I miss it somehow?


Yep it was in the game, you just missed it.
 
So is my memory deceiving me, or did I miss the flashback with Cloud's mom?

xuk70XE.png


This was in the final trailer, she says "I've never been so proud, women must be hounding you day and night".



I don't remember encountering this scene in the game. It's the only part of the final trailer I don't recall experiencing. Did I miss it somehow?


Yes. I definitely remember it. Not sure how you could have missed it unless you actually skipped cutscenes.

Edit: Sorry for giving you a 10th version of the same answer.
 
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This fucking game, whew boy. At "Aerith's" house now, it just never stops wowing me. It's such a wonderful love letter. This is one of the few games where I literally slow walk through nearly every environment and just look around at everything. The general direction, acting, pacing, etc. feels fantastic to me and everything is so cool looking. I'm digging every single one of the characterizations, these are the characters I remember brought to life. It's been so long since Square really blew me away me with something, like a really fucking long time. Feels good man.

Imagining them giving some of their other beloved games this kind of treatment is blowing my mind, imagine Xenogears, FF6, 8, 9, Chrono Trigger/Cross.....


I think the highlight of the remake, for me, is how dramatically it highlights what a terrible game and general embarrassment FFXV is.

Good lord yes
 
Anyone else thinks it's kinda funny that all the copy-pasted people of Midgar are like "who could the members of avalanche be? we may never know!" while meanwhile a giant 300-pound dude with a fucking gun for an arm walks
by followed by a muscled up spiky-haired dude carrying the thicket sword anyone's ever seen.
 
Anyone else thinks it's kinda funny that all the copy-pasted people of Midgar are like "who could the members of avalanche be? we may never know!" while meanwhile a giant 300-pound dude with a fucking gun for an arm walks
by followed by a muscled up spiky-haired dude carrying the thicket sword anyone's ever seen.
Yeah the game should sprinkle some weirdo's into the crowd to make Barret stand out less.
 
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It's nitpicking but it's such an obvious one it's suprising that it's implemented like this.. the rest benches. So you're in a huge rush, chasing someone. Oh wait, I have to sit on this bench to recover my hp/mp. It just feels a bit silly, they've could've done anything like a mako machine or whatever to refill hp/mp.

Couple of other things that would've made it the perfect remake (it's still really good) for me
- Cut down a couple of hours of the more stale gameplay hours (like a good thesis, you really should only have the core, no fluff)
- Keep the enhancement (i.e. same story line, but more fleshed out) to the story, get rid of the storyline changes
- Get rid of Chadley
 
Cut down a couple of hours of the more stale gameplay hours (like a good thesis, you really should only have the core, no fluff)

They probably would, but too many people use average playtime as a top selling point in gaming. It's a shame, because video games used to have a much better flow.
 
Anyone else thinks it's kinda funny that all the copy-pasted people of Midgar are like "who could the members of avalanche be? we may never know!" while meanwhile a giant 300-pound dude with a fucking gun for an arm walksby followed by a muscled up spiky-haired dude carrying the thicket sword anyone's ever seen.

q8sx7v-fpZujWBBc.jpg
 
They probably would, but too many people use average playtime as a top selling point in gaming. It's a shame, because video games used to have a much better flow.

I just didn't really see any part of the game as bad other than a couple minutes worth of shimmy section.
Even the sewers were tons of fun gameplay wise.

I don't think you should take out the good parts of the game because they aren't as good as the great ones.
 
I just didn't really see any part of the game as bad other than a couple minutes worth of shimmy section.
Even the sewers were tons of fun gameplay wise.

I don't think you should take out the good parts of the game because they aren't as good as the great ones.

Well shimmy stuff is just hiding loading screens, so no issue with that. I personally thought stuff like side quests and some other stuff that didn't contribute to the store felt like slight padding. Nothing too bad, especially by today's standards where every game is 30-60% longer than it should be.
 

You can't think too much about stuff like that in the FF7 Universe. Otherwise when you see Cloud basically flying and cutting through entire trains and buildings (because he can apparently do that if he's fighting Sephiroth), your head would cave in.
 
You can't think too much about stuff like that in the FF7 Universe. Otherwise when you see Cloud basically flying and cutting through entire trains and buildings (because he can apparently do that if he's fighting Sephiroth), your head would cave in.

The game starts with him jumping like 10 feet right on the first mission at like level 8. Not to mention he does it whenever he needs to hit something in the air. Honestly, him chopping a train and practically flying at level 40 at least follows the in game growth.

But yeah don't think that hard. Or you'll start to question why you can't just jump over all the physical barriers throughout the game.
 
I've had time to mull it over and honestly I still think this is a redefining experience of what a remake can be. I think it's one of my favorite games of the generation. Despite that, god I'm disappointed in a few things...

I hate how post game is set up, sure it's cool you can chapter swap at any time, but man, why are the new battles in the arena locked to hard mode? This alone wouldn't be so bad, but charging 500 gil per battle kinda sucks, you could easily run out if you suck like I do. The game's overall structure isn't conducive to easy grinding like most FF games. I was super hyped to find out you could new game+ in hard mode, but the MP/item restriction just seems stupid. Kingdom Hearts' critical mode is super well balanced without these dumbass restrictions, a hard mode should push you to smartly utilize all of the game's mechanics, not remove certain mechanics for artificial difficulty. I really hope they add an in-between mode between Normal and Hard. I also wish I could get two Magnify Materia. Also why did they forget the exchange all button from the OG game? Swapping high level materia between characters was harder than it needed to be.


That's all incredibly minor stuff though, the amount of joy I got from this game was unmatched by pretty much any other game this generation. Bravo Square.

On a positive note
Hoooooly shit The Arsenal Boss with Barret and Aerith, that was amazing with an amazing boss theme remix.

You will have no money issues post-game. And if you do, just equip the gil materia and grind for 5 mins or so in chapter 16.
 
You can't think too much about stuff like that in the FF7 Universe. Otherwise when you see Cloud basically flying and cutting through entire trains and buildings (because he can apparently do that if he's fighting Sephiroth), your head would cave in.

hell house. that should be enough to make everyone suspend disbelief.
 
One thing I don't understand in this game at all is the decision to have 2 types of environmental device activation methods.

1. Press Triangle. Cloud flips the switch/opens the box/door, whatever in a quick animation.
2. Hold Triangle. Cloud stands there for 2 seconds doing nothing with his hand on the lever while you hold the button, when the bar fills up, he does the switch flipping animation.

I could see this being a semi-immersive mechanic if there was actually an animation of him having to struggle a bit with the weight of a heavy switch or something as you are holding it, but so far it's always been the same thing. He just puts his hand on the switch and waits for you to fill the bar before very easily flipping the switch like any of the other ones that you simply pressed triangle once for. Weird decision.

agreed

there is a ton a of bizarre decisions like that in this game.
 
Currently fighting the
Hell House
. This has to be one of the most unbalanced and unfair bullshit fights in the history of video games. I'm so close to quit this stupid game.

If you enter the battle with only one elemental spell then you're fucked. Still i somehow managed to get it very low on HP after 1 hour (at least) of an extremely annoying fight.
 
One thing I don't understand in this game at all is the decision to have 2 types of environmental device activation methods.

1. Press Triangle. Cloud flips the switch/opens the box/door, whatever in a quick animation.
2. Hold Triangle. Cloud stands there for 2 seconds doing nothing with his hand on the lever while you hold the button, when the bar fills up, he does the switch flipping animation.

I could see this being a semi-immersive mechanic if there was actually an animation of him having to struggle a bit with the weight of a heavy switch or something as you are holding it, but so far it's always been the same thing. He just puts his hand on the switch and waits for you to fill the bar before very easily flipping the switch like any of the other ones that you simply pressed triangle once for. Weird decision.
I'm pretty sure the "hold triangle" doors are actually there to mask loading of a new area.
 
You can't think too much about stuff like that in the FF7 Universe. Otherwise when you see Cloud basically flying and cutting through entire trains and buildings (because he can apparently do that if he's fighting Sephiroth), your head would cave in.

Absolutely, of course.

It's still pretty hilarious IMHO.
 
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