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*WARNING: THIS THREAD CONTAINS UNMARKED SPOILERS. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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Seriously.
Okay, good.
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A couple of weeks ago I made a thread asking Gaffers for their opinions on whether Final Fantasy VII was a good entry point for the series for newcomers such as myself. Naturally there were a lot of different answers, and I was intrigued to see just how many mainline entries were recommended to me. Regardless, I thought I would take a shot on the PS4 remaster of FF7.
That was a couple of weeks ago. Only a few hours ago I defeated the final boss and finished the main story. With that in mind, I thought I would make a topic discussing my thoughts on what is one of the most popular games of all time.
At first, I thought I would just do a regular LTTP and leave my impressions. Thinking about it more however, I realised that finishing the game today ended a journey that started years ago before really springing to life with E3 2015.
I therefore wanna do something a little different to the normal LTTP, and have split it into three sections:
Final Fantasy VII Then: Here is where I discuss my experiences and impressions of FF7 before I had even played it. These impressions were mostly derived from other sources as opposed to the game itself.
Final Fantasy VII Now: The most LTTP part of this LTTP, where I talk about the game and what I thought about it after finishing it. A key theme of this segment will be how the act of actually playing the game meshed with my impressions going in.
Final Fantasy VII To The Future: This is where I'll discuss how my post-game impressions have influenced my hopes for the future and more specifically, the upcoming remake.
Without further ado, let's get rolling.
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Final Fantasy VII Then
Until I played FF7, the Final Fantasy franchise in general had passed me by. Up until around 2006, Nintendo dominated my gaming life. With my entrance to gaming being the Nintendo 64, I came in just when Square-Enix had jumped ship. This meant that I was too late to appreciate any of the titles in the SNES era. While PS1 owners were exploring Midgar for the first time, I was content to instead jump around the Mushroom Kingdom and travel across Hyrule.
I also feel Nintendo were directly responsible for my lack of experience with the series in another way I simply wasn't interested. Being raised on Super Mario 64, my gaming palette leant heavily towards platformers and action games. Even when I eventually did get a PS1, I was more interested in playing Crash Bandicoot than I was FF7. This disinterest wasn't just aimed squarely at Final Fantasy, with my disinterest extending to nearly all RPGs that didn't have Mario or Pikachu in them. Naturally my palette became wider the older I became, and with age grew an appreciation for JRPGs that my younger self simply didn't have.
Even with my relative ambivalence towards FF7 and the series as a whole, the game was always somewhere in the background. This was especially apparent to me after my family got its first computer in 2005. During my early travails through gaming forums and the like, FF7 was spoken with a reverence that very few games manage to inspire. I did sometimes wonder if I should see what all the fuss was about, but I never paid it much heed.
My first experience with Cloud Strife was almost a complete accident. While I didn't have a Playstation 2, I did hold a strong love for Disney. This led me to the Kingdom Hearts series, and more specifically, Kingdom Hearts II. It was watching a play-through of the game that I was first exposed to the characters of FF7.
Looking back, I think this first impression went a long way to cementing my lack of interest in playing the original game. Now there's always a chance that my memory is fuzzy considering this was nearly a decade ago, but Cloud didn't really impress me at all.
He was a bit of a miserable bastard with spiky hair and massive sword who seemed to kind of suck out all the energy of the scenes he was in. Kingdom Hearts II also served as my first exposure to Tifa, Aeris, Yuffie, Cid and Sephiroth and I can't say any of them really grabbed me at all. Now this was a long time ago, but I remember thinking that Aeris was just kind of a generic nice girl, Yuffie was annoying, Tifa was weirdly clingy to Cloud, and Sephiroth was equally obsessed with Cloud's darkness whatever that meant. I barely even remember Cid.
It was probably unfair, but these impressions stayed with me for a long time I wasn't inspired in any way shape or form to learn more about FF7. So, I didn't. It didn't help that there always seemed to be jokes and criticism aimed at the FF7 cast and more specifically, Cloud. Accusations of him being emo and whatnot. These impressions were important when starting FF7 for the first time, but more on that later.
Even with all the criticism and the like, FF7 was a constant in gaming culture particularly through the the idea of a remake. It almost became a meme on to itself to ask for it before an E3, and it wasn't just a fad either. For the best part of a decade from 2005, hopes for a remake were parroted by the gaming community. Often it was done as a joke, but underneath there was a real thirst for the remake bubbling underneath.
Come E3 2015, and this thirst manifests itself into full blown hysteria when the remake is announced. While not personally invested at this point due to not having a PS4 and no experience with the original, the ensuing mayhem opened my eyes to something: people weren't talking about FF7 with reference to the past, nor were they using it to perpetuate industry jokes and memes. People were talking about the remake and what they wanted for the future: their hopes, their fears and their expectations as to what the remake could entail.
This was a new experience for me, having got so used to FF7 being discussed so predominantly using those barometers, seeing people actually discuss the original game in relation to the remake was a eye-opener. Would Square-Enix be able to recreate this scene faithfully? Would it make me feel like it was 1997 again? What if they lose what made this this and this about the original so good?
FF7 was once more at the forefront of the gaming community, and naturally, I was intrigued.
Much like the narration for the remake trailer noted, this was merely the beginning of a stir. Enter Nintendo, and more specifically, Super Smash Bros for Wii U and 3DS. Before November 2015, I had decided that when I got a PS4, I would eventually play the FF7 Remake. It wasn't exactly high on my list of priorities, but I figured that would be my first experience with FF7.
Then Cloud was announced as a playable character for Smash Bros.
Cue mass freakout. Much like the Remake, Cloud in Smash Bros had almost become a meme on to itself a thing that was dreamt of and jokingly asked for but generally considered impossible. My own personal excitement wasn't due to any investment or love for the character, it instead stemmed from just how surprising and dreamlike the announcement was. I can only imagine how amazing 2015 was for established FF7 fans.
It was Smash Bros that turned my intrigue and curiosity into a genuine desire to play FF7 for the first time, though not just because of his status as a playable character. Absolutely, I found Cloud to be an incredibly fun character to use when I first downloaded him. He felt different from the other sword users with his mobility and use of Limit Breaks, and he generally just felt good to play. Midgar was an awesome stage as well, with it being one of the few in the game to utilise stage hazards that didn't feel completely intrusive. Plus the summons looked pretty!
Aside from his merits as a playable fighter, I remember there being a lot of discussion as to his portrayal. There were many on GAF who were praising Sakurai for how he depicted Cloud based on his character render alone.
Users spoke of how the render expressed the quiet confidence and readiness that Cloud used to have, among other things. Reading those discussions made me wonder if I had been perhaps wrong in my first impressions of Cloud. True enough, after playing Smash Bros with him for a bit, I did feel that he was depicted in a way that clashed with my first impressions of him. I didn't really get a sense of angst or misery from him just a slightly dour individual who was confident in his own abilities and ready to face the challenges him. I actually found myself rather endeared to him.
With this feeling came a suspicion that I had perhaps judged the rest of the FF7 cast too strongly on one instance of representation. This, coupled with my enjoyment of playing as Cloud in Smash Bros, made me eager to try out the game for myself.
The PSX 2015 trailer for the Remake helped things along as well, as I thought looked majestic even with all the controversies surrounding it changes in gameplay, the decision to release the game episodically etc. Since so much of the discussion lacked personal context, I was made even more excited to play the original game and finally gain that context.
So I finally get a PS4, and after getting over some personal stuff and some encouragement from GAF in the thread I made, I finally took the plunge. I downloaded the PS4 remaster and set off on my first play-through.
So, what did I think?
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Final Fantasy VII: Now
I really enjoyed it!
There were many ways in which the game played with or completely subverted my expectations, and the strongest way it did this was with the one element that turned me off in the first place the characters. I feel confident in saying that the cast of FF7 is among my favourites in gaming, particularly when it comes to the main party members.
Cloud is not a whiny angsty downer in this game. Yes, he does have his moments, but they come at times where it feels natural and not just for the sake of it. The biggest example of course being his mental breakdown at the hands of Sephiroth. On the whole though, I'd describe Cloud as a serious and slightly dour character, but one who has a cocky streak and isn't immune to humor.
Hell, one of the first things Cloud does after piecing himself back together is crack a joke on the Highwind, and anyone who says let's mosey just before a fight for the fate of the world can't be a complete stiff. Some of his dialogue choices are hilarious as well, such as referring to Aeris as the slum drunk.
Speaking of which, Aeris is not a pure incorruptible paragon of pure pureness in this game. She is really nice, but she's also snarky, flirty, mischievous and well...fun. I simply enjoyed watching her in many of the scenes that she was in, and I'm glad this was the case. Even if I ultimately knew that she was going to die, I actually grew attached enough to her to still make it a relatively striking moment in the game. I don't think I would have felt the same way if the focus had been on her purity, as it were.
Yuffie isn't anywhere near as grating as I thought she would be either, with her having some legitimately funny lines and moments within the game. I'd even go as far as to say that I enjoyed the sidequest where she steals your Materia and the follow-up where she fights her father. It lends an element of sadness and tragedy to what she does, and I found myself liking her more as the game went on.
Tifa was probably the standout character for me, absolutely adored her. At first I was worried she would be defined mostly by her sex appeal and her devotion to the Cloud. Both of these aspects are present in the game, but I never really felt that the game pandered in terms of fanservice. Nor did I feel that her relationship with Cloud was so clingy that it would make her insufferable.
On the contrary, I find her to be very engaging character. Behind her actually quite shy and empathetic exterior lies a strong disposition which I feel helps to form the glue that keeps the party together even through its toughest times. Even when Cloud is at his lowest, she finds the strength to help him recover and set both him and herself back on the right path.
Couple that with some very amusing lines and moments in the game, and the fact that she can roll with the strongest of enemies when the situation demands it, and Tifa is just a great character for me.
The other party members Cid, Barret, Red XIII and Vincent are all pretty cool as well, even if they didn't strike the same chord as strongly as some of the others. On the whole, I think the party is a very compelling and likeable one. I actually regret leaving Vincent in his coffin until relatively late in the game. I would like to have seen his contribution to earlier scenes. Ah well.
Cait Sith is the sole exception for me. Not that he was horrific or anything, but he kinda felt superfluous to the plot, and just came out of nowhere. His heroic sacrifice only to be followed by an almost immediate resurrection did nothing for me either. I dunno. He was the only character from the party that didn't do much for me.
The villains aren't bad either. President Shinra, Tseng Rufus and Heidegger are eh but Scarlet and the Turks are pretty good. The former is such an unashamed bitch that she's entertaining to watch. Reno, Elena and Rude are also entertaining, with some their banter matching that of the main party. Elena especially is consistently amusing.
And then of course there's Sephiroth. He's a good villain, with his murder of Aeris, and the Nibelheim incident being two particularly striking examples of his villainy. His theme is also kickass too, but more about more that later. I do feel that the fact he pretty much disappears from the game between the first visit to the Northern Cave and the final encounter serves to weaken his impact overall however. Hell, the revelation that it's Jenova masquerading as him for many of the scenes has the same effect. I'd also argue that his turn to darkness feels a little contrived and slightly out of nowhere. Still, he's an interesting character, and I think he makes for a fine villain.
The characters help to make the story quite entertaining as well. It has a lot of the whole small group vs evil organisation/person/god/whatever trying to take over the world shtick that is prevalent in a lot of JRPGs, but I still think it spins an entertaining yarn. There are some well done twists as well. Of course, Aeris' death is basically the video game equivalent to Darth Vader being Luke's father, but the revelation that Cloud had in some respects taken on the history and experiences of another was a surprise.
One of the best things about the story is that it knows how to play it light and how to play it serious. The game has a sense of humour that never truly disappears, even at the game's darkest moments. For every Nibelheim incident, there's the climb up the Shinra HQ stairs bonus points for Tifa calling Barret a retard, which actually made me laugh out loud. The sense of fun that the story holds is something I appreciate, and I believe actually makes the dramatic moments hit all the harder.
The story is just full of memorable moments, regardless of whether they're going for comedy or drama. The Gold Saucer date and the play, Dyne's suicide, the Nibelheim incident, the flashback to Zack's death, Tifa and Cloud in the Lifestream, the Wall Market disguise scene...there's a lot of great stuff in there, and that's just off the top of my head.
One thing I also really liked was how flawed the main party was: Cloud taking on someone else's memories to run away from his problems. Barrett wearing on a mask of nobility to hide what is plainly a quest for revenge. Tifa's loyalty to Cloud preventing her from confronting him about his memories and making her doubt her own. There's more for the others as well. By the game's end, I felt the majority of characters had all developed significantly past their introductions, and were on the whole very well rounded.
One of my favourite scenes is near the end in the Highwind, where Cloud basically admits that he's fighting Sephiroth mainly to settle the score, with the safety of the Planet being a nice perk. He then encourages the others to find similar reasons to fight, which they all manage to find. To see a party actually acknowledge their ultimately selfish reasons for doing something incredibly selfless was quite refreshing for me.
The story isn't perfect, obviously. There are times where the narrative kinda stalls for exposition, or moments that feel more like filler than anything else. The quest for the Huge Materia is a notable example. Unless I'm missing something, I didn't feel as if that segment was all that relevant to the main narrative as a whole. Also like I mentioned with Sephiroth's turn, I do think there are a couple of leaps in logic that undermine some scenes. The ending scene as well feels a little rushed, and doesn't provide much in the way of closure for the characters, aside from maybe Red XIII.
Overall though, I feel the game tells a very entertaining story, even it is a tad tropey at yimes. That in itself isn't the game's fault however, and more just a by-product of the years that have since passed.
I've spoken so much about the characters and the story, that I haven't even mentioned the gameplay. I was initially worried that the gameplay might feel ancient when compared to its more modern successors, but I think the battle system has aged pretty well. This was my first experience with ATB, and I enjoyed it. I think in general I'm more inclined to an active battle system as opposed to a traditional turn-based one, with Mario & Luigi and Xenoblade coming to mind.
I think ATB strikes a nice balance between the traditional turn based combat and the more proactive combat that other JRPGs tend to use. I like how the system allows to both go for broke in attacking the enemy, or holding back and waiting for your limit to fill before planning your next move. In my opinion the system allows for a nice amount of variance within the battles themselves, with different approaches being equally viable at different times.
It is a pretty simple system too, and I didn't have to think too hard to get my head around it. One could argue that it is a bit too simple, but I would argue that the game allows for depth if a player actively seeks it out. The Materia system is great in this regard, and you can pull off some pretty ridiculous combinations if you put the time in. Hell, watching some videos on Youtube showed me just what could be done with the system, leaving me feeling that I hadn't even scratched the surface.
Limit Breaks are cool as well, even if they are usually just variations of a single party absolutely wrecking the enemies. The use of a front and back row that favours offensive/defensive play is also appreciated.
FF7's system is one that achieves a fine balance between accessibility and depth, but I do think it can be a little too simple at times, particularly when it comes to the uniqueness of the characters themselves. I think this comes down to the Materia system, and became especially apparent to me after Aeris died. She had been my main healer up to that point. When I moved Yuffie into my party, it was a simple task of giving her all of Aeris' Materia and carrying on from there, with little in the way of consequence.
It probably helped that Yuffie had a decent aptitude for magic, but I was surprised at just how easy it was to cover for the loss of my healer. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate a system that allows for flexibility and streamlining of certain things. Having relied so heavily on Cloud/Tifa/Aeris for most of the game, it could have been really frustrating to have had to start things from scratch, and the game's system should be praised for avoiding this.
However, it also meant that I didn't really feel the need to change my playstyle to accommodate the character change. I did with Yuffie what I did with Aeris hang back and attack from the back row and use magic/summons when necessary. They almost felt interchangeable, and considering the differences between the two in terms of actual characterisation and weapons, I thought that was a shame. Alternatively, I played Tifa as a melee heavy character who soaked up a lot of hits and countered in tandem. If I had given her Materia to any of the other party members, I imagine I would have played the same way.
Cloud/Tifa/Yuffie remained my party of choice for the remainder of the game, but I feel I could have easily put in any of the others as long as I had the right Materia, with there only being slight drawbacks due to differences in natural aptitude.
Still, the differences in character weapons help to change things up somewhat, as do the various accessories and pieces of armour one can acquire. There is a lot of room for experimentation in FF7, and the game rewards you for it. I just feels at times that the game discourages that same experimentation due to the effectiveness of Materia when placed against equipment and individual character traits.
Other than battling, other elements of FF7 are decidedly mixed. Traversing the world can be frustrating at times, with Cloud seemingly intent on jumping back and forth from point to point if you so much as brush the stick in the wrong direction. The poor controls also hamper fun mini-games such as the snowboarding and motorcycling segments. The control issues are exacerbated by the pre-rendered backgrounds, as is it hard at times to figure out where Cloud is, where he needs to go next, and how he can get there.
There are also some really weird moments where the game makes the player do something that doesn't jive with the rest of the experience. Like Press X at the right time to jump on the rope! or Mash the button to keep warm!. Not only were some of these moments vaguely explained and introduced, they also never felt particularly intuitive to me, and just added unnecessary frustration.
) I take down JENOVA, and i'm waiting for the bait and switch so the chase can start again and 
