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FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH is a grand adventure of epic proportions
The FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH developers address Zack Fair's larger role, the rave reviews of the Queen's Blood card game and more.
Grab on to your chocobos because Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart and Sephiroth are all back for FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH. The new chapter in the FINAL FANTASY VII remake project follows on from the events of FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE, as the crew leave Midgar for an even bigger adventure.
The remarkably ambitious game transforms the 1997 PlayStation classic with modern graphics and huge expansions to the story and world, with an astonishing 50-100 hours of breath-taking content waiting to be explored.
We spoke to Square Enix's Naoki Hamaguchi, director of FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH, to get the lowdown on all that's new and their favourite additions in this spectacular reimagining.
As FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH is a standalone game, is it a good starting point for those new to the series?
People who never played the original FINAL FANTASY VII, or people who didn't play the previous game (FFVII REMAKE), can definitely enjoy FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH to the fullest if they choose to start there. There's a five-minute digest video that recaps events of the previous game available in the title menu, so I recommend that new players watch that to get up to speed.
There's no need to do anything to prepare. The game will ease you in slowly with full tutorials and help you find your feet if you're stuck with the controls. I hope that anyone who's interested in FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH can just pick it up and give the game a try.
The original FINAL FANTASY VII is considered by many as the most popular game of the series. Why do you think it resonated with so many around the world?
The original FINAL FANTASY VII dealt with themes of life and death, and had a very deep and detailed setting that was quite rare for games of that time. As well, it had an emotional story that delighted many fans. On top of that, FINAL FANTASY VII came out in the era when game visuals were making the transition from 2D to 3D, so I think a big part of why it was so memorable was because it was one of the standard bearers for that new kind of sensational 3D graphics. There were also many spin-off titles released after the first game, forming a compilation, and these titles helped bring in many fans to cement FINAL FANTASY VII as a brand that continues to be loved today.
FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH reimagines the original game for the modern age
© Square Enix
With that strong fandom comes very strong opinions. It's impossible to please everyone, so is that both a blessing and a curse when adding to these cherished stories?
We're very aware of our longtime fans' expectations, so with this title we differentiated what we'd call story 'alterations' from 'expansions' (i.e., adding more details). Story expansions are opportunities where we can present elements from the original story that couldn't be depicted at that time due to technological limitations. These add further depth to the world and sometimes result in new characters being added or slight adjustments to the flow of story scenes.
Ultimately, we're taking what was always there and making it richer and more detailed, rather than changing things completely, so most fans are very open to these kinds of additions.
Speaking of strong opinions, what's your response to the discussion around the use of 'yellow paint' to show where players can climb?
I didn't think that the 'yellow paint' would be something that would be discussed on social media. For things like camera options, where people have a wide variety of preferences and there's no one right answer, our basic approach is to offer various accessibility options, so I would like to take on board the valuable feedback we have received towards this for future games.
One character who's being expanded is Zack Fair. Why was he chosen to come back and can you talk a little more about how crucial he will be to REBIRTH'S story?
Even though it is a remake, when looking at FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH as a satisfying piece of entertainment, we felt that if it just followed the same story as the original game, then it would struggle to maintain people’s interest. We thought that we needed to make some alterations so players could enjoy wondering about the direction that events would go in.
Zack’s presence plays a very important part in that and we expect that his appearances will help communicate what's going on with the world of FINAL FANTASY VII in REMAKE and REBIRTH. Any further details would be a spoiler, so I hope people can play the game and find out by experiencing it for themselves.
We've seen that Red XIII can hilariously ride chocobos. How did the team decide on his very human-like seating position and are there any other fun details or silly easter eggs that you're looking forward to players discovering?
One of our motion designers suggested that having Red XIII sit like a human would look cute and our Creative Director Mr. Nomura was positive towards the idea, so it was adopted right away. In addition to the way he rides chocobos, the way Red XIII climbs cliffs is also nimble and charming, so I hope players notice that.
Cloud Strife is looking good in REBIRTH
© Square Enix
Can you detail how the combat has been updated in FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH?
This game takes the new system that we built for REMAKE by blending action and strategy style gameplay, and further improves on it by adding elements involving multiple characters combining their skills together. The synergy system adds further depth to battles and is also an important element to express the theme of the bonds and relationships between the characters in battle, as well as in the story.
One of my personal favourite synergy abilities is 'Synchro Cyclone', which Cloud and Tifa can use from early in the game. After using this ability, it reduces your MP consumption to zero for a set time, so it's very useful. I also like Red XIII and Cait Sith’s 'Feline Fury' move. The visuals are so cute and it's a bit humorous, too.
FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH is ready to wow fans of the original
© Square Enix
Can you tell us about any new areas and why these parts of the world were ones the team particularly wanted to explore?
We haven't added any completely new locations that didn't feature in the original FINAL FANTASY VII, but we have expanded the Gongaga region that you only passed through briefly in the original. It's now an integral part of the main story. It's the homeland of Zack Fair, who plays a major role in the game, and we wanted players to understand more about the world of FINAL FANTASY VII through a story focused on the village of Gongaga.
Outside of the main story there's a lot more content, including all the mini-games in the beloved Gold Saucer. Which are you most excited for players to try?
I definitely want players to try out the Queen's Blood card game, but I would actually like to take the opportunity to introduce one of the other mini-games here. While you're travelling through the Junon area and helping Chadley with a job involving a protorelic, you'll be able to play the Fort Condor game. We've adjusted and altered the rules from when it was playable in INTERmission and Cloud, and the team can now enter the battlefield as controllable units, so that's one I really want players to experience and enjoy.
Tell us more about the Queen's Blood card game. How many cards are there and are there plans for new cards to be added?
There are 145 cards in total. We haven't decided anything in terms of future development for Queen’s Blood, but so far, the media who played it have provided very positive feedback on it, so we want to consider further expansions as a possibility.
