"But you literally wrote about a FF7 trailer a couple weeks back." Yeah, I know but I don't care. I'm in a real bad mood right now and I need something to geek out over, and this cool new trailer for a video game which I don't know when i'll get my hands on (as I don't own a PlayStation) is literally the only thing I have going for me right now. Besides, in my last blog on this subject I did make a few factual errors as well as a specific prediction that this trailer seems to have proven wrong, so I'm honor bound to dive into this and correct my folly. Before I do, however, I will mention that, due to how deep this trailer goes, I'll likely be touching on events throughout the entire game (Because this Remake will only consist of the first 20 or so hours of the original product) so take that into account if you hate spoilers. Then again, maybe I'll be completely wrong with my coverage as this trailer has proved that the team aren't afraid of changing elements of the story to suit a better narrative. (Which is something I'm literally ecstatic for.)
This leads into a scene that I honestly didn't expect, of Cloud and the team confronted by Sephiroth in front of, what looks like, a vat containing Genova. Now, I could be misremembering the original game, but I don't remember this scene playing out with the entire crew like it is, which would imply that this is a new addition. Of course, there is the scene where Tifa and Cloud confront Sephiroth, but that was supposed to be a flashback and I don't remember that happening until Act 2. (Again, it's been a good number of years since I played through the original.) I do like this change, however, as it introduces the main rival early on and reinforces the dramatic tension between the two of them. It also makes for "A touching reunion."
I positively loved the next few scenes, as we see a brief cut through all of the hugely memorable supporting cast from this game such as Scarlett (perfectly in character with her henchman foot-stool) and Don Corneo, the creep who infamously tries to pimp off your party. Who are little more than children. (Huh, Final Fantasy 7 is a lot darker than I originally thought.) The thing which I loved most of all, however, was the fact that we got to see the scene in the Honeybee Inn where Cloud is forcibly crossdressed! I was almost positive that they were going to cut that out or tone it down, but instead they have hammed it up to such I degree that I feel like the Yakuza developers have to be taking their hats off to these guys. It makes me hopeful that the team know precisely how important the weird and humorous elements of the original are in order to outset the comparatively po-faced main narrative. These guys get it!
Next comes a little bit of a correction. I previously stated that we had heard the voices of all the main cast that would be appearing in the game as Cait Sif, Vincent, Yuffie (my fav), and Red XIII didn't show up in the Midgar. Obviously I was completely mistaken as Red XIII obviously shows up in Midgar (can't believe I forgot that) and we do technically meet Cait Sif, if you're picking up what I'm putting down. Also, I totally forget that Cid is one of the main cast, probably because I never used him in my party. (The guy's a mechanic, why would that make him a good fighter?) Anyways, we get to hear Red and, just like I expected, he sounds exactly like he should. Everyone in this title just sounds perfect and that is astounding considering the source material was entirely written. (Yes, I know Advent Children exists, but I've never seen it so I don't care.) Especially that one moment wherein we hear Aerith teasing Cloud; I felt like I actually remembered hearing that dialogue years ago before realizing that I only ever heard it in my mind. Truly on point voice work so far. (I do wonder how they'll make Vincent not sound like a pretentious arse, though.)
Then we get to see gameplay and hear the battle music and I'm surprised to say that I'm actually less thrilled about this part of the trailer. It's not that the gameplay looks bad at all, in fact it all looks exceptionally fun and I'm just eager to get my hands on it, but as a huge fan I'm more interested in seeing my favourite scenes reimagined. It was pretty cool to see the Moogle summon (which I used way past it's effectiveness threshold in my initial playthrough) but I was more curious about the Leviathan summon. Correct me if I'm wrong (which I'm not, I just looked up a picture to compare) but that looks like the exact same model that was used for The Hydraean in Final Fantasy 15, which paints a cool connective thread between the series. Even if the stories and worlds are completely distinct from one another, the creatures look the same. (Does that mean this game's Bahamut is going to look even a slimmer as cool as Final Fantasy 15's? Guess we'll have to wait and see.)
Surprisingly, this trailer actually goes so far as to cover all the events in Midgar, even showing a brief glance of the team's escape from the city as a whole sector is destroyed. So basically they've just shown you what is going to be the end of the first game in their trailer, I know that a lot of people have played the original but there will be entirely new audience coming to this game, so perhaps they should play their cards a little closer to their chests in the future. What, are they going to show us the entirety of One-Winged Angel during the trailer for the third game? (I'm assuming these games are going to be trilogy.) Or maybe this is hinting that this game will actually extend slightly past the events of Midgar and into the next few areas. But honestly the crumbling of Midgar is such an amazing cliffhanger that I can't imagine the team screwing that up with some needless extra scenes.
The only that is still worth mentioning is the fact that the battle music is a lot more versatile than even I thought, and I love that tune. It makes for a solid 'swashbuckling adventure' theme that I feel like won't get too grating in prolonged bouts. Oh, and there's an odd moment of the team fighting Genova which I'm almost certain never happened in the original. I mean, I think they have a run-in before meeting Red, but I don't remember a full-blown fight. Finally, I would like to offer my predictions of one major change that I suspect is coming our way. Fans of Final Fantasy 7 will know what I mean when I say that I, whilst watching this trailer and seeing all my Midgar friends bought to life again, was struck with both love and heartache. I adore the chance to meet everyone again, but also lament because I know where that relationship is going to go. Or rather, how it will go for one character in particular. (No, not Cait Sif. I hope that little furry bastard stays dead this time.) That scene is the cloud hanging over everyone and it must have struck the developers minds at some point. Now, it would be nigh-on sacrilege for them to mess with it, to offer a way out, the entire emotional crux of the story rests on it, but I'm starting to think that they may throw a little twist in there. I have no 'inside evidence' to support this assumption, merely my gut, but I feel they could be prepping us for a curve ball with all these subtle changes.
What do I mean? Well 'The Twist', as I'll call it to avoid spoiling a game that's literally as old as I am, is very dependant on one thing; the player becoming invested in the characters. Now Japanese RPGs in particular are absolutely great at this, and Final Fantasy literally created the archetype that most of those games follow, but that doesn't mean it'll hit everyone the same way. What I'm trying to say is, wouldn't it be more impactful if 'The Twist' were to occur on whatever character that the player feels most attached to in order to be more effective? The original game even has a moment, just before 'The Twist', where you are given a choice that could influence such a moment. I have no idea how that might play out, and it would probably be stupid if the scene in question doesn't go the way we all expect, but I think it's suitable food for thought.
Well that's enough playing vague, I think, time to wrap up. All I really have to say to conclude this blog is "For the love of god, Square, please bring this to PC!" I cannot get over how excited I am for this title and every day I exist without knowing if this will come to a platform I can work with is actively killing me. It's like how Atlus have been playing coy about whether or not 'Persona 5' will ever come to PC, but have hinted that 'Persona 6' may make it. I don't care about 'Persona 6', it's 5 which made me fall in love with it's weird advertising, quirky characters and impeccable music. I have no doubt that future 'Final Fantasy's will shirk the outdated premise of 'exclucivity', but this is the one that I need in my bloodstream for no other reason than I want to know what it feels like to be excited again. Please, Square, give as something to look forward to, 2020's been exceptionally crappy so far.
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