4 years after the release of Remake, we finally have Rebirth. Final Fantasy VII Remake is finally getting a sequel. And it’s fair to say that it was eagerly awaited, given that Remake had set the bar so high and left too many questions unanswered. While the demo gave us a good idea of what the final game would be like, we quickly realized that the game’s content was not quite up to scratch. We quickly realized that we weren’t ready for this little slap in the face.
Onward to freedom.
Well, the basic title takes what it introduced and improves on it. So yes, we’re not revisiting the combat system, for example, which only undergoes a few minor modifications. But where everyone was waiting for Rebirth to come along, was in the promise of freedom. After all, Midgard offers us a large zone filled with corridors. This time around, the closed zones are smaller, and we’re offered larger semi-open areas. Yes, this isn’t a map with total freedom.
On the gameplay front, we’ve added parries and perfect parries to turn the tide of a fight, making it much more dynamic. What’s more, there’s now a visual on the enemies when you’re spotted. This allows you to skip a lot of secondary combat.
The strength of the gameplay is that each character’s combat and skill system is unique. Only materials are common. And it’s a real pleasure to create varied team compositions. And let’s not forget that the higher you level up, the more you’ll be able to unlock new skills, some of which require unique synergies between different characters. In fact, changing characters in the middle of a fight is so fluid that it’s a real pleasure to switch from Cloud to Tifa or Barret in the middle of a fight, just to get the upper hand on Cloud.
Without spoilers, leave the discovery to you. It’s fun to try out everyone’s composition, with Cloud for hitting hard, Barret for anything that flies and Red XIII as the ultimate guarding machine with all those protective skills. Add to that all the weapons and their abilities and all the Codex skills… You’ll be reacquainted with a game where you already know all the basics instinctively.
The big change also comes with weapons. Which can no longer be upgraded with AP. Well, almost. Here, every time you upgrade a weapon, you’ll get a new passive slot.
Let’s save the planet.
If Remake was good and left a taste of too little. Rebirth is here to fill you up with content and remind you that Remake is a foundation for the new trilogy. And we’re not going to lie and spoil anything. But Rebirth reveals more about all the characters than Remake. So many questions remain unanswered for 20 years. Not to mention that the title also introduces an affinity system between Cloud and his team. And your choices of dialogues and quests will improve your relationships as the adventure progresses.
And it all comes into its own in combat, with synchronized actions. You’ll need to cast 3 spells or skills with Cloud, for example, and the same with another ally to be able to cast it. So yes, either you switch characters in combat, or you’ve equipped them to cast their skills automatically. Spoiler: You control them. This kind of action isn’t as powerful as a Limit Break, but it can hurt your opponents or give you bonuses.
Travel, travel.
Well, that’s all well and good. But we know that the game offers no less than 6 regions to visit. And this isn’t a spoiler, as it was announced a while ago. But seeing the tone of activities to be done in each one. Secondary activities such as Queen Blood,… You’ll easily have a hundred hours if you’re going to do it all. And on our side, that was the goal. To finish Rebirth with all the content done. Because the title pays such a tribute to FF7 that we couldn’t return the favor.
From 97 to 2024, you can feel that the studio has succeeded in retranscribing its basic material while improving it and adding its own story. Yes, Rebirth is here to tell fans that they are being listened to, and that this is what we’ve been kept in the dark about for so long. It’s a feast for the eyes, ears and memory. Because even if we know where the game will take us in the end. It’s a pleasure to discover this pseudo-new work.
So what can I say? Well, that Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the Final Fantasy that fans of the saga have been clamoring for. And that Square Enix should continue in this vein, instead of going too far into overly action-oriented systems. Rebirth is a beautiful love letter to JRPG and Final Fantasy VII fans. Because the fact of not being able to let go of the controller for 5 hours straight proves once again that the studio knows how to do what it does best, and that the game is among the best in the saga.
