Final Fantasy VII 25th Anniversary Celebration Recap

 

It’s hard to believe that 25 years have passed since I first visited Midgar and became smitten with not only the game but the entire series as well. I have a lot to thank the seventh “numbered” entry in the series for, not the least of which is my marriage haha. I kid you not… My now brother-in-law set me up on the blind date that led to my forever gal all because he remembered seeing my rant about how excited I was for the Final Fantasy VII Remake. This was back in 2015 mind you, FIVE WHOLE YEARS before the game would actually come out… Anyway, Square Enix held a “Life Stream” (bad pun… I know) err– live stream on June 16th to announce the 25th anniversary celebration for this genre-defining classic. You can catch the full presentation on YouTube. While some of the items announced definitely made me more excited than others, I wanted to give a quick recap of what FFVII fans have to look forward to

First up on the menu, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade was announced for Steam. That’s right folks, if you’ve been wanting to play the remake and have not acquired a PS4 or PS5, you can now purchase it on Steam. Side note: it has already been available in the Epic Game Store since last December, but this with the Steam release comes the ability to play handheld on the steam deck as well! Personally, I have yet to finish the game. I know… How can I call myself a true FFVII fan if I still haven’t beaten the first installment? I blame my energetic toddlers haha. I will say however that I am grateful for the modernization that allows players to save anywhere instead of having to either return to the world map or scour the area for a save point. #NineteenNinetiesGamingProbsSomeYoungersWontUnderstand

Next up a bunch of new shiny pieces of jewelry, action figures, musical arrangements, and even a digital Buster Sword clock were announced. Most of these items cost a pretty penny, but I think Square did an excellent job in procuring high quality products. I love the idea of sporting a Shinra Bangle ring complete with a personal choice on colored gemstones to represent the different types of Materia! Will I buy one? Probably not. But would I love it and wear it pretty much every day if I did? You bet your bottom Gil that I would.

Season 3 for Final Fantasy VII The First Soldier is now underway. I haven’t tried this mobile Battle Royale yet, but if you’re into games like PUBG and the like and you’re an FFVII fan, give it a try. New goodies this season include: the new Midgar Plateside map, a Serpent Launcher, Water Materia, and the Machinist style.

A new mobile game called Final Fantasy VII Ever Crisis will be entering Closed Beta sometime this year. I haven’t been able to glean too many details beyond what was shown in the trailer, but it looks to be a hybrid graphical style of the OG FFVII and Remake. Apparently the game will include other parts of the overarching FFVII storyline from Crisis Core (originally available on the PSP). If my memory serves me well, a lot of the settings seen in the trailer seem to be not just high-def ports of the original scenery renders, but actual recreations of the same framing with much better graphics.

Speaking of which, we will be seeing the remake Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion this Winter coming to all major consoles. Having never owned a PSP I wasn’t able to set my hands on the game. I of course know who Zach is (I’m trying to avoid spoilers for those who are still hoping to play the OG), but it will be fun to actually get to experience his back story first-hand.

Last but not least, the announcement I was most excited for was for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. I am curious to see how the storyline changes will play out. In the trailer we see Cloud and Sephiroth approaching the Great Northern Crater, something I don’t remember happening in the OG. Whether the platinum-haired villain is actually there or just a figment in Cloud’s head has yet to be revealed.

Originally we were told that the remake project would span multiple games. At the time, I wondered if Square-Enix would try and keep it to three parts: one for each of the discs in the original multi-disc version. Sure enough the three-part structure was confirmed by Executive Producer Yoshinori Kitase, with Rebirth set to come out Winter 2023. Beyond that, we do not have a title for the final installment, nor a release date. This does however give me ample time to finish Part I and enjoy the other projects set to come out before then. Looks like I have plenty of catching up to do!