Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS4) Review

Well worth the wait.

 Final Fantasy VII Remake is the much anticipated remake of the 1997 PlayStation RPG, Final Fantasy VII. After having been revealed nearly five years ago in E3 2015, the remake finally released last month. Taking on an iconic classic and rebuilding it for a new generation, FFVII Remake has got everyone excited. The wild adventure of Cloud and his band of friends is retold once again with added plot elements form the subsequent FFVII spin-offs. That and basically everything else looks brand new. It sucks that the game is taking on an episodic format, with this being the first part of the FFVII Remake experience. So without anymore talking, it's time we dive into FFVII Remake and see what does it have in store.

 In a world ruled by massive corporations and excessive pollution, we follow skilled mercenary Cloud Strife as he joins with eco-terrorist group Avalanche in an attempt to destroy various reactors of Midgar city, which saps the planet of its mako energy (it's life force basically), leaving the planet lifeless as a result. However, the group's adventure suddenly takes an unexpected turn, when they find themselves saving the world from the evil Shinra Corporation. The characters are just as memorable and likable as they were 23 years ago.

Cloud is your quiet hero with a tragic past, Barret is the Avalanche boss whose a big softie on the inside, Tifa is Cloud's energetic childhood friend who deeply cares for him, and Aerith is the innocent flower girl making a living in Midgar. Also, let's not forget the likes of memorable villains such as the ruthless Rufus Shinra (whose wearing way too many belts) and the one-winged angel himself, Sephiroth. Remake does a great of preserving the original spirit of the cast while giving them an added layer of personality, the same also goes for side characters like your fellow Avalanche members.

 Part One of the story follows the early stages of the main FFVII story, where the party operates in Midgar until their escape. Remake adds new exclusive scenarios and characters to make the experience fresh for everyone. However, it takes some creative liberties with rewriting the original story by adding new story themes of "Fate" and "Destiny" that weren't in the original. For the most part, I enjoyed the new content and characters like the eccentric biker Rouche and the lovable idiot Johnny, who provided memorable moments. Though without spoiling much, the curveball ending-- which drastically deviates from the original story-- might disappoint some fans expecting a faithful adaptation. Still, I'm excited to see what's store for Cloud and the party as they "journey into the unknown" in the next part.

The story's engaging for newcomers yet offers

some fresh new content for fans.

 Final Fantasy VII receives a major gameplay overhaul with Remake, as the game favors action-based battles as opposed to the original turn-based system. You control up to three characters as you freely switch through them and each has their own unique weapons and abilities to pull off. For example, Cloud unleashes physical attacks using his Buster Sword while Barret's arm cannon is good against flying and ranged enemies. Buying different weapons and equipment will offer new skills to master for each character while also giving you slots to use Materia, which are orbs that grant you power-ups like magic abilities and health increases. Some special Materia even pack powerful summons that help you out in a tough battle too. You can buy them from vendors all over Midgar or come across through exploration as they're essential in battles. You can level up each Materia by equipping them onto your gear and by using them in battles, you increase their potency which unlocks more attacks.

The gameplay leans to an action-heavy side, 

and it's fun.

 You can't just rush mindlessly into battles as you'll have to wait for the ATB (Active Time Battle) gauge to fill up, which is right under your health. Each bar allows you to either use a skill, spell, or item, so you'll have to plan carefully. Thankfully, you can find a materia which increases the speed in which the gauge fills late in the game. By exploiting enemies' weaknesses, you can increase their stagger meter, which when full will leave them in a vulnerable state where you can pummel them down. Lastly, when you're taking a constant beating from enemies, your Limit Break gauge gradually fills up, which lets you pull of some boss-ending finishers. As a huge fan of action RPGs, I enjoyed the new battle system and though it was tons of fun. With that said, I feel that purists who prefer the turn-based gameplay will also find some enjoyment here.

You'll be fighting tough bosses ranging from super-

mechs to ghosts to a freaking house!

 What I really love about Remake is that the city of Midgar feels alive, with it being densely populated with people who'll share their own stories and react to your latest activities during the story, so it's worth going out of your way to talk with people. Some residents will even offer you side-quests (mainly being fetch quests) which reward you will experience and gil, the game's currency. There's a total of 26 quests overall and personally they weren't anything special, except maybe for the Johnny-related side quests. An annoying aspect of the game has to be he camera system, which tends to go off-center at times, making battles in tight spaces a pain. Though thankfully, the game alleviates this a bit by offering an auto-lock on option.

 As you can probably tell, Final Fantasy VII Remake is a gorgeous game. My jaw dropped when I first saw the in-game cutscenes and lighting, which were plain eye-candy. The colorful visual effects were stunning too, no surprise considering that Square Enix always goes all-out with the production values. Though if I'm being nitpicky, there were the occasionally spotty and low res textures in some areas of the game. Remake runs at a steady 30FPS, which may dismay those expecting a 60FPS battles. The voice acting was great and had lots of spectacular performances-- Aerith, Barret, and Red XIII being standouts. I enjoyed the new soundtrack and renditions of classic FFVII tracks such as "Bombing Mission", "Let the Battles Begin!", and "One Winged Angel". The new tracks like the ending theme "Hollow" and "Honey Bee Inn" were great as well.

FFVII Remake is easily one of the best looking 

games this gen.

 All in all, I enjoyed my experience with Final Fantasy VII Remake. Yeah, the episodic format, annoying camera, and slight re-writes to the story are bummers yet I still found myself loving the game. The characters and world have a lot more depth this time around, the gameplay was a lot of fun, and the production values speaks for itself. Being a 40 hour adventure, there's a lot to experience in FFVII Remake that series fans and newcomers will enjoy. It's easily one of the year's best offerings.