When I found Final Fantasy VII Remake on the Playstation store, it carried the impossible weight of nostalgia, expectation, and decades of mythologizing one of the most beloved JRPGs ever made. For many players, the original FFVII wasn’t just a game it was a formative experience, an early example of how storytelling, emotion, and world building could exist. I hold FFVII as one of the best just behind FFX so I decided to bit the bullet and dedicate the next 30-45 hours to this game.
The remake had a choice to follow the original closely and risk irrelevance, or create something new and risk backlash. Square Enix chose the latter. Honestly, It was the right decision even though I'm only on chapter 14. So far this has been a reimagining, not a retelling of the original. It’s a reconstruction or a reexamination of the original narrative with new layers, new character depth, and, yes, new lore that disrupts what we thought we knew.
Where the original game’s Midgar section was a 5 hour prologue, here it becomes a full length RPG, meticulously expanded into a sprawling, living city. Some may argue it feels padded, but in truth, it finally gives Midgar the scale and personality it always deserved. For me it's a good balance of action and strategy. Square Enix struck gold with the combat system in my opinion. It’s fast, it’s flashy, and yet it still carries the strategic weight of the ATB era. Swapping characters mid-battle feels intuitive, and each one has a clearly defined that I have been able to curate their abilities to my liking. Right now, I have Cloud as pure bruiser focusing on physical attacks. Tifa is setup as my thief and healer. Barret is my ranged attacker and Aerith is my mage with as much spell amplification as possible. With this setup the combat never feels repetitive, largely because boss fights are multi-stage, cinematic, and mechanically interesting. You’re not just mashing buttons you’re responding to patterns, exploiting weaknesses, and constantly adapting.
The other aspect of FFX games I enjoy are the characters. Cloud isn’t just an aloof mercenary he’s socially awkward, sarcastic without meaning to be, and often adorably clueless. Tifa is warm and conflicted in a way the PS1 polygons could only hint at. Aerith steals the show with her charm, mischief, and emotional intelligence. Even side characters like Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge become fleshed out personalities rather than simple plot devices. Their expanded roles give Midgar texture and heart and their fates sting that much more because of it. I've been very impressed with this game and can't wait to finish it!
I remember playing the original and grinding away at the Chocobo races to get the golden Chocobo so I could access the area to get the Knights of the Round summon. When I read that they removed the Knights of the Round summon from the remake they totally lost me. That being said, I can't think of a Final Fantasy game that was as engaging as VII except maybe X.
The good old days of grinding! I was that way in FFX with blitz ball I think I may have played almost as many hours as the actual game. Same with cards in FFVIII. I’m a sucker for remakes and remastered games for the nostalgia.
Yes, I was the same way. I didn't realize how important blitzball was until much later in the game. That match right at the beginning I was totally confused! I did a lot of grinding in the original NES game too.
I hear you I'm the type of player who tries to 100% a game. I'm pretty upset I missed a side quest on this play through it's annoying seeing my cleared screen to see it missing.
Haha yeah, I know that feeling!
FFVII was the only final fantasy game I played extensively. I loved it but I don't see the point of a remake. Just make a new story. And get off my lawn, lol.
If I do want to revisit FFVII, I still have my original.
The nostalgia factor I think
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Remakes or remastered are appreciated because they bring back good memories of the game we loved when younger, so we like them even more now! I didn't play it, but I played red alert which was remastered too some years ago
That's why I like them. Red Alert I still ply the OG on an emulator lol
i used to play it like 30 years ago lol but the remastered is pretty good, shouldn't be expensive on steam now
Looks like you are enjoying Final fantasy remake, I've never played it but I think I should give it a try after reading your post
I am it's pretty relaxing vs other games I play
Well well, buying a play station is like a dream for every Pakistani average boy, never have one but one day I will have it and will okay this game.
Keep blogging on Hive and use the rewards to buy one!
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The new features and new things that are coming have increased the value of the games considerably and the graphics are starting to get better
It is so expensive in our city and in our country that a poor child cannot buy it and only rich people play it and the poor people who are there go out to the game store and satisfy their passion with it.
I missed those days that I will spend quality time on playstation playing games. It was really fun then