This review contains spoilers
Considered as an arlesian, Final Fantasy VII: Remake is a title that proposes a rewriting of the original title, with some in-depth modifications, giving it the quality of a rebuild, as the Japanese like to do. Beyond the somewhat disingenuous marketing, this is a game that never deviates from its ambition to tell a different story from its elder, which is perceptible from the first hours. Thus, the Remake, the first of a trilogy, adapts the entire Midgarian part, which is only a small fraction of the base game – it doesn't even finish Disc 1, as it stops at the first act. Such an undertaking may be surprising and suggests that the team is trying to capitalise on the collective memory around Final Fantasy VII, i.e. the beginning of the game and the final battle against Sephiroth against the backdrop of the meteorite. Exit the rest of the references, which, if present, will largely pass over the average player. In this respect, the lack of understanding of people around the scenes with Zack is indicative of the fact that a large part of the audience has completely forgotten this part of the story, which we originally learn in Disc 3. The presence of Zack in the Remake, due to the annihilation of the Whispers, is a clear sign that we are in parallel plots. The discursive interest of such an approach is not insignificant and allows us to reflect on the power of fiction and its reception by the public – especially since we are talking about a title that is particularly adored by the community.
Nevertheless, it is unfortunate that the narrative form of this rewrite leaves something to be desired: all direct revelations occur in Chapter 18, with a certain lack of finesse. Of course, it was obvious from the start that the Whispers symbolised fate, but the fact that no character makes this assumption before Red XIII is a bit disappointing, if only in terms of meta-narrative. Even more damaging is the extension of the Midgarian act without any real willingness to set up the city as a character – in the gothic sense. The Midgarian geography, interesting as it is on paper, is never exploited in game. There is a strong dichotomy between the universe and the way it is integrated into the gameplay. The various slums all look the same and are particularly cramped, so that it is both difficult to move around and impossible to have an emotional attachment of your own. The inhabitants also fail to create empathy, as the game fails to put them in the foreground. The scenes of destruction, too numerous, lose the evocative power of Chapter 12, especially since the level design does not seem to be altered by the surrounding destruction.
This does not prevent the game from succeeding in developing secondary characters and giving them a nuanced texture. The case of Jessie is probably the most evocative and the character is a success of writing from start to finish, thanks to the contrast she generates with Cloud, put in a deferential and ridiculous position, which was the characteristic of the original game. Some of the scenes have a rare poetic quality to them and indicate that there is real skill in the design of these sequences. Nevertheless, the game never manages to connect these elements together, as if they had been written independently. This is a pity and a shame for the overall coherence, which suffers particularly. Indeed, the fast-paced, scene-by-scene pacing can work in the original Final Fantasy VII, because the Midgarian arc is very short, so that it's easy to accept writing clichés. But for a game that's close to 25 hours, the lack of transition and care in the themes tackled (Shinra's internal contradictions, the personality of each slum, the difficulty of living there, etc.) is problematic. To dilate the original experience is to create a set of narrative holes that need to be filled and the Remake never manages to do this properly.
Instead and nonetheless, it excels in its combat system, which is of a rare richness. Wanting to attempt a middle ground between the turn-based JRPG and the modern ARPG, the title opts for real-time combat with a tactical pause and a dynamic ATB. The choice is an obvious success, as it manages to set a similar pace to turn-based combat, with defensive and aggressive sequences following one another. The diversity comes from the emphasis on certain phases of this cycle: some bosses will be punished by defensive gameplay, while it will be possible to be extremely aggressive with others by capitalising on their stagger bar. The characters complement each other extremely well and the result is an exceptional dynamism, which underlines the progress made in the Final Fantasy XV experience.
In the DLC, this combat art is taken to the extreme with Yuffie combining Tifa's speed and Cloud's DPS, as well as a variety in her elemental attacks, thanks to her ninjutsu. The character, while fragile, draws strength from an aggressive gameplay, which keeps a high pressure on enemies and can get out of situations with her powerful dodge. The flexibility described here is further enhanced by the use of materia, which allows a character to be swayed towards a particular archetype: thus, it is entirely possible to play a Tifa who focuses solely on the stagger gauge, but she can also take a more mixed approach by doing heavy damage as well. Similarly, Aerith can be built as the main DPS or as a support character. The finesse of the combat system, which is certainly not aimed at the general public, is surprising, as it stands in contrast to the AAA approach to storytelling and worldbuilding; it's as if gameplay and storytelling are completely disassociated and only communicate in rare moments (inevitably, Chapter 9, by far the climax of the game).
Final Fantasy VII: Remake and its Intergrade episode are a very interesting attempt to rewrite the fable of the original game, without ever making it obsolete – instead, you need to have done the original game to enjoy the experience, so the game fails to target any particular audience. These are structurally flawed games: while the experience is still enjoyable during the play session, one can only be frustrated when stepping back: how can you not wish the game was more than that? Its potential was so great.
Nevertheless, it is unfortunate that the narrative form of this rewrite leaves something to be desired: all direct revelations occur in Chapter 18, with a certain lack of finesse. Of course, it was obvious from the start that the Whispers symbolised fate, but the fact that no character makes this assumption before Red XIII is a bit disappointing, if only in terms of meta-narrative. Even more damaging is the extension of the Midgarian act without any real willingness to set up the city as a character – in the gothic sense. The Midgarian geography, interesting as it is on paper, is never exploited in game. There is a strong dichotomy between the universe and the way it is integrated into the gameplay. The various slums all look the same and are particularly cramped, so that it is both difficult to move around and impossible to have an emotional attachment of your own. The inhabitants also fail to create empathy, as the game fails to put them in the foreground. The scenes of destruction, too numerous, lose the evocative power of Chapter 12, especially since the level design does not seem to be altered by the surrounding destruction.
This does not prevent the game from succeeding in developing secondary characters and giving them a nuanced texture. The case of Jessie is probably the most evocative and the character is a success of writing from start to finish, thanks to the contrast she generates with Cloud, put in a deferential and ridiculous position, which was the characteristic of the original game. Some of the scenes have a rare poetic quality to them and indicate that there is real skill in the design of these sequences. Nevertheless, the game never manages to connect these elements together, as if they had been written independently. This is a pity and a shame for the overall coherence, which suffers particularly. Indeed, the fast-paced, scene-by-scene pacing can work in the original Final Fantasy VII, because the Midgarian arc is very short, so that it's easy to accept writing clichés. But for a game that's close to 25 hours, the lack of transition and care in the themes tackled (Shinra's internal contradictions, the personality of each slum, the difficulty of living there, etc.) is problematic. To dilate the original experience is to create a set of narrative holes that need to be filled and the Remake never manages to do this properly.
Instead and nonetheless, it excels in its combat system, which is of a rare richness. Wanting to attempt a middle ground between the turn-based JRPG and the modern ARPG, the title opts for real-time combat with a tactical pause and a dynamic ATB. The choice is an obvious success, as it manages to set a similar pace to turn-based combat, with defensive and aggressive sequences following one another. The diversity comes from the emphasis on certain phases of this cycle: some bosses will be punished by defensive gameplay, while it will be possible to be extremely aggressive with others by capitalising on their stagger bar. The characters complement each other extremely well and the result is an exceptional dynamism, which underlines the progress made in the Final Fantasy XV experience.
In the DLC, this combat art is taken to the extreme with Yuffie combining Tifa's speed and Cloud's DPS, as well as a variety in her elemental attacks, thanks to her ninjutsu. The character, while fragile, draws strength from an aggressive gameplay, which keeps a high pressure on enemies and can get out of situations with her powerful dodge. The flexibility described here is further enhanced by the use of materia, which allows a character to be swayed towards a particular archetype: thus, it is entirely possible to play a Tifa who focuses solely on the stagger gauge, but she can also take a more mixed approach by doing heavy damage as well. Similarly, Aerith can be built as the main DPS or as a support character. The finesse of the combat system, which is certainly not aimed at the general public, is surprising, as it stands in contrast to the AAA approach to storytelling and worldbuilding; it's as if gameplay and storytelling are completely disassociated and only communicate in rare moments (inevitably, Chapter 9, by far the climax of the game).
Final Fantasy VII: Remake and its Intergrade episode are a very interesting attempt to rewrite the fable of the original game, without ever making it obsolete – instead, you need to have done the original game to enjoy the experience, so the game fails to target any particular audience. These are structurally flawed games: while the experience is still enjoyable during the play session, one can only be frustrated when stepping back: how can you not wish the game was more than that? Its potential was so great.