This review contains spoilers
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth's story for the most part is a great retelling of the original game. However, the biggest issue for me is how confusing the ending could be seen. There are hints for those looking, particularly with the Stamp theory, but it's going to fly over a lot of people's heads.
The rest of the story, up to Chapter 14 is just really well done, however, with new reveals and background insights that help give us a better sense of each character. Cait Sith is purposefully underdeveloped some, but I think it does serve a purpose that will be brought out in the third game more, especially if you know his lore.
The combat remains great, and is made even better with some new and updated combat styles and materia. Each character has a specific play style that suits their background. Red XIII feels great to play, particularly once you understand how his mechanics function.
The devs, however, didn't need to add in Sephiroth as the final boss again. He's supposed to be this threat from the shadows, with Jenova acting as the vehicle for his terrible actions. However, we just keep fighting him in each of these games in the Remake trilogy. It's taking the impact out of seeing and fighting Sephiroth.
The biggest down spot for me here are the sheer amount of mini-games. Most are not that fun to play, and sometimes this title felt more like a Mario Party collection than a Final Fantasy game. The Gold Saucer games are very well-thought-out, but everything else feels like a chore to play, particularly this version of Fort Condor, which feels like a step-down from the version in Intermission, which was really fun. So, making it worse feels bad. Queen's Blood, on the other hand, is a masterpiece of game design.
TL;DR: As a total package, it's still a great game, and I really enjoyed it. The story, for the most part, is very good, but is a bit muddled at the end. The gameplay is also stellar, but the mini-games can be a bit grating.
The rest of the story, up to Chapter 14 is just really well done, however, with new reveals and background insights that help give us a better sense of each character. Cait Sith is purposefully underdeveloped some, but I think it does serve a purpose that will be brought out in the third game more, especially if you know his lore.
The combat remains great, and is made even better with some new and updated combat styles and materia. Each character has a specific play style that suits their background. Red XIII feels great to play, particularly once you understand how his mechanics function.
The devs, however, didn't need to add in Sephiroth as the final boss again. He's supposed to be this threat from the shadows, with Jenova acting as the vehicle for his terrible actions. However, we just keep fighting him in each of these games in the Remake trilogy. It's taking the impact out of seeing and fighting Sephiroth.
The biggest down spot for me here are the sheer amount of mini-games. Most are not that fun to play, and sometimes this title felt more like a Mario Party collection than a Final Fantasy game. The Gold Saucer games are very well-thought-out, but everything else feels like a chore to play, particularly this version of Fort Condor, which feels like a step-down from the version in Intermission, which was really fun. So, making it worse feels bad. Queen's Blood, on the other hand, is a masterpiece of game design.
TL;DR: As a total package, it's still a great game, and I really enjoyed it. The story, for the most part, is very good, but is a bit muddled at the end. The gameplay is also stellar, but the mini-games can be a bit grating.