Peaks and valleys with this one, but overall I think its a good game. If I were to list off every issue I had with the game this review would probably never end. Thankfully, the good manages to outweigh the bad, but I wont deny it walks a fine line. If not for the stellar presentation and characters I would definitely be singing a different tune.

As far as open worlds go, I think this one is pretty mediocre. The gameplay just doesn't lend itself well to the format. Navigating the environments doesn't feel good at all because of how rigid the movement is. There's nothing special to discover in the world, just marks on the map to walk between. Maybe you will stop to sniff out an item or grab a few chests in a "point of interest", but those aren't memorable, interesting, or even worth it. FF7 as an open world feels obvious but this execution is not it. If you don't get the inherent dopamine hits from filling out a map I can imagine this is probably a nightmare.