I wanted to play this game for more context to the changes they made to the remake and upcoming rebirth.
While I went in ready to call this game overrated, what I got was a grand adventure that I couldn't put down. Playing every spare second I had over the past week and seeking out all the side content I could find to total a 52 hour experience over the course of 8 days. It didn't overstay it's welcome and I didn't want it to end! This is rare for me when an rpg goes past about 30 hours these days.
Reviewing one of the greatest or at least most iconic games of all time, 26 years after the US release seems like a pointless task so I'll give quick opinions.
Highlights: The soundtrack gave me chills at every major moment. Sephiroth is a cool, layered villain. The ramp up in power level and new materia was well paced and satisfying. The materia and gear system is great, allowing you to change characters and their role in battles completely whenever you want. I found myself really experimenting with different combinations and very satisfied when I would come up with a new build for a character.
In the middle: Cloud is kind of a dull protag being way outshined by your lively and memorable party members. Although towards the end I was tired of about half of them but continued to love the likeable half. (Halfway through part 2, I was only using Barret, Tifa, and occasionally Vincent.)
Disappointment: So many mini-games that just weren't fun to play. Sometimes the "platforming" is frustrating, having to move the joystick in one direction to have cloud perform a jump or go up a staircase/ladder in a different direction. Many of the environments are quite ugly today and hard to tell what is even a walkable path. When the pre-rendered environments are beautiful, they clash extremely with the items and characters on screen, sort of ruining any admiration you may have for it.
P.S. It played great on the steam deck (once I switched to a community made button layout). Grinding limit breaks and chocobo breeding/racing and battle square seems less tedious when you are just turning on your steam deck for an hour or so while laying in bed.
While I went in ready to call this game overrated, what I got was a grand adventure that I couldn't put down. Playing every spare second I had over the past week and seeking out all the side content I could find to total a 52 hour experience over the course of 8 days. It didn't overstay it's welcome and I didn't want it to end! This is rare for me when an rpg goes past about 30 hours these days.
Reviewing one of the greatest or at least most iconic games of all time, 26 years after the US release seems like a pointless task so I'll give quick opinions.
Highlights: The soundtrack gave me chills at every major moment. Sephiroth is a cool, layered villain. The ramp up in power level and new materia was well paced and satisfying. The materia and gear system is great, allowing you to change characters and their role in battles completely whenever you want. I found myself really experimenting with different combinations and very satisfied when I would come up with a new build for a character.
In the middle: Cloud is kind of a dull protag being way outshined by your lively and memorable party members. Although towards the end I was tired of about half of them but continued to love the likeable half. (Halfway through part 2, I was only using Barret, Tifa, and occasionally Vincent.)
Disappointment: So many mini-games that just weren't fun to play. Sometimes the "platforming" is frustrating, having to move the joystick in one direction to have cloud perform a jump or go up a staircase/ladder in a different direction. Many of the environments are quite ugly today and hard to tell what is even a walkable path. When the pre-rendered environments are beautiful, they clash extremely with the items and characters on screen, sort of ruining any admiration you may have for it.
P.S. It played great on the steam deck (once I switched to a community made button layout). Grinding limit breaks and chocobo breeding/racing and battle square seems less tedious when you are just turning on your steam deck for an hour or so while laying in bed.