I had the unique experience of playing this game for the first time in 2022 with a fresh set of eyes. As someone who didn't have the same nostalgia for this game as so many others do, I was curious about how I'd view this game as a first time player.
While it was excellent in many aspects, I feel like the legacy this game has and the amount of analysis, praise and discussion it's generated sort of dampened my experience a bit. The story, which was the main driving force for me to play this, was very good but apart from a few key moments it lacked some of the emotional depth that I was hoping for. I loved the steampunk setting, and definitely grew to care more about the characters as the game went on.
The gameplay was fine--the usual ATB system that I've come to expect from this generation of games. The exploration was a lot of fun, and that feeling of having the map open up to you in these games is always such a blast. The music, as is the case for most of the games that Nobuo Uematsu composes, was wonderful.
I had high hopes for this game given its enduring legacy, and I'm happy to say that FF7 managed to meet most of them. While all of the separate parts of the game were great in their own ways, they just weren't able to come together for me in a completely cohesive way. I'm planning to digest the game a bit (and probably read some analysis on the story + themes), give it a good amount of time, and then revisit the game again to see if my thoughts have changed.
While it was excellent in many aspects, I feel like the legacy this game has and the amount of analysis, praise and discussion it's generated sort of dampened my experience a bit. The story, which was the main driving force for me to play this, was very good but apart from a few key moments it lacked some of the emotional depth that I was hoping for. I loved the steampunk setting, and definitely grew to care more about the characters as the game went on.
The gameplay was fine--the usual ATB system that I've come to expect from this generation of games. The exploration was a lot of fun, and that feeling of having the map open up to you in these games is always such a blast. The music, as is the case for most of the games that Nobuo Uematsu composes, was wonderful.
I had high hopes for this game given its enduring legacy, and I'm happy to say that FF7 managed to meet most of them. While all of the separate parts of the game were great in their own ways, they just weren't able to come together for me in a completely cohesive way. I'm planning to digest the game a bit (and probably read some analysis on the story + themes), give it a good amount of time, and then revisit the game again to see if my thoughts have changed.