Final Fantasy VIII-3 hasn’t left my mind. The fixation has lasted much longer than is probably called for. I’ve reviewed it already but that review was mostly my reactionary feelings and thoughts in a very general sense. Nobody asked, but I want to let out some thoughts that branch beyond the game itself and discuss the aura around it and its place amongst remakes and remasters that continue to populate the industry.

Despite the facade that we are tired of remakes and want more original ideas, it’s fascinating how many are widely beloved and celebrated. Perhaps we’re embarrassed to admit that we love repackaged nostalgia. I hear about remake fatigue so often but it seems to dissipate when “one of the good ones” comes out. I’m in favor of more work being put into new games (or sequels even) rather than remakes and remasters, but I can’t help but admit to myself that almost every huge remake has been pretty great to play, and it’s also wonderful to play older games on new hardware. It’s convenient and helps people avoid spending 100 dollars on a GameCube game. I’m not sure I would have ever played Baten Kaitos without it receiving a remaster. So many celebrated remakes are pretty 1:1 as well, with only the slightest of adjustments that could go unnoticed easily; the discussion is usually around the visuals alone. Preserving those original experiences seems important to the business of remakes. The most skepticism I can recall around a remake was Resident Evil 4. It ended up being very faithful and safe in terms of its changes and it went on to receive GOTY nominations. Dead Space received a very faithful remake and fans are devastated that we aren’t getting a remake of 2. So many games that “didn’t need remakes” became examples of “the good ones”. Some people try to claim that Final Fantasy VII never really needed a remake and all they wanted was a visual overhaul remaster adjacent kind of thing. While true that plenty of people were never clamoring for a remake of VII, it would be wrong to say that the idea of a Final Fantasy VII Remake did not consistently surround the legacy of VII.

Fans of Final Fantasy VII wanted a remake of it as soon as they played it; wondering why the characters couldn’t have realistic proportions all the time. Why can’t the game look like the cutscenes? Final Fantasy VIII came out and already we saw what VII could have visually been instead. Final Fantasy X happened and we then wanted VII to have voice acting too. Final Fantasy XII released and a fan receiving the first copy said “Please remake Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation 3” into the microphone. There’s a lot of remakes, a lot of them are good, and plenty of them we never really asked for, so how is it that the one game that begged to be remade upon its birth stubbornly refused to be remade for so long? Sometimes it’s hard to believe that it exists and that we’re 2/3 games into this trilogy.

Final Fantasy VII is the only game that could be remade in this way. A lot of the original creators are on the Remake project. The developers that made games we grew up with are getting older. Retirement is close for many and has arrived for others already. This is the last chance we have to get this from them. It’s not just about remaking a game because it needed quality of life upgrades, it’s about remaking the culture around it. The FF7 remake games are remaking the fan theories people had around the original in the 90s. It’s remaking the experience of leaving midgar for the first time. It’s remaking the biggest spoiler in gaming and finding ways to replicate our original experience. It remakes experiencing the music for the first time. There’s a world where we got a standard remake of FF7 that goes on to be “pretty good, but not as good as the original”. Some remakes release to little fanfare and feel unnecessary. Some remakes want to replace the original or be the default version we go to when we think of it. FF7 could never be replaced. It’s why games like Ocarina of Time will likely never receive more than what the 3DS version provided. Some games are too big for themselves. Some remakes are destined to be hated by fans solely because it isn’t the original game. The FF7 remake games know this. Never have I played a remake of a game that so strongly loves its original self. Nothing about the Remake series feels like a replacement. It’s an extension of the original in every way, refusing to ignore what made it resonate with us. I’ve seen countless people play the original game for the first time because of these games or in preparation for them. It’s a huge conflict for many people, wondering if they need to play the original game or not. Resident Evil remakes are great games, but I don’t imagine many people feel a weird sense of guilt by not experiencing the original games before or after. The creators of FF7 are proud of their work and don’t want it to be forgotten. These remakes may be different and change story beats or add a plethora of original ideas absent from the original, but it’s all in service of its blueprint. It only seeks to emulate what the original accomplished.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is what we’ve all been waiting for. I don’t think we’ll ever have a set of games like these ever again in terms of concept and development. Love letter is far too mild for what this is. These are developers who loved a piece of art so much that they couldn’t say no to making it for us again. There’s discussion about other Final Fantasy games that should be remade and I often see people say “hopefully it won’t be like the VII remake”. I love FF VIII and IX, but we do not exist in a world where those had similar reputations as VII and would warrant a similar approach. It’s almost a misunderstanding of what the VII Remake project is about. It isn’t simply remaking a game because it seemed like an easy check to cash, it’s tackling the nightmare that was the never ending demand for it and what angle to approach it; fully in relation to us and our expectations as fans. No video game calls for such a remake other than Final Fantasy VII. The fact so many people have gone back to play the original PS1 game is amazing. I may never play the original resident evil 1 because of how good the GameCube remake is, but because of the way the VII remakes are turning out, I will always see it as another branch on the tree.

In a way it’s preserving art by remaking it. Something like the Silent Hill 2 remake has a gross vibe to it because the original game isn’t easily accessible, and here we are making a radically different version of it in a world that won’t let you properly experience its original self. Final Fantasy games are wonderfully ported and preserved across so many systems. We can play the original VII whenever we want. The Remake series may be divisive, but its approach to examining itself begs you to not forget where it came from. It preserves its place amongst gaming as an art form. Sure it can be played in isolation, but it is radically improved when you carry the experience of the original game with you. It reminds me of a film adaptation of a novel. Video games remake themselves to improve ideas and visuals or to introduce itself to a new audience that will never play the original. The VII remake project aims to avoid that. It’s still remaking itself within the medium of video games, but the novel to film comparison is to say that it provides a new experience rather than a definitive one. You may prefer one over the other, and that’s okay. I don’t think the point is to have a better game than the original, but to let both coexist with each other and go down in history together, side by side. It’s a wonderful thing.

Finally knocking the first couple FF games. I only need to finish V and I’ll have finished every single player mainline game.
These were fun! They’re for sure going to be my “least favorites” of the franchise, but they’re still great little games. The GBA versions helped get me through them pretty quickly too. I is very simple and charming, II is interesting and makes for a super weird sequel for its time. Perhaps this version elevates a lot of the pain, but I didn’t have a bad time with it. I don’t dig II’s systems but it was a short experience that felt inoffensive. Not bad! I did try to play the first game authentically on my NES but I couldn’t go through with it knowing versions with less tedium existed. Maybe I’ll do it someday just to say I did, but for now I think it’s safe to say the GBA versions are excellent ways to play these.

Pretty good! Gorgeous environments - much needed after being trapped in the desaturated visuals of the endgame. Wonderful music and an incredibly cool boss fight. The new abilities are some of the best too. It didn’t really add anything to the overall narrative of XVI though. These two DLCs are definitely excuses for cool boss fights, which is okay for the kind of game XVI is. I love XVI and it’s nice to have a reason to go back for a little more. Just wish our main cast had more time to do stuff together and interact.