In truth I feel a little unequipped to provide all that meaningful of thoughts regarding this game, not only because I played its early chapters somewhere in the range of 3.5 to 4 years ago, but also because I have still only ever played the Midgar section of the original game (at around the same time). I have very generalized knowledge about FFVII as a whole, with very little of that comprising any of its finer plot points. I know characters, I know what is ostensibly the biggest twist in video game history, etc. I believe I had spoiled myself on REMAKE shortly after it came out as I hadn't originally intended to pick it up since I am mostly a stranger to Final Fantasy as a whole, but was drawn in by the fact that this is not dissimilar to the Rebuild of Evangelion, ie a remake that is also a sequel(?) that is in conversation with itself and its legacy. I don't know why I put it down/let myself get distracted all that time ago, because once I got back into the groove I was having an absolute blast and was and continue to be very moved by this story/world, especially now that I've seen and loved Advent Children. I'm not sure if I'll go back and play the original FFVII before playing through REBIRTH, as I intend to play it chronologically in the full series as part of my Final Quest, but I'm hoping I'll be able to appreciate the changes this trilogy is making in reverse when I eventually get to it. There's not much else to say that hasn't already been said much better; the English cast is remarkable (especially John Eric Bentley and Briana White as Barret and Aerith, respectively), the combat has a great fluidity, weight, and strategic depth with all 4 playable characters feeling really distinct in meaningful ways, and the overall format/structure of the game follows (at least what I think is) the perfect balance of structured/linear and pseudo open world design.

I once read an opinion piece on Like a Dragon 6 that took issue with how it concluded Kiryu's story. The author argued that the game ought to have either killed Kiryu off or gave him a happy ending rather than have its cake and eat it too. I disagreed with this, finding the bittersweet finale a more than suitable farewell (to be fair I'd played only Like a Dragon 0 and Kiwami by this point, as these 3 and Like a Dragon 5 were the only available RGG games reasonably accessible to me at the time). When the trailers for Like a Dragon 7 revealed that Kiryu would be back I couldn't help but get excited despite feeling it somewhat wrong for him to return. By the time I reached his section of the game, having already been skeptical of the turn based combat from the start, weary of some of the games RPG mechanics, and a little let down by its story, I found myself annoyed at Kiryu's presence, here it seems only to pass the torch to Ichiban as the series' new dragon, when his story was already done. I said fine, this special appearance served its function, now lay the character to rest. When it was announced Kiryu was returning as a protagonist for Like a Dragon 8 (people were already calling him Joryu online, not sure when or how it was announced that was his codename), I wondered if I would even keep playing the games in this series. I considered it a relief when it came to my attention that Kiryu would be dying of cancer (I presume) in Infinite Wealth. The game is yet to release but to RGG's credit it seems that they are both seeing Kiryu's "send-off" from The Song of Life to its conclusion and bringing a greater finality to his character. I doubt it'll be as admirable as Like a Dragon 6's choice of forgoing many of the series' regulars (aside from brief appearances at the start and finish) to instead focus on Kiryu and the new (but familiar to fans of Like a Dragon 3) cast, but giving him a somber and "proper" send-off with all the faces we've visited time and again across all these games seems as good a way to go as any. RGG Studios knows what they're doing having a "broken" Kiryu back under those arches, I'm not made of stone.
So that leaves us with Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. Narrative wise it's almost completely superfluous to Like a Dragon 7, there's next to nothing that Kiryu is up to in the lead up to the dissolution of the Tojo Clan and Omi Alliance outside of maybe meditating that's all that interesting or couldn't be summed up briefly in a cutscene or two (it's unsurprising that this was apparently originally intended as DLC). But as a last hurrah for the brawler combat of this series, featuring subtories tinged with reminiscences and a finale where you get shirtless with the boys to trash the Omi headquarters one last time, it's a brief yet savory romp that reminded me why I love this series (and that I need to finish Like a Dragon 3) The trailers promised a lot with the image of a sobbing Kiryu, and while the rest of the story is mostly take it or leave it, RGG Studios (and especially Takaya Kuroda) more than delivered right at the end.