It took me 18 days to finish this gargantuan of a game. And it’s been a very long time since I’ve been this enthralled with a RPG. I’ve spent almost 90 hours playing, have not finished all side content but I’ve enjoyed every single second I’ve spent in the game. I didn’t grow up playing FF7 but I’d imagine this is what OG fans felt like when they play this game back in late 90’s. Rebirth had MANY incredible highs but certainly not without its low.
Likes:
The best thing about this game, besides gameplay, are the plot, the characters, and their development. Hands down. In the OG, I was quite indifferent to the Avalanche gang as they feel kind of distant from one another, but Rebirth did a fantastic job in having them interact with each other and make them feel like a proper found family. They all have their unique charms that make them loveable (NANAKI + TIFA I LOVE YOU MY SWEET SUMMER CHILDREN). And I really appreciate that the side quest involve all the characters. That’s the best way to get the player to care more about them, involve them in content outside of main story! So if there’s something that you should not skip, it’s the side quests.
And as Tifa gal, I ADORED what they did for her.
She’s one of the most important character to the story, especially to Cloud in disk 2, but the problem was the OG never built up her character until much later on. But Rebirth added so many scenes for Tifa that was not in the OG that will help bridge that gap when part 3 arrives. I’m talking about you, chapter 9. One of the most memorable sequence in the series so far for me. So intense and emotionally powerful!
The ending of Rebirth is setting us up for a huge tonal shift and possibly some of the most depressing moments in the part 3 as Cloud… goes through some shit, let’s just say. We’re in one hell of a ride on the tearjerker train.
Dislikes:
Funny enough, I think how ambitious this game is, is also its biggest downfall. There are way too many mini-games, especially if you count character specific scenario where they have their own puzzle-solving mechanics. However, it’s not THE biggest issue as it kept the gameplay loop interesting. I think what I had a gripe with, however, was the overwhelming amount of side content, open world specifically. It suffers from side content bloat and once you recognize that every region is a rinse and repeat of the previous, you kinda get the gist. Do this, clear this, kill enemies, etc. But tbh I’ll 1000% take this over whatever Remake had. There may be too much but at least they’re more fun to do than the boring side quests in previous game lmao.
I do think this is the part where YMMV applies as some people take joy in doing the repetitive things. I easily get burnt out by these so it certainly affected how much open world stuff I did towards end game. I respect that they’re experimenting with quality vs. quantity, though. I hope they’ll find a sweet little spot for part 3!
SPOILERS WARNING (DISCUSSION OF ENDING)
WARNING
FINAL WARNING
NO REALLY
THIS IS A FAT WARNING
⚠️
The last 5% of the game definitely threw me off. I have always been iffy with adding multiverse to preexisting storyline as it gives room for retcon and excuse for bad writing. I really do believe how you feel about the ending of Rebirth correlates to how open you are to changes in the OG storyline. I’ve always liked the grounded nature of OG so the ending left me wanting more, but I definitely see why it’s exciting for others who liked it! No matter how I feel about the multiverse stuff, the game definitely finished with more questions than ever, and I’m nervous that they only have one game left to wrap everything up. Which may perhaps not end well. But I do hope they prove me wrong.
One thing I was quite disappointed about is the lack of… mourning for Aerith? Or more like lack of TIME to mourn her death. As soon as she got stabbed, we’re pushed into this LONG series of boss fight against Sephiroth. That took nearly an hour! I don’t mind the game adding or changing stuff from the OG, but the one thing I wished that went untouched was Aerith’s death. I much preferred how simple it was in the OG where Cloud and the squad mourned Aerith, say their final goodbyes and lay her to rest. It’s one of the most rawest moments in the game but not anymore in the Rebirth. Once I finished the fight, the feeling of sadness was just gone. Whoosh. And it really bummed me out, man. Not everything has to be a spectacle. :(
4/2/24 edit: after sitting with it for a bit, watching some theory videos—I get it now. I’m much more down with the ending of Rebirth. They’re cooking some REAL good fucking food that I can’t wait to dine on in part 3.
But nonetheless, I very much look forward to the next game ❤️
Likes:
The best thing about this game, besides gameplay, are the plot, the characters, and their development. Hands down. In the OG, I was quite indifferent to the Avalanche gang as they feel kind of distant from one another, but Rebirth did a fantastic job in having them interact with each other and make them feel like a proper found family. They all have their unique charms that make them loveable (NANAKI + TIFA I LOVE YOU MY SWEET SUMMER CHILDREN). And I really appreciate that the side quest involve all the characters. That’s the best way to get the player to care more about them, involve them in content outside of main story! So if there’s something that you should not skip, it’s the side quests.
And as Tifa gal, I ADORED what they did for her.
She’s one of the most important character to the story, especially to Cloud in disk 2, but the problem was the OG never built up her character until much later on. But Rebirth added so many scenes for Tifa that was not in the OG that will help bridge that gap when part 3 arrives. I’m talking about you, chapter 9. One of the most memorable sequence in the series so far for me. So intense and emotionally powerful!
The ending of Rebirth is setting us up for a huge tonal shift and possibly some of the most depressing moments in the part 3 as Cloud… goes through some shit, let’s just say. We’re in one hell of a ride on the tearjerker train.
Dislikes:
Funny enough, I think how ambitious this game is, is also its biggest downfall. There are way too many mini-games, especially if you count character specific scenario where they have their own puzzle-solving mechanics. However, it’s not THE biggest issue as it kept the gameplay loop interesting. I think what I had a gripe with, however, was the overwhelming amount of side content, open world specifically. It suffers from side content bloat and once you recognize that every region is a rinse and repeat of the previous, you kinda get the gist. Do this, clear this, kill enemies, etc. But tbh I’ll 1000% take this over whatever Remake had. There may be too much but at least they’re more fun to do than the boring side quests in previous game lmao.
I do think this is the part where YMMV applies as some people take joy in doing the repetitive things. I easily get burnt out by these so it certainly affected how much open world stuff I did towards end game. I respect that they’re experimenting with quality vs. quantity, though. I hope they’ll find a sweet little spot for part 3!
SPOILERS WARNING (DISCUSSION OF ENDING)
WARNING
FINAL WARNING
NO REALLY
THIS IS A FAT WARNING
⚠️
The last 5% of the game definitely threw me off. I have always been iffy with adding multiverse to preexisting storyline as it gives room for retcon and excuse for bad writing. I really do believe how you feel about the ending of Rebirth correlates to how open you are to changes in the OG storyline. I’ve always liked the grounded nature of OG so the ending left me wanting more, but I definitely see why it’s exciting for others who liked it! No matter how I feel about the multiverse stuff, the game definitely finished with more questions than ever, and I’m nervous that they only have one game left to wrap everything up. Which may perhaps not end well. But I do hope they prove me wrong.
One thing I was quite disappointed about is the lack of… mourning for Aerith? Or more like lack of TIME to mourn her death. As soon as she got stabbed, we’re pushed into this LONG series of boss fight against Sephiroth. That took nearly an hour! I don’t mind the game adding or changing stuff from the OG, but the one thing I wished that went untouched was Aerith’s death. I much preferred how simple it was in the OG where Cloud and the squad mourned Aerith, say their final goodbyes and lay her to rest. It’s one of the most rawest moments in the game but not anymore in the Rebirth. Once I finished the fight, the feeling of sadness was just gone. Whoosh. And it really bummed me out, man. Not everything has to be a spectacle. :(
4/2/24 edit: after sitting with it for a bit, watching some theory videos—I get it now. I’m much more down with the ending of Rebirth. They’re cooking some REAL good fucking food that I can’t wait to dine on in part 3.
But nonetheless, I very much look forward to the next game ❤️