Final Fantasy 7 Remake: A thorough and complete review

Chapter 9: The Conclusion

Many people are going to jump to the defense of this title, going after my evaluations of the writing and the characters by saying “well it is only the beginning of the story, it is not the complete adventure”

That is the problem.

This is not the complete story, this is only game one of at least two, but it would be safe to assume it will be at least four titles before this who ordeal is tied up. However, I do not want to play a second game, let alone a third or fourth title. However predatory and greedy this sales model is, this title does not even do enough things right to make the model work.

The opening title in a series like this should not only establish the world and story of the game, but also build up interesting characters with interesting dynamics that are worth exploring. Giving the player/viewer a taste of what they paid for, the first title in the series should almost operate as an advertisement for the rest of the series, drawing players in and being used as justification and reasoning for the rest of the series existing. For examples of how this should be done, see “A New Hope”, the first few Harry Potter titles, “The Fellowship of the Ring”, the original God of War. 

This title falls well short of that, failing to build up any interesting characters with a story that is limping along on the back of plot devices and poor scripting. The series is relying on the nostalgia to sell units, which maybe effective in the modern state of entertainment and toxic fan culture, but does not make for good games and experiences that change gaming much like the original did.

This falls short in almost every other department as well, which is extremely disappointing, especially when put into context. This game was released just a week after Persona 5 Royal, a title that is perfect in almost every department that FF7R falls short in and then some, made by a company with significantly less money and prestige then Square Enix.

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That is not to say that FF7R can even compare to it’s 1997 source material, instead just serving to just highlight and remind me of what the original title did so well. Using what is now regarded as retro technology to create a bigger and more immersive experience with better writing, better direction, and characters that have lasted the test of time.

FF7R is not that, instead giving players a boring, sluggish experience, complete with poor writing, wildly misguided direction, and if the characters present in the game were not based on characters that have been instilled in the history books of gaming for years, they would be quickly forgotten by the end of 2020, if not sooner.

Nostalgia is slowly ruining modern media, and this is the perfect example of why. Rather then creating a great game that will move units by virtue of being a great title, they choose to put together an incomplete and mediocre experience that builds on the nostalgia of the Final Fantasy 7 name. A director that has not made a decent game in years combined with a company that cares more about money then making good games ruins what should have been the biggest and most important title of the 21st century.