Last week has been particularly rich in news about Final Fantasy VII Remake: with just under two months to go before its release, we've updated our summary article to give you all the details about Square Enix's upcoming Action-RPG. Many articles of the portal like bosses or characters have been updated, don't hesitate to go back there if you want a maximum of details about the game.
General Information
Below is a brief reminder of all the basic information you need to know in order to prepare for the release of the game.
Collector's edition, pre-order bonus
Like any AAA, Final Fantasy 7 Remake will blow up special editions to satisfy the biggest fans. For the most fortunate, a 1st Class edition including a Play Art Cloud figurine on the Hardy Daytona is offered exclusively on the Square Enix store for $299.99. As for the Deluxe edition, which is necessarily less generous in content, it is available everywhere at a price of $89.99. Please note that the pre-order on the Square Enix shop contains an exclusive necklace. You can find details of all the editions of the game in the article below:
Music, OST
You may have already had a glimpse of it if you've checked on Youtube: the FF7 Remake soundtrack promises to be one of the most monstrous of 2020 thanks to reorchestrations. For the moment, the person behind this rereading of Nobuo Uemtasu's OST is still unknown, which doesn't prevent SE from offering a double-vinyl as a preorder: this one contains music from the original game, but also some of the remixes proposed in the remake, like the one you can listen to below:
Online goodies, wallpapers and avatars
The official game site, while featuring the traditional collections of images and trailers released by Square Enix, also contains some downloadable treats for players who particularly appreciate the new designs created by this remake. In the downloads section of the site, you'll find a collection of wallpapers and avatars featuring the central characters of the adventure.
Playable demo
Spotted by a website specializing in the collection of NSP information last Christmas, the FF7 Remake demo was just waiting for Square Enix to make it official. Without going too far into its content, this trial version offers the very beginning of the adventure to players, the famous Bombing Mission that will lead the Avalanche group to destroy one of the Mako reactors owned by the Shinra.
This should give a first glimpse of the gameplay of the game, and even allow to test the famous Classic mode offering turn-based fights. At a little less than 8go, this trial version is available now for download. We have already been able to get an idea about this section and a few other sequences during a preview session of about 4 hours.
After a long wait, and much speculation, Square Enix have now released a playable Final Fantasy VII Remake demo for PS4.
Playable characters
Final Fantasy 7 Remake will propose to play groups of 3 fighters at the same time, like in the game of 97. For the moment, Square Enix has been quite chatty about the central characters of the game, even if there are still some missing, and we can't wait to see the 2020 version designs. If they're not playable, this review will probably also be an opportunity to discover more about some of the second under-exploited knives in FF7. We think in particular of all the emblematic members of the Avalanche group such as Biggs, Wedge and Jesse.
Fights
Square Enix has chosen the A-RPG for this redesigned combat system, which will not prevent it from offering some very interesting tactical options. In the middle of combat, the player can freeze time using the ATB gauge to manually select a command, whether it is magic or a special attack. Switching from fighter to fighter will also be possible at the touch of a button, allowing the player to switch to a fighting style more suited to the situation. To read all about the many changes made to the gameplay, you can read the article below :
The ATB, Materia, and Limit Breaks — here's everything you need to know about combat in the FF7 Remake!
Summons
Indissociable from Final Fantasy games, Summonings will obviously make their big comeback in FF7 Remake. But beware, their conditions of appearance and their functioning is quite special: you won't be able to use the red materials as you wish. For more details about the summons, see the two articles below:
Progression
Fighters will be able to rely on more than just a simple upgrade to improve in FF7 Remake. Here are the other progression mechanics unveiled (for the moment) by Square Enix :
- Materias : The concentrated mako spheres will indeed make their comeback and their use seems equivalent to what we could find in the original game. Thus, Cloud and his buddies will be able to equip themselves with these skills according to the locations allowed by their equipment, in order to use various magic and abilities.
- Weapon Upgrades: With the SPs gained from the battles, it will be possible to upgrade each character's weapons by completing what looks more or less like the skill trees in Final Fantasy XIII. Each lethal weapon is also linked to a unique skill to learn, which will remain in the hero's arsenal once mastered.
- Side Quests: The system chosen for some of the game's content has been unveiled. In addition to the lambda quests of the inhabitants, the game will also feature combat challenges to unlock new Materias.
Loyalty to the 1997 game
That's kind of the question everyone was asking when the game was announced: how would FF7 Remake compare to the cult title released in 1997 on PS1? It's impossible to know to what extent the original has been respected, but Square Enix struggles to show us, trailer after trailer, that the cult sequences will indeed be present, including the ones we expect to see "in 2020". Thus, the TGS 2019 trailer makes it clear that the quest to disguise Cloud to trick Don Corneo at the Wall Market would still be there, and this is just one example among many. Everything that's been unveiled so far, from the zones to the few bosses unveiled, proves that the team behind FF7 Remake can be trusted.
Episodic format
The story of Final Fantasy 7 Remake will focus solely on Midgar, which has not failed to provoke the grumbling of the community, crying out for "kit play". However, Square Enix doesn't seem to have been content to reproduce their cult title to the letter: elements from the Final Fantasy 7 Compilation have been integrated into the game's history. The Wutai, almost absent from the original game, should have a greater role to play in this rereading, while new members of SOLDAT will make their appearance.
Episode 2
The second episode of the remake is already in development, it's official. Whatever the sales figures of the first opus of what Square Enix considers as a new franchise, players should therefore be entitled to events following Midgar's narrative arc, implying that an overworld will sooner or later make its appearance. Given the development time of the current AAA's, however, it wouldn't be surprising to see the game coming to PS5 and Xbox Series X.
As with Resident Evil 3 Remake, the PSN icons update gives us some great information: FF7 Remake is apparently going to have its own demo very soon.
