Square Soft originally released Final Fantasy VII on the original Playstation in 1997. Now, 23 years later it was brought back to modern day consoles in the Final Fantasy VII Remake.

In the remake you play as Cloud Strife, an ex-soldier turned mercenary with a clouded and cryptic past. Other characters that you play as include childhood friend Tifa Lockhart, Avalanche eco-terrorist Barret Wallace, as well as young florist Aerith Gainsborough.

Final Fantasy VII Remake covers the beginning portion of the original game, taking place completely in Midgar up until the escape. Originally taking roughly six hours to go through, Square Enix has expanded on this portion of the game giving many characters more backstory; such as the Avalanche crew Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge, as well as offering up an expanded story and side quests to go along with that.  

The Original Final Fantasy VII used an ATB (Active Time Battle) turn based battle system. In the remake, they opt for an action oriented combat system. You are also given the option to switch characters mid-battle, similar to the original game. Characters will chip away at enemies health which builds up their ATB gauge. Once a bar is filled, you are given the ability to use a stronger physical or magic based attack, and also are given the ability to use items.

Button mashing is something that won’t get you far in this game and will lead to constant trips to the game over screen.

Final Fantasy VII Remake stays true to what made the original game so great, and in some ways it goes past that with how much the original opening portion has been expanded upon. You don’t need to be a pre-existing fan of the Final Fantasy series to enjoy this wonderful adventure, although there are some story beats in the game and some cameos that only really make sense if you’ve played the original game and its compilation. Aside from that one downside, Final Fantasy VII Remake is a game worth playing. 

Final Fantasy VII Remake is a timed exclusive for the Playstation 4 up until April 2021, meaning it will not be available for other consoles until the exclusivity time is up.

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