This review contains spoilers
Final Fantasy VII Remake is a lot of things. It's beautiful, charming, surprising, and above all it’s clunky. It feels like a game out of time both in design and control. Its direction and transitions are often imbalanced, constantly wrenching control from the player just to throw it back for 5 steps into another cutscene.
I think the combat system is well-designed. The marriage of action-style and turn-based combat come together impressively well. Cloud switching between Operator and Punisher modes changes the pace and a quick-select to access abilities works well. I’d appreciate it if the pause menu was accessible during combat, that would then allow me to access the remapping on my Quick Select. Especially later in the game, there isn’t a shortage of enemy variety or set-piece level boss fights. Many visually interesting enemies get lost in the combat system and ultimately feel like they miss their chance to impact. Enemies will put up fields to put you out of range, fly out of reach, indiscriminately enter phases of invulnerability. It’s very puzzling and causes them to drag and feel far more drawn out than necessary.
This same feeling is present in the level design. Midgar is beautiful and consistently visually detailed. I understand the use of guised loading segments by crouching under an object, vaulting or sidling against a wall. These moments feel constant though. Stepping into and out of train cars in the graveyard, the chase scene in the sewers. Why are so many of these slow on-rails moments present? During Hojo’s four drums, only 1 door being open at a time. Going to the call boxes to switch parties, it feels like unnecessary padding that murders the pacing.
The fears and woes of the party often feel at odds with one another. Despite Cloud’s superhuman strength and the multitude of fantastical beasts and machines the party there’s a mismatched amount of dread in cutscenes. Crossing the water in the sewers is the main scene that comes to mind. Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith just fell an indiscriminate distance from the slums to the sewers. But the prospect of falling in the water is the scariest thing to them?
The final two chapters are easily the strongest. Though still muddled by the problematic pacing. The moment finally comes when Sephiroth is truly, physically standing before you. Then it’s instantly diffused as you traverse several mandatory monster closets made necessary through the story.
I’m left with even more questions than when I started, and that’s totally okay. I beat this game because I wanted to know where it was getting me, to be a part of the remaking of one of the most revered games of all time. And in the end I liked that destination, but in no way do I think the journey was worth it.
I think the combat system is well-designed. The marriage of action-style and turn-based combat come together impressively well. Cloud switching between Operator and Punisher modes changes the pace and a quick-select to access abilities works well. I’d appreciate it if the pause menu was accessible during combat, that would then allow me to access the remapping on my Quick Select. Especially later in the game, there isn’t a shortage of enemy variety or set-piece level boss fights. Many visually interesting enemies get lost in the combat system and ultimately feel like they miss their chance to impact. Enemies will put up fields to put you out of range, fly out of reach, indiscriminately enter phases of invulnerability. It’s very puzzling and causes them to drag and feel far more drawn out than necessary.
This same feeling is present in the level design. Midgar is beautiful and consistently visually detailed. I understand the use of guised loading segments by crouching under an object, vaulting or sidling against a wall. These moments feel constant though. Stepping into and out of train cars in the graveyard, the chase scene in the sewers. Why are so many of these slow on-rails moments present? During Hojo’s four drums, only 1 door being open at a time. Going to the call boxes to switch parties, it feels like unnecessary padding that murders the pacing.
The fears and woes of the party often feel at odds with one another. Despite Cloud’s superhuman strength and the multitude of fantastical beasts and machines the party there’s a mismatched amount of dread in cutscenes. Crossing the water in the sewers is the main scene that comes to mind. Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith just fell an indiscriminate distance from the slums to the sewers. But the prospect of falling in the water is the scariest thing to them?
The final two chapters are easily the strongest. Though still muddled by the problematic pacing. The moment finally comes when Sephiroth is truly, physically standing before you. Then it’s instantly diffused as you traverse several mandatory monster closets made necessary through the story.
I’m left with even more questions than when I started, and that’s totally okay. I beat this game because I wanted to know where it was getting me, to be a part of the remaking of one of the most revered games of all time. And in the end I liked that destination, but in no way do I think the journey was worth it.