Everyone has at one point has had their most anticipated game. For many years I thought that time came and went for me but then I played Final Fantasy VII Remake and FF7 in general became my favorite thing on Earth. So naturally for me my most anticipated game became Final Fantasy VII Rebirth if you want my thoughts briefly as someone who loves Final Fantasy VII more than anything this game exceeded my high expectations and game 3 has a lot to live up to riding this entry especially. Rebirth compared to Remake is structurely a lot different Remake was a game set only in Midgar and was extremely linear with limited to barely any exploration. Rebirth on the other hand lets you go all around Gaia and explore to your hearts content there's lots of activities to do and rewards to find along the way. To say the amount of content in this game is massive is an understatement there is so much to explore and so much to do it can be a bit overwhelming at times actually. I haven't felt this compelled to sink hours and hours into exploring long after finishing the game since Xenoblade Chronicles definitive edition. Final Fantasy for a while was criticized for being too linear and while I personally don't think the style is the issue seeing how they created the open environments here really took my breath away. Gaia is simply stunning seeing her finally in her HD glory when for years I've only seen her as PS1 polygons it feels good it feels so amazing. The combat here well Remake was already my favorite combat system ever put in a game and Rebirth makes big improvements to it and now it's even more fun than it was in Remake which made me really happy to see the devs actually improve stuff between games like that. In Remake Clouds Aircombat was clunky and jank and there was no flow to it he just did it automatically too you couldn't control when it happened. In Rebirth you get to choose if Cloud enters Aircombat which on its own wouldn't be huge however they fixed the feeling of the Aircombat and now it feels much more smooth and fun to do they even added an air dodge it made me feel like I was playing Advent children at times which in this context is a great thing to wrap up Aircombat you can also engage in it with ground foes too just adding more tools overall to his already amazing kit for more on the combat system just revisit my Remake review I went into good detail there my main takeaway is they took that and expanded upon it and made it better than it already was. Final Fantasy VII orginal was a game that when it came out it was ground breaking for the amount of different types of gameplay it had in time these became known as mini games and as much as I love og 7 the mini games did not age well at all. Here in Rebirth theres countless mini games you can play whenever you desire some of which offer hard difficulties for them all of them are pretty well designed and really fun it's awesome to play a FF7 game with so much variety of mini games and have them actually be really fun I've enjoyed almost every mini game. There were points while playing Rebirth when I would get so hooked into some mini games when they finally ended I would snap back to reality and think "oh wait I'm playing FF7" because they simply are that diverse and different from the main game it adds so much variety I love it. The example of a mini game I'll use here is the frog mini game in this one you play as a frog and you have to survive as long as you possibly can to get max rewards and this is just one small example of the types of mini games you can find within Rebirth. If part 3 also has mini games I can only hope they are on the same tier of quality as the ones in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Alright now it's time for the big stuff it's time I talk about the story and characters as it's the reason FF7 is my favorite of all time while yes it also being one of my favorite games to play also helps the story is what keeps me so invested I'll also talk about the music in this section too because I feel it's most appropriate here. Spoilers ahead for og and this new trilogy of FFVII games. Final Fantasy VII is a game where I love the cast because I can see myself within so many of the characters on a relatable level for me from here on out this review will get a bit personal I'll do a few examples. Cloud is a character where I relate to his backstory so strongly I was in that position once myself and seeing another person who was just like me it resonates with me that's why I love him. Tifa with her unending kindness and love for others despite all the traumatic things she's been through inspires me to be a better person and to try and be as loving as I possibly can be she's phenomenal I love her. And Aerith Gainsborough is a character who I'll just admit I see myself so strongly within her she feels like in many ways she is who I am. Now on why that is sorry to disappoint but it's something I personally aren't comfortable getting into but believe me when I say she means the world to me for everything she is and that she stands for. Now that all that is out of the way I want to discuss how Rebirth adapts from the party leaving Midgar to forgotten capital. A lot of it to me felt so familiar but also so distinct. The emotions in this one are higher than the previous from beginning to end I found myself crying countless times during this game. One thing I personally enjoy about this trilogy and specifically Rebirth is even if a result is the same the way we get there could be exactly how it was in og or it can be slightly different I enjoy seeing how they connect the dots from point A to point B it's rather enjoyable to me and a highlight to me. There was a few points in the story's pacing I felt were a bit unnecessary but I'd be lying if I said they took away from how much I was enjoying it I can definitely see others having a bigger issue but for me I was so happy with my journey I couldn't have enough of it. One aspect I enjoyed greatly was them bringing stuff from later in the story earlier into itll make their inclusion later in the story feel more natural. Gongaga being required this time was amazing the region is so beautiful and what it added to the story I thought was brilliant it was setting up for some amazing stuff in part 3 while being amazing in its own right I can't wait to see how they pay it off. Cosmo Canyon Aerith has a speech where she talks about her feelings and it resonated with me so hard on a personal level I hadn't felt so seen like that in a long time I was a mess that day your the best Aerith life you so much. Another thing in Cosmo Canyon that I enjoyed was new lore about the black materia in og the black materia basically just exists to summon meteor and that's it. In Rebirth it's explained that the materia exists because the Gi created it to destroy the planet since they cannot return to the lifestream they invented it in order to seek freedom from their prison. I really enjoy this new addition because while their mindset I find really flawed and selfish I find it compelling and I understand why they made the black materia. To the next part Zack was the big mystery in Remake and we got a lot more of him here all of his scenes were really intriguing and had me asking questions while they didn't answer everything I do feel I understand a lot more hoping part 3 will fully unlift the curtain in this regard. Now let's talk about it the part that will be controversial just like Remake the final chapter. Rebirth ends at the forgotten capital which if you know anything about it you know it's the place where the saddest moment in gaming happens. Even after all these years we couldn't stop it from happening again the devs hinted at maybe it could have a different result but no to me they made a statement that they weren't gonna get rid of themes and emotion of the original with how they carried it out. While I can see so many having issues with how it was carried out I choose to see it as an emotional moment that I'll never forget as long as I live it truly struck my heartstrings during the entire Final boss I was crying my eyes out devastated I know from an objective standpoint it gives the story more weight but it hurts me so much I can't believe they took her away from me like that again. The final boss is really sick on its own the fight itself is so cool and in some ways it feels like something straight outta a fan fic I'd write the only issue I have with the final boss is to me it felt inappropriate to have such a hype and long final boss immediately after the saddest moment of the game. I'll take a quick break to talk about the music before I wrap up the soundtrack is simply phenomenal all the new arrangements and genres are breathtaking with how they sound the boss themes as hype as ever the character themes emotional the world themes really set the mood the music here is simply one of the best things to grace my ears. No promises to keep in particular means a lot to me the song in question is the main vocal theme of Rebirth and it comes from Aerith's point of view and listening to it after rolling the credits on Rebirth dude it hurts so much it really gets me in the feels so much when I hear it. Nobou Uematsu you made another phenomenal piece thank you for giving her a song that incredible again. To wrap up there is a part of the final scene that has some uncertain of the future and while I can understand that from what I've received from these 2 games so far in the trilogy I don't feel the need to be worried I have faith in the vision and I hope part 3 sticks the landing. Aerith Gainsborough is my favorite part of any piece of fiction ever she means more to me than words could ever say I know it's silly but I mean it she is my world. I'm so happy Rebirth is the game she gets to have her farewell in because it's truly a masterpiece in my eyes and I'll be forever grateful for everything she has given me and all the times she's helped me. Thank you, Aerith.

When the war of the beasts brings about the world's end The goddess descends from the sky Wings of light and dark spread afar She guides us to bliss, her gift everlasting Infinite in mystery is the gift of the Goddess We seek it thus, and take to the sky Ripples form on the water's surface The wandering soul knows no rest. Three friends go into battle. One is captured
One flies away The one that is left becomes a hero. Dreams of the morrow hath the shattered soul Pride is lost
Wings stripped away, the end is nigh There is no hate, only joy For you are beloved by the goddess Hero of the dawn, Healer of worlds My friend, do you fly away now? To a world that abhors you and 1? All that awaits you is a somber morrow No matter where the winds may blow My soul, corrupted by vengeance Hath endured torment, to find the end of the journey In my own salvation And your eternal slumber My friend, the fates are cruel There are no dreams, no honor remains The arrow has left the bow of the goddess My friend, your desire Is the bringer of life, the gift of the goddess Legend shall speak
Of sacrifice at world's end The wind sails over the water's surface Quietly, but surely
Even if the morrow is barren of promises
Nothing shall forestall my return
To become the dew that quenches the land
To spare the sands, the seas, the skies
I offer thee this silent sacrifice

Crisis core is a game where I can understand why people love it and I understand why some do not love it. I myself am in the camp of really enjoying it. What it does for FFVII for me is add to. It never takes away it either adds something I never knew I wanted or it fleshed stuff out I genuinely wanted to see. Example is this game is when I really started to appreciate Sephiroth as a character seeing his transformation from Ally to enemy is really sad and this game made me feel more connected and feel bad for him. I also enjoy the combat in the game it's not Remake level of combat for me but I find it pretty satisfying nonetheless. I love hearing the critical noise and also getting a good limit break in a pinch. The soundtrack is also pretty good Takeharu lshimoto did a great job making new music and also remixing old songs so thank you for that we appreciate your hard work. My final point is Zack Fair is the star of the show and he is just so loveable and has an energy no one else does you want to see him succeed you want to see him get his dream. But Boy oh boy the price of freedom is steep. Without a doubt to me as of right now my favorite ending in anything Final Fantasy that I've played. Crisis core is a game that while it doesn't hit as strong as the orginal or remake what it gets right makes up for it in my eyes.

I'll just cut to the chase, Final Fantasy 7 is my favorite video game of all time, my favorite story of all time and is my favorite work of art of all time. Final Fantasy 7 is one of those things where it clicks all the boxes for me in terms of what I want in a game. Also this game is by no means perfect there's plenty of stuff to dislike in this game such as the poorly aged mini games. While I love the motorcycle chase the rest I can't say Im the biggest fan of but in 1997 I'm sure they were amazing for the time. Another area I see other people criticize this game in is it's characters. While I can understand why some might not enjoy the full cast for me this is my favorite main cast period. They all have something that ties them to the story and I love their backstory and their personalities and finally it just feels like a big group of friends and that's what I love. The standout character for me of course is Aerith Gainsborough my favorite character of all time. What she adds to this story and this game are nothing short of magical and extraordinary. The villains are also pretty great Shinra is a great threat to the party and the story and overall adds to the themes. Hojo is the biggest Piece of filth but he adds to the story in ways where he is very crucial to the story to exist at all. And finally Sephiroth the most iconic Villain to come from this series. I know for some it can be easy to write Sephiroth off as "overhyped" but I gotta disagree strong there. As a character he has layers of depth most don't see that really add to him. And he's just a really scary threat that actually feels like something you want to take care of Sephiroth adds so much to 7 and it wouldn't be the same without him. Onto Gameplay FFVII carries over the ATB system (Active Time Battle) from previous Final Fantasy entries IV introduced this to keep players more engaged. Basically for those who don't know how it works you have to wait for a bar to fill up before you can select a command in other traditional turn based games you can take as much time as you want when it's your turn. However in ATB if you take too long picking your actions the enemies do not hesitate to attack back so from this you have to learn to plan your moves ahead and also play well. One of the new features FFVII added is called Materia in other games you just have spells assigned to specific characters and you play with what you get. Here you actually get to customize your characters and make so many different character builds you can play through this game a bunch of different ways simply because of how versatile and fun the materia system is. This might not sound like such a big deal now but I think it adds a lot to the game and was impressive back in 1997 the battle camera. In RPGs before this the camera stayed in one spot and you didn't think about it. In FFVII depending on the fight the camera can frame the battle however it wishes. Fighting a massive enemy? It'll put the camera low to emphasize how huge the enemy is. The summon animations are a perfect example of this they have so many movements and camera steering it feels so alive. Last thing I'll talk about is the music Composed by Nobou Uematsu the soundtrack here is damn incredible it matches what the game is going for so damn well. The PS1 soundchip I feel adds to the soundtrack giving it that industrial feeling for some tracks but there's still plenty of beautiful songs and epic songs too. FFVII is a timeless masterpiece we will talk about forever and now it changed gaming. But it didn't just do that it changed my life and I can say this game it deserves all the praise it gets I can't praise it enough. Thank you Final Fantasy VII for what you have given me.