This review contains spoilers
As someone who played the original game, I absolutely loved FF7 Remake and the way it expanded the story in every way.
Rebirth is an excellent game in itself. A unique adventure, rich in content and diversity, accompanied by sumptuous music. A unique group of characters that you will most likely become attached to.
All the arcs readapted in Rebirth were done masterfully, notably the entire part of Corel with Barret, and the entire revival of Gongaga and its chapter 9 (with finally some focus on Tifa!!!), which I particularly loved. I also loved Costal Del Sol, which I found super fun, and the Gold Saucer is absolutely incredible with its opening cinematic! But one of my favorite aspects of the game is the group synergy. I think for this one, Barret and Yuffie were my big favorites! Yuffie is a breath of fresh air that the game needed, and it's a pleasure to see her finally interact with everyone else. I found Barret particularly interesting and very moving for this opus. I also really enjoyed the treatment of Cait Sith, my favorite characters being Vincent and Tifa but I will come back to that later and the reason why I didn't mention them.
The gameplay is an improved version of the Remake, which is more or less enjoyable throughout the game, with a very nice feeling of progression. I was a little worried about how the open world was going to be handled, but overall it was pretty nice. Unfortunately some areas of the game are hell on earth, the map does not allow you to find your way, you sometimes waste a lot of time in a stupid way. The side quests are mixed, some are very interesting and even rich in lore, while others can be ignored. Chocobo travel is fun depending on the area you are in, with some of its features being very enjoyable, while others not at all.
The soundtrack was really surprising, with a lot of remixes of already existing songs, I can't wait to listen to it again.
The game also has a big mini-game aspect, which I honestly didn't particularly like, any more than in the Remake.
The Queen's Blood on the other hand was really a superb addition. I also really appreciated the possibility of playing scores on the piano.
And now let's talk about the storyline, which is the most important for me. It was honestly a dream for a large part of the game, from the first 10 minutes with the appearance of Zack, who made me hope for wonders!
I really had a lot of fun, although I didn't particularly like seeing Tifa so much in the background, knowing that this part was supposed to be focused on Aerith.
As said above, Barret and Yuffie really amazed me in this one, while Red and Cait Sith where really cool too.
Unfortunately I probably had too high expectations for Vincent, knowing full well that he wasn't playable.
I had a little trouble with his first appearance, but these various interactions (and in particular the excellent date of the Gold Saucer) made me forget about it. So I still really enjoyed it, expecting a lot from him and Cid for the next one!
In short everything was going well, everything was beautiful, wonderful, then came the last hours of games and the last two chapters.
And I'm disappointed.
I didn't understand the reason for all these sudden changes, whether it was the weird variation of Aerith's death, the skip of the City of the Ancients, the sudden disappearance of Biggs after having had so many interactions?? The weird way Cloud and Aerith have with each other? What about Zack? So many hopes, teases, interactions, communications, for so little?
And Cloud. I think this is the first time I didn't like Cloud. The reunion stuff had too much of an effect on him and I found him unrecognizable. Even though that's probably the goal, I didn't like it at all.
And Zack. I mean, so much waiting, for so little. I am really disappointed. After seeing the trailers, the cover, and his various appearances in the game, I expected a lot more.
But don't get me wrong. I absolutely loved the game for dozens of hours, enough to do all the side content. But this ending unfortunately did not please me, and I am even more disappointed to have this bitter aftertaste which taints the whole thing.
I really hope that Rebirth was a passage, a detour for the 3rd game, which I hope will continue to pay homage to the masterpiece that is Final Fantasy 7.
Rebirth is an excellent game in itself. A unique adventure, rich in content and diversity, accompanied by sumptuous music. A unique group of characters that you will most likely become attached to.
All the arcs readapted in Rebirth were done masterfully, notably the entire part of Corel with Barret, and the entire revival of Gongaga and its chapter 9 (with finally some focus on Tifa!!!), which I particularly loved. I also loved Costal Del Sol, which I found super fun, and the Gold Saucer is absolutely incredible with its opening cinematic! But one of my favorite aspects of the game is the group synergy. I think for this one, Barret and Yuffie were my big favorites! Yuffie is a breath of fresh air that the game needed, and it's a pleasure to see her finally interact with everyone else. I found Barret particularly interesting and very moving for this opus. I also really enjoyed the treatment of Cait Sith, my favorite characters being Vincent and Tifa but I will come back to that later and the reason why I didn't mention them.
The gameplay is an improved version of the Remake, which is more or less enjoyable throughout the game, with a very nice feeling of progression. I was a little worried about how the open world was going to be handled, but overall it was pretty nice. Unfortunately some areas of the game are hell on earth, the map does not allow you to find your way, you sometimes waste a lot of time in a stupid way. The side quests are mixed, some are very interesting and even rich in lore, while others can be ignored. Chocobo travel is fun depending on the area you are in, with some of its features being very enjoyable, while others not at all.
The soundtrack was really surprising, with a lot of remixes of already existing songs, I can't wait to listen to it again.
The game also has a big mini-game aspect, which I honestly didn't particularly like, any more than in the Remake.
The Queen's Blood on the other hand was really a superb addition. I also really appreciated the possibility of playing scores on the piano.
And now let's talk about the storyline, which is the most important for me. It was honestly a dream for a large part of the game, from the first 10 minutes with the appearance of Zack, who made me hope for wonders!
I really had a lot of fun, although I didn't particularly like seeing Tifa so much in the background, knowing that this part was supposed to be focused on Aerith.
As said above, Barret and Yuffie really amazed me in this one, while Red and Cait Sith where really cool too.
Unfortunately I probably had too high expectations for Vincent, knowing full well that he wasn't playable.
I had a little trouble with his first appearance, but these various interactions (and in particular the excellent date of the Gold Saucer) made me forget about it. So I still really enjoyed it, expecting a lot from him and Cid for the next one!
In short everything was going well, everything was beautiful, wonderful, then came the last hours of games and the last two chapters.
And I'm disappointed.
I didn't understand the reason for all these sudden changes, whether it was the weird variation of Aerith's death, the skip of the City of the Ancients, the sudden disappearance of Biggs after having had so many interactions?? The weird way Cloud and Aerith have with each other? What about Zack? So many hopes, teases, interactions, communications, for so little?
And Cloud. I think this is the first time I didn't like Cloud. The reunion stuff had too much of an effect on him and I found him unrecognizable. Even though that's probably the goal, I didn't like it at all.
And Zack. I mean, so much waiting, for so little. I am really disappointed. After seeing the trailers, the cover, and his various appearances in the game, I expected a lot more.
But don't get me wrong. I absolutely loved the game for dozens of hours, enough to do all the side content. But this ending unfortunately did not please me, and I am even more disappointed to have this bitter aftertaste which taints the whole thing.
I really hope that Rebirth was a passage, a detour for the 3rd game, which I hope will continue to pay homage to the masterpiece that is Final Fantasy 7.
ZenithXIII
2 months ago