It’s finally over. That was my initial reaction to rolling credits on Final Fantasy VII Remake. Not because it was a bad game, but it just wasn’t really great, either.

Being fair. Trying to remake Final Fantasy VII is a task that is practically impossible. A long-standing, devout and massive fanbase that wouldn’t all agree what a remake should look like if they all got together.

Square Enix took on the impossible task and landed in a strange spot.

We’ll get into details shortly. But if you want a quick summary of Final Fantasy VII Remake, it’s this:

The game looks amazing, it delivers exposition and character development never seen before, for a cast of characters that are decades old. However, the game tells a small portion of the original story, and in doing so pads-out a lot of your time with some hollow moments.

I’ve been conflicted playing it. Never feeling enthused to do so, but never so turned off by it, that I couldn’t find the motivation.

Final Fantasy VII Remake is a game that has caused more confusion/conflict with how I liked it. More than any other game I’ve ever played.

 

Looks great

There’s no denying quite how good Final Fantasy VII Remake looks.

Character models, attack animations, the world at large. Everything here screams attention to detail and looks stunning.

With the world already being established. Square Enix took the opportunity to add depth and detail to spaces that really help flesh-out the game world.

Areas from the original game, new spaces. All of it aesthetically works and that style is undeniable.

Add to it the cutscenes and cinematic moments and you’ve got easily one of the best looking JRPGs ever.

I’ve taken more screenshots playing this game than any other, ever. It’s beautiful and has been one of the main reasons I’ve come back to see it through.

 

Sounds great

Final Fantasy VII is synonymous with the Nobuo Uematsu soundtrack. With amazing themes, crammed into those Playstation discs back in the day.

Character themes, location themes, battle themes. Nothing was unaccounted for.

Final Fantasy VII Remake takes it all and runs with it. No longer confined to midi instrumentation. You get fully-realised in-game themes and scoring.

Add to it the voice acting, the effects for all of your attacks, spells, enemies. And you’re really spoiled, audibly.

Whether or not you enjoy the voice acting itself, is another thing. But the quality is there, for sure.

Classics re-visited and it’s like a modern nostalgia rush.

 

Combat is excellent

The more modern take on combat, mixed with that traditional Final Fantasy turn-based combat, is a genuine revelation.

Square Enix played with fire here, messing with an established and well-loved format. But the results were worth the risk.

Still selecting actions (item, spell, ability, attack) and swapping between your party. But you move around, you can block, dodge, switch characters to flank.

What seemed initially quite straightforward, ended up being a real highlight of the game. Offering some serious tactical depth, whilst still getting all the classics of Final Fantasy VII in there. Materia is still important, weapons and upgrades. Summons.

It’s all here but in a modern, dynamic and enjoyable way. As drawn-out as some boss fights can be, especially if you lose. They were always fun and offered the opportunity to learn, improve, and ultimately win. Either convincingly, or less so in some cases.

One on one boss fights were my least favourite, but also some of the most challenging which gave them a different dimension. Compared to those where you have a full party, which gives you a broader suite of options and chances to heal/revive.

 

So much time wasted

Side quests, world “exploration”, moving from one objective to the next. Final Fantasy VII Remake sure made itself a chore when it wanted to. Padding out the experience with some time wasting.

Light puzzle elements, some literal moment of being stuck in rooms or corridors waiting for doors to open. There was very rarely anything engaging or fun to do between story beats.

I get exploring and getting further embedded into the world. Hell, it’s what I wanted. But it all felt artificial, or just a means to add time to the total game time. It became quite stale, particularly when wanting to crack on with the story.

If this wasn’t Final Fantasy, would it be tolerated in this day and age? I don’t think it would, truth be told. Whilst JRPGs are known for a lot of back and forth in worlds, I’ve never felt it quite so artificially embedded.

This really took a shine of some of the story. Having to walk through some corridors with some arbitrary battles just to push the narrative forwards.

 

Strong character exposition

Whilst Final Fantasy VII already has a very well established cast of characters. Seen in a variety of content over the years. Final Fantasy VII Remake is the first real opportunity to really flesh them out as people.

Namely Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, Barrett and Red XIII. With Jesse, Wedge and Biggs in there for good measure.

Well voice-acted and motion captured. This was the first time we saw them realised as people. Not just text boxes.

I’d go so far as to say that nobody was a surprise in their attitude, demeanour or values. But Square Enix must have relished the opportunity to finally give voice to their characters in this world, and they did a fantastic job.

 

Was it worth it?

Ultimately, yes. Just over 40 hours to re-live the opening part of the Final Fantasy VII story in greater detail, with more nuanced characters and a genuinely enjoyable combat system.

This re-created Midgar is a joy to behold and everything looks and sounds like you kind of always imagined. Nostalgia is a tricky mistress to understand, and certainly the game gets away with some boring stuff because of what it is.

But take away the time-padding and you’re still left with something special.

Is it the best game in the world? No. In fact there are many many better games out there. But…..it’s a re-creation of a classic that takes everything it is, and modernises it.

It’s a truly remarkable undertaking, and worth noting, that the very concept of doing something like this is insane.

The risk was ultimately worth it, but if this wasn’t Final Fantasy VII, I don’t know how lenient we’d be with some of the gameplay elements themselves.

It feels good to be done with this first chapter of the remakes, and one day I’ll look at moving to Rebirth to carry it on.

Final Fantasy VII doesn’t get our highest rating, but it is definitely one we’d recommend to fans of the series, and those curious in 2025.