Final Fantasy VII Remake – Bang or Bust?
Author: S.A.
For those of you who haven’t managed to hear it yet Final Fantasy 7, one of the largest selling games of all time, is coming back to us with a new polished look. This is beyond exciting for many gamers both new and old, for it’s been a milestone in gameplay for quite sometime. The chance to remake it in a beautiful fashion is finally being presented, and hopefully wont fall short.
If you’ve forgotten the story, or its captivating characters, the story concentrates on Cloud Strife and the Eco-terrorist group Avalanche. The members of this gorilla group are fighting against the Shinra corporation, an organization that has been draining the planet’s energy, only to become in a fight that is much larger than they could ever hope to imagine. It’s story was one that pulled in gamers of all age brackets, and likely will again now that the story is being brought to us in High Definition.
The game is a full remake from the ground up, in both graphics and game design, likely only remaining true to the story. With a real time battle system, instead of it’s previous turned based one, players will now be thrown into a world where you must actively fight with each member of your party to keep them alive. This game feels more like Square Enix’s other huge title, Kingdom Hearts, and is something that I feel is definitely welcome in terms of control in regards to battle.
Not everyone might agree though.
Cloud Strife, coming in for the kill.
Gamers who are purist in nature might find this removal from the old turn based system to be a betrayal of previous game play. This is doubly so when you consider how long many individuals have been waiting for this remake, and might feel that this is merely a money grab at individuals who can’t manage the arguably harder the previous battle system. Though arguably it can be stated that these individuals can just go back and play the older version of the game, and let new gamers enjoy the story that has moved their hearts so obviously.
However, the most glaring problem that has sparked debate in the gaming world is the announcement about episodic releases. What this means is that we won’t get a full product upon launch, but rather story releases much like a TellTale game. While admittedly developers over at Square Enix have stated that each section will “have the volume of content equal to a full-sized game.”, this can still be considered a betrayal by many and affect their sales. Questions started to rise up in the plenty after this announcement. After all, why won’t Square Enix just release the full product upon launch? Not only that, but will each section cost the same as a new titled game? How much time will lapse between each release date?
These are all questions that will affect the upcoming title greatly in terms of popularity and longevity. The fan market is a rough place after all, and if they feel slighted they won’t buy a game no matter how good it is due to the feeling of anger this incites. How well Square Enix navigates these ever testy waters of gamerdom will determine their success, but I for one am more than hopeful. I have loved this title, and believe that whatever they produce will be beautiful, and meet the needs of fan’s at large.
In Square Enix I trust.
Follow us on Twitter to keep up with the latest posts, or to recommend a game for the team to review: @TheSaveSpot1
