Here’s what it’s like to play original Final Fantasy 7 after FF7 Remake

When i picked up Final fantasy 7 for the first time, i didn’t know its biggest spoiler.

Of course, it’s okay for fans to avoid spoilers before starting a new game or media. Corn Final fantasy 7 is anything but new. It was released in 1997. The “spoiler” in question has spawned memes and parody cosplays though. It is unlikely that I avoided all knowledge about [redacted] all these years, and yet, I’ve done it.

I knew who Cloud was, and I knew his great sword, but I didn’t know much about him or his world. I first met him in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and while I enjoy his and Sephiroth’s appearance on the show to date, their To break appearances are devoid of many traditions.

[Ed. Note: This article contains spoilers for both Final Fantasy 7 (1997) and Final Fantasy 7 Remake.]

I immersed myself in this tradition when I picked up Final Fantasy 7 remake on a whim. I didn’t know much about it other than that a lot of people liked it. The game grabbed me from the start; I wanted to see Cloud and Barrett and their friends see their visions through and save their world from the looming climate catastrophe. If they upset the rigid class structure in Midgar along the way, so much the better. Also, I wanted to know who the hell this cat-like creature was at the end, and why Red could speak. I was completely captivated and wanted to know more. So not even a week went by before I got the original back Final fantasy 7 to play on my Nintendo Switch.

Image: Square Enix via Polygon

For those who don’t know, Remake brought more than updated graphics or performance. He completely redesigned the original FF7, taking the first two hours of the game and stretching them over an AAA experience of roughly 33 hours. What we get is a magnified view of the world of Midgar, both figuratively and literally – we can see the expressions on everyone’s faces in a way that the low-poly style of the PlayStation couldn’t. capture.

So you can imagine my excitement: I could see the full story and get all the references in Remake, playing the original. But playing the original as a fan of Remake It was like loving a game that wouldn’t love you back.

Of course, there was still a lot to enjoy. To this day, the game looks like this special relic from the PlayStation era, significantly more fun and experimental than its peers. FF7 challenges conventional triple-A game logic that Remake follows. At one point, we take a trip into Cloud’s mind, and the cutscenes are more like a surreal painting than a hugely popular title from a giant game studio. It’s really refreshing to see something changing the formula.

But in 2021, the original Final fantasy 7 hairs back.

As with any older turn-based RPG, there is a lot of work involved in the game. I started out wanting to play without using the acceleration option and invincible mode on the Switch version, but gave in after being killed by one of the many bosses. Some points – like taming a Chocobo – are also quite difficult to understand without a guide. On top of all that, there is no save state in the Switch version so you get stuck using the old save points.

These are all pretty standard experiences to revisit an old game, especially a turn-based RPG. But even if I grant it, and I do admit that these drawbacks are mitigated by the invincible mode and the use of a guide, FF7 and I never got into a groove.

Image: Square Enix

There are just a lot of them who don’t age well. For example, Aerith and Tifa argue over Cloud’s affections – it’s a frustrating dynamic to watch after enjoying the way they cherish and hold each other in Remake. Cloud as a character is less of a sad boy and more of a simple old punk in the original. He uses an insult and feels more like a college kid than a young adult navigating the intense trauma of his upbringing. And then there’s the scene where Cloud puts on a dress that has been so notoriously mishandled that the developers made a point of thoughtfully updating it.

Then there’s the big twist and spoiler of the series – the fact that Aerith dies. It happened too suddenly. You’re just watching a cutscene when, seemingly out of nowhere, Sephiroth stabs her in the back. Her actual death lacked an emotional punch, to the point where I wondered what had even happened, rather than feeling a sense of loss. And while I understand why his death was necessary for the story, it struck me as disappointing. Hell I cried more after seeing the ghost of Aerith in Advent children than I did while playing the original.

So take the hardships of playing an old game and combine it with those cons, and I found myself missing out Remake. I missed Cloud’s big sad blue eyes and wished I could hear the characters’ voices again. In the end, I’m glad I played the original, but I’m just going to go back and replay sections of Remake if I find myself missing the world.