User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 8148 Ratings

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  1. Apr 30, 2020
    3
    Nomura once again proved he is incapable of writing a decent coherent story and thus decides to bastardize FF7R with space jannies and deus ex machina. This truly sucks because the gameplay, environments, music, graphics, JP voice acting were all Elder Deity tiey. Yet this is all overshadowed by the woefully inadequate writing. Im so incredibly dissatisfied
  2. Apr 30, 2020
    4
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. If i was to give a one sentence review of this game it would be "A classic case of a epic story ruined by needless padding".

    I have played the original numerous times over the years including recently so i am not looking back with rose tinted glasses when i say the original was one of the most epic and moving games ever created with overall brilliant gameplay.
    The story telling was outstanding and well ahead of it's time, I felt attached to all the main playable characters and even on repeated replays i still feel sad when Aeris (or Aerith) dies. I hated Shinra, even more so because i felt it was terrible what they did dropping the plate on the slums and overall the world felt epic and well designed with every part having it's place.

    I had some trepidation starting the game as i was not impressed with FFXV combat in particular and the story was weak but after playing the first mission i was very impressed with what they had done with game including the combat which seemed like they had kept the best bits of the original combat style while modernising it in just the right way.

    It then slowly started to fall apart...

    You soon start to realise that 'expanding on the original story to flesh out Midgar' really means just add a load of increasingly repetitive, boring and incoherent fluff to a great story which only serves to ruin it.

    The playable area itself is actually quite small with you repeatedly sent back to the same area which is particularly noticeable with the final batch of side quests which entail revisiting every single zone you have already been to, sometimes for the third or fourth time.

    Most of the areas you traverse seem artificially stretched to elongate the game and justify releasing this small part of the story as a 'full game'. There were a number of sections in the latter half of the game in particular where i had to take a break as i was frankly bored of snaking around the most elongated route possible and return to the game later once my brain had stopped dribbling out of my ears.

    For the story it would seem the developers have taken the 'alternate timeline' route that is now standard for milking a franchise.
    If done properly this can be done well but this has not been done well because the new bits seem little more than pointless, boring, badly written filler. Where the remake sticks to the original story and expands on it properly it is generally great but almost every time it diverts from the original story the writing, the voice acting and even the context seem out of place.
    Who is Roche? Apart from being some annoying idiot on a motorbike? He is introduced like he is going to be an ongoing rival who will challenge you throughout the game as you become stronger and then is never to be seen again...
    What the hell is that totally out of character dance thing with Cloud? Cloud is portrayed as the strong, macho brooding type who has a good heart but gets very defensive and clams up whenever it comes to opening up yet stick him in a gay club and he turns into a queen. (i know cloud went drag in the original but at least true in line with his character he protested).

    They try to reimagine the shock of Aerith dying but having Barrett killed instead and it manages to be possibly the most lame and unemotional incident of the whole game as you just know he isn't dead.
    Overall, even knowing the story i felt nothing throughout the game apart from disappointment. I didn't care about any of the characters, that the slums had been destroyed or when Jessy or Biggs died.
    I didn't find myself hating Shinra or find any of the bad guys particularly sinister.
    Overall the main story points 'just happened'.
    It is obvious that they want to open the story up so they can do as they please with it and this is why i won't be buying the follow-ups as whenever they drift from the original story it is just poor.

    Combat started out good but there are major flaws. I found Cloud the most boring character in combat, made worst by the fact that the right stick is both the camera and the target change so you constantly change target while just trying to see what is going on (that is when you can actually target the thing you want to target) which makes melee particularly annoying but even comparing melee characters Tifa was much more interesting to play.
    A good chunk of the materia seem situational at best particularly as status elements were used sparsely by enemies.
    Summons are only available when the devs feel you should have them where this restriction on their use ironically makes them feel less epic as they feel contrived.
    Classic mode is an insult but honestly i reverted to it in the end as my time was being wasted enough and i just wanted to see it through, but i still i gave up after the after Barrett 'dying' as i couldn't take it anymore.

    If you want to know this epic story, play the updated original game with the 'cheats' that eliminate the 'boring' bits
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  3. Apr 30, 2020
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The game is Excellent when it is what it was marketed for, a Remake.
    But the ending is atrocious, a middle finger to long term fans.
    it gets extremely convoluted because they added lame plot devices that betray the essence of FF7. Timetravel doesn´t belong to the FF7 lore.
    Sephiroth is not Ultimecia.
    They transformed this game from an outstanding Remake to a Sequel/Reboot full of Nomura´s nonsense.
    If you loved the story of the OG stay away from this game, mostly because of the last chapter.
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  4. Apr 30, 2020
    10
    Fantastic game with lots of love put into it. This game is an absolute joy to play through every step of the way. It's got super fun gameplay, a fantastic soundtrack, beautiful visuals, and an extraordinarily loveable and memorable cast of characters.
  5. Apr 30, 2020
    10
    Não joguei o FF7 original e conhecia muito pouco a história. A forma como a história é contata é muito interessante deram uma atenção em cada detalhe dos cenários. Sistema de batalha inovador, trilha sonora espetacular. Ao terminar o jogo me deu vontade de jogar o original para entender mais sobre a histórica e os personagens que foram muito bem construídos nesse remake.

    Único ponto que
    Não joguei o FF7 original e conhecia muito pouco a história. A forma como a história é contata é muito interessante deram uma atenção em cada detalhe dos cenários. Sistema de batalha inovador, trilha sonora espetacular. Ao terminar o jogo me deu vontade de jogar o original para entender mais sobre a histórica e os personagens que foram muito bem construídos nesse remake.

    Único ponto que me incomodou durante a gameplay são alguns trechos muito longos de cenário, mas isso não tira o mérito desse brilhante jogo. Nota 10.
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  6. Apr 30, 2020
    10
    Definitely a bit slow but makes it all worth it, graphics, story and chafacters are 10/10 and the combat system is the most fun I've had since FFXIV.
  7. Apr 30, 2020
    10
    As a long-time FF-fan who has played every FF from FF6 to FF15, this game is everything I wanted and comes only second after FFX for me. It might even surpass it on a second playthrough. It made me laugh, it made me cry. It made me care for characters I couldn't care less in the PS1-version. It is MUCH less repetitive and cliché than its PS1-counterpart, and the music is world class.As a long-time FF-fan who has played every FF from FF6 to FF15, this game is everything I wanted and comes only second after FFX for me. It might even surpass it on a second playthrough. It made me laugh, it made me cry. It made me care for characters I couldn't care less in the PS1-version. It is MUCH less repetitive and cliché than its PS1-counterpart, and the music is world class. Finally no random encounters, a minimal loading time, very good animations and graphics, but most importantly: fun and engaging gameplay. As cheesy as it sounds, but this was an experience I thought I would never have in a video game again, ever. Especially in dire times like these. Expand
  8. Apr 30, 2020
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is NOT FF7. It's a game LOADED with pointless fetch quests to stretch out the game to justify releasing in multiple parts. The story has been completely changed (to the point that it is a completely different game). The battle system is the only thing that's fun, but you only control one character and the AI on the computer controlled characters in your party is completely broken. You can't give them commands until their ATB is full, but they just stand there and don't do anything to build their ATB. So it's basically a one person party the entire game because the other two members are nearly useless.

    The people giving this game a positive score just bought into the hype. It's loaded with fetch quests, has a completely different plot and story (I can't understate this), the computer AI on your party members is broken, and the only thing that's done well are the story parts kept in from the original (which constitutes less than 5% of the the playtime of the remake. the rest is new and added in and/or pointless fetch quests).

    The time travel twist completely makes this a different story. I am cool with added backstories and tweaking the existing story here and there. And the parts they did that were well done. But then they took a sledgehammer to the story with the ending. This is not what ANYONE wanted when fans were begging for a remake for a decade.

    The original FF7 is my favorite game of all time. I was disappointed when I heard the changes that were made to the game during development, and that they were dividing it into multiple games. But I still saw the great scores the game was given, and got excited and gave it a chance. I've never been more disappointed. What I played was way worse than even my worst fear..
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  9. Apr 30, 2020
    8
    ok at first the FEW bad things
    this thing has some times where you kinda want it to cut shorter, like sometimes it feels like 30 minutes or so are just too much.
  10. Apr 30, 2020
    9
    The hype is real.
    The Graphics are pretty amazing aside from more than a handful of texture resolution issues. As for the audio, the game probably has the best sound track of the year. VA is about as good as it gets. The game controls well enough that I don't mind that it is now an Action RPG. The Story is better than ever with all the additional details and more fleshed out characters.
    The hype is real.
    The Graphics are pretty amazing aside from more than a handful of texture resolution issues. As for the audio, the game probably has the best sound track of the year. VA is about as good as it gets. The game controls well enough that I don't mind that it is now an Action RPG. The Story is better than ever with all the additional details and more fleshed out characters. My only serious complaint is that I want the full game, disc 2 was my favorite, but I am looking forward to see how they handle the rest of the remake in the future installments.
    Great month for Square between this and Trials of Mana.
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  11. Apr 30, 2020
    10
    It is not flawless, but it is definitely worth a 10/10.
    The pros:
    1) The new battle system 2) The graphics is marvelous 3) The music is outstanding 4) The changing to the story that made me get excited for the sequel. The little cons: 1) Very rarely the camera can get annoying 2) Either some bad texture or some problem with rendering, and the still image background (why Square
    It is not flawless, but it is definitely worth a 10/10.
    The pros:
    1) The new battle system
    2) The graphics is marvelous
    3) The music is outstanding
    4) The changing to the story that made me get excited for the sequel.

    The little cons:
    1) Very rarely the camera can get annoying
    2) Either some bad texture or some problem with rendering, and the still image background (why Square Enix why?)
    3) Red XIII not playable
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  12. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    It's nothing like the original but it deserves a 10/10. Loved every chapter!
  13. Apr 29, 2020
    5
    This is helpless hard to have a full story in 1 games nowaday , Why remake FFVII ?? because of the sales (original). this remake just the same kind of FFXV ,most important about original FF7 is the battle system with view of the angle arrangement(feel good and excited). Now,strange line to go for character ,no open world ,limited you go anywhere ,part of story and story changed.This is helpless hard to have a full story in 1 games nowaday , Why remake FFVII ?? because of the sales (original). this remake just the same kind of FFXV ,most important about original FF7 is the battle system with view of the angle arrangement(feel good and excited). Now,strange line to go for character ,no open world ,limited you go anywhere ,part of story and story changed. Personal 5 even way better than this . you can see many second hand FF7 remake to sell on web , this is not worth to have and keep games.... I keep the original FF7 and soundtrack but not this one ....... 5 stars just for Tifa only nothing more .Tifa make me finish the whole games . if you want to play FF7 remake, wait second hand with half price of it. Expand
  14. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    This is a remake not a remaster totally two different things, a remake is similar to a reboot, if you look it up you will see the definition . Anyways I knew some stuff would be different from the original and that’s fine with me! I’m excited to see a new story vs the one I already know. This might be one of the best visual pleasing game I played. It’s a emotional roller coaster from meThis is a remake not a remaster totally two different things, a remake is similar to a reboot, if you look it up you will see the definition . Anyways I knew some stuff would be different from the original and that’s fine with me! I’m excited to see a new story vs the one I already know. This might be one of the best visual pleasing game I played. It’s a emotional roller coaster from me feeling confidently strong, to some laughs, to frustrated and sad, have not had all those emotions in a game for a while. The play style reminds me of Crisis Core, which is one of my favorite FFs, go into this game with a open mind and not the mind of a boomer.. I’m happy these three parts are being made and well it’s one of the better games I played since the newest GOW Expand
  15. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    I have a few nitpicks but I enjoyed this SO MUCH its definitely a 10 out of 10. I finished the game in 45 hours on normal difficulty and never wanted to put the controller down. The battle system is a perfect blend of action rpg and strategy. The music is incredible - it was almost worth playing just to listen to the soundtrack.

    I like that the story is not exactly the same as the
    I have a few nitpicks but I enjoyed this SO MUCH its definitely a 10 out of 10. I finished the game in 45 hours on normal difficulty and never wanted to put the controller down. The battle system is a perfect blend of action rpg and strategy. The music is incredible - it was almost worth playing just to listen to the soundtrack.

    I like that the story is not exactly the same as the original game. That would have been boring. Instead this game is set in an alternate universe or timeline and that makes it much more interesting and keeps everyone guessing. Can't wait for part 2!
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  16. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    This is the game that exceeded all of my expectations. Really love the new combat system, soundtracks are perfect, the development of the characters are impressive. It makes you really feel into the game.
  17. Apr 29, 2020
    0
    FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE is biggest disappointment ever, definitely not buy.
  18. Apr 29, 2020
    6
    Like others have mentioned in their reviews, there is plenty of good and plenty of bad. At the end of the day, my only real issue is that this should not have been a $60 game. Stretching the original Midgar segment works at some points; there is probably 3-4 hours of additional content that is not in the original game and really adds well to the story. Unfortunately, the rest of the game'sLike others have mentioned in their reviews, there is plenty of good and plenty of bad. At the end of the day, my only real issue is that this should not have been a $60 game. Stretching the original Midgar segment works at some points; there is probably 3-4 hours of additional content that is not in the original game and really adds well to the story. Unfortunately, the rest of the game's additions consist of meaningless and time-consuming side quests, long runs through dull linear levels, and repetitive fights in a clunky combat system.

    If you strip away the hype surrounding the title, you're ultimately left with a shallow and incomplete RPG that is 20 hours too long and $20 too expensive. There is still plenty to enjoy here, but there are definitely better RPGs for the money.
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  19. Apr 29, 2020
    8
    While I think calling this a remake is unfair with the changes, I think most people are being too hard on this one. The graphics aren’t bad, there is enough new content to give it a reason to exist, and it brings the game to the new generation.
  20. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    I played the original back in 1997 and it has forever been replayed by myself over the years on every system available. I signed petitions years ago asking for square to remake the game with modern graphics, they didn’t even need to change the story I just wanted to see my favourite game of all time get some graphical love.

    The remake is fantastic. A masterpiece. There’s plenty of nods to
    I played the original back in 1997 and it has forever been replayed by myself over the years on every system available. I signed petitions years ago asking for square to remake the game with modern graphics, they didn’t even need to change the story I just wanted to see my favourite game of all time get some graphical love.

    The remake is fantastic. A masterpiece. There’s plenty of nods to the original and fan boy moments when you recognise iconic scenes, props and moments recreated with care, love and respect for the source material. I thoroughly enjoyed this game and will relay until I have all trophies and platinum. I clocked in 55 hours completion time and spent a lot of time looking for secrets and chests. The ending I don’t want to spoil it but... well wait and see. It’s so good
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  21. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    Best ever i had played this generation. Once you play you will notice that each move has a rich animation & details.
    This game must to play.
  22. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    This game is outstanding production, it's game combined with art at its best. As a game is pure pleasure to play but not without challenge. As art it's directed in masterful way, with great characters written in great way, music is probably one of the best OST in entire gaming history. This game gave me goosebumps, it made me laugh, it made me cry and made me love it. Thank you Square Enix!
  23. Apr 29, 2020
    0
    I never thought someone could completely ruin an almost perfect game in the very final chapter. Congratulations to SE and Tesuya Nomura you guys have really done it now
  24. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    Love it!! The good make up so much for the bad. A must play for series fan and new players
  25. Apr 29, 2020
    6
    bad things
    1- bad ending
    2- play this if you want to waste 30 hours
    3- this game should be 11 hours.
    good things
    1- I like characters
    2- the story is ok
  26. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    This game is awesome... The gameplay, OST, new content, minigames, fights, graphics... everything is better than I had imagined when I was thinking of a Remake. Most people who gave bad score just wanted the game to be a full copy script of the original. If you really want that just play the original for crying out loud...
    The game can be a little confusing some times (if you didn't play
    This game is awesome... The gameplay, OST, new content, minigames, fights, graphics... everything is better than I had imagined when I was thinking of a Remake. Most people who gave bad score just wanted the game to be a full copy script of the original. If you really want that just play the original for crying out loud...
    The game can be a little confusing some times (if you didn't play the original you will be even more confused), but if you pay attention you can understand most of it (you can also read some theories and facts on the web if you have some difficulty to understand) and also it's intentional that Square did it to make us think about the possibilities and also to evaluate what fans think about it!
    They already said that the main plot won't change. It's the first time I've seen a remake that improves the experience of the game, not only a copy-paste story with better graphics. I've already played this game for 100 hours (with all PSN trophies) and I can say that I'm still not tired of playing it. Every time I play again I can notice some more details, this game is full of it. Also, you can see that depending on your answers on some conversation (or doing or not a side quest) it changes when you interact with people. Not something that changes the flow of the story but it's nice to know they paid attention on this minimal details.
    I think this game is a must have for fans and also for people that didn't played the original. The difficulty levels are nice for newbies and more experienced players. Just play this game and have your own thoughts. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did and that Square puts all their efforts to expand this game without too much delay between parts (DLCs would be nice to tell some side story to complement it without too much wait).
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  27. Apr 29, 2020
    0
    GRAN juego para los nostálgicos que amamos el clásico y un acierto en su diseño de combates. MALISIMO en su diseño de niveles, relleno de forma forzada y artificial y cambios graves alejados en su narrativa muy mal encajados. Nomura a querido dejar su huella y a manchada el alma de esta obra. Ha cambiado el destino de FF7R y ahora se llama "Final Hearts - Los tres jinetes y el sin corazónGRAN juego para los nostálgicos que amamos el clásico y un acierto en su diseño de combates. MALISIMO en su diseño de niveles, relleno de forma forzada y artificial y cambios graves alejados en su narrativa muy mal encajados. Nomura a querido dejar su huella y a manchada el alma de esta obra. Ha cambiado el destino de FF7R y ahora se llama "Final Hearts - Los tres jinetes y el sin corazón del destino". Enhorabuena Nomura por semejante infortunio. Expand
  28. Apr 29, 2020
    5
    gameplay: no real opportunity to experiment. you fight a monster, it's gone. for the most part, in most areas, they don't come back, so how do you experiment? also, the battles go on for so long on normal, you get so fed up and if you get the wrong combination, you are screwed. and on easy you basically cheese the enemies so hard, your materia strategy is hardly even effective anyway.gameplay: no real opportunity to experiment. you fight a monster, it's gone. for the most part, in most areas, they don't come back, so how do you experiment? also, the battles go on for so long on normal, you get so fed up and if you get the wrong combination, you are screwed. and on easy you basically cheese the enemies so hard, your materia strategy is hardly even effective anyway.
    incredibly annoying minigames that catch you off guard and in some cases are impossible for some players.

    story: complete bait and switch. I got hit hard when I realised it wasn't what they led us to believe and I wasn't getting the amazing experience they promised. emotionally, I tanked and i can't forgive them for this.

    graphics: amazing in most places. really amazing. except for the places where the textures are obviously really really bad. like the apartment door. what happened there?? cats are amazing.

    music: some good remixes, but then there are other new music that are completely out of place and just don't seem to fit the theme of the game at all.

    pacing: the pacing of the story is utterly destroyed. the original game was crafter to give you the right feel of urgency in the right places and the feel of relaxation in others. an example, when don corneo tells you about the plate, you are really supposed to feel like it's pretty urgent to get there.. but in this remake, you are forced to go through incredibly long sequences with 3 bosses at least, and stupid dementor things getting in your way. that part is just ruined in terms of urgency. to be honest, the majority of this game has me feeling like I want to rush through it all to get to the next plot point.

    art design: The look and feel of the original is there for some parts but totally gone in other places. the underside of the plate was a gloomy place with the odd oasis of brightness and cheer. this is totally changed and now the places are simply junktowns in broad daylight with happy and vibrant communities. not the worst thing in the world, but it severely compromises the original concept of the city and detracts from the contrast that ought to come later with wutai etc.

    This really really hard to rate, because on some levels this is really amazing and if not for the bait and switch, the story idea could be clever and well received. I have to take all other things into account too, the pacing, the music inconsistencies, the gameplay, etc. I have to go with a 5 for this.
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  29. Apr 29, 2020
    0
    Don’t be fooled by the 10/10 copypasted bot-reviews from 1-rating-1-review-random-google-image-avatar ‘reviewers’ with names like ‘GIANTMONKEYBUTT’.

    Instead, ask yourself: When you played the original Midgar segment, did you think ‘Wow, this could only be better if it were 6 times longer and all that extra length was devoted to running down Manhunt-ripped drab concrete hallways doing
    Don’t be fooled by the 10/10 copypasted bot-reviews from 1-rating-1-review-random-google-image-avatar ‘reviewers’ with names like ‘GIANTMONKEYBUTT’.

    Instead, ask yourself: When you played the original Midgar segment, did you think ‘Wow, this could only be better if it were 6 times longer and all that extra length was devoted to running down Manhunt-ripped drab concrete hallways doing grindy Korean MMO-tier fetch quests?’ Of course you didn’t. But SE’s marketing department sure wants to think you did. This is the most soulless, poorly-written piece of filth which SE has yet to excrete. It’s time we accept that Nomura is a hack and that the original FF7 was a perfect storm that isn’t happening again.

    In addition to being padded as all hell so they can break in into installments and charge you for the game 10 times over, this isn’t a remake. This is a sequel about writing over the original plot with the most pretentious pseudo-intellectual fanfiction in existence:

    - Everything you loved about the original game has been retconned. Everyone's canon personalities have been overwritten with anime-archetypes. Aerith is now a random-pixie-dream girl who's so cliche-riddled, it wouldn't surprise me at all to learn Nomura had the TV Tropes page open when he wrote her cringeworthy 'dialogue'.

    - Shinra have actually been given LESS depth (ERR: Div by 0) to the point where they make Captain Planet’s villains look complex and subtle.

    - Twists for the sake of twists a la The Last Jedi.

    - Horrible ORIGINAL CHARACTER DO NOT STEAL archetypes occupy most of the extra length.

    - Open mockery of fans of the original game for ACTUALLY wanting the remake we were promised. (I’m not joking. They literally insult their own original game’s fanbase as a plot point.)

    - Buggy as hell.

    - Attempts to retcon in Dirge of Cerberus. Did you like Dirge of Cerberus? Because this game has more in common with that than the original FF7.

    - Looks horrible because SE outsourced the development of the 3D assets to a sweatshop in Malaysia. The few models SE made themselves and the outsourced NPC models are jarringly mismatched. Also, the environments look like PSP textures.

    - The new retconned ending is literally so terrible that SE is threatening to sue youtubers who post it out of fear it will hurt their sales.

    The new ‘retconned’ plot literally reads like something Nomura scrawled on the back of a pizza box while huffing Nos in the dumpster outside Kojima’s. If you’re a fan of the original, DO NOT buy this.
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  30. Apr 29, 2020
    10
    I couldn't have asked for anything more. This game was an absolute delight to play and I'm so happy they changed things up from the original. Can't wait to continue with the next parts.
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 126 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Negative: 0 out of 126
  1. Sep 14, 2020
    90
    Final Fantasy VII Remake is the game we've been waiting for from Square Enix for so long. Atmospheric, interesting and exciting all your attention modern jRPG with an interesting story and spectacular battles. To achieve the ideal, the project only needs more even graphics and all the content from the original release. If you were waiting for a turn-based classic with new graphics you will most likely be disappointed, since the game has changed a lot. Everyone else is happy with the release of the first really powerful single-player release from the internal Square Enix studio for many years. Especially after the failure of Final Fantasy XV.
  2. Aug 20, 2020
    80
    A good remake of the introductory part of the cult-favorite Final Fantasy VII. It improves on the original game in almost all aspects, yet lacks in scale and drops the ball at the very end.
  3. Aug 10, 2020
    90
    What matters is still intact, and that’s the heart and soul of one of the greatest stories in video game history. It’s a return to form that has felt a long time in coming, and what’s even better is that there’s still at least two more games of this quality to come...They can’t mess this up, can they?