FINAL FANTASY VII Rebirth just recently released and fans of the classic PS1 game can relieve the fun memories of the OG game in high definition, crystal clear graphics, courtesy of the PlayStation 5's hardware.
The game carries on from its predecessor as Cloud and his band of friends would uncover the mysteries surrounding their world, and thwart Sephiroth's evil plan.
Looking back at the Remake, Square Enix managed to produce a masterpiece as the modern rendition of the 7th Installment became a critical success. Will it remain the same with the Rebirth?
Is Rebirth better than Remake?
IGN published their review and gave Rebirth a 9/10, a point above Remake. In their video, they explained how Rebirth manages to shine above its predecessor.
They praised the character progression, saying that: "Nearly every party member has their moment to shine in this arc of Final Fantasy VII, and through impeccable cinematic stylings and top-tier voice performances, the cast's teetering between hope and despair is on full display."
Certain characters like Red XIII and Barret were more fleshed out, alongside the relationship that Cloud will attain with Tifa and Aerith.
Besides IGN, other publications such as GameSpot have also lauded the character developments to the point where they became memorable.
But besides the characters of the story, there were other features that hit the mark.
The overall exploration would leave a breathtaking experience that could be worth the hours of grinding as fans get a chance to immerse themselves into the lushious fields of Square Enix's universe.
The attention to detail of the environment could bring our jaws to the ground and the added mini-games and interactions with various NPCs could add more depth to the world. Fans could also ride a staple in the Final Fantasy series, the Chocobo.
While this is definitely one of the game's major highlight it could also pose a problem given the time consuming nature of 7's Rebirth, which was something that Polygon noted on their review.
As stated by them: "This game is immense, and not always in a good way. As with Remake, I think the most glaring issue with Rebirth is that Square Enix wants, even needs, it to be so huge in scope."
And the massive scope from Rebirth would also translate to its overall narrative.
Is Rebirth's story a problem?
The recent entries of Final Fantasy have left fans pondering about the game's overall narrative, has Square Enix lost its touch with its storytelling?
We can go back to Final Fantasy XIII which made us confuse with mind-boggling terms (e.g. Fal'Cie, L'Cie), and its preference to force players to read the truckload of pages in the game's encyclopedia.
While they have tried to lessen these mistakes as seen from XV's straightforward approach, the issues with the narratives remain as seen from the criticisms from XV's plot.
Now with the 7th installment's Rebirth, is this likewise a problem?
GameSpot's Tamoor Hussain noted that the ending has left him questioning on the game's state saying: "My biggest concern was that the setup at the end of Remake and the implications of it could lead to the story becoming convoluted and, sadly, that's exactly what happens in the final stretch of the game."
He added: "Each time I think about it, I'm either less certain of what is going on and what it means or I'm perplexed at why it happened that way."
However he wasn't the only one who was concerned with the 7th's latest narrative, as this was also raised by IGN's Michael Higham where he said: "Rebirth’s sweeping ambition to create a new timeline for Final Fantasy VII bounces between being absolutely sublime and too convoluted for its own good."
Given some of the issues stemming from the 7th installment's narrative, how will things pan out especially with the final game of the trilogy on the works?
A fresh combat experience
Meanwhile, the game's combat system have been heavily praised by critics especially with the inclusion of Synergies.
Seeing two members of the party combine their abilities to unleash a barrage of damage could be an enjoyable experience for players, especially when they see Aerith wear shades while attacking with Barret.
Combining the synergies with the Pressure and Stagger systems as well as the varied level of enemies would assert Square Enix's mastery of combat.
In fact, Square has managed to up their game with regards to combat as seen from FFXII's auto system or the XV's open world combat inspired by Kingdom Hearts.
Plus there are other features of the game that are worth highlighting like the new Queen's Blood card game that could offer a relaxing experience after hours of exploration.
While 7 Rebirth has its highs and uncertainties, the overall feedback has been positive from critics.
However there is still that one lingering question that's stuck in our heads...is Aerith going to survive? Find out by playing Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on the PlayStation 5.
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