Video Games: The General Discussion & Community Thread

[tex]

FF7 capitalizes on an existing story that was pretty ok to begin with by adding in ridiculous plot elements that either make no sense, or come across as shameless retcons.

The game is... So unabashedly padded with constant nonsense. Even if the slow-walks and narrow passages are just used to buffer loading times, it can get excessively cumbersome.

The battle system is like what FF15 should have been. Engaging to some degree, but not too complex to the point that you end up tripping over a bunch of inane mechanics. It's good at masking its own simplicity with moves that make you feel like you're really taking part in the combat. The Boss battles almost never fail to impress.

Regardless of anything the first game did right, the future of the FF7 Remake series looks absolutely abysmal.

[Fabricant451]

The Boss battles almost never fail to impress.

@tex

The only boss fights that I genuinely enjoyed were the 1v1s and like the optional Behemoth. The bosses all being slaves to phases might've made them more 'cinematic' or whatever but it sure as shit didn't make them fun to fight.

To each their own, though.

I started really high on the game then around chapter 5 I was starting to track downward then chapter 9 sucked so much that I just wanted the pain to end. FF7 Remake is like a 30 hour game that still manages to have pacing problems and obvious padding which is an impressive feat in a game whose map design is a series of corridors and square rooms.

[tex]

If there's a boss fight that really stood out to me, it was the optional Leviathan summon Materia fight. It felt like a raid and had some cool mechanics that forced you to position in certain ways in order to optimize the fight. But in reality, most boss fights really just do boil down to face-tanking with block and outputting ass-loads of damage. I just loved the music tracks and cinematic craziness of it all. If Leviathan is anything to go based off of for 'giant boss fights' though, I'm looking forward to the post-game content in the Ruby/Emerald/Ultima weapon fights.

One retcon I wouldn't mind having: Sapphire weapon actually getting a fight instead of having its stupid head blown off by Juno's giant Mako cannon. Maybe even a better diamond weapon fight and some Omega weapon content - Really just any retcons that allow for some more super-boss fights.

Going back and playing the original FF-7 shows that it was really just littered with a lot of linear sections to begin with, and midgar was the most grievous offender, but it's true that they kind further dumb down the pathing into a giant hallway in the remake. It's not really forgivable that they essentially made Midgar into an entire game without adding much of substance. Makes you wonder how exactly they're going to pad the world map.

[Fabricant451]

Many JRPGs of both the modern and classic era are linearly designed, but with the old games it could be excused as hardware limitations or made up for in other ways. Midgar in the original feels larger than it does in the Remake because so much of it is just corridors with debris and people standing around and talking over each other. It's more of a chore to navigate the slums - especially if you want to go to the Moogle Medal merchant - and by the time you unlock fast travel you're pretty much done with everything anyway. It's funny to me that much of this game is built on the foundations of Final Fantasy 13 but that game is divisive (it was always good, smh) and in many ways succeeds with its themes moreso than Remake; granted one's a full game and one's 'part one' or whatever but the similarities are there.

I wouldn't be surprised if the world map was more like 15 which wouldn't be the worst but it wouldn't really spark that same "oh shit" moment as leaving Midgar the first time in FF7.

I dunno, maybe you just can't go home again. I understand what they did, I don't like it but I understand it.

[wisteria]

One the topic of the ffvii remake-- well here's my thoughts.
I wish we had like... actual puzzles involved, maybe puzzles like in zelda or just anything really. Most parts are like, what other people said, naviagting through corridors and rooms and the pace makes it seem so sluggish. It would have been funner if there was more to explore, or just like, some fun puzzles to do.

I had fun with some of the quests, others I wasn't a fan of. I enjoyed the quest with the tonberry fight, not because it was necessarily hard but ive never beaten a tonberry in a ff game before so it was rewarding, even if it was easy lol. I liked how the behemoth quest tied in nicely with like 4 other quests. Other quests I found slow.

Honeybee inn was one of my fave parts. That dance scene was hilarious and fun.

I really enjoyed the battle system, but like some others said, i didnt like the phases of the bosses. My favorite boss was the boss in the train yard (i really enjoyed that part, wish they could have made it even creepier tho!) I don't know if I enjoyed the bosses that much.. It seemed like most of them could be defeated without stagger pretty easily, and its not like I was trying to grind levels or anything. I did play on classic, and Im going to attempt hard after i beat the game so maybe the bosses will be harder.

Loved the music, especially the song that plays when tifa and aerith team up to beat don corneo. I have so many workout songs from this soundtrack, and I listen to it ay work too. I love it!

Havent gotten to the end (pretty close though!) but i keep hearing stuff about time travel and like, how the characters might use it to... prevent something from happening I guess? And i really just hope they don bring aerith back for the sake of bringing her back.

Just my two cents.

Just beat the game... spoilers ahead

Wow, I don't know what to say. Honestly? I think it could work. I'm feeling kind of conflicted about it, but he more i think about it, the more I think it doesn't necessarily ruin ffvii. Theres multiple timelines. The original ffvii was one timeline. This is a different one with a different story, and thats not necessarily a bad thing.

Normally I'm really iffy on dead characters coming back. And I still feel iffy about it, but this feels more like "what would happen if they lived?" instead of just bringing them back from death, if that makes sense. Besides, I absolutely love Zack, and to see how things would turn out if he hadn't died is interesting.

[tex]

Something tells me that this is setting up for some weird future crossover for FF games akin to the Dissidia series.

[Fabricant451]

Square Enix deciding to just make AUs of their classic games let's goooooo

"In this fanfic, Cloud never has feelings for Tifa OR Aerith and instead leaves Midgar with Jessie"

"An AU where Zack is replaced by Sephiroth"

"What if President Shinra wasn't bad?"

"Don Corneo's Mansion 18+ Only"

[mickilennial]

[Fabricant451]

I started playing WoW again because this quarantine has left me with nothing else to do but subject myself to a skinner box of azerite.

also because the experience boost is lasting until shadowlands pre-patch which for all i know is fucking never

[Carlyle]

The last time I played WoW seriously I wound up speedrunning multiple characters to near max level. Haven't really touched it outside private servers since the whole China debacle, though.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

FF7R is a sequel so it isn't retconning anything. I'm so glad this is the case, because the first thing I heard about it was that Shinra blew up its own Mako reactor instead of Avalanche, which I took to be a shameless attempt to wipe the blood off Barrette's hands that would untimely undermine his character arc later on.

Now, though? I'm just gonna sit back and enjoy Nomura's Wild Ride.

[Fabricant451]

FF7R is a sequel so it isn't retconning anything.

@Gentlemanvaultboy

It's not even that, though. Shinra does blow up its own reactor but Avalanche doesn't know that and it's one of the changes that at least works in the narrative of the game. But it is absolutely not a sequel.

spoilers for real click at your own risk

It's an alternate universe where Dementor's from Harry Potter are metaphysical manifestations of the expectations of the fans who want things in the game to be exactly as they remember them to the point where they alter and change events in the game to be more in line with the original universe that is OG FF7 and the game ends with the party breaking free of the shackles of 'fate' by defeating the ghost monsters and then fighting Sephiroth who also wants to defy destiny because he knows the other reality where he loses and he wants to prevent that. Also, Zack is alive.

[Dnafein]

Horizon: Zero Dawn is the first in a trilogy.

[Gelatinous Cube]

This pleases me.

[DruSM157]

@Fabricant451

spoilers

I mean Zach is alive in ANOTHER alternate reality.

How isn't that rad. It's just a crazy wild ride that no one knows where it's going.

[tex]

I for one welcome the meta narrative. I just wish the spooky plot devices had better presentation. It still leaves a lot of potential for... Bad times ahead.

[DruSM157]

I for one welcome the meta narrative. I just wish the spooky plot devices had better presentation. It still leaves a lot of potential for... Bad times ahead.

@tex

BIG BRAIN DUMB SPOILER IDEAS

So I love the idea that by defying fate that the heroes have basically played into Sephiroth's hand. I have a strong feeling that in the sequel we will see a lot of the same narrative bits as the OG FF7, but maybe in a different presentation. What I hope to see is more Sephiroth emotional manipulation of Cloud, and perhaps pushing him to "save" Aerith from her death. My theory is that if Aerith does not join with the lifestream, she cannot manipulate Holy to stop Meteor; meaning that Sephiroth wins.

Aerith's death is one of those BIG spoilers in gaming history, but my hope is that the next game will play with the player's emotions as well as Cloud's, by making us WANT to save her, defying the plot of the original game but also opening up for Seph's true victory. Adding in Zach being alive in another continuity also gives a chance for some moment where he may intervene in our timeline, and act against fate as well. How big of a gut punch would it be to be told that she HAS to die to save the planet, and instead of the City of the Ancients sequence, we're surprised at another moment later on. Maybe even a moment of self-sacrifice from Aerith.

A lot of people are angry because there is a plot divergence, and I understand folks wanting this to be a pure "retelling" of the OG story. But I've spent the better part of my teenage and adult years with all of this compilation of ff7 bullshit that is now ingrained into my brain and seeing more of that appear alongside the old stuff is really interesting.

The next games could be incredible and a deep emotional story that deals with coping with loss that is out of our control, or it could be very contrived and dumb and kingdom heartsy. Only time will tell!

I've watched waaay too much of Maximillian Dood's theories and was shocked to find his level 4 galaxy brain stuff synced up with my own ideas playing.

[Fabricant451]

@Fabricant451

spoilers

I mean Zach is alive in ANOTHER alternate reality.

How isn't that rad. It's just a crazy wild ride that no one knows where it's going.

@DruSM157

Because I've been on rides helmed by Nomura before.

[DruSM157]

<Snipped quote by DruSM157>

Because I've been on rides helmed by Nomura before.

@Fabricant451

Same. And some have been great and others have been weak. I think the level of care they've taken for this game, with Nomura and the other OG FF7 team all working together for this makes me less all "doom and gloom" and more just hopeful excitement for the future. But right now everything is speculation.

[Fabricant451]

<Snipped quote by Fabricant451>

Same. And some have been great and others have been weak. I think the level of care they've taken for this game, with Nomura and the other OG FF7 team all working together for this makes me less all "doom and gloom" and more just hopeful excitement for the future. But right now everything is speculation.

@DruSM157

For me, though, it's not just the Nomura aspect that has me not anticipating what's to come but also the shortcomings I thought the game had, namely its combat, the padding, the side quest, and the overall design of the areas. I'm not sure I want to play another game in this remake franchise if all I can look forward to is hallways that play new versions of the songs I know broken up by bosses that take 20 minutes when they could take 5.