ScuzzBlog: Diaries November 2025
Entry 11th November 2025: Post 1: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth - You gotta be kidding.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth - You gotta be kidding.
Last couple of weeks I have been playing The Rebirth version of
the classic Final Fantasy VII. This is part II of a three part
saga released last year some four years after the first part of
the remake. Counting up on my fingers that means part three will
most likely arrive in 2028, that's like close on thirty years after
the original was first released on the PS1 - 1997.
I played this game back in 1998 on my PS1. I was reluctant to
play the game at first cus I had been playing Tomb Raider, Resident
Evil, Dino Crisis etc which all had a very similar play style
insomuch that you guided a single character through a series of
challenges. With Final Fantasy the style looked quite childish
and the group turn based combat looked a little daunting.
However, after a few false starts I got into FFVII and eventually
grew to love the game. So much so that over the years I became
a bit of an addict of the various versions.
Fast forward to the remake and whilst I was a little disappointed
with it, I could generally understand why it was done. So when I
decided to play Rebirth I was already prepared for a different
type of game style.
Sadly the game turned out to be unrecognisable, which made me
reflect on why the first game worked and this one didn't. This
little endeavor set me back one hundred and nine quid. I chose
to install both digital versions on the PS5 and retained my disc
version of the Remake for the PS4. I purchased all the various
add ons and what not, though I never really understood what
they did.
I played the game up to the holiday village of Costa del Sol and
was unable to progress beyond that point cus the game just lost
all of its appeal. I would personally prefer to set up my PS1
and play the original rather than suffer any more of this.
I don't need to bore you with the failings, that is easy...
In the first game you traversed through various areas and zones
under the constant threat of battling mobs. When a battle occurred
you entered a separate instance type area and employed a 'turn'
based process where you controlled one character at a time and
used your skills in combat and magic to defeat numbers of mobs.
On completing the battle you were awarded various rewards that
enabled you to upgrade your skills and gear. Very simple to
understand. Thing was with so many battles you were always happy
to enter a safe zone where no battles took place and partake
in a few trivial events to lighten the mood. This was appreciated
cus the mob fighting could get a little heavy.
Move forward to Rebirth and you no longer have the random mob
battles and no longer have the turn based instance style battles.
Mobs encountered in the wild can be ignored and the general
process of enhancing your skillset relies on processes involving
this character in the game that you interact with on your travels.
The problem is that the game has been turned on its face. The
trivial stuff has been expanded, padded out and made significantly
more substantial, whilst the mob fights have been reduced to
a few random encounters, depending on how you feel. For me the
actual combat system is both frustrating and annoying and I
rarely feel I have much control over individual party member
skills. I chose mostly to hack and slash with Cloud, given that
fights tend to be more about how to heal your way through.
Sadly boss fights are long and tedious and not fun. There is the
usual single boss with multiple body parts that you have to
destroy one at a time. Seriously not fun, just a time sink.
I do recall there being trivial stuff in the first game but
nothing on this level of brain dead. The final straw for me
was having to partake in a series of games to win currency so
you could buy swimwear so Cloud could go onto the beach. At this
point I reflected on do I want to play a game that focuses on
the trivial. All I had done just prior to this was race a dolphin,
play a card game tournament, endured my silly dog companion doing
a Michael Jackson impression, and shooting ducks so I can see
Tifa in a bikini.
i just stared at the monitor for a short while and switched the
thing off. Sadly I will not be returning any time soon. I have
read glowing reports of this game and concluded the 25 year age
gap between the first and this version is enough to exclude a
whole raft of original gamers that no longer play such games.
I can well imagine the new style of player that likes trivial
stuff enjoying this, but I'm not one of them.
So it was back to Stellar Blade and by now NG+ 10 (that is ten
times clearing the game).
One serious annoyance I have with any open world game is what
happens at the edges of areas. In Stellar Blade if you happen
to fall off an edge, you fall off the edge. You sustain fall
damage or even death. In Rebirth there is an invisible wall
that prevents you going over the edge. In Stellar I can climb
most things. In Rebirth you climb only items defined as being
climbable. You can go all the way back to the first Tomb Raider
where you were able to interact with the environment and climb
stuff.
What has happened with Final Fantasy is that the makers chose
to milk the game by spreading it over three games and in doing
so simply padded out the trivial parts.
Enough... Sad thing is I struggle these days to find a good game
that isn't simply a shooter. Also games just take forever to
make and you are left waiting ages for a next installment. It
is the same with films. Production processes these days are
off the chart and this severely restricts the creation of even
modest games and or films. With so few good games it really is
worth pulling out your PS2 and playing all the old stuff.
Going now.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth - You gotta be kidding.
|
