I’ve never been one to be on trend and Final Fantasy was no exception. In fact, I wasn’t truly familiar with the franchise until I learned Final Fantasy X was in development. My cousin, who introduced me to the likes of Max Payne, Brave Fencer Musashi, and Grand Theft Auto: III, let me borrow Final Fantasy VII during the Christmas break of 2000. Aside from Pokemon and Brave Fencer Musashi, I didn’t know anything about the RPG genre.
Final Fantasy VII had been over three years. All my friends who played RPGs had already played it. They even gave me advice and tips when I got stuck… yet somehow I still avoided the Aerith spoiler. It was one of the most influential experiences in my gaming life (Silent Hill 2: Restless Dreams was another, but that’s a story for another time). My party typically consisted of Cloud (since I couldn’t remove him), Aerith, and Tifa. Tifa is, was, and always will be my main, as I love a brawler chick, but I appreciate a white mage, so Aerith was always in the mix too. Though this game is 25 years old, I want to avoid spoilers, for some reason, so I’ll just say after the Aerith incident, my party consisted of Cloud, Tifa, and Yuffie.
Fast forward a few years to college. My roommate was a collector and his collecting ways rubbed off on me. Before meeting him, I didn’t care about collector’s editions, be they strategy guides or the games… but I was forever changed. He also got me into reading Kotaku and paying attention to E3. I had long been a reader of GameInformer, so I was aware of what E3 was, but I wasn’t watching the presentation… until I met him.
I remember the Playstation 3 Final Fantasy VII tech demo. I believe it was during an E3 event. I was SOOOO excited! But there was no word of an actual game being made. It faded from my mind until I was watching the Playstation Experience presentation… All I remember is hearing the Final Fantasy VII music, and I was giddy. It turned out to be a trailer for Final Fantasy VII Remake, coming to the Playstation 4. I’ll probably make a separate post for Remake, but the announcement and subsequent release of the PC port of Final Fantasy VII on PS4 brought back so many memories for me.
As a teenager, I would play a Final Fantasy game during my Christmas break. It became a tradition for me. If not Final Fantasy VII, then it would be Final Fantasy X or X-2. I played the PC port around Christmas time of 2019, as Remake was set to come out in Spring 2020. There is something so comforting about playing this game. Maybe because it was the first real RPG I played (and beat). Maybe because it reminds me of childhood (I was 12 when I first played it.) The game will always have a special place in my heart, as it has for millions of others.
Just last week, Final Fantasy Rebirth, the second installment of the Remake trilogy, was announced, and it is set to release next winter. Those feelings of nostalgia came rushing back yet again, and now I want to drop all the games I’ve been playing and replay Remake AND the PC port on PS4. It’s such a beautiful game with a beautiful story, and it has a hold on me.
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