Final Fantasy VII Remake

[Mr. Gerbik]

I hope you're right, Square doesn't have the most impressive reputation in regards to efficient project planning and preparation.

[RubberJohnny]

9 minutes ago, Kevvy Metal said:

They have all the assets from this game, plus all the work they've done in UE4 so it might come round a lot quicker that people thing. 

 

I don't really buy that, wasn't everyone saying FF7 has so many diverse sets and styles of assets it makes sense to split it up? Now it's the opposite and they can re-use everything for the new ones in radically different locations with completely different enemies?

 

I mean I guess they can re-use character models, but Cloud's model is literally Noctis model re-used from FFXV with different hair already, and this still took five years to make.

[Bojangle]

Haha I remember that tweet getting absolutely ribbed on from 3D modelers and animators working within the industry too. Good stuff.

Why do the Gamers always get so outraged that stuff generally gets re-used/iterated on when making games?

 

We want cheaper games, and we also want them quicker and we also want everything within them to be made for that one specific title and then thrown out. pls devs.

[Qazimod]

Maybe their desire to "differentiate" the next instalment is a soft confirmation that they've run out of money and the next game will be a visual novel for mobiles.  

[Qazimod]

I finished this last night (well, the main story at least.) My final playtime (on Normal difficulty) was a little under 37 hours, so my estimate of "20-30 hours" was off a bit.  Generally I liked it, but it wasn't without issues - a number of the sidequests were kind of forgettable, some battles just weren't that fun (and not just because you go in with the wrong elements, but certain arenas didn't help the camera at all) - and the whispers/arbiters of fate were always a bit of an eyeroll moment... However, battles are great when they work and you come up with optimal combos to stagger enemies, the environments and characters are mostly fine (I even liked nobodies such as Johnny) and - crucially - I think that they nailed the serious/silly tone more often than not, both on a large scale (the whole Honey Bee Inn sequence) or a small scale (battling Rude until

 

Spoiler

you crack his shades, he discards them and pulls an identical pair from his pocket  )

 

I still think they could have made an engaging turn-based battle system without all of this effort combining real-time/ATB actions, because Persona 5 Royal still manages it without any problems, but what they came up with was fine too. Going in with the wrong elements can be a nuisance, but failing and preparing again doesn't take too long. And sure, they push certain events harder than they need to with their various fast cuts and visions (not to mention the culmination of events towards the end) - it was probably done to please fans, but it might dilute the rest of the game FFVII Remake series if similar visions/cuts/events are shoehorned into every other scene.

[SteveH]

I actually really enjoyed it. Finished it off yesterday. Some minor niggles.....why does it take so long to save??? 
Also: 

Spoiler

Boss after boss after boss at the end, with no exploration at all in-between, and no chance to level up if you needed to. Also, during the section where you go through the air ducts in the Shinra Building...in the original, didn't Scarlett look up as though she knew you were watching? I could have sworn she did and I was disappointed she didn't in this. Silly little thing I know, but seeing as the whole thing had already been recreated, would it have been so difficult to put it in?

 I didn't see Sakaguchi's name mentioned in the credits anywhere? Did I miss it or did they really not acknowledge him? 

 

[Retroguy]

2 hours ago, Qazimod said:

I finished this last night (well, the main story at least.) My final playtime (on Normal difficulty) was a little under 37 hours, so my estimate of "20-30 hours" was off a bit.  Generally I liked it, but it wasn't without issues - a number of the sidequests were kind of forgettable, some battles just weren't that fun (and not just because you go in with the wrong elements, but certain arenas didn't help the camera at all) - and the whispers/arbiters of fate were always a bit of an eyeroll moment... However, battles are great when they work and you come up with optimal combos to stagger enemies, the environments and characters are mostly fine (I even liked nobodies such as Johnny) and - crucially - I think that they nailed the serious/silly tone more often than not, both on a large scale (the whole Honey Bee Inn sequence) or a small scale (battling Rude until

 

  Reveal hidden contents

you crack his shades, he discards them and pulls an identical pair from his pocket  )

End of game stuff.

Err I hope that’s not a spoiler for what happens at the end of the game there...

[gossi the dog]

Well I caved and bought this. Are there any tips or things that i should be aware of before I get stuck in?

[Crhis]

Got in to a YouTube hole of watching crazy end game runs at this:

 

Spoiler

Not sure which is more impressive - all the Top Secrets done in under 2 mins:

 

 

Or solo'd with enfeeblement rings on support characters:

 

 

 

Love the combat in this game, I hope they don't change anything for the next one.

[Marlew]

2 hours ago, gossi the dog said:

Well I caved and bought this. Are there any tips or things that i should be aware of before I get stuck in?

 

The hack and slash combos build meter to allow you to use your magic and special attacks. This means that combat is about switching between characters in rotation to build meter more quickly for everyone, not just using Cloud and letting the rest do their thing. 

 

That's the thing that made the combat really click for me. 

[Qazimod]

5 hours ago, gossi the dog said:

Well I caved and bought this. Are there any tips or things that i should be aware of before I get stuck in?

 

Try Easy or Normal difficulty if you're happy with a bit of realtime combat. "Classic" mode was supposed to offer a purely turn-based experience where the game did what it could to fill ATB gauges for you, but the automatic actions are so good that it sometimes feels like you're letting the game play itself. Easy and Normal modes have more active combat, but Easy is more relaxed in terms of the damage you give (high), the damage you take (low), etc. So maybe start with Normal, drop to Easy if it's too much, but use Classic mode as a last resort.  

[Curtis]

I started this yesterday and i'm really enjoying how linear it is. That might sound like an odd thing to say, but after so many sprawling, open-world type games, just walking A to B through the beautiful corridors this game presents is a refreshing change of pace. Whether i'll still feel that way by endgame is anyone's guess, but for now i'm liking how straightforward it all is.

 

Oh, and i don't think i'll ever get bored of tilting the camera up to check out that background. 

[sprite]

2 minutes ago, Curtis said:

I started this yesterday and i'm really enjoying how linear it is. That might sound like an odd thing to say, but after so many sprawling, open-world type games, just walking A to B through the beautiful corridors this game presents is a refreshing change of pace. Whether i'll still feel that way by endgame is anyone's guess, but for now i'm liking how straightforward it all is.

 

Oh, and i don't think i'll ever get bored of tilting the camera up to check out that background. 

 

Totally get you.  Although eventually (after 3.5 years and a completely failed attempt initially of playing it) FFXV did click for me, it's the open world stuff I struggle with, too.  I don't want games to think I'm too clever, mostly I'm along for the story/ride, so happy to be taken from place to place  

[Kevvy Metal]

31 minutes ago, Curtis said:

I started this yesterday and i'm really enjoying how linear it is. That might sound like an odd thing to say, but after so many sprawling, open-world type games, just walking A to B through the beautiful corridors this game presents is a refreshing change of pace. Whether i'll still feel that way by endgame is anyone's guess, but for now i'm liking how straightforward it all is.

 

Oh, and i don't think i'll ever get bored of tilting the camera up to check out that background. 

 

This is also why I never understood the FF13 linear criticism. Seemed that people just wanted to play a different game. 

[Mogster]

I'm going to give XIII another go after XII, but from what I remember XIII was both linear and monotonous. VII Remake has its own pacing issues, but it does vary things with combat heavy sequences, calm interludes and time to breathe.

 

The original FFVII was pretty linear for the most part too really, even after Midgar, as you were still limited in much of the world map you could explore by your modes of transportation.

[Mr. Gerbik]

10 minutes ago, Mogster said:

I'm going to give XIII another go after XII, but from what I remember XIII was both linear and monotonous. VII Remake has its own pacing issues, but it does vary things with combat heavy sequences, calm interludes and time to breathe

And VIIR has town areas! Remember? "Towns are so hard in HD, so so hard" Square said about XIII

 

[BadgerFarmer]

I wonder if tastes have changed some since then as well, due to some fatigue with open worlds. I appreciate focus and only moderate exploration these days, and I'd probably be more interested in FFXIII now than I was then.

[Mr. Gerbik]

4 minutes ago, BadgerFarmer said:

I wonder if tastes have changed some since then as well, due to some fatigue with open worlds. I appreciate focus and only moderate exploration these days, and I'd probably be more interested in FFXIII now than I was then.

I'm definitely interested in returning to XIII, I bought it again on Xbox BC to do so. But from what I remember up until the part where people claimed it finally got good, it felt like a long, straight, and narrow corridor - which FF7R does a far better job at hiding, it's linear but you still feel like you're exploring. I remember XIII feeling like you're ever only going forwards.  But again, that was a long time ago.

[Qazimod]

2 hours ago, Mogster said:

The original FFVII was pretty linear for the most part too really, even after Midgar, as you were still limited in much of the world map you could explore by your modes of transportation.

 

The full game (beyond Midgar) had sidequesting and a few areas you could choose to visit (finding ultimate weapons, doing Yuffie’s Wutai stuff) but the central story was mostly linear - there was always that one critical location that would advance the plot at that point in the game. I think maybe there were moments where you had to do things in different locations but you could do them in any order (I want to say the

 

Spoiler

Huge Materia 

stuff but I could be wrong) - but even those are moments of free movement contained within a mandatory objective in this linear journey.

[carlospie]

13 is decent for a revisit. Like you say the linear nature of it is quite refreshing. The gameplay is decent too. Hope is still a dweeb though. 

[mikeyl]

Don’t forget the banging Leona Lewis theme song. Wanna play 13.3 but cba messing around from the start and on a Mac. Is it worth it?

[sprite]

I’ve just re-bought XIII on Xbox for £5.99. I’ll wait for XII to hit Game Pass.  Need to decide when to swap over from XV! Not ready to leave my boys yet.

 

Theres one thing to say for lockdown...it’s really rekindled my love for JRPGs.  I mean it never went away but literally having nothing else I need to do some days has allowed the indulgence  

[cassidy]

Jesus just tried to beat Abzu in the sewers for the second time and he nailed me twice. The most annoying thing is, I am smashing him at the start horn and tail broken and he's down to the last smidge of health. He then enrages and I can't get an attack in at all. 

 

I have heal magnify on, star pendants but he just overwhelms when he's enraged and all those little shits he calls are smashing you too. 

 

Any tips. First time I've died twice whole game. 

 

Edit to confirm third time was the charm and did it without any issues at all. 

[meatbin]

4 hours ago, cassidy said:

Jesus just tried to beat Abzu in the sewers for the second time and he nailed me twice. The most annoying thing is, I am smashing him at the start horn and tail broken and he's down to the last smidge of health. He then enrages and I can't get an attack in at all. 

 

I have heal magnify on, star pendants but he just overwhelms when he's enraged and all those little shits he calls are smashing you too. 

 

Any tips. First time I've died twice whole game. 

 

Edit to confirm third time was the charm and did it without any issues at all. 

 

For anyone else... Back off and counter. 

[Opinionated Ham Scarecrow]

So after three hours this is a reskinned Yakuza game.

[Kevvy Metal]

14 hours ago, Opinionated Ham Scarecrow said:

So after three hours this is a reskinned Yakuza game.

 

It's very Yakuza yes, I mentioned that earlier, that it feels like that was the main inspiration for this new Remake. 

Also, Yakuza is a long running series with a fair amount of asset reuse and I imagine Square wants a similar cash cow with regular releases. 

[Stolly]

I've just managed to (first time by the skin of my teeth) defeat Airbuster and have just landed on Aerith's flowers in the church. I'm really enjoying the battle system so far although it took a while for my simple brain to get a handle on it - my take is that its all about cycling through each combatant, using the left/right buttons, doing weapon damage and building up atb whilst also cycling through each combatant using L2/R2 to fire off abilities, spells and item use. And smashing off limit breaks and summonings if and when you get a chance. And massively piling in on a staggered foe giving it a kicking while its down. And dodging and guarding although I'm a bit crap at that. The materia and weapon upgrades feel much the same as they were in the original, with one or two name changes, but maybe my memory of how all that worked isn't that reliable 

[Mogster]

Some of the materia work a bit differently to the original. Magnify is the closest thing to All for instance, but instead has a maximum range and reduced effect which increase as the materia levels up.

 

You sound like you've got a handle on the combat though.  The only thing I'd add is that it's sometimes worth holding onto limits until you've staggered an enemy, as you'll do tons of damage if you do. Of course sometimes it's better to fire them off earlier to get to that point in the first place.

[cassidy]

Quick question on chapter 16 and just rescued you know who.

 

How long left? 

[BadgerFarmer]

Just now, cassidy said:

Quick question on chapter 16 and just rescued you know who.

 

How long left? 

Maybe 4 hours.

Number of chapters:

Spoiler

18.