Where to start?
Final Fantasy 7 were to begin? This game was properly the most revolutionary title of its time. One of the first ever 3D RPG games and also having the biggest game budget of its time $45 million, it set a benchmark for Final Fantasy games to come.
While selling over 10 million copies worldwide it opened up a whole new market to Square Enix ( Developers of the game) the western gamer's. Previously FF (Instead of saying Final Fantasy all the time) had been created for the Japaneses market, but due to Square falling out with Nintendo of content restrictions ( Nintendo were still using game cartridge which caused Square to take out parts for previous games) they turned to Sony. Sony agreed not to interfere with any of the story or limit how much content they put into the game. And so in 1995 game development resumed but for the PlayStation console instead. Since Sony was a big influence in Europe and the United States, they had to make the game appeal to the Japaneses market as well as Europe and the United States.
Now onto Final Fantasy 7
Setting the Scene
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| Midgar |
A terrorist group know as AVALANCHE is trying to stop the Shinra from sucking all the "life force" out of the planet by blowing up the reactors within the city, while succeeding in blowing up 2 of these reactors, Shrina needs a way to get rid of AVALANCHE. So they blow up one of the pillars supporting the plate above sector 7 and thousands of people die, Shinra thinks AVALANCHE was crushed when the pillar collapses and tells the people of Midgar that AVALANCHE destroyed sector 7 and that they tryed to stop them.
AVALANCHE eventually rescues Aeris and escapes Midgar this brings the player to the world map, you realise just how big the game really is, taking 6 hours just to get through Midgar and then being brought to a massive map were it is only a tiny spec.
The beginning of the game may be a bit slow starting but once you get into it the game is so immersing that you will be leaping for joy at high points for the characters and weeping half way through the game
(SPOILER ALERT - when Aeris is killed by sephiroth it is considered one of the saddest moments in video gaming , many cryed!)
Overview
Plot
The storyline is very well written, lots of plot twists and not too many holes in the story or things left untold. The whole game takes around 40-50 hours to complete (without doing any of the side quests and just bashing away at the main storyline) and around 80-100 hours collecting rare items and doing side quests. so all in all the game will keep you entertained for hours on end. After completing the game
you feel this sense of disbelief that its all over, you don't want it to be over. It leaves a powerful impression on your mind. these characters you have seen rise and fall. You just can't describe this feeling.
Gameplay
With the unique 3D turn-based battle system the battles are very intense especially some of the boss battles, although it can get quite annoying since you can be put into random battles nearly all the time. They also introduced Materia , simply magic stones that grant you certain powers in battle, such as ice, fire , summoning etc. They level up too as well as your characters
It is also annoying when you stop playing the game for a few weeks and then tyring to play it again, there is no system that tells you what you are supposed to be doing. So if you forgot what you were doing a few weeks ago its really hard to find out where your supposed to be going.The is loads of minigames to play once you reach the golden saucer and as you go through the game you unlock even more, such as snowboarding , motorbike racing, submarine battles.
Graphics
The Graphics for FF7 were grounding breaking for its time, cinematic cut scenes, 3D battles, 3D roaming. It had it all and more. all the backgrounds were drawn by hand, all of it together gave people that sense of realism and immersion into the game.
Without Square deciding to take the game to Playstation none of it would have been possible.
Nintendo must have been gutted when they saw what they had achieved and how popular the game had become in Japan and US.
Music
I haven't yet spoke once about the music in this game but that's about to change. Nobuo Uematsu has composed music for nearly all the FF games to date, he is considered the most famous and respected composers in the industry.
The music you hear after winning a fight is so popular that people claim to hear it after completing activity's in the real world...
It is also used in the movie Final Fantasy - Advent Child when Tifa defeats on of bad guys.
The music through out the game helps set the mood, when a character is sad the music is sad, therefore you feel sad and vice versa.
I think the music is brilliant at helping bring the story alive, as well as the characters emotions and feelings.
Conclusion
FF7 is an astonishing game , storyline tells a epic tale of how one persons hatred of the world almost brings them to destroy it, while the heroes stop this, and destroy evil forever. Or did they?
Every thing just clicks within the game - music , characters and plot: though out the game bonds are created between you and the characters, you become so emotionaly attached you will cry at certain points. I guarantee you that.
