Final Fantasy VII Remake - Review | One Year Later

I've had a little over a year to sit with my thoughts on this game. So, was Final Fantasy VII Remake everything I wanted it to be?
....Oh boy
==Social Media==
Twitter: / rantingspiderm1
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#FinalFantasyVII #FinalFantasyVIIRemake #Sephiroth

[@wreday720]

Damn bro good to see you making videos again, remember watching that lightning returns review and enjoying it so much! Can see the Mic Quality got a glow up too!

[@th3ist]

i haven't played the game but cloud is a soldier so can't his frequent visions of Sephiroth be chalked up to PTSD?

[@GooseGaming999]

Yes that's what I thought I just now beat it 😂😂 gonna start rebirth up in a week to give me some questions to ask myself

[@markfamilari3842]

Fantastic review. Ff7 is my favourite game and I loved this game but even my nostalgia goggles couldn't get past the padding , and slow ass crawl sequences and how clunky the realism can make it . I am scared this is going kingdom hearts on us

[@thebigw1231]

Good review as always the issues that you pointed out were almost exactly the issues i had with the game but there were alot of things i liked Biggs, Wedge and Jessie were changed from Literal Red shirts or in this case Red Bandannas into fleshed out characters that i actually cared for especially Jessie she is straight up Waifu. and as for the Whispers which i interpretated as an Allegory for hardcore FF7 Fans that dont want changes to the story ( Square Enix thinks there so clever) as annoying. But i did like that they added in things from the compelation into this game in subtle ways like the " New" character Leslie is actually a character from the FF7 Novel The Kids are All Right A Turks Story and Cait Sith arriving at the sector 7 Plate collapse was actually something that did happen in the original that Reeve only mentioned doing as a means of trying to warn everyone but he arrived to late. Edit: The Wall Market Dance off with Andrea alone made it worth the $60 for me

[@natemccollum3731]

How were Biggs and Wedge still not redshirts? Wedge is fat and has cats and Biggs looks like Charlie Sheen- that’s all they fleshed out. It’s even more aggravating that they gave an HOUR to Corneo’s door man!?!? Personally I’ve hated the compilation for like 20 years now. The story of Crisis Core is weak, and it all just wreaks of Cash Grab.

[@marcusclark1339]

DON'T BUY THIS GAME PEOPLE yeah, no one should be buying any sequel of this, the idea of "doing more with the characters" is just fanfic mindset, the story was done and complete, wanting more meant they did their job in story writing not that they needed to overhaul all of and they ruined it, Aerith especially as her characterization is a lie now old her may of been bubbly and innocent accepting her responsibility as the last ancient but this one isn't, she's putting on airs to act like her original self but not actually be her, its just a lie and this ruins so much of the characterization throughout cause their arcs make no sense, Fate changing can cause so many issues in story and pacing and the pacing is egregious 3/4 of this game is side quest BS and barely any actual story and paced in a way to 1 combat - walk - cut-scene - walk - cutscene then combat its just bad overall they wasted it, the chance, the memories, the opportunity to make this game and now can't for who knows how many years and for what, FF7 Milking of the brand FF7R over and over now FF7 Crisis Core FF7 Dirge content FF7 IOS Game FF7 Battle Royale (dead now) its just milking for merch and now its lost any good will it had for a weaker plot that will never end satisfactory due to all the changes

[@reviewindiegame]

AHHHHH YOU KNOW I'M UP IN HERE!!!!! BEEN WAITING ON THIS VIDEO FOR A MINUTE!!!!!! LETS GOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

[@KraitoKrombongus]

Really good review! Your points fits with my experience! And the alternate universe will save Aerith life I bet. :p

[@Oroxom3]

I like to think that Zack was a party dancing dude and Cloud just took that into his fucked up memories 😂

[@ChampDietingAndFitness]

The Simpsons I'm in danger clip made me laugh so hard xD

[@orlanzotelfer4981]

good review...i honestly feel much the same...the last 2 chapters were so much to take in..it just became a blur..the whisper are a really bad plot device...with no real explination of who or what they are...just god llike figures that determin what destiny is .. at first i thought the whispers were the spirits of the ancient which would set up the temple of ancients well..but no.. the game for me is great till it goes nuts square trying to have their cake and eat it.. trying to have their fanal fanstasy 7 remake that fans want and have the freedom to do whatever...it kinda stinks of a cash grab too...it seems like a way they can keep telling stories in this universe that everyone loves and just print money.. really the game is Final Fantasy remake in name as its really an alternate game world universe..linked to the actual og game i was on board with changws to the story ...i was even fine with Barrett dying...but after he was brought back..that left a bad taste with me....that essentially breaks the game ..if you can only die when youre supposed to die...its just an unnesscisary complicated

[@mindxfuneral]

the ghost are just as explainable as the Weapons were in OGFF7: the planets’ natural defenses against threats. And Sephiroth tricked us into killing them off so they shouldn’t be an issue in part 2 or 3. Personally it’s been a long time since I’ve had as much fun with a game as I did here, and I’m not alone in feeling that way. Obviously a lot of time and love and effort went into this to give the fans something special. If that’s a cash grab, take my money. lol

[@asdfghjkllkjhgfdsa8725]

​@collinebert3828 it's trash is what it is. Square driving ff into the ground

[@orlanzotelfer4981]

fun fan fiction that you can easily ignore.....i think thats the saddest most cutting remark ive heard on the game......its sad...because...with these garaphics,music,gameplay,characterization...if they did a faithful remake in the mold of RE2R....this couldve been the definitive ff7 game... but i guess Numora couldnt do that...i would bet taht originally FF7R was going to be a faithfill remake before square took it in house.

[@1SpicyMeataball]

Even RE2R isn't all that faithful. It changed the personalities of the main leads, there's no A and B scenario or sequence zapping so you play the same game twice. Other than that, I like the more involvement with Marvin and the graphical boosts of Birkin and Mr. X.

[@rockdesu]

I still haven't played the remake after I heard what they did with the story..... And FFVII is my favorite game of all time. Well it was until recently.

[@8bitmagic]

What topped ff7 for you?

[@natemccollum3731]

I envy you for not playing. It’s like they didn’t understand what made the original so good

[@mikespearwood3914]

@@natemccollum3731 Ecstatic I never played these games. Apparently Reabortion is just as bad.

[@BurnoutsAndBourbon]

This was an awesome and enjoyable review

[@jonah_da_mann]

A stellar review! Outstanding work, man! I agree with so much of what you said, particularly at the end. I am CURIOUS to see what will happen next, but I too am NOT excited at all because I don't trust Nomura, Toriyama, Nojima or Kitase to get it right, especially since they have repeatedly proven themselves to be the worst time-travel writers in the history of storytelling. And a lot of your points are coincidentally very similar to what I say in part of my own video. (ETA still 2-3 months).

[@vincentgraymore]

I saw a comment I was feeling I have to agree with... and look who it is >_

[@jonah_da_mann]

@@vincentgraymore It is. I'm sorry it's been taking me so long to make, but it took a lot of re-shoots, rewrites, and re-recordings for me to really get a sound and style that I liked. It also took me a long time to finally figure out exactly where I was going with the whole thing (and being in university while also job-hunting during a pandemic didn't help either). Ultimately, because it's taken me so long and there's just so much to cover, I've decided to release the thing in parts (each between 90 and 120 minutes long), the first of which will be out either this month or October. If you want, I'll send you a snippet of Part 1.

[@vincentgraymore]

@@jonah_da_mann I think you should take your time getting it right. It cannot take more time than SE in making the games (I also assume you include the new tidbit from Intergrade ending?). Whatever argument you are gonna have for whatever end, there are always people that are gonna jump in with the common rebuttals and whatever fan theories nowadays popular, but if you take your time you hopefully get to convey what you want. I actually started making some small parody videos in order to work up some courage to do an actual video about remake someday. So far I have released a small one each week and I have no idea if others find them funny or not nor how long I will continue. I could watch your part 1 snippet but unless you need feedback for sound and such I think it would be better to have the whole (part) at the same time. It will be interesting to see how and where we agree and disagree. Good luck with all that job and university stuff ;).

[@jonah_da_mann]

@@vincentgraymore Thanks, man! Part of the reason the video is so long is because I'm trying to gradually build towards my points so as to lure in and hopefully persuade the people who would otherwise bend over backwards with the typical excuses used to defend the game's ending. And even then, much of the video is still spent rebuking many of the typical defenses (e.g., "doing something different" does not justify doing something that's worse. Otherwise, what is the point of using an established brand/story in the first place?) Your patience and understanding are greatly appreciated.

[@obsessive_hermit]

@@vincentgraymore , it's JonahtheMann (this is my "official" account). It took a hell of a lot longer than expected, but the video is finally done and uploaded to the channel. I hope you enjoy it. :)

[@kazlab2086]

FF7 Rebirth is coming out on the 29th. Picking it up? I''ve been playing Remake all weekend and am going to the theater to watch Advent of Children this Wednesday.

[@GooseGaming999]

I just beat remake myself stayed up all night to do so just so I can play rebirth 😂😂 imma go watch the movie to since its on KZbin Edit: I personally loved the game I've never played the original since I wasn't born for another two years of it's release lol but still I don't see why the remake gets so much hate

[@kazlab2086]

@@GooseGaming999That's cool. Didn't pick up Rebirth since I don't have a PS5 but when the PC version comes out is when I'll finally be able to play it. Advent of Children also is not so bad. Saw it in a theater a week before Rebirth after having not seen it in 13 years. It's alright for a decent action movie, especially on the big screen. Hope you enjoyed Rebirth because it looks cool from what I've seen through videos.

[@jaysabilla8596]

awesome review!

[@IamThatChris]

16:36 Vincent D'Onofrio lmao

[@Zavaroe2]

47:40 haha this is amazing

[@kenrock2]

Your review are really hilarious 😆😆

[@thebigw1231]

Also just out of curiousity are you planning on doing a Bonus review when it comes to ff7 remake intergrate in regards to the Yuffie DLC i would really like to know your opinion on it, for me i am a bit skeptical especially since they are integrating shit from Dirge of Cereberus the worst game in the FF7 Compilation from a gameplay and story standpoint in my opinion.

[@RantingSpidermanTV]

No. Honestly, I don't think it looks very good. Bringing anything from Dirge is one of the dumbest decisions they could have made and the Yuffie story looks eh. I love Yuffie but I don't know if I need her to have a story in Midgar with some dude. I'll check it out eventually but it's not on the top of my priority list.

[@thebigw1231]

@@RantingSpidermanTV thats understandable, I just hope that they will expand more on Midgar by exploring the different Sectors we havent seen yet like 1, 2, 3 and 4 with the DLC like you said you wished this game did.

[@typho6279]

After playing it for a while, I come away from it with the feeling that it's a game that is tailored for fans who already know everything. The game doesnt really work well for totally new players.

[@Redjoekido]

It's only gonna be 3 big parts.

[@darthkamen6564]

I played Remake before the original. It was my first FF game, with my only prior knowledge being a few things from cultural osmosis, and the Kingdom Hearts series. I was able to understand a majority of things pretty well. I knew things were different than from the original, but I didn't know what. I knew enough of Sephiroth (mysterious villain with a dark past connected to Cloud) to get the gist of what was happening with him (though after the original and seeing Compilation material it makes a LOT more sense). The only pacing issue I actively disliked was Chapter 17, going through Hojo's experiments. Zack was the only thing that overall confused me, mostly due to me only knowing of him thanks to Kingdom Hearts, I was unaware of his connection to Cloud or his importance to the overall plot of the VII universe. EDIT: Also Cait Sith, I forgot him XD. I loved the game, though I am kinda pre-disposed to like Nomura's brand of insanity, as well as an interesting meta-narrative. I 100% get being disappointed it isn't more of a retelling. Good video, came here from your Advent Children review.

[@PrismaticWolf]

2 year late comment? 2 year late comment. Fun fact that guy who sounds like Patrick Warburton is Talon Warburton, his son.

[@ProfligateGhost]

I'm glad there are changes. There's only so much new graphics can do if you just recreated a game beat by beat. And even if the game was like that, people will probably give it a bunch of crap for being a direct copy. So changes or not, this inevitably would end up turning into a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation anyway.

[@GooseGaming999]

As someone whos never played the original i understood alot of what was going on it, i loved it 😂❤

[@akiinmoonlight79]

For me a 10/10 One of the best games available on ps4/5

[@NativeMind0311]

You and people like you are what's wrong with modern games

[@akiinmoonlight79]

@@NativeMind0311 why ?

[@DOC_951]

I disagree that the game doesn’t know what direction it’s going. To me it was pretty obvious the whole point was that it’s a different interpretation of the original.

[@8bitmagic]

I like ff7 compilation and I think the story feels more complete with the extended material. Remake is pretty great imo too.

[@TheKpa11]

I found Aerith rather annoying personally. I still find her portrayed as an overly innocent girl, those edges of snark and cursing just seem shallow to me cause she just feels naive to the world around her. I found her portrayal and character very pandering, like the game giving her the metaness of “LOOK AT ME, IM BEST GIRL” And the snark and quips just make me think of Marvel. I’m also not a fan of Shinra, as the executive heads are so one-two dimensional strawmen in their political evilness, it doesn’t convey any hard decisions that the characters need to make when the alternative is these heads being left to their own devices; they’d always be worse than anything AVALANCHE or the main characters could ever do. And every Shinra soldiers gets a free pass as just being part of the corrupt system and just being trapped in their jobs so any of them can just be good at any point.

[@ugh5281]

i disagree greatly. this is the best aerith we've had so far, this feels like the og aerith but with her character expanded. other than the original, every other game she's been in she's portrayed as some sort of mary sue who's super pure and lowkey kinda boring and that was never the real aerith. i feel like a lot of people tend to forget who she was originally. sure she's kind hearted and sweet, but she was always sassy and playful. just because she chooses to have a more positive outlook on things despite the tragedy around her doesn't mean she's naive, it's just how she chooses to react to it. of course it's impossible for everyone to like her character and thats okay but a lot of people tend to hate her for wrong reasons like misinterpreting her or ship wars but at the end of the day, i think she's a solid character on her own.

[@TheKpa11]

@@ugh5281 I disagree with the “Real” her, I find her sass extremely overrated. She’s not all that sassy and outgoing after Midgar, I recall her only being so when you first get to the gold saucer, and I guess the optional Gongaga scene if you choose to have cloud be jealous; that she’s there like any other party member And in this remake she’s portrayed in the same vain as a “Cool girl” made worse because of the stupid meta storytelling, she apparently has knowledge of the “original timeline” so her pep and grit is even more out of place if she can actually change anything or knows what was coming next.

[@ugh5281]

@@TheKpa11 i can’t change your opinion so to each their own. i personally think they nailed her character in the remake and most people seem to think so as well. in fact, she was one of my favorite characters in the remake, she made me smile a lot. the fact that she’s aware of future events makes things interesting although i understand why not everyone will like it but at this point it’s pretty obvious that this remake will deviate from the original so we’ll see how it goes.

[@MadaxeMunkeee]

Re: Aerith, that’s fine, I guess she isn’t your type. OG Aerith was also annoying to many, and very many people would just ignore her anyway. Re: Shinra - it’s worth remembering this is a retelling of a children’s game. The villains aren’t that smart. I guess popular culture has moved on to a place where we apparently like dark brooding villains who are just misunderstood but in FFVII it’s fine if the minor villains are just in it to make money and impress their boss. I don’t really see how that ruins the story. It just means you grew up and so did your storytelling tastes, so good for you I guess.

[@fearlesscheshirecat1411]

@@ugh5281 Aerith was by far the best part about the Remake. I’ve played Remake more in 2 years than I have any other game ever. And I legitimately watch parts of it on KZbin every single day.

[@DanielSmith-mp4le]

This is the first one of your reviews that I've actually hated! This is the most self censoring review I've ever seen about this game! even though you kept pointing out flaws you kept excusing them and acting like that they weren't that big a problem. And then near the ending you try to spin the twist as if it's being like a fanfiction was a good thing! You're sending so many mixed messages that the final thoughts on the game was 8 out of 10 said in a sad tone and saying you don't care what happens with the next game! I've been watching this channel since the Final Fantasy XIII-2 review and this is the very first time I've been so angry I've wanted to unsub from you!

[@RantingSpidermanTV]

I wish I cared about Remake as much as you cared about my opinion of it lol literally part of this review is censored. These are all my honest thoughts. Keep in mind that I have had an entire year to sit with my thoughts on this game. I think objectively, the game is an 8/10. Just because I don't care, doesn't mean it's bad. I don't care about the American-mad "Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" but that doesn't mean it's not a quality film. I pointed out many issues with the game but I also pointed out the stuff in it that's great and the good out weighs the bad. You're not always going to agree with my opinion, or even like it, but I'm not gonna lie about my thoughts to please anyone. These reviews are me giving my honest thoughts. That's the ship you and every one of my subscribers is on. Either you ride it out with me, even through the parts you can't stand, or you jump off. I'm still steering it no matter what.

[@DanielSmith-mp4le]

@@RantingSpidermanTV you completely misunderstood me there. I actually hated the game! I actually got the impression from your review that those weren't your honest thoughts and that you were somehow censoring yourself... how is "it's like a fan fiction" a good thing? How come you sounded so sad at the end? Why was it an 8 out of 10 and you don't care about the next game? A lot of these questions popped into my head during the review and it honestly confused me because normally your opinions are quite understandable to me.

[@RantingSpidermanTV]

@@DanielSmith-mp4le You're assuming that "fan fiction" is by default bad. I even said that Remake is actually a "Pretty good fan fiction". It feels like a fan fiction in the sense of it being a "What if?" story. Like if someone were to write a story where they say "But if Zack survives?". Yes, I (like almost everyone else) would have preferred a straight forward retelling. They chose not to do that. That is an artistic decision that I disagree with but that alone doesn't make Remake's ending terrible. The execution of it was the problem, and I pointed that out. But it's not bad enough to ruin the rest of the game. As for how I sounded, that's kind of just how I sound when I'm frustrated. If their was ever a game that would cause mixed emotions and opinions, this would be it. Again, not caring that much about the next installment doesn't mean I hate the first one. When I beat The Last of Us, I didn't care about playing the sequel but that didn't make The Last of Us a bad game in my opinion.

[@DanielSmith-mp4le]

@@RantingSpidermanTV okay that actually clears some things up. Honestly I've read some very good fanfiction as well it's just not something that usually comes up in any way. And I can totally get that someone could have mixed feelings about the game, but that just leaves the question why did you rate it so high if you had such mixed feelings? And as for the Last of Us comparison that doesn't really work because the last of us was a complete story it had a beginning middle and end. But this game is the first part in a at least 5 to 6 part series it's like saying "I love the pilot of this TV series but I do not want to watch episode 2" that's a really bad sign for this game series.

[@RantingSpidermanTV]

@@DanielSmith-mp4le From the looks of it, my score was honestly pretty average when compared to others. In my Final Fantasy X review, I gave it objectively 7/10 but personally a 5/10. Remake is objectively good. I rated it as an 8 because the things that were really great in it out weighed the bad to me. I was definitely feeling a 7/10 when I beat for the first time because of the execution of the ending. But upon replaying it, I was reminded of all the great parts and realized that the ending was only a small percentage of the complete product. Remake really did remind me of why I love the original and kind of made me fall in love with it all over again. That alone was enough to prevent me from hating it. It's the ONLY thing in The Compilation of Final Fantasy VII that pulled that off. The number scores are whatever I feel is right but at the end of the day, they're just numbers. They're only worth whatever stock you put into them. But you're totally right though. The Last of Us was not a good comparison on my part. Like I said, I'm mildly interested but I'm not hooked. Most of that has to do with my lack of faith in Final Fantasy doing ANYTHING with time travel. Maybe I would be more invested if I didn't know Square's track record with that sort of story telling. But that whole argument is a meta argument that goes beyond what the actual story is. Apologies for the confusion.

[@nechohrogers4201]

I personally love that they decided to deviate from the original plot. It saves the players new to ff7 from spoilers. Even I was disappointed whenever I accidentally came across a spoiler about the later parts of ff7, but now they are invalid and I can enjoy a brand new story.

[@joshuachitwood7586]

Fanboy

[@Gabthar]

Not gonna lie, I wasn’t happy with the game. The ending was just a deal killer

[@bryanc7094]

Good video.

[@AuramiteEX]

Great review!