How I REALLY Feel About The Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Ending

Let's talk about the ending of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. I still think about it multiple times a day, and have so much to say, both good and bad. Let me know what you think and make sure to subscribe to the channel for more content!! #finalfantasy7rebirth
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[@blocksheep4899]

I think the devs intent on the confusion of her death was intentional. They want us to feel as Cloud does.

[@luigiboyinblu]

Dude I’m feeling like Zack does: “WHAT IN THE HELL IS GOING ON?????” (I loved the ending)

[@HarpoonTheWhaler]

I'm with you.

[@bjornironsides6474]

of course it was intentional

[@christopherbenedicto5068]

I believe it was quite intentional to leave the players in the confused and empty state of mind in terms of her death. This was the state Cloud was in that moment as well. It’s also one of the possible states a person can fall into when faced with a sudden death of someone. It’s not always the weeping sadness type of grief. And her death must be one of gaming’s most famous, so it will never give the same raw emotion if they do it the same way again. Leaving us confused, empty, in denial, and delusional just like Cloud is the new raw emotion they put the players in. I’m all for it.

[@christopherbenedicto5068]

I think his speech after her death being on mute and the absence of the funeral representas these experiences being repressed in his mind. And these will be revealed to him in the third game, along with everything else he’s been repressing.

[@quangthaitruong7960]

All the iconic moments of aerith’s death scene are intentionally muted out. I’m sure they want to save those moments for part 3 - the true finale of the game.

[@itsdantaylor]

See that's the thing, He WAS weeping but we as the AUDIENCE didn't experience it and I think that was intentional. The Cloud we were following 'saved her' but she still died in the regular timeline, I think that was more due to timeline split which I think will play a part later because, it doesn't seem like Cloud realizes that's what happened so he's going to be like 'what are you talking about, I saved her" and everyone will be like "Dude are you crazy". Cloud will be like, the sanest person in a world/situation that has gone crazy which I think will be the source of his mental decline later.

[@shuelonglo]

We don't see Aerith death because "we" like Cloud see we save her and refuse to believe she die....so we block out those scene and all...

[@shannon1242]

Confusion was my reaction to her original death. I was stun locked until the party started doing their goodbyes.

[@Eclectic.Nostalgia]

I like how sephiroth is mentioning merging of emotions/worlds while you as a player is feeling the same as Cloud. This is actually a genius idea from Square's part

[@SnowWhiteTheU2]

Do you think Aerith will be playable in the final part 3 ?

[@bjornironsides6474]

@@SnowWhiteTheU2 yes, maybe at certain moments. I think Vincent and Cid are going to be your playable replacements.

[@raliger]

I’m with you. The ending can be convoluted, but I liked it. That part where Aerith pushes Cloud through the portal and as Sephiroth barges into the church…got chills all over knowing what would happen.

[@DsLmaNiaC]

But he did not have his weapon with him also. I mean what they did left us all cliffhanging for the next part while everyone knows the ending of the OG.

[@Slowdough99]

How can't it be convoluted WHEN IT ISNT THE ENDING. Why do people continue to say ENDING. Bro, this isn't the end. This is all ONE GAME ONE STORY. This is THE MIDDLE OF THE OG GAME. This isnt an ending. Thats like say Fellowship and Two Towers had endings? No.......they don't because LOTR isn't 3 books. It's ONE STORY that was divided into 3 acts

[@carlogiovanni]

@@Slowdough99calm down 😂

[@ultimachain8677]

I didn’t like it.

[@shannon1242]

​@DsLmaNiaC Sephiroth was empty handed when he walked up to Zack and all of a sudden a sword appears in his hand. Cloud had no weapon when Aerith pushed him but as he was falling he now has the buster sword that turns into your equipped sword in the next sequence. These "alternate" worlds follow dream rules much more than tangible reality rules.

[@dannyleo5787]

Clouded eyes has been very key words. Because what we were seeing is through cloud himself. Part 3 is gonna make it clear on how bad clouds mental state truly is and Tifa already saw how bad it is

[@Memehuskie]

This ending left me sad and empty because we have to wait another 4 years

[@redbearington3345]

it wont be 4 years. Remake to rebirth took 4 years because they were making dlc for remake, and had to make the assets for rebirth. Most of the assets for part 3 already exist and they arent making any dlc for rebirth. On top of which everyone on the dev team has expressed for years now they dont even want to be working on FF7 remake they have other things they want to do so are going to want to finish this sooner rather than later, and 4 more years ps6 will be dropping and they need to get part 3 out for ps5, so likely 2-3 years.

[@abby-xf8op]

Stop It, they ain't rushing this shss

[@Raymondli0406]

Another four years of theory crafting 😂

[@handsomeDRAC]

Play it hard mode and go for platinum. Ypu just gave yourself a reason to keep playing.

[@bjornironsides6474]

it was incredible. Just seeing the amount of added detail to events and locations, characters...just so good. They brought ff7 to life. Even everyone's voice is how I heard it in my head reading the original dialogue bubbles as a kid. Redxiii change was not expected, but his elder voice is absolutely how I "heard" it.

[@LawlessGaming13]

The people who are mad lack the comprehension skills to know that this game is a sequel, and the hints are all through this game. Red 13 being a major key between Cloud and Aerith. To me it's obvious that Aerith is both dead and alive in 2 different universes now. The devs just leaned in a little more to the outcome we're familiar with (Aeriths death) and gave subtle hints at the alternate outcome. Pretty much saving it for the third game. Which I'm sure will be labeled the Reunion. Anyone who thinks Sephiroth is showing Cloud memories of Aerith being alive just to simply Troll him is a moron.

[@Ghostchocobo]

Zack has always been a super positive guy. Always putting friends before himself and his conversation with Marlene proves that. Also he's the first to point out you breaking your own code 😂

[@derekstevenson1631]

You mentioned the BIGGEST PROBLEM with Aerith's Death and the overall Ending. IF the Devs DON'T make Sense of all this Shit, it's going to Piss people off on levels we've Never Seen. You CAN'T say "oh this isn't a Remake" then turnaround and not change a GotDAMN thing. Aerith, Cloud, Zack, Tifa, SOMEBODY has to die or at the very least, something of IMPORTANCE has to change. If Cloud Deflects the Deathblow in the Rebirth/Current timeline, HOW is she Dead in this Same timeline??? That shit is Fuckin STUPID and THAT'S what's misleading. Before the Deathblow it doesn't switch to a different timeline, he deflects it in REAL TIME. Also, what No Streamer has discussed is...when Sephiroth gets the Black Materia and slices off the platform Aerith and Cloud are on and they Fall...OK...what the fuck happened there? They both coulda easily died from the Fall. THAT isn't explained Either. You can't just fall thousands of feet out of the air and just wake up like "ahhh that was a nice nap" THAT'S Stupid too. To add to all this Shit, If Aerith is Dead like all the way Dead, WHY is there a timeline left where Zack is alive? At the very end of the game, he's not in a LifeStream type timeline, he's ALIVE. Bruh they MUST make this shit make sense. There's TOO MANY loose ends where if they fail, while the Game is still a Phenomenal Game, it'll feel like the Greatest Waste of Time of ALL TIME

[@Moniszka]

I assume someone probably mentioned it already but just in case, I believe “no promises to keep” takes us back to loveless where the lovers need to part ways and the man states that even if she did not promise to wait for him to come back he would, he does not need her reassurance to come back to her. No promises awaiting journey’s end, for me seems like and affirmation that no matter what, we will search for her even if it means meeting Aerith in the promise land.

[@SnowWhiteTheU2]

I love that Rebirth solidified Aerith and Cloud romantically as canon. I have been fighting with Tifa and Cloud shippers for years. Cloud loves Aerith, and Aerith loves Cloud, despite her grieving the loss of Zack.

[@bjornironsides6474]

It's probably about as important as it was in the original...not important. They're a 3 some and leave it at that.

[@dream431ca]

Remember in Remake just after the motorcycle battle, you come upon a wall of whispers with a tunnel of light. Through that threshold is a new world (or timeline). Everyone crosses the threshold and continue in a different timeline. In Rebirth at the Forgotten Capital, only Cloud manages to cross the threshold, the others had to keep it open for him. In that timeline, Cloud blocks Sephiroth's sword, allegedly saving Aerith, then the wall of whispers falls, allowing the rest of the party to enter. When the whispers disappear, the timeline that Cloud entered is no longer there, the party will instead encounter their present timeline. Cloud saves Aerith in the threshold. When the threshold disappears, it switches, and Aerith is dead in that timeline, where the rest of the party ends up. Sephiroth mentions of merging timelines. What I think is happening, is Cloud knows he saved Aerith, but since only Cloud went through the threshold, those two timelines merged somehow (where Aerith is saved and not saved). This is why only Cloud can see Aerith. This is also why Cloud can only see the tear in the sky in the end cutscene. Cloud is simultaneously in two timelines that have merged.

[@Mxmus-ky1fm]

I like your idea, adding to that, we can see that while everyone is crying over Aerith's death we change to a scene where he saved her and says "Aerith, wake up" and casually no one of the team was there, only them both

[@abovewater6918]

My only issue is that the impact of Aerith's death gets drowned because you have 10 boss fights right after. The death in the OG was way more heartbreaking because you see her get impaled. And the weight of it all hits you because you only have a short boss fight and then you have to sit and mourn it after, and drop her into the lake, and see the 2 other party members with you react to the death. And Cloud gives an epic speech about how much pain he is in (which they still might show in the 3rd part I understand that) They still could have done the same conclusion, but after Cloud blocks the attack and they flash to the blood, they could have flashed to Sephiroth actually impaling Aerith, and having the sword still inside her, so it is less confusing. On top of this, let everyone in the party mourn her death for longer (right after her death). Then after that, have her appear to Cloud after. It would still set up the next game and continue whatever plan they have in store but actually give the death room to breathe.

[@ugh5281]

yes her death in the OG is way more impactful because her death in the OG was final. even though she was "still around" after her death due to her being a cetra the way her death was handled in the OG was very different than the way it was handled here and there seems to be a reason for it. the devs clearly want you to debate for the next years if aerith is death or alive, if it's all cloud's delusions, if it's timeline shenanigans and so on. plus the more i think about it the more i feel like if they had shown her death in a very conclusive way and have everyone process her death it would still take way the impact of her death because she would still be around in the end so why are we even mourning her death in the first place if they want to keep her "alive" in some way (whether it's lifestream aerith or timeline aerith)? i do think the way they handled her death was extremely convoluted and confusing don't get me wrong but i personally am on the camp that aerith is not 100% dead yet (at least not in all timelines) and she'll have a bigger role to play in part 3 which then makes her inconclusive death feel more acceptable. that said i think regardless of the timeline stuff having cloud basically not realizing that aerith died in their timeline and/or him being the only one seeing aerith while she's dead to everyone else in the party is actually an interesting plot point imo and i think depending on how they handle it could be very interesting seeing that in part 3. i think that's what will eventually lead cloud into a mental collapse, the fact that he's either completely delusional or he is actually not completely delusional but everyone else treats him like he is and doesn't trust him. these are just my personal thoughts of course, i understand people feeing "robbed" of not being able to experience her death scene and the emotion it could bring to its fullest.

[@abovewater6918]

@toulor895 I agree with you how swift death comes which is why the OG death hit so hard, she was praying and then she was dead but at least you saw her die, which was shocking and heartbreaking. There's lots of new players that their first FF7 experience was Remake, many of them saying they know nothing about the story, I just think this death scene could have been done better. It is going to confuse a lot of new players

[@abovewater6918]

@@ugh5281 Thanks for the long and detailed reply. I do agree with you that she might not actually be dead. In fact even if one version of her is dead, she might be able to enter the body of another version of herself in another timeline. Which in itself I have a bit of a problem with. The creator of Final Fantasy wanted 7 to be about loss and mourning a loss and moving on from it. He lost someone close to him. So I think if Aerith doesn't die, or Zack, you lose a lot of the core message of FF7 and how you deal with loss and move on from it. Yes of course there is still other losses in the game without those deaths. But another aspect is if no one can truly die, because their consciousness can enter another version of themselves, then I feel like it takes away the intensity or stakes of everything. You don't really have to worry about people dying or anything I do like your thoughts about Cloud not actually dealing with the death and maybe this is all to setup his mental collapse later. I don't really have issues for experienced players who understand the original story. This is mostly for new players in which FF7 Remake was their first FF7 experience. I feel like the way her death was handled is super confusing to new players.

[@talmanes4589]

I think they're going to a lot of trouble to try to keep veteran players of the OG game guessing but agree with others that her and Zack have to die in order to preserve the main message and theme of the original. Now, they could have Aerith be still alive somehow or somewhere only to have her real death at the very end, after we think she's back and/or safe, but even that doesn't then give us the time to see the impact of her death on Cloud, TIfa and the others.

[@flyaroundyourfire]

Maybe they didn’t show her being impaled because they wanted to keep the game rating as family friendly as possible? I’m no expert on these things, but it could be a reason why the devs didn’t show it 🤷🏽‍♂️

[@xVILLZ559x]

Bro....I absolutely LOVE, the Rawness.. of this content.🔥 Keep em coming, and hold on to that energy! It's inspiring to get real spill and passion from a creator.

[@laserbeamlightning]

Remember when Empire Strikes Back came out in 1980, people hated the sense of confusion and rated it poorly. All I'm saying

[@stephen8342]

What was there to even confuse people about it? Watched it as a kid in the 90s and always seemed pretty straightforward

[@metastase895]

Remember what has become 9f Star Wars with disney? All I'm saying.

[@nevinvegas]

This is the Empire strikes back of Final Fantasy 7 it was perfect

[@decoyaardvark2828]

​@@metastase895Are you implying FF7 is worse than the prequels and sequels? Lol😂

[@zacatkinson3926]

It wont lead to advent children Red said "a glimpse of tomorrow if we fail here today" they dudbt fail thusly advent children is no more. This was with the advent intro of him and the pups

[@ArsevensX]

The moment he realized that Aerith dies, it would hit him like a truck 😭😭😭😭

[@RetroTSSoS]

The most emotional part of the ending was seeing tifa and red. I’ve heard people say they did tifa dirty at the end that she has no part, but I feel the opposite. They built up her and Aeriths friendship all game, and her silence and fear at the end speak more than words ever could. It is the part that brought me to tears.

[@Crimsontiger133]

Exactly this. Tifa is such a strong person especially knowing what she will have to do in the part 3.

[@sansakitty9650]

Ohh I know, I held it together until I saw Tifa and Red. I love Aerith's relationship with them so much. Question: why do people think Square did Tifa dirty in the end and now she has no part? She has all of part 3 to shine. Plus she was at the forefront for most of the game. Aerith was basically relegated to side quests until the end lol despite being the most pivotal character at this point in the story. I just don't get the Tifa complaints. The ending is all about the Cetra vs. Jenova chess game heating up. It's not about about Tifa at all

[@Shu05]

I agree, I am not to sure why they say they did her dirty...But from what I have seen they really gave her more emotions - in the OG, the English text made her out to look bad, while in Japanese she was seen as the nice person she is. I noticed if you watch the Japanese voicing you get more emotion from all characters - the English also made Cloud very monotone, while in Japanese, he is very expressive....

[@PinkSakuraBunnie]

100% this. Aerith's death didn't hit me like the OG one did, and I honestly didn't expect it to bc it's already been spoiled for me for 27 yrs lol, but when they showed how absolutely devastated Tifa was, and how hurt she seemed to feel that Cloud doesn't seem bothered at all after losing such an important friend to them, that's when I felt the saddest. Tifa and later Tifa and Red on the grass are what made it sad for me, seeing them in such pain and sorrow, 😔 and I was actually a bit caught off guard by how they got me that way. They did a really good job with that. You know just how bad it is when Tifa, always the voice of reason and the one trying to cheer everyone up, can't even bring herself to say anything at all throughout the whole ending. She is beyond devastated and it showed. And now, unlike at Nibelheim, she doesn't even have Cloud to lean on bc he's clearly lost it. And with all that said, that was something else they made me feel: uncomfortable. I was so bothered by Cloud and his behavior, I hated it, but I know that's what they were going for, so they accomplished what they set out to do. This time was clearly about Cloud's mental state cracking more and more, and the way he acted towards Aerith at the end of the Temple of the Ancients, and then the creepy looks on his face when he looks at her after she's dead and only he sees her made me super uncomfortable and creeped out. 😨 If last time I was supposed to be sad, this time I was supposed to be weirded out and I was. And I feel like they wanted us to feel what Tifa and Barret were feeling about Cloud when she and him shared that look before boarding the Tiny Bronco. They definitely still got a visceral reaction out of me, just a different kind so kudos to them.

[@nathanstruble2177]

I REALLY want a deep dive into why Tifa sees the 2 states of Aerith. Cloud's mental state sure, but Tifa isn't Cloud. She doesn't have his mental issues. Why does she see the same weird dual state Aerith is (probably) in?

[@dreamphoenix]

Great responses and analysis. Thank you.

[@andruism7]

If they establish that Cloud saved Aerith in one timeline, then refuse to show any of that timeline or ways it plays out, I'm calling foul on the whole thing...

[@itsdantaylor]

There's one indicator they will..........Aerith didn't get her ultimate weapon or final limit break in this game. They've gone out of their way to include weapons from over the course of the orignal game and Aerith CAN get her ultimate weapon before her death (you can grind her final limit break but still) and she wasn't given that weapon in this game. So i think it's something they are saving for the 3rd part. Some guy pointed that out to me and I was like "Oh MAN that makes sense."

[@davecross4493]

The whole storyline is a ridiculous now.

[@phantomslay5612]

I’ll give it this. It gave me something to think about and a lot to look forward to. I’m more excited than ever for the final game in the trilogy to find the answers.

[@zacatkinson3926]

Podast Now - What do you think about the part when Cloud says" I did it once I can do it again"? during the Jenova fight? I think thats not random, Cloud knows the events have happened before

[@abby-xf8op]

It's a multi verse, this IS NOT the original FF7. Aerith is still here, the sad part was her mom dying, you cried with her this time

[@noelcastillo3829]

The real arc of this game is not Aerith dying, its Clouds deterioration. Its very clear from the first chapter where the innkeeper is degrading, to Roach's degradation, and ultimately Cloud's attempts to push through it. Aerith's death, was more about Cloud's death of a sense of self. The final sequence with the black materia is very similar to the final sequence in The Two Towers, where Gollum schemes about Shelob then tells Frodo and Sam that he will guide them. Cloud schemes about "Reunion' then says to go north, "Call it a Soldier's intuition." Gollum and Cloud both being a mentally broken characters, it would make sense for Cloud to fall deeper into darkness before Tifa puts him back together in the Lifestream in the third game.

[@bloodyfox4179]

I’m thinking Aerith and Sephiroth has a main consciousness that can shift between different timelines to the bodies of that reality. Like at that thing Sephiroth says about her hiding in a world that accepted its fate. Or her at the end saying it’s like a second home. Feels like the Aerith Cloud spoke to was his Aerith. She might’ve been walking along on a similar enough parallel reality and only Cloud can see her.

[@WHIKKEDDDD]

im right there with you man and i cant wait to see what they do next

[@PerfectEclipse]

Great video, you're one of a very small handful of youtubers in the FF VII fandom willing to call it as you see it and admit that NPTK is about Cloud and that he has feelings for Aerith. Kudos to you.

[@oukeith]

I love the og, remake and rebirth but i really dont like the multiversus story it makes events less impactful. Also to me it seems the devs are afraid to change the story. The story is different than the og but at the same time its the same. I just hope the next game's story is more deliberate and offers more clarity to the overall narrative.

[@jamesmartin2740]

The moment where Cloud blocks Sephiroth's sword is a litmus test for the developers. Guarantee it.

[@thatkingdomheartsguy9615]

I honestly think that people who think Cloud didn’t save Aerith are too obsessed with the OG. We see the rainbow effects signifying a new world being made so cloud made a new world where Aerith lived. Now, obviously, Cloud isn't in that timeline, so either he saw a timeline where he did save her or he was taken to a timeline where he didn’t save her by Sephiroth because Sephiroth realizes Cloud seeing Aerith die is vital to his plan.

[@TheCourier0613]

100 percent bro😂. Its like people have this og bias that prevents them from seeing this OBVIOUS sign. I think its also that fans who dont like aerith that much or only see value from her death in the og dont really want her to survive anyway (my assumption anyways). Its sad man. I have hope tho we'll see aerith alive in part 3🥹🥹🥹

[@lavhaadg5763]

I think the FF7 saga is a love story about Cloud and Aerith. The whole story revolves around these two characters. I am hopeful that the conclusion won’t be as tragic as OG.

[@talmanes4589]

In the original game you can look at it that way for the first third of the game, but really Aerith isn't in a huge chunk of that game and gets kinda forgotten after the tragic death. She's super important at the very end. Her story is to sacrifice herself for the planet and teach Cloud, and by extension us the player, about loss and grief. I don't think you can remove the tragedy without removing the message. And Tifa is Cloud's real long term love interest anyway.

[@RexusK76]

I didnt see it that way, i think shinra and sephiroth are bigger players in the story than avalanche itself.

[@boopnoodle6947]

agreed

[@solanastan4196]

while i cried my eyes out for the ending scene, the clock trial was like a knife to the chest and with each scene it went deeper and deeper into my heart until i was left with absolutely nothing inside

[@Silverfish-qv8ig]

You're missing a bit on that final line. I would say that the main reference is line in the song. The song, isn't actually about promises. The point of the song is that is discounts promises. They don't need to be made, given the certainty of the outcome (in this case, them finding each other). The line, in my humble opinion, is a nod that they will see each other again, as per the song and that no promises will need to be kept. It's also, as you rightly say, a red herring to further get people talking.

[@ernestshen6443]

Couldn't agree more about their last "date" scene, how she approached it with such a bittersweet attitude knowing how things would end. Reminds me a lot of FFX when Tidus knows how things will end in order for him to save the world, but keeps a positive attitude with the party all the way to the end. It's why I've never replayed FFX all the way to the end, just can't bear to watch their farewell and Yuna's emotional speech at the end, and this ending feels the same way to me...

[@AfterImageCreations]

Do you think in the 3.rd game we will see the full scope of her death maybe once cloud has his full memories in tact? Cloud putting her into the lake is such an iconic and emotional scene it is weird we didn’t fully get it . Even though for me I did enjoy how they did that all.

[@Stormeye_Kinobi]

From the start the devs have wanted to give everyone, new player and veteran alike, the same emotions the original evoked. Everyone talks about the sadness of the death scene, but that sadness is something that came later. After we understood it was for real. You see at the time it happened it was unheard of for a main character to die mid-way in. So, it was not sadness the was initially invoked it was confusion and denial. "Did she just die?" No, they can't just kill her like that. Can they? We can save her still, right?" So, welcome to the emotional roller-coaster that us old folks experienced during our first playthrough of the original.

[@shannon1242]

This! Finding out the game wasn't just destroying all the reactors in Midgar to a main plot driving character dying out of nowhere to a deep unreliable narrator of your main character? That depth of storytelling in a video game was UNREAL for its time. I was in denial her death was forever until far after the credits rolled.

[@talmanes4589]

I remember denial being the strongest emotion in that moment yea. Like you said, it was just unheard of for a game to take a character away from you like that. I was like wtf am I going to do, my healer is gone.

[@HomeDefender30]

This is a great point and remember we just had gotten the cait sith fake death, so a part of me didn’t believe she was dead and we’d get her back like cait sith….. but honestly as soon as we see cloud drop her into the water I knew it was final.

[@PinkSakuraBunnie]

Exactly. I can't believe how many ppl seem to have forgotten they were likely shocked by the impaling out of nowhere than the death itself bc the vast majority of us didn't honestly believe she was really dead for good. This is a fantasy game after all and killing main characters so suddenly and without fan fare and so early etc. was just not done. I really thought at first that this likely wouldn't be permanent, even after they laid her to rest (bc they couldn't just leave her slumped there), but it became obvious it was as we played on and nothing we did now seemed to have anything to do with Aerith or resurrecting her etc. And then I was like wow, she's really not coming back.... So yeah, the first feeling for most of us was not devastation like ppl think it was.

[@linkofhyrule6580]

the aerith pushing cloud sequence is a new iconic moment in ff7 history. it’s so beautiful. i wasnt sure how i felt about the ending initially, but this moment, and so many others during the ending that are only possible because they changed it, are so amazing that i’ve come to love it. i really think they knocked it out of the park

[@zanychelly]

By the way 12:38 Cloud’s sword is covered in a rainbow effect. The empty White Materia : Cloud good memories will get locked into it, since that materia carries memories. The main timeline Cloud will be completely dominated by Jenova. He will die. The Cloud that is in a comatose, alongside Aerith, will be our new Cloud. That’s the two of them that the Lifestream worked to make undetectable by not having any sign of life/personality. Current timeline Cloud has nothing in him, besides a creation of his own mind. And for more than once Sephiroth asks cloud to lend him his strength… To defy destiny. Maybe that’s how Sephiroth/Jenova will get a hold of him once his discovers the fate of main timeline Aerith? Also, that’s why Sephiroth calls him Hollow, he still isn’t Cloud. That’s why Aerith tries to “find him”.

[@zanychelly]

Also, Cloud getting Killed is a good way of “resetting” his skills for the next game… 😂

[@kyrolazioko4783]

Why did it play Tifa's theme when Cloud was holding Aerith at her last moment though? Was that a music implementation error or was there something to it?

[@PinkSakuraBunnie]

Wait they did??

[@PinkSakuraBunnie]

@@kyrolazioko4783 thanks, I'll go have a listen!

[@mynametidus8023]

There is a line where Aerith says she is the only living acient and it felt kinda strange after it being made apprent that there was mutliple versions of her. It think she meant it across all the different timelines. I think that they created a single timeline where they managed to keep her alive.

[@NeighborhoodOppa]

When a new timelime is made, would'nt there be new copies of the group? So I am assuming there are other copies there with Arieth? So why would the "alive" Arieth be around Cloud in the ending. Oh oh here comes the Jenova theory creeping back again haha.

[@jessica_glass]

All changes aside, Aerith's loss is in the original is directly felt through game-play and story. It is the pinnacle of rpg game design. The opposite of convoluted fantasy logic. That's why its so famous. It's good because of the plain editing and lack of bombastic cinematic drama. It's not about subverting expectations for shock value. It's a stark and effective realization. A true role playing moment.

[@betterdeadthanred9863]

I wonder if we'll get a minigame in part 3 where getting 3 stars will revive Aerith with a phoenix down

[@RexusK76]

As someone whos only familiar with remake and now rebirth, after finishing rebirth, i also had this perspective of multiple timelines. However after reading some different interpretations, i actually reached a different conclusion. Couldnt it be that there is only timeline, with the rift in the sky being a separation between the lifestream and the real world ? Another thing, when sephiroth kills aerith it created some confusion for me, but after thinking on it and remembering sephiroths words, i believe that its cloud not accepting his failure to stop sephiroth from killing her, leaving him with an alternate reality that only exists in his head in wich he saved aerith. Barret and tifa for example, after aeriths death seem to not understand clouds response, tifa seems to be worried about him due to seeing him smiling at nothing, and barret being confused about the "dont look up to the sky" statement. This is further reinforced by marlene statement " he doesnt arrive in time ", sephiroth statement " u are my puppet " , sephiroth constant questions about the reality of things towards cloud. There is also the angle of sephiroth manipulating cloud into him not believing his own eyes, he said tifa was lying to him, he gave the black materia to sephiroth and so on. I cant rly argue details because i didnt pay 100% attention to the games content, but personally i believe it to be this way. I would like to add that, the game felt like " Nothing is in your control, and what you see is not entirely real ", the constant efforts of avalanche to fulffill their mission seems to be stopped by things that are not in their control, some examples : Keystone is stolen by sith, black materia is given to sephiroth, clouds attempt to save aerith is in vain, rufus deal with avalanche is stopped by yuffie ( altough she is avalanche, it was not a decision that they all agreed on from what i remember ). So im not really sure as the game doesnt make it clear, but i hope its not timelines. Sorry i know it sounds like ramblings, but i finished the game today and i still am not sure about the narrative.

[@universal728-]

That same portal she pushed cloud through is the portal sephiroth jumped through to stab her?

[@metastase895]

Yes, but only in timeline KH3. In our timeline, he came from AC director's edition while the original AC Sephiroth is the same as Remake part 1 pre-patch (after the patch she is seeing a tear in the sky at the end of remake).

[@zacatkinson3926]

The song it's the devs to us as now with the story where it is they can do anything and don't have to keep the promise of sticking to the og story

[@shanlie3505]

I had the same feeling about Tifa after Aeriths death. Her reaction just hit's so hard. Tifa and Cloud seem emotionally switched in Rebirth compared to 1997 and I wonder what this means for part 3 and what type of conflicts might come out of this.

[@Lennis01]

In Advent Children, Cloud and Tifa have become emotionally distant due to Cloud's inner despair. The devs themselves have hinted they are moving in the direction of Advent Children, so we need to brace ourselves for that.

[@Poppyrae]

I loved the ending it added more mystery but I think it also was made so of story fans and aerith surviving fans get a kind of happy stipulation. I think this is also a great way to add playable sections to the wandering maiden and can add a lot more story. Also I still love Zach I need more Zach and cloud

[@Poppyrae]

My question is aerith died in the og but she was alive in a weird way as the wandering maiden which only have some info. I see that as when cloud and her separate they go on their own mission

[@shannon1242]

Aerith disappearing when holding Clouds hand back to back was incredibly emotional. How they use a sad version of the opening theme ties into when Cloud cried to a memory in Remake with the same 3 notes as Aerith is walking away.

[@kagekun1198]

What I felt was a lot of confusion and frustration. Confusion was from the sheer ambiguity of the situation. Frustration because Jenova fights in the Remake are generally nasty if you're not on your A-game and it was a looong sequence of fights. Then more frustration as the biggest question about Aerith's fate which I had been working for all game is unanswered. In fact almost all questions about the Remake go unanswered two games in. You're spot-on when you say a lot of pressure is on Part 3. The writers took a literary loan and gave us the flashy fanservice scenes like Cloud and Zack teaming up on Sephiroth and Cloud blocking that fateful blow. But all scenes have to be earned. They gave us the spectacle in Part 2, and now Part 3 is stuck with the bill of earning them.

[@johnpettiford6547]

I feel like “you’re just a puppet” is a fourth wall breaking. Like Cloud is being controlled by Sephiroth to get the black materia, and also controlled by us, the player, to stop Aerith from dying.

[@tbrandy1405]

I am also heavily worried about part 3 gameplay-wise. Aerith was my primary magic dps these past two games. If she doesn't come back... Combat Sim trials are going to hurt 😢

[@shro_okee]

Vincent will prob be the new ranged magical fairy of the group, but not quite like aerith, which hits even harder because it'll feel like we lost a vital and pivotal character gameplay wise

[@tbrandy1405]

@@shro_okee "Ranged magical fairy" 🤣 had me in stitches

[@dougkinzinger]

I rewatched the trailer and the cuts there really directly omit any of the "rainbow" effect we see when it is implied a new timeline is being created. I think this means Aerith lives on in a different timeline.

[@likom9813]

I think Cloud is trap in both timelines that why he can see the thing in the sky that only appears on the other timeline while Barret did not see it

[@wilberivs19]

the devs were great on this game, they build the game knowing that we knew what was gonna happen and they executed the game fantastic in a way that you knew what gonna happen but it still hurt. "There is liking and there is liking" I was team tifa but that line at the end defined how I felt towards aerith in this game.

[@fndrn8]

why is it that only Cloud can see Aerith? Did i miss something?

[@seangerardartieda7844]

I'm pretty sure Cloud will mourn and recall that moment he lay her body in the lake. After he'll regain his true self. Kinda like what happen in OG where you go back in nibelheim mansion and have cutscene about zack. Just a guess

[@xKenB24x]

The Aerith death was perfect. The reality is we did saved Aerith and we didn't, we don't know what is reality and fantasy. It was by design to confuse us. Because it's the whole point of this game. To save Aerith, but we don't know how and if and they're not ready to give it away just now.

[@pratamahavidiarahman5953]

I believe there is another alive Aerith, not in this timeline, but the one that Cloud saved and the one that is in Zack's timeline.

[@mtricar]

It is the goal to experience the scene through cloud’s eyes. An example is that everyone has full limit bars EXCEPT cloud. You are supposed to be confused like cloud is confused himself. I think it’s really going to hit in the next part

[@fredo3161]

I raged about it at first but I've come around to it.

[@kelele]

Alot of people just finish the game once, got confused and start hating. I like how you took the time to think and watch the scenes again and come up with logical theories.

[@brycetheoddball]

I loved this ending. The last scene plays in my head everyday

[@RyanOstrowski-eh6ft]

is tifa going to save cloud from mako poisoning and repair his mind in the lifestream in part 3

[@mikerude5073]

It all better makes sense in the 3rd part. I'm willing to see where it goes. The final date dream/other world thing was truly a beautiful scene. Now, making a convoluted ending made it seem like they were trying to please both the "save Aerith" and "Aerith must be sacrificed" crowds, but it ends up pleasing neither. One group is dissappinted they cannot change fate, rendering all the battling the fate stuff convoluted false hope meaninglessness, the other sees the most important death scene in video game history turned into a complicated mess. There is a saying "if you try to please everybody, you please nobody." My hope is that this isn't the case, and they are going somewhere satisfying with it. If she turns out to be alive in the timeline of the next game, but they were showing the OG timeline as well, were one version of Cloud had to say goodbye, that I'd be fine with, but they will need to make it very clear so that all the complications make sense looking back.

[@crepecrepecreapee]

Idk, I feel more like they wanted it to be different. The game they've been selling to us has never been about re-doing the game 1 to 1. They wanted the players to have the same feelings as the original, but if you played the original you'd already know how it goes. To me this pretty much the only way to give that feeling to this, giving the players drive to see what's coming next because now truly no one 100% knows anymore. It keeps it a new experience for everyone while still being able to "remake" the game. I think people should also actively remind themselves that if they aren't happy with the remake there is literally still always the original that you can go back to and have it play out exactly as you wanted it to

[@biz0586]

There’s a possibility none of the ending happened. Cloud and Aerith fell from a very high height after the temple disappeared. Cloud could be in a coma. Ironically, Cloud and Aerith wakes up in the Zack? timeline, when they fell in our gameplay timeline. You spent time building relationships, but after a big fall you basically tell Cloud to rub dirt on it and fight? That makes zero sense. Cloud and Aerith should be getting medical treatment in our timeline in Gongaga like the original game. The little Bronco never flew again in the original. So, where did Cid get the wings and other parts? How did they get it on land? How did we get to the Forgotten City? Why is the Temple is at the north instead of the south near Fort Condor and Junon?

[@Dontdoit_]

Her death broke me so much my son was trying to find out what was wrong

[@johnpettiford6547]

The thing about the death that many people will miss is the key concept that death isn’t the end and the lifestream has partnered with Aerith to save the planet. Cloud blocked the sword and gave Aerith autonomy, so she can communicate freely. So he did save her in a sense. The story is allowing us to be accepting of the fact that the sword did pierce her because, like the lyrics of the song she sang, they’ll keep meeting again. Going a step further with the Gi, death and returning to the life stream is a good thing.

[@vhamer123]

I at first felt so triumphant at deflecting the blade and after the static started and it showed the blood on his sword I got so confused and felt a lot of emotions.

[@salmark9080]

the more i think about it the more i love it

[@ezekielgallardo8385]

I just had the most disturbing thought. [SPOILERS] What if it was Cloud that stabbed Aerith? Think about it. He almost killed Tifa earlier. Plus Sephiroth seems to be in Cloud’s mind most of the time. Like when the Midgar Zolom was killed. In the original we only see it dead and we assume it was Sephiroth that killed it. But in Rebirth we see Cloud imagining Sephiroth killing the snake, but everyone else sees Cloud doing it. When Aerith dies, there are no witnesses. Nobody else is there to see what really happened. Until the real Sephiroth is awakened from the North Crater, the only Sephiroth we see is a manifestation of Cloud’s mind and the Jenova cells in him.

[@Crimsontiger133]

The thing that I understood about the death this time around is the same effect as the Cyberpunk Edgerunners ending. Aerith is doing to Cloud as Lucy does David. Sepheroth is fragmenting Cloud to the point of he can't put anything solid together to stand on where as now Aerith can come to him and create a surface he can stand on. As a story teller myself, I just like to let these stories wash over me then put them together after. I also played the OG back when it came out and a few times more over the last few years. I almost think the OG destroys what this game or Square is trying to create which is why I envy people who have not played the OG cause they arent biased as to how the story is "supposed" to be and just accept it as a good lister is supposed to. If at the end of the day you dislike a story is totally up to you and your interpretation but having prior knowledge of a story does two great negatives which is create expectation and forms a line in the sand between new and old fans. And the only real winners are people who just enjoy a journey for what it is.

[@josevitorcalfa2]

Honestly, until part 3 is out confirming that is not the case, I still believe that there is an Aerith alive in a separate timeline out there, probably the last Aerith variant alive (Sephiroth killed all other ones). That Aerith and Zack will save the day in the end.

[@itsdantaylor]

Yeah I didn't like the ending at FIRST. MOSTLY because I really wasn't able to process exactly what was happening. I had to re-watch it and a few 'ending explained videos' before I kind of caught on to every thing shown to us. NOW I like it MORE although I think i'm going to need to see part 3 and what this leads up to before I kind of judge it in the context of the trilogy. As for the ending, I agree I don't think the Aerith we are seeing is Jenovah, a delusion, or a 'force ghost'. The Aerith we see seems to have way too much......agency? and I don't think it's being framed that way in how we are shown the situation. I think there is an indication that this Aerith, while 'saved' isn't guaranteed to not be in danger. AU's are popping up but are also dying, the tear Cloud sees in the sky may not be for HIS world but HER world, and even if her world continues, world's meet but also part. No guarantee she will be able to rejoin Cloud and the others ever again. Also with the Reunion happening, who knows what will happen.

[@Touma_S]

I loved the ending and how dark it actually seems . I also don't think thats lifestream aerith or another timeline aerith on the field cause bssed on her telling cloud throughout this gane to focus on himself to then say you promise to stop sephiroth

[@h.e.l623]

I kinda feel like her saying "let's just call it a dream" is VERY deliberate. Aerith is phrasing it that way simply because a.) that's just the simplest way to explain it at that moment and b.) she is still clearly trying to preserve Cloud's sanity/not shatter his fragile mind, while explaining what she can/has to for his safety/for her long-term plans to succeed. So she explains it like it's "just" a dream, since possible / alternative realities *really are* as intangible and fleeting as slumbering dreams are to the people who are not "native" to those other realms anyway. So she's not lying or obfuscating; Aerith is just choosing her words carefully to get across the correct "feel" of a complex subject matter/concept to a beloved yet dysfunctional mind.

[@torkhi6349]

I think that the timelines will all converge, but it will be to the og ending instead of sephiroths desired world

[@PodcastNow]

Exactly what I believe. That's why Aerith will still die even if a version is alive. And cloud has to accept that.

[@dave_the_slick8584]

Then what would be the point of this entire remake project? That would make ZERO sense to harp on and on about defying fate only to basically go "nah fuck all that, fate is concrete". All these minor changes slowly building to something different would be meaningless. The final text in the game would be meaningless.

[@zacatkinson3926]

No it wont be everyone lives this time

[@DuDeJJX]

the end was intended to be messy because we are living this moment through cloud his confussion is our confussion we didn't get to mourn her because cloud has not accepted it yet or realized it thats most likely a thing for the third game i believe the next game will be about grieving the loss of aerith as remake was about meeting her and creating memories rebirth its more about her death and the next about comming to terms with it altho if advent children its an example cloud doesnt do it till the movie

[@blackbird8192]

Ya I didnt like it at first because it didnt happen the way I wanted it to, but it has really stuck with me and grown on me. The more I think about it, the more I like it. I think the whole remake series is a dream happening at the end of Cloud's life helping him resolve left over guilt, and Aerith's scene is kind of a meta commentary where no matter how many times you go over your regrets in your head, you cant change the past, you can only accept it.

[@blackbird8192]

And cloud hasnt accepted it yet at the end of rebirth, he's still in denial about it

[@hjk3351]

There’s arguably enough evidence on either side of the argument, whether she is alive or dead and this is the point this is what they wanted they wanted to make it convoluted in a way that each argument has supporting evidence whether she’s alive or dead and this is just gonna keep us talking for another three years until the game comes out and then who knows maybe she is dead for real maybe she’s gonna come back somehow, because Zack was dead, and he randomly comes back Anything can happen with this

[@TheMilhouseExperience]

Hear me out. What if they just did the death scene and played it out with just the Jenova boss? Everybody except cloud still has maxed meter, but afterwards they play the scene exactly like the original. Then, they have the ending scene, without aerith, and cloud still says some stuff like “don’t look at the sky. It’s not real.” That would have been a better received ending. But then the third game you see the same scenes, but from clouds perspective right away. You see aerith not acting quite like aerith and the scar across the sky. And then at the end, you get that sack team up moment, which would have blown everybody’s minds then, but then at the finale, then aerith steps out a portal and says “let’s do this cloud.” It absolutely feels like they blew their load way too hard, way too early, which undercut the absolute most important part of the game. This was the emotional crescendo and instead of feeling sad, which was how that part made everyone in the original, it’s replaced with confusion.

[@marbarosi]

She pulled a Makaveli (aka 2pac) Faked death Hints- Story of the ending in the music. (hers and 2pacs)

[@reeceholmes7903]

I actually really liked the ending and I still thought it was still a sad ending I didn’t want it to end but I have to admit the ending was confusing

[@NogaBlitz]

I think the only way to "save the world" will involve Aeris choosing to give Sephiroth what he wants. Merge the worlds, which will bring everything back to the original timeline and her death ultimately being the key (or something) to stopping seph. (They defeated fate, as seph wanted, but maybe fixing that is the only way to win). She's alive, I think she's the same Aeris in all realities. When she goes on the date in the "doomed" timeline, cloud is very confused. Because he is ALSO the same cloud. He's from Rebirths main timeline, which is why Aeris has to tell him it's a dream. Somehow they, Aeris, Cloud, Zack, Biggs, they're all the same people across every reality and Sephiroth is clearly the same Sephiroth since he is somehow tracking/chasing her through realities. So, if she's the same in every reality, she's dead but she's also alive and she's not a different version of herself. She's herself.

[@BANKSREGIME]

My wife was watching also and she said that its not death its a homecoming and I immediately said NAHHH Clouds Taking her to the prom Instead and I was weepy confused and laughing all at once.

[@ElaineSaid]

I‘m happy either way the producers make the endings

[@Shu05]

17:08 That definitely isn't Jenova, it is Aerith, we can confirm that when Nanaki feels her presence...We know Cloud is actually seeing her - but it's unnecessarily confusing x__x lol Is she dead or not? We know Sephiroth is out to kill the rest of his friends - given he is trying to put doubts even about Tifa. With AC, we know Zack and Aerith are there as spirits helping Cloud, they say their last goodbye and leave - we see cloud had accepted their death and moves on.

[@Brandwein42]

I think Aerith is making a copycat strategy from Sephiroth. Sephiroth is also simultaniously in the lifestream through Jenova cells + physically able to manifest on the planet / having a body there. Aerith will be doing the same thing with spliced timelines. There are multiple versions of both sharing a consciousness. Like this Aerith will also be able to come back with a body in some cases, maybe just not in a way everyone can perceive, maybe just in planes between worlds. I believe there will be a final permanent Reunion of worlds in the third part, which enables Zack (and Biggs) to come back too. Maybe some fringe timeline where Wedge wasn't shoved to his death by Whisps lol. Memories will be merged so everybody will know what happened. This can only happen after Cloud gets his mental put back together in the lifestream though since he is the only one left connecting the worlds (seeing the rift in the sky). Of course Sephiroth will try to manipulate him so things pan out in his favor.

[@zacatkinson3926]

Aerith was a ghost in advent chuildren in 2 scenes the end and throwing Cloud upwards at Bahamut, Her being a ghost is normal

[@cwing1028]

When it came out that she died even though we blocked it, it made me angry because I felt a lot of the time the game would go “do this objective” you do it…..and they make you do it again. I felt like a lot of stuff we did was pointless. Playing remake and beating the whispers, setting the tone for “fate isn’t determined anymore”, we block the shot. Then it shows us “no no no, this was suppose to happen!” Just reminds me of nether realm studios where they “change things up” and spend the rest of the games in the series bringing things back where they were before. What’s the point of introducing all this new stuff if you’re just going to do what was already done? Just make a scene for scene remake. The graphics and combat alone were worth the purchase, no need to try to convince us that things are different. Why make multiple timelines to just do it over and over and over. If you really want to do something different, make the ending a happy one. We never get those anymore. Everything’s gotta be a cliffhanger, mind screw, or bittersweet. Give us a happy one. That’s just me though

[@ash_yt0]

I think you misunderstood the point of that. Cloud really DID save Aerith. The name "Rebirth" alludes to the fact that she survives. However, Cloud is separated from Aerith, that's the key. For context, rewatch the Loveless play scene. Alphreid blocks Varvados's attack with his shield, which saves and protects Rosa. And because of that, Rosa is saved and able to summon Phoenix (the avatar of rebirth) which defeats Varvados. It is Cloud's ability to save Aerith from Sephiroth's blade which is the key to Aerith summoning Holy and defeating Sephiroth. So it's not a fake out or anything, it's critical. Aerith and Cloud are separated from each other despite being in love, but they will reunite in the Promised Land. That's what the final line of the play, and the song are about. You don't need to make a promise, because we are fated to reunited no matter what.

[@cwing1028]

@@ash_yt0 I do like that perspective a lot more than “I think aerith from every timeline needs to die” lol

[@ash_yt0]

@@cwing1028 I think it's a personal preference whether people like the execution of the many worlds type of story telling. But IMO the overarching idea of the story is the same as the OG. Aerith survives somehow, and the party decide that they will one day meet her again, with Cloud saying "I think I understand now" and Tifa saying "Yeah, let's go meet her." This means that when they all die, they will reunite. And we get a glimpse of what that reunion will look like. Aerith's "dream" of a date with Cloud, and all her unrealised hopes and dreams rejoining with Cloud's in the lifestream, giving shape to that world.

[@jerepursiainen5750]

Well i think that sephiroth united all the worlds in that scene and killed all remaining timeline aertihs at that spot. I think that aerith in fight scene is aerith in clouds head nothing more. And the in ending is on only clouds head blocking the trauma just like he does with zack. And in third game we have to do the big revelation (witch would be next game title) allthough i think its reunite. But that aerith is controlled by jenova is also interesing because aerith looks very weird in that scene expecially in the Bond scene where he smiles at cloud looks just like sephiroth where sephiroth smiles at cloud in the nibelhime scene in the fires.

[@lonecyborg4957]

The Aerith that fights Sephiroth with Cloud in the end isn’t in Clouds head. Sephiroth even acknowledges Aerith saying he underestimated her. This means this Aerith isn’t an illusion, whatever she is another timeline or life stream Aerith that’s up to debate. Now after the battle that could be a Aerith that’s an illusion conjured by Clouds mind.

[@mitchellbutler2307]

It's significant that Aerith is looking straight into the camera when she says "It's been fun". She's not just saying goodbye to Cloud - in a meta sense she's saying goodbye to US. I think Aerith will continue to be a presence in the story, but it's clear that our own journey with her is over. I'm also a bit on the fence about the story changes and Square's ability to pull it all together in a satisfying way, but the best part of these games has been getting to spend more time with these amazing characters. Aerith especially gets so much time to shine in this game and every moment with her really has been a joy.

[@keblin86]

I liked the entire game and I am mostly fine with the story as waiting until it's fully finished before I have my final opinion but like you, I said to a few people that death scene has been destroyed by not showing Clouds words to Sephiroth, not showing the water part and then the worst of it all...showing her a few minutes later and then fighting as her...that took away every single impact and meaning from the scene. My thoughts are if they then show something in part 3 this might change it and fix this BUT for Rebirth itself it has in this moment been ruined. The effect of her death is now meaningless and it's hard to feel as sad as we did in the original. Like yeh I kinda feel down but that's because I knew from the original what was coming, she dies etc. Had I not played the original I would find this hard to feel sad for because we currently have no clue what is going on or the outcome lol. What I will say though, when Aerith pushed Cloud through the portal...that was seriously epic. I felt chills down my spine the way Septhiroth just slowly walks in and you just know what's going to happen lol. I don't know what that reminds me of but it was a nice touch!

[@johnpettiford6547]

I just finished it last night. I really feel bad for Zack, he remembers everything and he got kidnapped and betrayed and all that stuff and never gets to have closure with Aerith. I see Aerith as Zack’s girl and Tifa as clouds girl, so this didn’t quite feel right to me. I finished reunion before playing this and was hoping that Zach would finally get to have a full conversation with Aerith about everything

[@k4yser]

Im not even sure that the Aerith we see in the ending cutscene is actually aerith. Don't forget, Jenova loves to disguise herself as loved ones to achieve her goal. I'm torn between either this is Clouds descent into madness as a result of him surpressing yet another loss, or if it is actually jedi Aerith guiding him (which would be a little bit disappointing given the other two options are more intriguing to me) or Jenova manipulating Cloud into his dark Knight arc. I mean he put the black materia into his sword. The Jenova bit would also explain why Nanaki could sense "Aerith", because in the OG he was manipulated by Jenova to hand over the black materia and maybe this was her reaching out to him. I know, sounds like a stretch. But I love that ending, they achieved to make me even more exited about the third part. I hated remakes ending, but I'm loving this.

[@Flenderr]

I am also pretty sad that we now have to play without her (probably) for like 100+ hours in part 3. She really made the game a lot more fun for me.

[@nevinvegas]

Yeah but we get Vincent with beast and gun controls and hopefully some Dragoon elements from CID!

[@stephen8342]

I think the aerith at the end might not actually be aerith. They teased jenova turning into people you love and I think she’s fucking with cloud.

[@rafael82x]

I thinking there 3 parts of time lines intertwined but it’s just theory … A game theory

[@ugh5281]

yes i definitely agree that the cloud and aerith dream date sequence was one of the best and most emotional parts of the game and what is interesting that whole sequence is all new content and also takes place in an alternate world/timeline so they can clearly do interesting stuff with the multiverse stuff, it just depends on how they do it and how it affects the main story. i think a lot of ppl say the zack stuff was pointless and boring and i can see that angle to a certain extent but i think the zack sections were there mostly to explain the whole alternate world stuff and how it works and i think both zack as a character and the alternate world stuff will play an even bigger role in part 3 now that they kind of gave us a glimpse onto it. i think the emotional aspect of her death was not really there. the only true emotional part that was kind of sad was when they suddenly shift timelines, you see blood on the ground, she falls and then her theme starts playing and the scene plays out like in the OG but that scene is like less than one minute, it's very short lived before everything starts becoming even more confusing, the music changes, cloud starts getting visions of both timelines etc. and we're basically robbed of any emotional impact and the sadness is replaced with confusion until the very end. i think in my personal opinion whether aerith dies or lives by the very end of the trilogy she will still have a bigger role to play with part 3 and i think this the story is headed to a point where aerith will be able to reunite with either just cloud or all the main party, there's just way too much foreshadowing alluding to it in order to not happen at some point. note: in japanese cloud and aerith don't say "promise" to each other, they just say "yeah sure/certainly" which makes a little bit more sense with the ending title "no promises await at journey's end" and also the theme song of rebirth "no promises to keep" (despite the debate uetmasu and the singer loren already confirmed that it's about aerith and cloud); the song is basically all about aerith saying she and cloud don't need to make promises to each other to know they will reunite again and she knows that cloud will find her, it also ties in with the loveless play with the knight telling the princess she didn't need to promise to wait because he knows he would find her... which makes me think that the possibility of them reuniting in part 3 is entirely possible and it's what this whole timeline stuff with aerith being possible alive somewhere is leading to.