The Complete Story of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - Reunion

Welcome to the complete story of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - Reunion. The prequel to the much beloved Final Fantasy VII, and the remaster of the original Crisis Core, which had been unavailable on modern hardware for way too long, making this a very welcome reunion indeed. As remasters go, the game is an ambitious work which manages to breathe new life into an otherwise older title, making it more fun to play and a real joy to behold. At the same time it serves as a gateway into a part of Final Fantasy VII’s story that has been overlooked by many due to the game having been unavailable for so long. Therefore, with the next title in the Final Fantasy VII Remake saga on the horizon, the return of Crisis Core couldn’t have come at a better time. But anyway, I’m Pétur from Birds of Play, and in this video I hope you’ll join me as we revisit the complete story of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII - Reunion, a story of brotherhood, dreams, and honour. It’s going to take a while to get to the core of this crisis, but I hope you’ll be with us, every step of the way.
A part of the script is based on great work already done over at:
finalfantasy.f...
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#finalfantasy #birdsofplay

[@thirdplanet4471]

The price of freedom is steep

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Perfect first comment for a video such as this one!

[@BirdsOfPlay]

@Khansado DONE!

[@fl3045]

Freedom costs a buck-o-five

[@Jobadasiah]

It's nigh Fucking Vertical.

[@freedom8480]

I'd say you became a hero.

[@nmquoc89]

Just finished the game, I cried for Zack...RIP you're a hero...

[@PhobosKhaled]

Same here

[@gazman2626]

Here too, everytime

[@Ushi_archive]

Just beat it

[@olcadi3853]

Watch or play new FF7 remake its cool how it ends 😮😊

[@tbspromotions]

Yep I just finished it, I hate it as a kid but I lost my copy but, this remake finally let me finished it.

[@Taldorin]

"Priceless relic sword of my family" Gets ditched super quickly as soon as cloud gets a better sword

[@floki_dokie]

"it's made from sentimental steel"

[@sukari]

Angeal: "Use brings about wear, tear, and rust." Zack/Cloud: 😬😬

[@CrankyCrabChaos]

Interestingly, Zack only uses the blunt edge of the buster sword, symbolized as such when it's on his back, blunt side up. Cloud has it edge side up since he uses it like normal. Zack understood Angeals intention with preserving it (and his honor), but it was useless to not use it. So he tries to minimize wear by using the blunt edge.

[@DrCoomer_1]

The ending of the game still hits so damn hard, the music and the fact you literally play as him struggling to fight back getting gunned down as he dies just makes it so much more impactful.

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Great ending. Great game!

[@TheRealSmokeKiller]

I appreciate this video. Rebirth comes out soon and I haven't had the time to play this. I appreciate the recap and everything!!

[@holyheretic3185]

For real I kinda figured this was a one off but Gd. This is like probably more important than the first ff7 remake lore wise! Lol

[@Pintexx]

I played this game when I was 8 on PSP. Thanks for refreshing my memory with this video, so many forgotten moments are back.

[@timbrosius]

Thank you for this wonderful retelling of the story. I just beat Crisis Core this morning and came here with a heavy heart for a distilled synopsis of everything I had just seen. What a heavy game…

[@TypicallyUniqueOfficial]

Zack is the best character in the entire FF7 universe. Easily the most likable guy, but also the unsung hero of FF7.

[@vos_is_boss7623]

I'm not that far into Rebirth yet, but can't wait to see this new story that involves him. Zack is best boy!

[@reptarien]

Holy shit. I never knew the full reality about Cloud failing to get into Soldier and only getting infused with the Mako as a result of Genesis. That's so crazy! Thanks for this synopsis, I wasn't a huge fan of the combat so I decided to just look for a story synopsis so that I could get caught up. This did wonderfully!

[@reptarien]

*FF7 Remake spoilers* -And so cool that Zack is back, too!! Can't wait to see what they do with him, Yuffie, etc!!-

[@Trace153]

I am the same, bought it but the combat was not there for me. So this was a great recap/summary. Interested to see how Zack role will be played out going forward.

[@misselthwaitemanor]

combat gets better as it goes along and you get stronger attacks, or that was how I felt anyway

[@metalsmithnick8714]

Yeah it took a while to warm up and I struggled to enjoy the game until chapter 3 or 4

[@diapason89]

"In a bizarre picnic of half-dead bodies" 🤣🤣🤣

[@lizzetegarcia1897]

When Cloud began to Cry and scream😢😢 I cried like a kid 😅😅

[@gwarguraqueentrickstarcoat9110]

It's prove that good story in video games Can make games fun 👍

[@sirpeluca4658]

Holy shit I wasn’t expecting such a great voice! I’m 26 seconds in and I know this video is gonna be awesome!

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Hope you enjoy the rest as well! Thanks for watching! 🔥

[@flohohneh94]

@@BirdsOfPlayAre you also the voice of the king who reads the story in FF12?

[@BirdsOfPlay]

@@flohohneh94 I voice all the complete story videos on the channel.

[@flohohneh94]

@@BirdsOfPlayNo I meant like in the game? Your voice sounds so similar to the voice actor!

[@jubed]

Want to thank you for all your amazing content. I struggle to sleep at night and these videos always help relax me

[@BirdsOfPlay]

As someone who has struggled with sleep, this warms my heart! Glad to be of assistance!

[@jonosvlog9913]

You can actually tell Zacks story is sad just by listening to his music theme.

[@JackieTheRaccoon]

Hello! Just wanted to thank you for your hard work on these Complete Story videos. They're EXTREMELY helpful as I'm about to start the FF7 remake.

[@Shadow39323]

I NEEDED THIS RECAP! THANKS BoP for such a well-done synopsis!

[@daleksmith9064]

Oh my god, so cool you doing something like a audiobook! I love it! Revisting the story time and time again without having to play the game. Adding the soundtrack makes it even better. I don't know, maybe there are copyright issues or something but I would be cool if you added the few sentences you took directly from the game in the voice actor s voices. Thank you for sharing this!

[@dottnick]

Shared with my friend who never got to play it. Excellent summary.

[@winbornew]

Your content is amazing! I love how you tell the story for each game. I didn't play every FF game growing up so I really appreciate your videos!

[@BoyGeorgiaX]

I can’t believe so many people write this off as a spin off. Such a good story.

[@Kitbats]

True it cant be a spinoff, it's Cloud's origin

[@roriklucsson8275]

@@Kitbats Young Sheldon is Sheldon's origin from BBT, yet still a spinoff. This is a prequel focusing on a different character where Cloud is more of a side character. This different angle already qualifies it being a spinoff. All semantics aside, whether you call it spinoff or not is not important. It's a good game that tells a good story.

[@absoliel6724]

⁠​⁠@@roriklucsson8275 sorry for being off topic, but I’m obsessed with your ability to eloquently articulate the differences between two terms in a way that doesn’t sound hostile but still gets your point across

[@roriklucsson8275]

@@absoliel6724 Wow thanks, that's actually really kind of you to say! It's always very hard to convey a message through a medium that doesn't include tone of voice, pitch, body language... so thanks, you made my day :)

[@gwarguraqueentrickstarcoat9110]

Yea that's story is so rare in video games Companies care more about profits Than their customers I wished Square eniz care more their players more Just like Zack did for his friends Even if he was betrayed by the people he once believed was his friends he could ever have

[@puffyping]

happy holidays everyone ❤️ very glad to have found your guys' channel this year, thank you for all the great videos. ❤️❤️

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Thanks for your support and happy holidays! Glad to have you around! Here's to another good year!

[@tthompson4768]

Great job! Cant wait to play the next part. I love how fate can be altered

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Hopefully Rebirth won't be delayed!

[@chrisashley5206]

Yes fate can be changed. Just like Joker taught Chihaya

[@heyitsjustjacob5308]

The ending always make me cry 😢

[@ChaosHeartV]

My only gripe with this video is it didn't explain Lazard's motive for betraying Shinra. Lazard was born in the Midgar slums to an unnamed woman and illegitimately to President Shinra. I know its a small thing, but I never knew that till 2020, 13 years after I played the original Crisis Core 🤣The game didn't make it explicit so I never noticed and when Lazard betrays, it just feels out of nowhere. Overall great video

[@undefinedromance89]

"He keeps squatting his worries away." Classic Zack

[@iBe_ImmorTaLiiTy]

The first half till around 24 min were very good. Actual small details were givin and it had good pace.. But after that, when Sephiroth's origins are explained and all, it feels very rushed and a lot of important details are left out all of a sudden.. Still, earned my thumbs up and sub, just hope in future videos the quality will be as good from start to finish!

[@luxijus5581]

Now onto FFVII:Remake as Rebirth is just a week away 🤭 getting excited

[@xXJohnKllXx]

Hojo is the true villain of the series if only zack knew

[@BirdsOfPlay]

If only Zack knew he was a part of a series. Maybe that's the plot twist in FF7 Rebirth, the ultimate wall breaking!

[@RobertWWD]

I like how Crisis Core is a prequel to 7 ending with the beginning with Cloud on top of the Train.

[@chaoscriminal]

Beautiful tie in

[@amharbinger]

I loved how Crisis Core wasn't just Zack's story, it was Sephiroth as well. Seeing how he actually did care for others but unlike Zack when he lost Angeal and Genesis coupled with finding out his origins it drove him to madness. I feel if Genesis asked Sephiroth as a friend he would've helped him but instead treated him like Shinra did. But when faced with the same lost Zack maintained his honor, saved Genesis and Cloud, and tried to reach Aerith by any means.

[@fasttrack70]

Played through the game came here for a recap cant wait to see what they do in rebirth

[@tbspromotions]

I had this game as a kid but lost it. I’m happy that this remake came out and that I finally beat it. Thank you for an awesome video.

[@TheShowerofSlime]

Happy holidays, thanks for uploading

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Happy holidays!

[@destinyhero]

Great video, thank you for this!

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Thanks for watching! 😶‍🌫️

[@chrisdillon8376]

This channel has the best openings in the biz

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Thanks for noticing the opening!

[@jonosvlog9913]

I subbed for the amazing content, the story and your smoothing voice! Thank you!

[@BirdsOfPlay]

So glad you liked it! Welcome to the channel! Hope to see you around!

[@vos_is_boss7623]

This was a good recap, thank you!

[@JLeeCN]

Wait what?? So Cloud was never a SOLDIER!? So his abilities are solely derived from his cell transfusion from Sephiroth? Aside from that he was just an infantryman?

[@TheDelightfulFlowerLady]

Yes

[@JLeeCN]

@@TheDelightfulFlowerLady So why does everyone, even Shinra refer to him as a soldier?

[@TheDelightfulFlowerLady]

Because he thinks we was in soldier and he is wearing the uniform. When he got his mako poisoning it messed with his head and Zacks memories were mixed with his, so he was remembering Zack time in soldier. I'm not the best at describing it, I'd just look up some videos. Sleepezi does an amazing job going into everything of you want to watch his videos. Or just play the original ff7, they also start to go over this in rebirth.

[@JLeeCN]

@@TheDelightfulFlowerLady Yeah but that still doesnt explain why OTHER people at Shinra identify him as a Soldier? Even Heidigarr and the president call him a soldier

[@TheDelightfulFlowerLady]

@@JLeeCN that is because he is in soldier uniform

[@bautistavazquez6295]

Just bought crisis core on sale and playing remake so now to play crisis for first and get back on remake when I finish’s and then wait for the pc release of rebirth 😅

[@gojirawoolfolk5980]

Much like Sephiroth's ominous last words conveying that he'll "never be just a memory" that's to the remake, Zack may not be as dead as he once was!

[@jayjames2674]

I really like your work please keep going no matter what

[@BirdsOfPlay]

There's no stopping this train!

[@jd-lz5ry]

Bro not related to ff7, but ur voice is noice, it honestly made the whole video 10 x better, hope u can make more videos like this :DDD

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Haha thanks so much! We have plenty of complete story videos so hopefully my voice compliments them as well. 🎤

[@BringDHouseDown]

@@BirdsOfPlay it was like listening to a radio host, but for games

[@slayer2450]

Man, watching this video makes me want to replay the game again

[@D4nk0_01]

Been playing FF7 last 2 days straigth, its my first FF game, super gripped by the story and only now I learn this game exists??

[@bronwynecg]

It took me **years** to get around to finishing this game. When I did , HOO BOY I can now understand why people love Zack so much 😊 #teamZack My only gripe with the remake is that Angeal’s face looks so much better in the PSP version…

[@smokingblaster1764]

Thanks for your comprehensive recap!!! I tried and tried to get into crisis core reunion, but the mechanics of the game somewhat didnt intrest me so i never completed it. But this places the events before remake in place and help me make sense of remake story

[@wasdwazd]

Ah yes, my favorite Final Fantasy character, Sack.

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Sack, Zoldier first clazz!

[@rollieohuts1849]

o7 the feels at the end. even bird was starting to cry

[@hieudini9135]

Zack walked so Cloud cloud run RIP Zack

[@Redpintz]

He RAN so could cloud could WALK , implying he did the hard work so cloud could get to where he is everyone always gets that saying backwards

[@Alecup06]

​@Redpintz my brain didn't work when i read this 😂😂

[@SpicySpleen]

this is great thank you

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Glad to be of service! 🐕‍🦺

[@HAULHipHop]

A deeply compelling story of our boy Sack and his squats

[@sa1ntivity301]

i got super confused after the mako reacter part so ty very much😭😭🙏

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Thanks for watching! Glad we could be of assistance!

[@K1LoFoX]

Damn I thought this was Morgan freeman at the start hahaha

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Morgan Freeman talking about Crisis Core and the price of freedom would be epic.

[@mathuasher9184]

In the last couple months I watched my friend playing Remake, and it seems awesome. I've always loved FF. 8 and 10 are my favorites. But I just missed 7 by chance, no reason particularly. So to best appreciate Remake and Rebirth I've played the original game as a download on my Switch. And then bought Crisis Core and finished that during the last weekend off. Sorry for this whole essay to those who read it, I'm tipsy and it's late and I'm feeling thoughtful. All that said, what I mean to say is this: FF7 deserves its flowers 💐. I can rather easily see why it is so beloved. It is sincerely good. Almost high art, in certain ways. Also, good video.

[@kalvawalker5006]

Saw this vid after finishing ffvii remake to understand who Zack was and that’s crazy I gotta play crisis core rn I’m starting Rebirth

[@tenou213]

FF7 Rebirth has Cloud recalling events from Zack's POV. Damn weird to see the reticent Cloud being so chatty

[@Boba_Tourette]

Thank you for the video. I recently played FFVII (Remake) for the first time and I absolutely loved it. After hearing about FFVII Rebirth, I wanted to make sure I experienced all of the FFVII stories beforehand. I bought Crisis Core for PS5 and I know I’m in the minority here, but I absolutely hate the gameplay style. The story was engaging but I genuinely hated the gameplay. I’m grateful you made this summary because I couldn’t push myself to play it anymore. I wish I enjoyed it as much as everyone else.

[@BringDHouseDown]

25:18 well this just went from 10 to 100 real quick

[@Sothros]

at the end of ff7 remake, zack comes back to the church. i wonder how they'll explain this ( if they explain it at all) i know they change a lot for the ff7 remake, and the original is one of my most favorite games of all time. cant wait for the next part

[@tthompson4768]

Yep

[@bryanwhittaker8991]

What is the song that starts at 11:12 and finishes at 12:54

[@gregwalker428]

Just finished reunion in time for part 2. Will flow in well

[@ThrillbertMusic]

bizarre picnic of half dead bodies is wild yo lmaoooo

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Got to tell it like it is 😄

[@edgeofenglandgaming7450]

I am currently doing a playthough on this game so have to keep pausing the video!, then watch video until i get where im up to as a refresher then play again and so on !

[@gregboggs2708]

Would be awesome if they could keep building on the 7 story with more and more

[@zacke4494]

Thats crazy that cloud hallucinated Zack dying like that. Good thing Zack lived and is the main character in rebirth

[@lukealadeen7836]

Embrace your dreams

[@devak45167]

Zack realized his dream. He is a hero

[@Yuyu99000]

Ouuufff I get too emotional with all the protagonists of FFVII.. poor Zack 😭😭

[@HMG179]

What a beautiful story, I wish I could play this game but I can't, but I played ff7 remake and that was so good

[@thebrothersslim6056]

Thanks mate!

[@CamelxRavenNova2]

This version is identical to the PSP version, seems more like a remaster than a remake, wonder how they managed to put it into modern systems

[@renegade637]

I wonder how Zack's story will continue, given that they ret-coned his death in Final Fantasy 7 Remake.

[@TrickyJebus]

thank you for the english captions.

[@devinantonovich1]

Excellent synopsis!

[@MaxTheMiracle]

Your voice is so much Final Fantasy , that im in awe as to why you are not contacted by SqareENix and make you a character :) or a narrator, i think you remind me of XII Narrator :) at the begining :)

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Square Enix, you seeing this? Make it happen! Please?

[@supersaiyanbino]

I just finished this game to get answers on the beginning of rebirth...I'm still confused, lol. I don't see how Zack is alive at the same time as Barrett, Tifa, Red XIII and Aerith

[@namelessking6761]

there is a year difference inbeetween zacks death and cloud riding the train to midgar

[@commonsensecritic5468]

I never heard of this game until just recently.

[@BirdsOfPlay]

It's a great game made even greater by the remaster. I highly recommend it.

[@iustitiamerchantxiv5872]

This is just a sad story, man. The real villain here is the evil corporation - Shinra.

[@ChristianNightingale]

Beatiful story 👍

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Agreed!

[@GreenTacoma44]

Thats a crazy story

[@YungPhantom-dp7rd]

Question why do they only have one wing

[@BirdsOfPlay]

I don't think it's ever really explained (but please someone correct me if I'm wrong). To me it has always symbolized incompleteness or fallenness-a corrupt angel turned monstrous.

[@chux4w]

@@BirdsOfPlay Sephiroth and Genesis have black wings on opposite sides, suggesting that maybe they're two halves of a whole. Angeal is the only white wing we see, but the ending suggests Zack may be his other half. The two monsters and the two angels.

[@BirdsOfPlay]

@@chux4w that's interesting. Hadn't pieced that together. Thanks for elaborating!

[@Alecup06]

​@BirdsOfPlay its probably just a mutation from the degradation and when sephiroft fell to the life stream

[@mattb6646]

Is there a sepiroth spin off game? I would love a game of his story through shinra and his dealings with jenova... kind of like a spinoff of his small playable part on ff7

[@PinkSakuraBunnie]

We are kind of getting that with the mobile game Ever Crisis. They are doing some of Sephiroth's back story as a teen in the First Soldier section.

[@quancooley7925]

Now it makes sense never played core crisis but play remake now currently playing rebirth i trying to figure who this Zack character is n why he keeps popping up so thanks u feel n so many gaps still got questions on why cloud barely remember Zack n tifa Dnt remember cloud been there when the village was burned Down

[@MissingScrew27]

I played this game withotu ever playing FF7 before , i had no fucking idea zack would die by the end

[@SusSpooder]

Your voice and presentation makes this story infinitely more bearable. I've always wanted this backstory but bounced off the "creative" direction of this game. Glad I didn't have to sustain Kingdom Hearts levels of brain damage to experience this plot.

[@jmorgmate]

Can someone pls explain two things for me? 1. How is it that Zack was gone for 4 years? Was it some weird time skip from fighting Genesis, or was he actually travelling for 4 years and just didn't realise? 2. So Cloud isn't actually SOLDIER, and isn't trained in combat in any way shape or form.. How is he so efficient in FF7, and why does he hate Sephiroth if his only memory of him really is burning down that village? Thanks in advance :D

[@BoyGuy-gb8hg]

1. Both Zack and Cloud were being experimented on at nibleheim for 4 years in a tube 2. Cloud was injected with Jenova's cells in said tube which essentially made him superhuman hence why he is so effective in combat. And he hates sephiroth because like you said he remembers him burning down "that" village which is the village he grew up in, which means he remembers Sephiroth killing his mother and all the people he grew up with

[@JohnWick-uq1su]

Would you say… I became a hero.

[@scissors0009]

Dude your accent is like a british hilljack who has lived in Maryland for 20 years. Mesmerizing.

[@Machobunni]

Okay, I watched someone play this game, and was beyond confused (granted in my opinion the English version is horrible). This video was very helpful in fully understanding a better idea of the story ty very much

[@kheops101]

Awesome recap video. Good job! *However, I had to watch some parts multiple time as pronunciation was hard to understand sometimes.

[@BirdsOfPlay]

Hopefully the subtitles helped with that.

[@WildDancer101]

I've played the original FF7CC on the PSP. It's pretty much my introduction to FF7. Sure, the remastered version is on Steam, it's just a pity that the models look a bit wonky and the new English voice cast don't hit the right notes with the characters.

[@Tofuuuuuu]

zack is the rizz god

[@BirdsOfPlay]

If he survives Rebirth the third game will be called Final Fantasy VII Rizz!

[@benegan7421]

Couple of things I don’t understand though. If Cloud wasn’t originally in SOLDIER, how was he able to get the Mako conditioning and training whilst he was unconscious/coma the whole time after Nibelheim? How is it he is able to hold himself against other 1st class SOLDIERS and Turks? Just feels like Cloud’s development regarding his skills just got totally shut off after those events. Almost like the writers didn’t know what to do with him. Also he was made aware of Aerith, but didn’t know that the girl he was talking to was Zack’s previous love interest? Just some general thoughts that didn’t seem all that well explained through the story it seems.

[@Alecup06]

Some people are saying its because of jenova that she did something

[@markcoroneos7811]

As i understand it, he gains the power ups from the experiemnts conducted on him by hojo over those 4yrs. He also watched zack in action a bunch and copied zacks manerisms and fighting style. As for aerith, cloud never met her prior to the reactor bombing. He had the subconscious memories from his time with zack and hearing all about her from him. My head canon regarding the whole claerith shipping is based on the two of them trauma bonding over zack. For aerith, she had the guy she had feelings for disappear one day, didnt hear from him for 4yrs and then the next thing she gets is feeling him die as he entered the lifestream - thats gonna mess a girl up. So when cloud comes onto the scene she projects her feelings for zack onto cloud who is (at that point) zack 2.0 for her. One thing is though, no one ever comments about cloud having the buster sword haha

[@MisterFister612]

all i want is Genesis To show up In the Remake Thrilogy. Because i know he would he would be an Ally

[@springchickena1]

excellent voice; just damn.

[@LuisFelipeSunigaVasconcellos]

Thanks for this, somehow I hated this game gameplay and found it pretty much unbalanced the fights, but was still interested to know the story before going into ff7 remake

[@raptorlaughter5367]

so is this canon? because in the original final fantasy 7 genesis wasn't there when sephiroth discovered the experiments and went crazy.

[@RLHvanDijk]

I think that's because that part is being told by the PoV from Cloud and not Zack. Cloud probably only has fragments of Zacks memories, witch are fused with his own memories. So cloud only has told the story from what he remembered, since he wasn't there himself.

[@pixelthesketch5257]

Who's listening after hearing about the Final Fantasy House story?