7-Up

So this dropped:

Original video located here. Accessed 13th September 2019

Not much i can say really: Lot's of fast based action, quips being sprouted and explosions. But I guess it's expected from SqueeEnix at this point.

But what I will say is Aerith looks astonishing. She is clearly the highlight of the video and firm reminder that the City of the Ancients is going to be a kick to the balls.

T-20

They say that nostalgia happens in chunks of twenty years. If that is the case, then the nostalgia goggles will be aimed at the the mid-to late nineties - also known as the Fifth Console generation.

I've said it once and I'll say it again: This was a great period for the PC Gamer with them being spoiled for choice with the likes of Baldur's Gate, Doom, Warcraft, Command and Conquer, Deus Ex, Plansescape Torment and System Shock 2 among others. Sure, there was some shlock when Windows 95 rolled around but once that nonsense was sorted out, there were some real games to be found. Sure there were some interesting things happening in the console camp but they have not aged well as their PC counterparts. I remember at the time, console games of this era were being marketed as 'cutting edge' but looking at them now, they have naturally aged the worst.

This in turn presents an interesting opportunity for someone keen on nostalgia: Take a brand, fix some glaring issues with it and you'll have a certified hit. Why do you think so many have been clamoring for a remake of Final Fantasy 7? When you have a hugely successful game you have a hit guaranteed purely on brand recognition - but when you fix some of the problems the critics have pointed out, you win on both a commercial and critical level.

I myself aren't really that interested on nostalgia as, for me, it stifles progress (how can you move forward when you have eyes on the past?). But I will admit, however grudgingly, that there's something to be said for making classic games readily available, accessible without dragging some aging tech out of the deepest corner of the bedroom cupboard and in a state of preservation.
That being said, has anyone tried to resurrect some of the lost classics from the Saturn? Someone must've played the likes of Panzer Dragoon Saga and Shining Force 3 - So surely they must've been hit with inspiration strong enough to make something similar so what they enjoyed two decades ago can be enjoyed by people of the present. If anything, I'd rather play a RPG that involves traveling across on a desolate, post-apocalyptic world with minimal NPCs atop a flying, customisable beast, encountering Moebius-inspired monsters and discovering lost ancient tech than a retread of Advent Children any day....

Hey! Hey! You! You! Get off of my Cloud!

The big news proliferating around gaming is the recent announcement that Cloud from Final Fantasy 7 will be a guest character in the upcoming latest iteration of the Super Smash Bros franchise.

It's an odd choice for sure. Sure Solid Snake had his origins as a NES game and Sonic the Hedgehog's presence is the ultimate wish fulfillment but Cloud? I don't get it.
Okay sure the first six Final Fantasy games originally appeared on Nintendo consoles but Cloud had nothing to do with those games so that connection is weak. And I'm not sure on the wish fulfillment either: I recall back in the early-to-mid-nineties that a lot of Nintendo fanboys hated Sega but I wasn't clear on their thoughts on Sony (except that guy I sat next to in IT class). Mind you, however the thoughts the Nintendo crowd may have had on Sony mob it is ironic considering that, years later, the PS2 would trounce both the Xbox and the Gamecube.

But I digress.

This could very well be SqueeEnix trying to keep FF7 in the public consciousness but like they needed the help. Likewise, it can't be argued that Cloud has more marketing brand than Cecil. Or Kain. Or Edge. Or Terra. Or Shadow. Or Edgar. Or Sabin. Or Setzer. Or...

Stocktake

Apparently since the announcement of the remake of Final Fantasy 7, SqueeEnix's shares have increased to their highest point in years.

I suppose this is what I always suspected: People want more Final Fantasy 7 and only more Final Fantasy 7. Who cares about anything else SqueeEnix have done? Who cares about the Final Fantasy's that aren't VII? Hell, who cares about the entire genre that is JRPG's?

And that is the last question that disturbs me the most: This is an entire gaming genre that has more or less crashed, and burned, into stagnation. With Final Fantasy 7 being the nadir of the genre it is also it's death knell: No one cares about any other games since and no other entrant in the genre has come close to matching the sales of Final Fantasy 7. True there have been other gaming genre's that may have suffered a lull that lasted for a painful amount of time, but they will always be resurrected by any bedroom developer and a devoted audience. But the JRPG hasn't had such a luxury.

Mind you, I have Trails of the Sky attached my Steam account for a long time without actually playing. Maybe it's time I should...

The Small One

Well there's no point in putting off any longer: Let's talk about the announcement of the Final Fantasy 7 remake. Yep, one of the big announcements of E3 is that there will be a FF7 remake regardless of my assertions that it shouldn't happen and we're better off without it. Well the egg is well and truly on my face: It would seem that someone at SqueeEnix saw my rants and decided to blow a lot of time and effort just to make me look small.

Bastards.

Ultimately though, this is the end result of years of pleading with SqueeEnix to do it and they've finally acquiesced. This the end result of people falling head over heels in love with Advent Children to a point where they forgot how the characters originally acted. This is the end result of people choosing to forget certain parts of the game. This is the end result of people acting like the JRPG genre ended with this game. This is the end result of people acting like Final Fantasy ended with this game. This is the end result of people acting like the entire RPG genre ended with this game.

So here's what I want to know: if this the end result then who is the winner here?
Yes the promise of a remake is well and good but it seems everything that was in the game originally will be included. So, like it or not, we will see Cloud in a dress, in all his HD glory.
Some may say that some changes should be made (ie the script and Barrett being a racist caricature) but still others would cry foul saying the game should be preserved as it is (warts and all). If all parties can't be pleased then the hard-fought victory isn't much of a victory then isn't it?

Then perhaps it is time we moved on

Catch twenty gig

I have Final Fantasy 7 on my computer via Steam

It takes up one and half gig of hard drive space.

There also exists a mod intent on overhauling the graphics and bring in new charatcer models and HD capabilties.

It takes up over twenty gig of hard drive space.

Considering the size of the mod is greater than the original game many times over, one can only wonder if it is truly worth the effort....

Refutations to a Final Fantasy 7 remake

My crusade against a Final Fantasy 7 remake continues. It may not make a difference nor will it be heeded (or read) by the pro-camp but I will not be swayed otherwise. If the pro-camp won't shut up than neither will I. Hell, I'd sooner give SqueeEnix my money so they don't make make one.

But I'm not saying this just to be troll or anything: I genuinely don't want a remake of Final Fantasy 7. Yes I've played it. Yes I've enjoyed it. But the near tunnel-vision insistence that there should be a Final Fantasy 7 remake comes across, at least to me, like a mass of weak reasons and an insistence that it should be done thus it must be don.

So here is my attempt to refute a lot of the reasons why there should be a FF7 remake:

There was a tech demo...
And we'll stop right there.That infamous tech demo was made to show off the capabilities of the PS3 by running off some familiar footage in seventh generation graphics - and a now obsolete console at that! Just because there was a tech demo doesn't automatically mean there will be a new game ready in the wings.
In addition, if we go by the logic that a tech demo = new game, then where the hell is the Final Fantasy 6 Interactive CG game eh?

We have the tech!
If only it were that simple: Gaming tech has come a long way in seventeen years, even to a point where motion capture and fully voiced scripts are required. New gaming engines are bewing built and rebuilt on a regular basis. Obsolescence happens quickly in gaming. Simply put: The technology of 1997 simply can't be used to build a game of today. You'd need to start over from scratch.
True the release of FF7 on Steam now means access to a modern graphical revamp courtesy of the modders but such a prospect isn't really that simple: It can be done yes but, with the mod I saw, the files required totals to a colossal 20+ gig. And it will disable the Steam achievements and Cloud saves. This in turn proves that just because it can be done doesn't mean there won't be sacrifices - and suddenly SqueeEnix's use of the 'we don't have the technology' card seems to carry more weight than anyone is willing to give them credit for.
And while we're on the topic of modding, I recently saw a mod that could resurrect Aerith but the effect there means her standing around, little to no dialogue and her limit breaks reducing much of the game's challenge. Again: Is such a sacrifice worth the trouble?

Advent Children
Some say that this movie is indeed well-removed from the source material and I proudly consider myself part of this camp. Yes it was nice to see these familiar faces and seeing them with proper rendering, but that doesn't excuse the disconnect: The film lacks the much of the humour found within the game itself and seems intent on being nothing more than caving into fan demand. Even Cloud is an emo whinger & comes across as if the character arc/resurrection he went through in the game were all for nothing. It begs the question: Do you want a remake of FF7 or a game based on Advent Children? Because I'm seeing a lot of distance between the two.

SquareEnix are in trouble and they could do with the help...
Okay I will concede that this argument actually has some weight behind it but here's the thing: FFXIII was conceived as an attempt to recapture the magic that was FF7 and what happened? The game was disaster and split opinion like no other. In fact pretty much every FF game that has followed FF7 has split opinion inspiring both denounces and defenders in equal amounts.
So somehow using the 'SquareEnix is in trouble' card doesn't really work: They try to redo FF7 under a different name and the punters call foul. And when they try to make something different, the demand for the FF7 remake continues to persist!
Gamers certainly are a hard mob to please.....

It still holds up!
Funny, I recall FF7 had instances of humor and nonsense (Cloud breaking the fourth wall, the Cloud and Barrett date) that many people, and Advent Children, seem eager to forget. I recall the Honeybee mansion sequence that people seem REALLY eager to overlook. I recall minigames that seem both pointless and puzzling in their inclusion. And I recall Avalanche begin a terrorist group - something that would come across very awkward in these modern, post-9/11 times.
And of course, remove such instances will, of course, inspire outage by purists and arguments from revisionists. Indeed, it ultimately comes back to that question: is this the game you want?

It's the greatest RPG ever made.
That is, of course, a matter of opinion but, out of interest, have you played Planescape Torment? Baldur's Gate 2? Final Fantasy 6? Skyrim?.....

Drop the Bomb

I recently read that SquareEnix is currently in a rather precarious position: Following the flop that was Final Fantasy XIV, the once revered JRPG company is in the position where if yet another flop comes along, it'll be curtains for SquareEnix as a whole.

Personally, I hope such a thing does come about. Yeah that's right: I sincerely hope that SqueeEnix does close it's doors for good and we can all move on. Sure that may not be an opinion shared by a group of people who vastly outnumber me but I speak as someone who's realized that the glory days of SqueeEnix are well & truly past and it's unlikely they will ever get back on their feet again.

Call me a cynic (or a heretic) but it is a somewhat realistic approach: SquareEnix is not the giant it once was and it's continued presence is looking more like a deadweight. Why? Well several reasons actually:
Key figures within the company have left the company and struck on their own (in the form of Mistwalker and Monolith Soft); no new talent is being groomed or developed in the wake of the aforementioned departures; the company is sticking to their RPGs and not trying (or, more accurately, risking) anything new; the possibility of a Kingdom Hearts 3 game is looking unlikely with each passing year; and SqueeEnix seems to be running on established ideas with it's recent involvement in the recent Tomb Raider and Deus Ex games. All of which suggests that SqueeEnix seem unwilling to try/risk new ideas and/or get some new blood into the stable.

So maybe it is time to move on: If SqueeEnix aren't prepared to try something new and would rather keep milking the cash cows of previous successes then maybe it is time to let it die in peace. The world has changed considerably since 1997-2000 and instead of basking in nostalgia how about finding something new you haven't discovered before? Who knows, you might actually find something enjoyable.

______________

Addendum:
To those who still want a FF7 remake: You're not helping. Yes we get the idea that Final Fantasy 7 may well have been the zenith of JRPGs but there are other games out there - including JRPGs - so you should at least give them a chance (apparently Xenoblade Chronicles is really good). Besides, it's better to got out and explore than giving up completely right?
And besides, if you keep claiming that doing an update of a 2d-game-done-3d in modern tech can be done then how about producing some evidence to back it up?

Phun with Fotoshop

Keep Dreamin'

I've said it once and I'll say it again: Sega are really doing themselves by not making their back catalogue of non-Megadrive/Genesis games readily available. Sure there have been a few games on the Master System/Saturn/Dreamcast slipping through the cracks on PSN and XBLA but what about the rest? Whilst Sega may have had more than few failed consoles to their name, I can still think of some games in Sega's back catalogue that could benefit from a second look.

I could see some reluctance on Sega's part namely a) the difficulty of obtaining rights of certain games with certain gaming studios scattering elsewhere b) an unwillingness to release something that has no guarantee of decent sales and c) the idea that maybe Sega's failed consoles is something they would like to forget. Reasonable claims I will admit but I've heard of such games being spoken of in near mythical terms and needless to say my curiosity is piqued.
I can think of several games on the Mega CD that may be worth dusting off and preserving for gamers both now and in the future, namely Eternal Champions, Lunar, Popful Mail, Robo Aleste, Shining Force CD, Silpheed, Snatcher and Vay (and who says it was all Sonic CD?)
And on the Saturn front, I would certainly like to play the likes of DragonForce, Astal, Shining the Holy Ark and Panzer Dragoon Zwei. I know of games that may benefit from a proper translation like Assault Suit Leynos 2, Shining Force 3, Magical Knight Rayearth and Grandia. And need I mention how many people want to see a proper rerelease of the Holy Grail of gaming Panzer Dragoon Saga?

Of course I've gathered this laundry list of titles through research - I've heard all of these titles spoken highly of both Sega fans and (general) gamers alike so it makes me interested in checking them out. One problem though: How do I do it? This in turn goes back to Sega not taking action to preserve their gaming catalogue and make it readily available. Listen to me Sega: Would you rather people get to these games through using emulators and denying you of some actual money?

The recent arrival of Nights Into Dreams to the XBLA provides new, solid evidence to suggest otherwise that Saturn games may be difficult to emulate or even revamped to stunning effect. Sure Nights was also ported to the PS2 but the presence of other Saturn games on XBLA, Guardian Heroes, Radiant Silvergun, could be another reason for, right?
But alas if the spectacular revamp of Nights will prove anything, it will be proof fifth generation gaming can be rebuilt in such a manner. And thus yielding another excuse for those wanting a new Final Fantasy 7 to persue their tireless crusade (fingers in the ear and all). Okay but how about we ask for something we HAVEN'T played?

An open letter to those who want an FF7 remake

An open letter to those who want an FF7 remake:

We need to talk.

I have seen your constant demand for a Final Fantasy 7 remake. I have seen you being inspired ever since SqueeEnix put out that PS3 tech demo. I have seen you being passionate, like no other, about a game made fifteen years ago. I have seen you go the effort of trying to convince SqueeEnix it can be done. I've seen you put forth technical arguments challenging the claims made by SqueeEnix. And I have seen you refute the arguments of any nay-sayers.

And I give you credit: I've been interested in computer and video gaming since the late eighties and I have never seen people get so passionate about a game before or since (well maybe the fiasco over the Mass Effect 3 ending but still). I admire that you love something so much that you're willing to stand by it with the passion of a religious zealot. And I'm impressed that you still admire a game made fifteen years and two generations ago when countless other games have been ditched and forgotten by the passage of time.

But I simply have to ask the following question: Why do you want a remake of Final Fantasy 7?

No really: Why DO you WANT a remake of your favorite game?

A lot of arguments I have for the FF7 remake seem to be largely based on technological and economic knowledge and the argument of "JUST SHUT UP AND DO IT!!". These are all claims that suggest that it can be done therefore it should be done but why? You must really want a FF7 remake so badly that you'll go to the effort of challenging any nay-sayer but is the effort really worth all this trouble?

The economic argument suggests that people will buy it because it will be a huge seller, justify any enormous production cost and save SqueeEnix from any potential financial calamity. But this is more or less speculative. And like any company, SqueeEnix decides the movements they make for themselves - meaning you, the consumer, have no say in whatever they do (sad but true).
Besides, would you really buy anything with the Final Fantasy 7 logo? Saying so seems to suggest that people would buy a game where Sephiroth runs through a field on a sunny day throwing flowers everywhere but we know this is not the case.

I have seen a lot of challenges to the technical effort involved stating that, despite what's being claimed, it can be done and it is feasible - regardless of factors such as updating a technology fifteen years old, the necessity of motion capture, the implementation of voice acting and building 3d environment from scratch.
That may be the case but really the originally FF7 did what it set out to do on the tools it had available. I mean, you may dismiss the original character models for looking like they do, but consider this: They somehow do work in the game’s favor. The goofy looking character models make the goofier moments in the game easier to swallow. I mean come on: Do we really want to see an Advent Children-esque Cloud wearing a dress? 

No really: do you WANT to see an Advent Children-esque Cloud in a Dress?

Last time I checked Final Fantasy 7 is still available on the PSN so it isn't like it's NOT getting played. And it's not like a FF7 remake will give the PS3 the hit it needs - if anything it will place Sony in the rather uncomfortable position on relying on past hits rather than forging new ground. A position that is currently occupied by Nintendo and subsequently earned them a lot of scorn.
And who on earth would WANT to be in that position?

Again: Why do you want a remake of Final Fantasy 7? The offical stance from SqueeEnix is that they are far more interested in trying to make something that reaches, or even surpasses, Final Fantasy 7's achievements. However such a statement can be easily taken as a fool's errand. So, tell me: Are SqueeEnix not allowed to at least try? I know every Final Fantasy that has followed 7 has split a opinion like no other so it seem that people would rather that they give up. True FF7 was a combination of the right talent in the right areas that came at the right time that it will most likely never happen again but do you want a remake over any new material so badly? And, as is often the case with game remakes, do you want to see a game you enjoyed as a child tarnished and ruined beyond comprehension?
So it seems doubtful that SqueeEnix will ever match, let alone eclipse, the glorious heights achieved by Final Fantasy 7. It would be like, by way of comparison, Weezer releasing an album on par with the Blue Album and Pinkerton and it's widespread knowledge that such a thing is never going to happen.

And again: Why do you want a remake of Final Fantasy 7? I've heard so much demand for one but no real reasoning for it. It was a great game yes but the be-all-end-all of Final Fantasy/JRPGS/Playstation/games in general? Surely not.
I can understand if this intense demand was utilized in order to preserve games from the ravages of time *coughPanzerDragoonSagacough* but Final Fantasy 7 isn't really going away anytime soon. And if SquareEnix aren't interested in touching their Golden Goose again, then they should be left be.
So in conclusion may I state a reiteration from an earlier post:

Really, the more I look at this notion of remaking Final Fantasy 7 the more it become clear that people are after the same experience they had when they were ten years old. That being said, let me tell you something kids: When I was ten years old, I played Pool of Radiance on the Commodore 64. I played it, loved it, and was my gateway drug to the worlds of both RPGs and Dungeons & Dragons. Years later it got a remake - but it was one many people would rather forget.

The Magnificent Seven

I feel like I'm the only one in the universe who's not wanting SqueeEnix to remake Final Fantasy 7. Now I have played FF7 and found it quite enjoyable but this was on my own terms: If I came late to it (2009 was when I actually sat down and played it for real), it was the intimidation factor: The accolades of the game and the continuing popularity of the game (practically unheard of in gaming before or since) raises the level of expectation to near impossible levels - so much so any newcomer would go in expecting to find Jesus.

SqueeEnix have steadfastly refused to remake FF7 and their reasons are sound enough: Namely the cost involved, building the whole thing over from scratch and the key people behind the original now scattered into different avenues. But still the fans persist to have their demands heard, you'd think they were holding a building full of people at gunpoint.

I've expressed some of thoughts already from suggesting that the prospects of remakes could be put to better use fixing the games of the post FF-7 era and how a game you played at ten years old being remade won't make it better but really, I give up: Why do you people want FF7 remade? What, hasn't there been any better games released in the fourteen years since? It's already on the PSN so it's not like it's not readily available and not getting played. Is it really the Nirvana of JRPGs that anything else isn't worth it (although I hear Xenoblade Chronicles is pretty cool)? Is it because it's so good that no other JRPG designer - not even SqueeEnix themselves - have no hope in hell of matching it, let alone surpassing it?
Yes it sold millions, yes assisted Sony in it's rise to power but at the end of the day so what? The game did it's job so why can't we just walk away and leave it?



In fact, the longed for revamp of FF7 makes an interesting counterpoint to the recent Star Wars release on Blu-ray. Here, George Lucas has enough money to do whatever the hell he likes but his attention is still focused on the thing that made him famous. And with the Blu-ray he is still mining for hard nerd cash that people will gladly hand over without a second thought.
BUT! The Blu-rays have been tampered with yet again into something that makes the original release near unrecognizable. Many fans are calling foul and getting into the rage that only nerds can muster. People are furious that George has been tampering continually with something they adored and wish he'd stop.

So I put this question to you FF7 fans: Is this what you want?
Do you want your favorite game tampered with?
Do you want something you loved being raped and repackaged?
Do you want to hand over your dollars to someone who doesn't give a toss what you think?
Do you want to support a company who's staying afloat through their single moment of glory?
Do you want to support a company who can't seem to move on from that single moment of glory?
Do you want so many childhood memories forever ruined?

But really a game still hailed with such fervor after fourteen years, and a few generations, seems to suggest the person in question haven't played anything else since
That being said, maybe it's high time we all started living in the present.

Unlucky Seven

...blah blah big news blah blah Final Fantasy X blah blah PS3 remake blah blah....

Now that we got that out of the way, reaction this surprising announcement seems to be a mixture of delight and disgust. And whilst people getting irate over decisions made by SqueeEnix is nothing new, the loudest voices of disgust come from those who wanted a VII remake. Good lord are people still demanding this?

Okay firstly, FFX for the PS3 is not a remake. No, it's a straight up port only in HD.
Now we got that out of the way....
Secondly, as SqueeEnix have said before, remaking FF7 would involve starting over from scratch and a large budget. Conversely revamping FFX in HD thus seems more easier and less costly on their end.
Thirdly, no one's really missing out on anything: FF7 is still available on the PSN the last time I checked.
Fourthly FF7 is pretty much lightening in a bottle: It happened and it's probably never going to happen again - no matter how much the fans want it to nor how hard SqueeEnix try with the Final Fantasy games since. It's a standard that can't be met so why bother? Why not just walk away from it and move on?
And finally, Aerith's not going to come back. She did her job of extracting an emotional response from the player better than anyone could've hoped for so let's just let her rest in peace - and just because the PS2 revamp of Phantasy Star 2 offered the resurrection of Nei, doesn't mean FF7 has to do the same.

Really, the more I look at this notion of remaking Final Fantasy 7 the more it become clear that people are after the same experience they had when they were ten years old. That being said, let me tell you something kids: When I was ten years old, I played Pool of Radiance on the Commodore 64. I played it, loved it, and was my gateway drug to the worlds of both RPGs and Dungeons & Dragons. Years later it got a remake - but it was one many people would rather forget.