…. Final Fantasy VII is celebrating its 15th anniversary! Sadly this artwork is from the CG film Advent Children, not the 1997 RPG epic.
It’s hard to believe that the Final Fantasy series is as old as it is (25 years old, the first game having come out on December 18th 1987 in Japan). It’s even harder for me to believe that the 32bit generation is OLDER than 15 years. That just sounds absolutely insane to me, but here we stand.
…. The beloved cast of Final Fantasy VII in artwork form as it appears in the manual. NOT how they appear in the game itself except in movie scenes.
FFVII and it’s amazing cast of Cloud Strife, Tifa, Barret, Red XIII, Vincent, Cat Saith, Yuffie, Zack Fair, Sephiroth, Cid, The Turks and, of course, Aeris (I refuse to call her Aerith); is beloved the world over. For many young people my age (nearing their 30s) and younger, this game was their BIGGEST introduction to the RPG genre of role-playing adventure games.
What the cast ACTUALLY looks like in the game… it was better in our heads eh.
Sure there were great RPGs before FFVII, ranging from Super Mario RPG and EarthBound to Phantasy Star, Dragon Quest/Warrior and, of course, Final Fantasy’s 1-6… but FFVII was the first RPG that TRULY, TRULY felt like a blockbuster Hollywood film. While the graphics look absolutely atrocious and downright primitive today, its as if you’re revisiting the stone-age of gaming… Final Fantasy VII is much more than just its graphics and visual look.
FFVII Walkthrough With Intro, Gameplay, Movie Scenes
The amazing and intricate Materia system and classic turn-based RPG gameplay, the “more-mature-than-most-games-you-had-ever-played writing” (SWEAR WORDS OH MY!), the romantic story and intricate, mind-warping plot (a plot that goes absolutely mind-bending bonkers towards the end. Matrix-style, accept it did it before Neo was a flicker in the eye), the myriad of secrets, items, weapons, places to explore… Chocobos and Chocobo Breeding, Cid, Summons, Golden Saucer… and boss fights; one of the greatest villains of all time, the wealth of CG FMV (which is still cool but not nearly as impressive as it was back then… in fact it’s entirely underwhelming and unimpactful today… especially when you compare it to something like the FFVII: Advent Children CG film), the incredible sweeping music (and super iconic Battle Theme) and the overall grand epic experience is still a treat even in 2012 and stands the test of time very well.
The cast is simply fantastic, and every character is unique enough (particularly in the way they look, accentuated even more because of their token boxy look, which helps each stand out from the other, even though they all have square hands…) that you’ll remember them long after you stopped playing.
The most famous FFVII scene of them all.
And while the writing is not up to the quality of later games in the series, it is still good writing in its own right.
Of course, for likely half of the gaming world, these characters and this amazing universe that Square created, will never be forgotten. It is eternally embeded in each of our hearts.
The awesome and iconic FFVII cover artwork of Cloud with his big, badass sword!
While there are many gamers who do not consider Final Fantasy VII to be the greatest game in the Final Fantasy series, there are LEGIONS UPON LEGIONS who consider FFVII not only the best-in-the-series by a longshot, but the BEST GAME EVER MADE.
There are not a whole lot of other games in the history of the industry that can hang with the likes of FFVII. A rare feat indeed.
The Best Music of Final Fantasy VII
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