Final Fantasy VII Remake is simply one of the most anticipated games coming to the PS4. On top of being the remake of one of the most beloved games of all time, FFVII Remake promises to be an all new, expanded experience that is also one of the PS4’s most visually stunning titles.
A demo of the game was available last weekend in SM North EDSA Annex. It was but one of several games available (which also included Nioh 2). Despite the distance, I travelled to SM North all the way from Bacoor, Cavite just to get my hands on this game. As a huge Final Fantasy VII fan, I considered it a must for me to make a journey and get my hands on the demo.
The demo was open to all, and we got a maximum of 20 minutes each turn. It consists of just the MAKO reactor boss fight that but it allows the player to get a better grip on the gameplay. It starts with Jesse showing you the reactor and you, as Cloud, would have to go there with Barret in tow.
There are several grunts and defense systems you’d have to fight first, and it allows you to get familiarized with the new battle system and other controls. While the game was advertised as having different battle modes, the demo only had one. The real meat of the demo was the fight against Scorpion Sentinel. Here you’d have to use a combination of attack button mashing, evading, using the environment, and copious amounts of the tactical mode.
At this point, much has been said about Tactical mode. Basically the FFVII Remake still employs an ATB meter which fills up with each action taken. Once a bar has filled up, you can press the X button to go into Tactical mode which slows down time enough for you to decide which ability, magic, or item to do next.
The battle itself isn’t too hard. I believe the demo itself is locked in Easy mode so that everyone can get a good grip on the controls and mechanics. It certainly allowed me to really get into the game and get a taste of its many possibilities.
So, now I’ll address the elephant in the room. How was it? Well, here are my impressions:
- Controls are very responsive. You take control of Cloud during exploration, but you can take control of team members during battles.
- The third-person view is pretty much standard in the action-RPG genre, not to mention the camera view of choice by big titles such as God of War, The Witcher 3, Death Stranding, and the Resident Evil 2 Remake. VII Remake isn’t the first Final Fantasy game to use this camera view (the honor goes to XV), but it certainly feels better than the first one.
- There’s more to the battle system than just hack-and-slash. Evading, blocking, and strategic use of abilities, and magic all play a part, else your HP will deplete quickly.
- Locking on a target lets you make contextual attacks. For example, Cloud’s attack is limited by his Buster Sword’s range. But locking on to some floating targets makes him jump towards them to cut them up Advent Children style. There are some hard-to-reach targets that he would still be unable to reach though.
- Graphics are really very good. The demo was running on a base PS4 instead of the Pro which was used in E3 and TGS floor demos. I did not notice any framerate drops or pop-ups. Animations are pretty good too, especially the abilities. The only negative I can remember is the water animation of the liquid mako in the reactor. It’s not bad, but felt unrealistic.
- The unit I played on, didn’t have a jack for earphones, so I am not able to really hear the audio properly, but it seems the demo used Japanese audio, but I may be mis-hearing.
The game does feel very refined, in the same sense that Red Dead Redemption 2 was refined. They are both very different games, but they give off a feeling of being very well made. I’m sure the final game will reveal bugs and other issues, but that’s still in the future. For now, the game looks very promising.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is one of the most anticipated titles to come out in the twilight of the current generation of consoles. With the next generation fast approaching, it looks as though Square Enix is squeezing every ounce of what the PS4 has left for a glorious ride. It would be foolish to assume that the game is a certified Game of the Year candidate just by this demo alone, but its prospects look pretty bright.