Final Fantasy VII Remake is a 2020 JRPG by Square Enix that was, perhaps, the most anticipated release in the history of the company. The experience showed off Midgar and the beloved cast of characters in a beautiful modern coat of paint, along with completely overhauled action-oriented combat. Yet, many story changes were made, including in the enhanced version known as Final Fantasy VII Remake INTERGRADE, and this article lists them.
Most of the facelifts to the 1997 PS1 classic were met with positive reception. However, the changes to the original story saw a polarizing response. Although dividing the plot into replayable chapters that could be accessed at any time was not an issue, it was the way the plot itself was rewritten that frustrated many.
Final Fantasy VII was released on three discs back during the era of the first Sony PlayStation. In a similar way, series executive producer Yoshinori Kitase confirmed that Final Fantasy VII Remake would be Part 1 in a trilogy of games to encapsulate the full experience.
While Final Fantasy VII Rebirth has already been confirmed as Part 2, releasing in February 2024, it’s important to review the changes to the first entry to prepare for what’s ahead.
Warning: this may include spoilers.
Avalanche Members Receive More Attention
The three members of the eco-terrorist group AVALANCHE outside of Cloud and the gang, which include Jessie, Wedge, and Biggs, were killed by Shinra during the first half of Disc 1. They merely appeared in the original version, with barely anything to go off of in terms of their personality or identity.
However, Final Fantasy VII Remake fleshes out their character development immensely. In particular, Jessie Rasberry received a significant redesign and backstory. This made her death near the end of Part 1 far more tragic. Conversely, it is highly implied that Biggs and Wedge are still alive. Although we do not have much information on their appearance in Rebirth, they will likely continue back with the team.
AVALANCHE itself is also a much larger organization that extends past Cloud, Tifa, Barrett, and the rest of the characters we actually see, unlike the original game. Furthermore, there is an inside man from the group working for Shinra.
Jessie’s Mission
There’s even a full-fledged mission featuring Cloud and Jessie that takes place in a new zone known as the Sector 7 Employee Housing Area. This is a residential zone on the upper plate of Midgar, where the wealthy elite live their lives. What’s more, players get to visit the family home of Jessie and can witness her mother cooking some delicious pizza.
A Big Fight With Roche, A New Enemy
Along with a raid on a Shinra warehouse to secure more explosives during the Jessie mission, another unexpected thing happens. One of the stranger story changes is a boss battle with Roche, a completely new character introduced in Remake.
This marks his first and only appearance in the entire game, but it’s quite memorable thanks to some over-the-top acrobatics on a giant motorcycle and a battle that sees him and Cloud 1v1 within a circle of guards as if they were in an underground fighting tournament.
You Can Explore Hojo’s Hidden Sector 7 Lab
The second to last chapter of Remake has you exploring Hojo’s secret underground lab in Sector 7, fighting off various failed experiments that appear like weird fishmen.
They seem to be Remake’s equivalent to Makanoids from the original game, which had humans saturated with Mako to the point that they turned into complete monsters.
Such creatures were never revealed until the later flashback to Nibelheim in the first game, but a similar story told in Remake helps cement Shinra into the giant evil megacorp it truly is.
This is also where you will have the opportunity to take on various optional end-game bosses to finish all the game’s achievements. Sadly, there’s no Ruby or Emerald Weapon here, but you do get a final encounter with a massive machine known as the Pride & Joy Prototype.
Sephiroth Appears Really Early On
There was not even a mention of Sephiroth, the main villain of Final Fantasy VII in the original game, until Cloud and the rest of AVALANCHE were captured by Shinra. You also didn’t get to see him until a flashback cutscene that appears much later down the line.
Instead, Remake introduces the white-haired former SOLDIER with a trail of blood leading up to an impaled President Shinra. This striking image warns new and returning players that Sephiroth is a force to be reckoned with, no matter who he is.
Although Sephiroth is the final boss at the end of Disc 3 in the original Final Fantasy VII, he shows up early in Remake and is the final boss of Part 1’s story.
Arbiters of Fate Try To Actively Repair The Classic Storyline
The player is most certainly in some kind of parallel universe with Final Fantasy VII Remake, as there are ghost-like apparitions that resemble dementors floating around that constantly try to repair the broken story. They represent the spirits of the classic fanbase and the original game.
No, they do not want the story to stray much from what once took place. This includes survivors who once died and new playable characters in the upcoming games.
What’s most fascinating is the way that these Arbiters of Fate, called Whispers in Remake, try to stop the various characters from avoiding a fate that is predestined on them. It often puts them at odds with the various characters, most of all Sephiroth, and they are defeated by the game’s conclusion. As a result, fate is essentially shattered, which leaves the story open to be changed as much as the writers desire.
Shinra Destroys Its Own Reactor
The opening bombing mission from the first game in the Sector 1 reactor featuring Cloud and Barret is unsuccessful in Remake. Instead of AVALANCHE being the ones to carry out the mission, Shinra does the work itself, causing a far more devastating explosion.
Despite the damages to the Mako harvesting operation, the company wants to encourage the people of Midgar to go to war with the nation of Wutai, and therefore, it begins to spread propaganda that AVALANCHE is in alignment with them.
Zack Fair Lives
Of all of the controversial twists to the experience and deviation from the original timeline, none is more shocking than the reveal at the end, which shows off Zack Fair being alive and well. Although INTERGRADE, the enhanced version of Remake for modern systems, shows off a darker tale for Yuffie Kisaragi, such changes are minor differences to established characters.
While there is a flashback scene in the original game that confirms Zack’s death, fans already knew his fate by the conclusion of CRISIS CORE, the prequel to FF7 that was released on the PSP in 2007. His lack of passing in the storyline of Remake throws a curve ball in the original character development of Cloud.
Still, Remake establishes that Cloud was able to make Zack’s personality and memories his own without the latter’s death. Hopefully, we will have this explained in Rebirth as the story continues to diverge and explain how the deviations happen.
Final Fantasy VII Remake is an action role-playing game developed by Square Enix and initially released in 2020 for the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PC. Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, the enhanced version of the game, was released in 2021 for PlayStation 5 and PC.