Luxurious is how I would describe the feeling of playing FFVII Rebirth. It’s borderline elitist to experience it in its entirety. It’s a carnival of fun, fresh ideas that are oftentimes a little too shy to take center stage owing to outdated open world mechanics and mundane, Ubisoft-style checklists. Everything good about it is when it embraces the Japanese philosophy of game design (in other words: capturing the original FFVII’s spirit), and everything bad about it is when it complies with western tropes and gimmicks, and practically bows down to market-tested AAA trends. It’s an overall great title with sadly too much filler content in the end, and I would’ve enjoyed it more had it been a fully linear game instead. The story takes some steep turns here and there, but it’s all a moot point.

Wow, what an adventure! After completing a game that took over 200 hours, seeing the credits roll is simply amazing. Looking back and remembering the feats accomplished within the game and appreciating a world design capable of captivating and holding your attention is incredible. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth takes on the difficult task of succeeding the acclaimed 2020 title (my personal Game of the Year). Historically, the specialized press has shown a certain shortsightedness or lack of perspective in appreciating the complexity and scope of this franchise's installments upon release. Despite this, the longevity and emotional impact on those of us who love the franchise ultimately grant the game its rightful **** transition from the oppressive walls of Midgar to the vastness of the outside world is executed masterfully. Rebirth doesn't simply replicate the map of the 1997 PS1 game; it expands its world. Each continent introduces unique mechanics, regional tasks, and an environmental narrative that gives meaning to exploration. The journey across continents doesn't feel repetitive; on the contrary, it's like a profound reconstruction of the planet's geography, where each area concludes with a well-justified narrative and gameplay **** battle system represents the definitive evolution of the Action-RPG genre. It far surpasses its predecessor, delivering absolute fluidity that eliminates any sense of pause or rigidity, achieving constant dynamism. The strategic depth also generates a new framework of materia, allowing for superior synergies. This transforms pre-battle preparation into a fascinating tactical puzzle, where a single boss can demand hours of customization. And last but not least, there's synchronization, which adds synchronized attacks with companions, creating visual spectacle and developing essential mechanical tools that reward team management and strengthen party **** main Achilles' heel of Rebirth lies in the overexploitation of its minigames. While quests like Blood of the Queen and Fort Condor are brilliant, addictive, and of exceptional quality (with side quests that enrich the lore), their overall integration becomes overwhelming. The design makes the mistake of making the discovery of secret areas and the expansion of the story contingent on the mandatory completion of these activities. Investing 10 to 15 consecutive hours in side quests dilutes the urgency of the main plot and completely halts the flow of an epic adventure.Chadley's simulation ecosystem and the summoning challenges impose a significant barrier of frustration. By raising the difficulty to the series' highest level, the game abandons flexibility and demands ultra-specific character and materia compositions for each enemy. This rigidity, coupled with an unavoidable element of luck in later battles, breaks the organic connection with the game and punishes the player with hours of trial and error. Likewise, Hard Mode redefines the challenge to an extreme degree compared to the scaling seen in the **** conclusion, and despite its mechanical excesses, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth stands as an unforgettable experience that stays with you. The beauty of its soundtrack, which respects the original nostalgia through monumental arrangements, and the impact of chapters like the Gold Saucer or the Loveless scene are so virtuosic that they manage to erase the moments of frustration caused by Chadley or the minigames. This RPG boasts a high level of production quality, AAA budget, and graphical ambition that are very rare in Japanese RPGs. The ending, by intertwining the destinies and worlds of Zack, Cloud, and Sephiroth, is a surprising stroke of genius that perfectly sets the stage for the eagerly awaited conclusion in the third installment. RATING 9.5/10

I played Final Fantasy VII Rebirth right after finishing Remake, and I was really looking forward to it. In between, I tried getting into the original because I'd heard it could help understand the story better, but I ended up dropping it — and that worried me. I thought maybe Rebirth wouldn't hook me as much. It was the complete opposite. I loved it. It's a brilliant game. They've improved so many things that didn't quite work for me in Remake: the fluidity of movement, the exploration, that more open and visually stunning world. Everything is executed beautifully, and it reminds me a lot of Kingdom Hearts, especially in that group dynamic and the sense of friendship that builds up gradually. The story has a lot of Nomura in it: it invites you to question things, leaves loose ends, plays with time jumps and multiple realities. It's a bit convoluted, yes, but in the same intentional way Kingdom Hearts is. You can tell it's all part of the plan. The soundtrack is outstanding. The open world is enormous — it took me around 70 hours and could have been more, but at some point I felt I needed to close this chapter. I'd love to be able to 100% it on a portable version someday, because it's exactly the kind of world that asks you to explore it at your own pace. The combat is another highlight: a perfect hybrid between strategy and action that takes the best of Final Fantasy XV, the classic VII, and the turn-based system, and pushes it further. And the characters — their stories go so much deeper this time, which I really appreciated. The ending left me with a knot in my stomach. But I get it. That's exactly what it's going for. And now I can't wait for Part 3.