The journey to the April 2020 release was not an easy one. All the struggle and waiting was worth it, though, since Final Fantasy 7 Remake was one of the most celebrated JRPGs of 2020. With the PS5 re-release, Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade, coming out in June, we thought it a good time to look back at the game’s development and find some interesting stories around it.
10 A PS2 Remake Was Announced In The Early 2000s
It seems like people have been wanting a remake of Final Fantasy 7 since the original game came out. While this remake was not announced until E3 2015, Square announced a remake for the game on the PS2 in the early 2000s. Along with Final Fantasy 7, the eighth and ninth installments were also intended to be remade. However, no further news showed up after the initial announcement. If those remakes had come out, they would already be outdated.
9 External Developers Were Used At First
While the game was completed by Square themselves, external developers were used at first. CyberConnect2, known for the .Hack series, was making the game from 2015 to 2017 until they left the project and development was moved to an internal studio. This news made fans nervous, leading them to theorize about a troubled development. Whatever problems it may have had, it did not negatively affect the final product.
8 It Runs On Unreal Engine 4
During the PlayStation 3 generation, the Final Fantasy games utilized the Crystal Tools engine, which was notoriously difficult to develop for. For Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the developer opted to use Unreal Engine 4, which is said to be easier to develop for. Kingdom Hearts 3 also uses the same engine. By looking at the visual fidelity of both titles, it is clear using a different engine did not adversely affect the graphical quality.
7 Final Fantasy 13 Caused The Project To Be Delayed
The idea for remaking Final Fantasy 7 came about over ten years ago. Development would have started sooner, but the teams were all wrapped up making Final Fantasy 13 and its sequels.
Final Fantasy 13 became a trilogy and several other games were also a part of the project, including Final Fantasy Type-0. Fans are divided over the quality of these games, making many wish the Final Fantasy 7 Remake project had started sooner.
6 They Made It A Point To Show The Upper Plate
In the original game, the Midgar chapter takes anywhere between six and ten hours. As a result, players do not get to see all of Midgar. When recreating the city for a new generation, the developers made it a point to show parts of the city previously unexplored. More specifically, players go to the upper plate and see how the more well-to-do citizens live.
5 They Know How Many Episodes There Will Be
In an interview with Game Informer, Yoshinori Kitase reveals that he and the team know how many episodes this series will be. However, they are not revealing any details about it. While this may be frustrating to some, it makes sense. Plans can change, after all. Some gamers say they’ll wait until the series is complete to play through it, which honestly could be a decade or more considering the frequency at which Square releases games.
4 The Original Creators Did Started The Project Because They Are Older
One of the big questions about the remake is “why do it now? why not earlier?” The producers and original creators who worked on both the original Final Fantasy 7 and Final Fantasy 7 Remake admit that a part of the reason the games are coming out now is their age. If they wanted to see this project to completion, they would have to start the series now. Waiting any longer would have them retiring before it was done.
3 Why All The Voice Actors Are New
The original plan was to bring back all the voice actors from Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children, who also voiced the characters in other projects like Kingdom Hearts 2.
However, the plan was ultimately thrown out in favor of a new cast to better differentiate the two and establish that this is a new, separate story. The reception to the voice cast has been hugely positive, and many of the new actors are longtime fans of the original Final Fantasy 7.
2 Nobuo Uematsu Wrote One New Piece Of Music
Nobuo Uematsu has since left Square since the days of Final Fantasy 7, but he returned for the remake to compose one new piece of music for the soundtrack, “Hollow.” This theme was featured in the trailers and is a more traditional pop-rock song. Considering he left Square some time ago, his return was not guaranteed. New arrangements of his original compositions make up the majority of the soundtrack.
1 The Compilation Was Always Canon
Fans’ jaws dropped to the floor when they saw Weiss in the recent Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade trailer. As wild as it is to see a character from Dirge of Cerberus, people should be aware that the games from the compilation of Final Fantasy 7 were always a part of the equation. In an interview with VG247 from before Final Fantasy 7 Remake’s release, Yoshiri Kitase says these games were also in the developers’ heads when making the new title. With this in mind, perhaps other characters like Genesis will show up in the future.
Next: 10 JRPGs To Play If You Loved Final Fantasy VII Remake
