Final Fantasy VII: The RPG That Drew Me In

Where to begin with this RPG classic? While FF6 is the best in the series IMO, FF7 is undoubtedly my favorite. Pokemon Yellow was the first RPG that drew me in as a lad, but FF7 introduced me to a style of RPG I had never experienced before. I was completely enraptured by the darker themes, the moody music, and the (at the time) stunning visuals.

The refined ATB battle system returns once again, but this time it is accompanied by the beloved materia system. FF7 was my first FF game, and I remember being so confused and disappointed by FF8’s draw system. Using materia just felt so right. Now, I’ve come to appreciate how Square has injected variety into their followup releases, but my attachment to FF7’s systems may be a testament to how solid the RPG gameplay of FF7 really is. That’s one of the reasons I’ve gone back to replay FF7 over and over again.

The visuals are a bit of a low point, because they have aged poorly. For the time, the cinematics were incredible. The pre-rendered backgrounds still hold up fine, and the 3D models from the battle sequences look decent for ‘97. I also spent many many hours just spamming summons and watching the (sometimes very lengthy) animations. However, the low poly models used on the world map and in the pre-rendered areas have been immortalized and memed endlessly.

Some attribute the low poly look to some kind of artistic decision (perhaps attempting to imitate the chibi style sprites from the earlier games in the series), though others just chalk it up to early 3D growing pains. Square devs were likely not yet fully sure of the PlayStation’s capabilities, and 3D modeling was a new art form in those days. We saw significant improvements in the models used in FF8 and FF9.

The fantastic story is what has pegged FF7 so high on many RPG gamers’ lists. FF7 demonstrated that video games could carry a serious narrative with dark or weighty themes – dystopian government, terrorism, grief, death, environmentalism, twisted experimentation. My first time playing through this game, I was so attached to these characters. I felt shock and sadness during that scene. Graduating from the bright and cheery Pokemon series to FF7 was quite a shift. FF8 and FF9 didn’t quite grab me like FF7, but when I went back to FF6, I had a similar experience with that fantastic story.

Nobuo Uematsu’s legendary FF7 soundtrack not only perfectly bolstered the game’s dark and moody vibe, it also launched many gamers into the world of video game music fandom. I had never thought to listen to VGM apart from gaming sessions until FF7. The music was so powerful, so moving, I wanted to vibe out to moody tracks like “Anxious Heart,” “Main Theme,” and “Secret of the Deep“ on my portable CD player on the bus ride to school. I wanted to be serenaded by “Tifa’s Theme,” “Flowers Blooming in the Church,” “Words Drowned by Fireworks,” and so many more. So many of these beautiful tracks are very listenable outside of the game.

It will take a concession from modern gamers who are lacking that hefty dose of nostalgia to go back to classic FF7, but if you can adjust to some of the underwhelming visuals from yesteryear, you will find an absolute treasure of a game. This is a must play for any retro RPG fans.