We’re preparing for the final showdown with Shinra in Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Before raiding the Sector 0 tower, you’ll have to face down two Turks, a strange monster from a hidden lab, and a returning pet from an old enemy. The bosses are getting tougher, so you’ll have to upgrade your game and use all the materia available to you. Before we continue, there’s one strategy I’ve discovered that helps with these bosses.
You’ll be using Tifa, Cloud and Barret for the following fights — and there’s one strategy you can use to combine their powers effectively. Barret has two incredibly handy skills that are unique to him; Steelskin and Lifesaver. Equip Chakra (and maybe Prayer) on Barret, and you can become a damage sponge — staying out of combat, soaking up damage from your allies, and healing easily. Combine that with Cloud / Tifa using a Magnified Barrier or Manaward, and you’ll have much less trouble managing damage. Give it a try!
For all the specific info, scroll down to conquer these three big battles.
More Final Fantasy 7 Remake guides:
Tips & Tricks Beginner’s Guide | How To Unlock Level 2 Limit Breaks | All Weapon Locations & Proficiency Abilities | All Rare Materia Locations | How To Unlock All Summon Materia | All Jukebox Music Tracks Locations | ‘Heavenly Dart Player’ Trophy Guide | ‘Sultan of Squat’ Trophy Guide | PSA: 3 Very Useful Button Inputs | How To Get 200% Or 300% Stagger Bonus | How To Beat Roche, Crab Warden & Air Buster | How To Beat Reno, Rude & Hell House | How To Beat Abzu, Ghoul & Eligor | All Side-Quests Guide & Rewards List
Reno & Rude
- Chapter 12
- Weaknesses: Aero (Rude), Punisher Mode Counterattack (Reno)
Before beginning this fight, make sure that Barret is properly equipped for the fight. Give him all the equipment he needs, and upgrade his weapon. Fill his materia slots with support magic like Manaward. Barret joins your party right at the start of this fight, so it helps to be prepared.
This fight has three phases — first, you’ll fight Reno alone. Later, Rude will join with a helicopter. Later, once you destroy the chopper, both Turks will fight you at the same time. They’re tricky, so I recommend focusing on Rude first. use Wind (Aero) to build his Stagger gauge and take him out of the fight early. Both of the Turks are difficult to predict, and use a variety of powerful attacks that can be tricky to dodge.
You’ll need complete concentration to deal with Reno. Most of Reno’s attacks are elementally-infused with electricity. Those you won’t be able to counterattack with a Punisher Mode parry. Watch Reno and wait for him to prepare an attack. If there’s no title card, you’re safe to parry him and make him vulnerable to Stagger.
If you have Cloud’s Ascension Limit Break, use it again Reno and Rude (but especially Reno) you’ll want to save it for the final phase. Use all your Limit Breaks on Reno (or Rude) to quickly defeat one of them. When you’ve only got one of them to deal with, this fight gets much easier. Trying to fight both of them for too long can get really hard.
Failed Experiment
- Chapter 13
- Weakness: Exposed Weakpoint (Target Appendages)
The Failed Experiment is located at the top of the Shinra Test Facility, encountered after you rescue Wedge. You’ll have to fight this swarm of monsters with only Barret and Tifa. Equip them so they can heal themselves!
In the first phase of the fight, you’ll have to fight swarms of minions. These enemies aren’t tough — you can defeat them quickly with Barret’s Unique Attack and with Tifa’s enhanced Unique Attacks. With Tifa, use Unbridled Strength twice to enhance her Unique Attack twice, then unleash your upgraded power to kill minions in one hit.
Eventually, the Failed Experiment will show itself. This massive beast uses the minions that spawn as weapons, or will defend itself with these endlessly-appearing creatures. In the first section, Tifa and Barret will be separated — after Tifa rushes up the stairs to the catwalk. Swap to Barret and use Overdrive (Unique Attack) to rapidly destroy the Appendages on the monster’s back.
When the Appendages are destroyed, the boss will be Staggered and reveal a weak point. The weak point is the best way to damage this thing. After revealing the weak point once, the boss will reach its true form. Use Focused Shot to aim for the Appendages or use Overcharge — when it’s Staggered, use Tifa’s Unbridled Strength twice to increase its total Stagger Bonus. Use your Limit Breaks after boosting the Stagger Bonus, and this battle can be over fast.
Abzu (Rematch)
- Chapter 14
- Weakness: Fire
Abzu returns for a secound round, and he’s even tougher this time. You’ll have to deal with swarms of Shoat babies while trying to deal with him. He has two parts you can focus on — the tail and horn, but they aren’t required. Like last time, he’ll periodically summon blasts of water from the large open pipes, so when he’s about to unleash a ‘Deluge’ make sure to stand far away from those pipes.
Use Fira to put Abzu into a Pressured state. While he’s pressured, he can’t move so you’re free to use everything you’ve got to damage him. It’s difficult to Stagger this Abzu, and he’ll recover quickly due to the many, many phase shifts in the fight.
I recommend equipped Barrier linked with Magnify to protect against his heavy-duty attacks, and use Barret with a long-range weapon while equipped with Pray materia to keep your party healed. You can also use Steelskin on Barret — combine that with Lifesaver and Chakra to keep Cloud and Tifa totally protected while Barret absorbs (low) damage and heals up with Chakra.
