One of the biggest questions of Square Enix’s “remake saga” with Cloud and friends was, “how much are they going to change things?” At first, it seemed like the changes would merely be cosmetic in the gameplay space. After all, the company had moved past turn-based combat for their mainline titles, and the remake took that and ran with it in a good way. But as players actually went through the title, they noticed not just a focus on the Midgar saga but fleshed-out characters and big changes. All this makes Final Fantasy VII Rebirth even more anticipated because of the changes that could come.
In the second game of the remake saga, Cloud and the others will head out into the open world of Gaia in an attempt to find Sephiroth and stop him for good. But that’s not what fans are focusing on right now. Instead, they’re focusing on the fact that the game has been confirmed to “end” at a key moment in The Forgotten Capital. Longtime RPG fans know that this is where Sephiroth shockingly killed Aerith in the original title. But in an interview, director Naoki Hamaguchi teased that there was a “big surprise” awaiting fans once they got there.
Specifically, he said:
“So, to that question and to all the gamers regarding the “you-know-what” moment, we can confirm that we will give you a “big surprise.” So you can look forward to that later in the game.”
It’s very obvious that he’s not just talking about Aerith’s potential death but the fact that the game will likely “undo” the death so that it doesn’t happen this time around. While that may seem odd, the original remake title made it clear that changes to the lore can happen if certain events come to pass, such as when Sephiroth defeated the Time Wraiths himself so that they didn’t affect him.
But the question becomes, “Will Aerith living be the only surprise?” After all, there almost always needs to be a sacrifice in games like these. So, who could be the one to take Aerith’s place if she’s not the one to die?
The answer might be another tease that Hamaguchi made, as he noted that Zack Fair would have a big role to play in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. We know that he’s alive in this new timeline and that he’s looking for Aerith. So he may sacrifice himself so that she can live.
We’ll find out when the game arrives on February 29th.
