One of the reasons we celebrate gaming anniversaries on this website is because it’s important to acknowledge gaming history and the importance of certain titles. While it’s easy to look at a game and celebrate its success, it’s just as important to look at its impact on all the games that came after it and why it’s still remembered fondly to this day. For a game like Final Fantasy VII, the stories of its greatness and the love that fans have for it speak for itself. But on its 27th anniversary, a month before the second part of its remake arrives, we’ll break it down further.
The first reason that this game was so special was its backstory. You see, the first six games in the beloved RPG franchise by Square Enix were on Nintendo platforms. They all did well, especially the sixth entry, but they wanted to do even more with the seventh. The problem was that the Nintendo 64 didn’t seem to have the power and data requirements to allow them to do as they desired. So, they jumped to the gaming upstart Sony and their brand-new console, the PlayStation. Thanks to its disc drive, they could make a game as big as they wanted because they could simply have another disc to contain the other part of the story. That’s why it was a 2-disc game.
The second reason Final Fantasy VII stood out was because everything in its story, combat, and characters was grand. From the arrival of Cloud Strife to taking on powerful enemies from Shinra to gaining allies like Red XIII, Vincent, and beyond, everything you did was part of a massive tapestry that you couldn’t wait to see the next part of. Not to mention, things like the death of Aerith at the hands of Sephiroth and seeing the many forms of Sephiroth over the course of the tale helped seal the game in players’ minds.
Even little things helped make the game shine, such as the music, which stands out to players today for its composition.
The game was so popular that it led to a cavalcade of spinoffs, prequels, movie sequels, and, of course, the remake series. Part 1 dropped in 2020 to overwhelming praise, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is only a few weeks away from launching on PS5.
Without that PS1 entry, though, RPGs and Square Enix’s franchise would even be close to the same.
