Final Fantasy 7 Remake is now on its second week, and the gaming community is happily consuming what the developers have injected into the reimagining. And while there have been some complaints about the game, the general opinion is heavily leaning towards the positive.
In fact, the official Final Fantasy 7 Remake twitter page announced just two days ago that Square Enix managed to shipped and digitally sell over 3.5 million copies of the game in just three days. That’s an incredible feat for a gaming studio, especially given the quarantine measures imposed by governments worldwide.
Honoring the original
So how did the Final Fantasy 7 Remake creators achieved this homerun? Speaking to EW, co-director Naoki Hamaguchi said that their success is mostly rooted in the balance between respecting the original game and adding more elements to the reimagining.
“I believe that the purpose of a remake is to offer a title that has a universally beloved world to people of the current generation so that they can have an experience that’s just as surprising and moving as it was back then, and leave that title behind as a form of entertainment to be handed down for the next two decades to come,” Hamaguchi said. He went on to cite Disney’s Beauty and the Beast remake, saying how “insightful” it was to see the creators give homage to the original while treading lightly in its own take on the film.
Some criticism about the remake
The gaming community has been waiting for a long time for Final Fantasy 7 Remake as it’s the entry that brought the series through the stratosphere. This is why the aforementioned figure isn’t surprising for some.
What’s more, since newcomers can play the game without the need to familiarize themselves with the 1997 version, they can easily jump in with no friction whatsoever. Add the engaging combat, an immersive storyline, sprawling cyberpunk world, relatable characters, and satisfying boss battles, and you have yourself a winning formula.
Of course, there’s still some criticism that can be thrown on the remake’s feet. One that easily comes to mind game is camera angles. Specifically, camera angles during combat.
You constantly need to reorient the screen to get a better view of what’s unfolding that breaks the flow of the experience. To somewhat remedy this, you might want to adjust the camera to zoom out when combat is taking place. This will allow you to see what the enemies are preparing to do, giving you enough time to prepare your own counters.
Photo Courtesy of PlayStation/YouTube Screenshots