Final Fantasy VII Review – PSN Store

Yes, this game is now 12 years old, a decade younger than myself. Yet with it’s recent port on to the PSN store, and the ability to play it on my Final Fantasy VII PSP is great for me. I will try and make this review as unbiased as I can, but I’m making no guarantees.

Story

The story starts off with you being Cloud, an ex First Class SOLDIER *cough* with some sevre memory and head problems. Eventually the plot to take down an evil company along with a bunch of misfits, turns in to an epic task to save the planet. Aerith’s death scene is very memorable to any gamer, and was a shocking and saddening moment when first seen. The story starts a mite slow, but advances quickly and starts getting complex. Getting the two secret characters helps to add to more story plot, as does finding out all about Zack (which is all optional by the way).

Gameplay

Being the first Final Fantasy game, and indeed first RPG I’d played, this may be where bias plays in. The ATB system was used in this game for battles, and worked very well. The Limit system would lay the ground work for greater improvements, such as in Final Fantasy X, where one could change how Limits were built up, rather than just by being hit. The world map wandering is good in either landscape or top-down view.

Graphics

Reviewing this 12 years down the line means that the graphics take a serious knock. Back then, it was all state-of-the-art, “more real than real” stuff, yet now they’re blocky, things are slightly off. I’m adding a score in brackets for this one for if I had reviewed it 12 years ago, but at my current intelligence.

Soundtrack

The music however remains undeterred by a gap of more than ten years. I still listen to it these days and enjoy the memories it brings forth.

Replayability

Hmmm…this is difficult. On the one hand, I could play this endlessly. On the other hand, I have already played this enough to get all I ever could out of it. Yet I come back and play it each time. This wouldn’t be the same for everyone though. If you haven’t done ALL the optional stuff, replay it and get it. If you have, replay it for fun. See what happens when the train crashes, or play along with Don Corneo. You can’t not replay it.

Story: 8/10
Gameplay: 8/10
Graphics: 6.2 (8)/10
Soundtrack: 8.3/10
Replayability: 7.4/10

74.80% (79.40%)

• 0 – 19% Unplayable - why the hell did I even buy this?
• 20 – 49% Poor – Certain elements of the game hold it back
• 50 – 69% Average – More good than bad, but you might need to be a fan to really get in to it.
• 70 – 84% Good – A nice franchise or single game, that just misses out on being great because of a few flaws.
• 85 – 89% Excellent – You could play this for ages and be happy
• 90 – 100% Fucking Excellent – You should have this game and play it every single day.

Want me to review a game? Comment and let me know and I’ll see what I can do.