Icicle Inn, Open Area (SNOW)

The village is called “Icicle Inn” in the English game but its Japanese name, アイシクルロッジ, can be translated to “Icicle Lodge”.

Dodging Elena’s punch in the final game is a reflex-based affair where you are given about one second to press any of the three given directional buttons. Originally this was a dialogue option. In other words the event was not based on reflexes.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Wa…wait!	「まっ、まて！
☞ Get out of the way	☞ よける
☞ Stay put	☞ じっとしている

Elena	イリーナ
“Eyaaaah!”	「キャー！」

Elena comically rolls away from the force of her own punch when Cloud dodges it, but without an exclamation from her side in the used script.

“Ele…Elena!?”

「イッ、イリーナさん！？」

“Who–a!!”

「うわーっ！！」

The soldiers refer to Elena with さん (san). I’m sure most of the people reading this are aware of the difficulty of trying to translate these honorific suffixes over to English. It is like “Ms. Elena!?”, but I don’t think it sounds as natural to use Mr. and Ms. as frequently in English, as さん is used in Japanese.

---

Glacier Landing Spots (HYOU1-3 & HYOU7)

^{HYOU1 ————— HYOU2 ————— HYOU3 ————— HYOU7}

Depending on the turns you make during the Snowboarding minigame you will land on a different location. The areas and the snowboarding turns correspond as follows:
HYOU1 ► Left – Right
HYOU2 ► Left – Left
HYOU3 ► Right – Right
HYOU7 ► Right – Left

In each of these four areas, Aeris has two famous unused lines. The first line is triggered every time, but the second depends on your choice of party members. As long as Tifa is not present, Aeris will be the one to mention the glacier map if she is in your party.

Red XIII’s equivalent line is completely left out of the scene’s programming. This could be a mistake or the event planner recognized that with the ladder system used for party member dialogue, the script of the lowest standing member would be left out anyway. When there is always a party member of higher priority, the line of least priority becomes unused, like we’ve seen earlier in this article series.

{Aeris}	AERITH
“I’m sick of this.”	「も～、イヤ」

Aeris tends to speak in a *very* casual, playful way in the Japanese version. Using slang or slang-like terms like “this sucks” and such would be a good approximation of how she phrases things (in this case displeasure). Whereas Tifa might be more likely to say something like “This is the worst” or “I hate this”.

Intermediate line by Cloud happens here, with slight variations depending on where you land.

{Aeris}	AERITH	Aeris:
“Hey.	「ねえねえ。	Hey, hey.
Let’s take a look at the map.	□ボタンで地図、見ようよ」	Come on, let’s look at the map with □.
Press [SWITCH].”

{Red XIII}	RED XIII	Red XIII:
“All right, let’s look at the map.	「よし、地図を見よう。	All right then, let’s take a look at the map.
We use [SWITCH], right?”	□ボタンで広げるんでしょ？」	We use □, right?

Red uses more formal language than Aeris with でしょ, as well as Aeris’ use of よ again gives her a much more casual feel in her dialogue than the way Red speaks. I tried to make Red sound a bit more formal, but it is difficult to translate the subtleties of formal and informal Japanese to English.

Here, the unused text of Aeris holds a spot in FFVII history as one of the first hidden pieces to be unlocked and as fuel for the speculation that a resurrection plot was planned for Aeris. The FF7Citadel article, Secrets & Mysteries: What We Shouldn’t Have Seen, stands as a nostalgic reminder of the fascination players felt at this mystery.

It is my conviction that Aeris’s presence in the Great Glacier is there for the same reason that Cid has lines in Nibelheim when he is not supposed to (see Part 7: Gongaga to Wutai); it’s an oversight because the event planners were not always aware of the progression through areas in the plot.

The Great Glacier was handled by event planner Kazuhiko Yoshioka. All these fields have his signature printed in the code and all of these fields hold Aeris’s field model in them. However, from the base of Gaea’s Cliff and onwards to the Whirlwind Maze, Aeris’s model is nowhere to be seen. Coincidentally, Kazuhiko Yoshioka was not responsible for any of these subsequent areas. It is my conclusion that this event planner was unaware of the Great Glacier only being available after the death of Aeris.

---

Holzoff’s Cabin, Living Room (HOLU_1)

Trivia: The Holzoff scenario can be triggered at any time. If the scenario is skipped, you can even trigger it on disc 3. The scene with the party members freezing outside the cabin will happen even though it does not fit with the story’s progression.

When meeting the old man, he tells his story and gives you a tutorial on how to climb the cliff.

“You must’ve used a lot of	「ここに来るまで、かなり体力を
energy getting up here…	使ったんじゃないのかい？
Better get some rest before you head out.”	少し休んでから出発しなさい」

The final game forces the party to rest at this point. The unused text shows us that the player was to be given a choice on the matter.

“Want to get some rest?”	「ひと休みしますか？」	Will you take a short rest?
☞ Rest	☞ 休む	☞ Rest
☞ Don’t rest	☞ 休まない	☞ Don’t rest

A mistake by the programmer makes it so that selecting “Rest” will in fact not heal your party. Only by selecting “Don’t rest” will the party have its HP & MP restored, accompanied with the ‘Good Night’ tune.

---

Gaea’s Cliff, First (GAIA_1)

Received “Protection Ring”!

『守りの指輪』を手にいれた！

This item only appears written in battles and menus in the final game, where it is called “Protect Ring”. Instead of finding the ring in GAIA_1, it is an item that later inside the cliff can be stolen from the boss enemy Schizo’s right head. Protect Ring automatically sets up Barrier & MBarrier. The Mover enemies in the Northern Crater on disc 3 can be morphed into this accessory.

---

Gaea’s Cliff, Interior (GAIIN_1)

“You can not take on any more Materia.	「これいじょうマテリアは持てません。	You can not hold any more Materia.
Please discard some materia.”	なにかマテリアをすててください」	Please throw some materia away.

No materia can be found in this field, meaning that the unused entry lacks context for use.

---

Gaea’s Cliff, Second (GAIA_2)

Received “Enhance Sword”!

『エンハンスソード』を手にいれた！

The weapon was moved to a treasure chest in GAIIN_4 in the final game.

---

Gaea’s Cliff, Third (GAIA_31)

Received “Fire Armlet”!

『烈火の腕輪』を手にいれた！

Received “Elixir”!

『エリクサー』を手にいれた！

Yet two more items that were moved to other locations.

^{GAIIN_3 and GAIIN_5}

---

Whirlwind Maze, Neo Bahamut Area (TRNAD_2)

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Rufus is coming here, too?”	「ルーファウスも
	ここに来るのか？」

When the scene with the Shinra crew on the Highwind ends and the player is teleported back to Cloud, the game checks the ID of the last field you visited. If the field ID was 68 (FSHIP_2), Cloud’s line above is triggered. However, the actual ID of the Highwind field you just visited is 69 (FSHIP_22); a very straightforward error that is easily fixed with the right modding tools.

Bonus: FSHIP_22 contains an invisible Reno model. Set the model to visible and Rude won’t have to be without his partner.

---

Tornado 3 (TRNAD_3)

Location Name

Whirlwind Maze

竜巻の迷宮

Tornado Labyrinth

Honestly maze and labyrinth are interchangable, I only wrote labyrinth to show an alternate possibility.

Inside Whirlwind Maze	クラウド	Cloud
	「竜巻の内部３」	Inside the Tornado 3

Making no sense as a line by Cloud, this is surely a debugger’s note. Another one like it follows in WOA_2.

---

Whirlwind Wall, Second (WOA_2)

クラウド	Cloud
「大気の壁２」	Atmospheric Wall 2

---

Whirlwind Maze, Jenova Battle Field (TRNAD_4)

Pinning down the exact moments where the unused entries of TRNAD_4 belong is impossible because the text entries are very shuffled. We can still make some good guesses.

First a scene recap: Cloud & party spot Sephiroth, who cuts down two black cloaks. Sephiroth says “This is the end of this body’s usefulness“, then disappears. The party stays alert and Cloud starts hearing a voice inside his head, which tells him things like “Our purpose is to deliver the Black Materia to our master“. Sephiroth then descends on the party, temporarily knocking them down. Cloud rises and battle against Jenova*DEATH begins.

“What I wanted was a body.	「……欲しかったのは身体	…I wanted a body
A seeing, hearing, moving body.	見、聞き、話し、移動する肉体。	A seeing, hearing, speaking, moving body.
Soon it will be…over.”	まもなく……終わる」	Soon… it will be over.

Two different words are used for body, 身体 and 肉体, meaning a physical body and a fleshy body, respectively. Adding ‘physical’ or ‘fleshy’ into the English script isn’t necessary to convey the meaning in English however, and simply ‘body’ is fine for conversational English.

The body he is referring to must be Jenova, which is what Sephiroth used to project his will and himself all this way from Shinra HQ back on disc 1.

“Hmph…	「……フッ	…Heh
Heh, heh…”	フフッ……」	Heh, heh…

A defining trait of the text entries that represent the voice in Cloud’s mind is that there are no quotation marks. These two lines have quotation marks which mean that it was intended for Sephiroth, maybe for an extended scene before our silver-haired villain disappears or as an unsettling laugh when he is nowhere to be seen.

Those who carry Jenova’s cells…

ジェノバ細胞を持つ者たち……

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Jenova’s cells…”	「ジェノバ細胞……」

Cloud’s unused line repeats what the voice inside his head just uttered. Another possible context is that Cloud was meant to say this right after the battle against Jenova*DEATH, like he does in the final game in TRNAD_1.

The voice, in the English game, gives the impression of being the collective voice of the Sephiroth clones, or a manifestation of the obedience that Cloud is supposed to feel due to the Jenova cells inside him.

“Take this!!”

「くらえ！！」

くらえ（食らえ） literally means ‘eat this!!’, but ‘take this!!’ is just fine to convey the meaning in English. For any instance when Sephiroth swings his sword.

Fits perfectly for when Sephiroth appears out of nowhere and strikes our protagonists. Could also be intended for when he cuts down two black cloaks, shortly after this field map is entered.

Received “Black Materia”!

『黒マテリア』を手にいれた！

In the final game the Black Materia is received in TRNAD_1, which the player jumps to after the Jenova*DEATH battle. No Black Materia model exists in this field.

---

Whirlwind Maze, Black Materia (TRNAD_1)

Location Name

Whirlwind Maze

竜巻の迷宮

Tornado Labyrinth

{Barret}	クラウド	Cloud
““Are {Cloud} and	「竜巻の内部１」	Inside the Tornado 1
the others alright?””

Barret’s used line is copied here in the English game, hiding the fact of it once being a debugger’s note.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Now all we have to do is defeat	「あとはセフィロスを	Now, if we defeat Sephiroth,
Sephiroth and that’ll be the end of it.”	倒せばすべてを	we can end all of this…
	終わらせることができるんだ……」

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“I’m going to face Sephiroth.”	「セフィロスに会いにいく」	I’m going to go meet Sephiroth.

Writing ‘face Sephiroth’ may in fact be better, as that implies a confrontation more than ‘meet’. I only wrote ‘meet’ as that is the literal translation of the word 会い. 会いにいくis used in perfectly normal, non-confrontational situations as well.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Sephiroth is inside.”	「セフィロスは、この奥にいるんだ」

The above lines when coupled with the used script doesn’t add or take away anything.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Don’t give it to ANYONE.	「誰にも渡さないでくれ。	Don’t give it to anyone.
I’m counting on you.”	たのんだぞ」	I’m counting on you.

There isn’t a way to write all caps in Japanese like ‘ANYONE’, although that is just fine in order to emphasize the urgency of the situation.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Hold on to this…	「これを持っていてくれ。	Hold on to this.
I don’t trust myself.”	俺は……自信がない」	I… don’t have the confidence.

Two differently worded lines but with the same narrative purpose.

{Vincent}	VINCENT
“So it wasn’t Sephiroth…?”	「セフィロスではなかったのか…？」

[Talk-to line if Vincent was in your party]

{Vincent}	VINCENT
“You mean…	「私たちが追ってきたのは
we weren’t in pursuit of Sephiroth?”	セフィロスではなかったのか…？」

Vincent’s used line is an extended version of his unused text entry.

{Red XIII}	RED XIII	Red XIII:
““Everyone!!””	「み、みんなっ！！」	E, everyone!!

Superfluous line for the scenario when Red XIII was selected to carry the Black Materia and he finds his team mates disappearing.

---

Nibelheim Gate, Illusion (NIVGATE)

When Tifa reassures Cloud that there is nothing to worry about, the screen goes white. It is for this context that the line below was intended.

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Ha, ha, ha, ha!”	「クハハハハ！」	Ku ha ha ha ha!

After three more used text entries the player is transported to the sight of Nibelheim burning (NIVL_B1).

Bonus: A hidden Sephiroth model, where he is holding the Masamune, exists here. Its default position is very close to the camera, with only the upper half visible. Sephiroth is constantly laughing which perfectly accompanies his unused laughter line.

Placing the model closer to the coordinates of our protagonists shows that Sephiroth is indeed enlarged. Well, some of his polygons are enlarged while others remain normal size. His feet, torso and lower back hair polygon have not been enlarged. In the PC version, for whatever reason, there is no disparity between Sephiroth’s polygons and instead everything has been properly increased in size.

---

Beta-Version of “You’re Just a Clone” Scene (NIVL_B2)

We are familiar with NIVL_B2 from the Nibelheim flashback told when Cloud and party stayed at the Kalm inn. It was here that Cloud watched Sephiroth cut down two villagers. The field is never used again.

When the events at the Whirlwind Maze take place, the field you are actually transported to is NIVL_B22, a field identical in appearance to NIVL_B2. It is in NIVL_B22 that Cloud’s faith in both himself and Tifa is tested by Sephiroth’s claims that Cloud was not in Nibelheim five years prior.

If you look at the English text entries for NIVL_B2, you will find that it contains duplicate text for the NIVL_B22 scene. Not much of interest to be found in other words. Reading the Japanese text files on the other hand reveals that NIVL_B2 contains an early, text-only version of this disc 2 event. This provides another interesting study in the subtle changes that were made to the game script during development.

Some text entries are identical when comparing NIVL_B2 and NIVL_B22. In those cases, a bullet (•) is placed adjacent to the text table. All the used text entries are from NIVL_B22 and are placed here to compare with the NIVL_B2 draft.

•

{Barret}	BARRET
“Hey, you alright!?”	「おい、だいじょうぶか！！」

BARRET	Barret:
「……って、これは幻だったな」	So, this was an illusion.

{Barret}	BARRET	Barret:
“Damn! This was an illusion.”	「クソッ！　これは幻だったな」	Damn! This was an illusion.

The first line comes off as calmer than the second line, due to the angry usage of クソ.

•

{Red XIII}	RED XIII	Red XIII:
“You all right!?”	「だ、だいじょうぶか！！」	Y, you all right?!

I’ve noticed Red XIII stutters in several incidences in the Japanese text, but this doesn’t seem to have been translated over to the English in most cases.

RED XIII	Red XIII:
「あ、幻だった……」	Ah, it was an illusion…

{Red XIII}	RED XIII	Red XIII:
“We were in an illusion…”	「あ、幻想の中だった……」	Ah, we were inside an illusion…

CAIT SITH	Cait Sith:
「だいじょうぶですか？」	Everyone OK?

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH
“Everyone OK!?”	「だいじょうぶですか！？」

Exclamation point was added.

CAIT SITH	Cait Sith:
「あ……これ、幻でしたな」	Ah… so, this was an illusion.

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH	Cait Sith:
“Umm…this was a hallucination.”	「あ……これ、幻やったんやね」	Ah… so, this was an illusion.

The used and unused lines have the exact same meaning in English, except the unused line is in the standard (Tokyo) Japanese dialect, whereas the second line is in Kansai dialect.

At some points in the game, and consistently in the Compilation, Cait Sith’s Kansai dialect is translated into a Scottish accent.

•

{Yuffie}	YUFFIE
“He…hey, you!	「お、おい、アンタ！
You alright!?”	だいじょ～ぶかよ！？」

YUFFIE	Yuffie:
「あ、幻かぁ！	Ah, an illusion!
趣味悪いよね、セフィロスは」	Sephiroth’s got bad taste…

{Yuffie}	YUFFIE	Yuffie:
“Oh, a dream!	「あ、マボロシかぁ！	Ah, an illusion!
But it felt so real…”	でも、ちょっと生々しいなぁ」	But, it felt so real…

The above line, ‘ah, an illusion’, is the same between versions, except that 幻 (illusion) is written in kanji in the unused version, and katakana in the used version. When a Japanese word that is normally written in kanji, is instead written in katakana, this is usually done to give it more emphasis. It might be similar to writing an English word in all caps, bolded, or italicized. So Yuffie is giving more emphasis in her stating ‘ an illusion’ in the used version of the text.

•

{Vincent}	VINCENT
“Are you all right?”	「……だいじょうぶか？」

VINCENT
「フム……幻だったな」

{Vincent}	VINCENT
“Hmm…it was an illusion.”	「フム……幻想だったな」

The word for ‘illusion’ being used between the unused and used text is actually different, being 幻（まぼろし） for the unused text and 幻想（げんそう） for the used text. Both of these words translate to ‘illusion’ in English and are very similar in meaning. I think 幻想 has a slightly deeper nuance though, the image of a fantasy world, something more elaborate and complicated than the simple flash of a phantom that 幻 could also mean. Sephiroth’s elaborate Nibelheim illusion sequence would indeed I think be better described by 幻想, which is probably why they decided to change the word they used in the final version.

•

{Cid}	CID
“He…hey you!	「お、おい、おまえ！
You alright!?”	だいじょうぶかよっ！」

CID	{Cid}
「いけね！	Damn!
こりゃ全部、幻だったな」	This was all an illusion.

{Cid}	CID
“Damn!	「いけね！
This was all made up.”	こりゃ全部、つくりもんだったな」

いけね more directly has a meaning like “this is no good” and “we’ve been fooled!”, but those sound a bit unnatural for Cid to shout in English, and I think a simple “Damn!” is more than reasonable for him given the situation.

CLOUD	Cloud:
「セフィロス！　聞こえてるんだろ！	Sephiroth! I know you’re listening!
おまえが言いたいことはわかった」	I know what you want to say!

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Sephiroth! I know you’re listening!	「セフィロス！　聞こえてるんだろ！
I know what you want to say!”	おまえが言いたいことはわかった！」

The only difference here is that the draft lacks an exclamation point at the end.

CLOUD	Cloud:
「５年前、ニブルヘイム。	That I didn’t exist, in Nibelheim five
俺は存在しなかった」	years ago.
「そう言いたいんだな？」	That’s what you want to say, right?

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“That I wasn’t in Nibelheim five	「５年前、ニブルヘイム。
years ago.”	そこに俺はいなかった」
“That’s it, isn’t it?”	「おまえが言いたいのは
	そういうことなんだろ？」

Comments: This is actually a bit interesting. The difference between the texts, is that in the unused version 存在しなかった is used instead of simply いなかった. いなかった means “was not there/here”, implying a mere absence, but one still may be somewhere else. 存在しなかった can also simply mean “was not here”, but it has a stronger feeling to it, literally meaning “did not exist”. It implies that not only was Cloud not present in Nibelheim five years ago, but he wasn’t *anywhere* five years ago, as he simply did not exist yet. In short, although the two sentences can be somewhat used interchangeably, the unused version I feel has an even more dramatic punch to it than the used text.

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“I see you finally understand.”	「理解してもらえたようだな」	I’ve finally gotten you to understand.

CLOUD	Cloud:
「……無意味だ、セフィロス」	…That’s nonsense, Sephiroth.
「なぜなら俺は覚えている。	Because, I remember.
この炎の熱さをな！」	The heat of the fire!

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“What you are trying to say is	「おまえが言いたいことはな。
that you want to confuse me, right?”	俺を混乱させたいんだろう？」
“But…even making me see those	「しかし……
things won’t affect me.”	こんなものを見せられても
	俺はなんとも思わない」
“I remember it all.	「なぜなら俺は覚えている。
The heat of the fire…the pain	この炎の熱さを……
in my body…and in my heart!”	身体の……心の痛みを！」

Here, too, the amount of text was increased for the final game.

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「さて、それはどうかな？	Oh, is that so?
おまえの記憶はつくりものだからな」	Your memories are fabricated.
「これが真実の過去。	This is the true past.
真実の中にはおまえなどはいない」	In reality, you were not here.
「おまえが自分の記憶だと	All that you think you
思っているものこそ	remember is merely
すべて幻想なのだ」	an illusion.

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Oh, is that so?”	「さて、それはどうかな？」	Oh, is that so?
“You are just a puppet…	「おまえは人形……	You are just a puppet…
You have no heart…and cannot	心など持たない……	You have no heart…and cannot
feel any pain…”	痛みなど感じない……」	feel any pain…
“How can there be any meaning in the	「そんなおまえの記憶に	What kind of meaning could there be
memory of such a being?”	どれほどの意味がある？」	in the memories of a being like you?
“What I have shown you is reality.	「私が見せた世界が真実の過去。	The world I have shown you is the real past.
What you remember,	幻想をつくりだしたのは……おまえだ」	The one who created the illusion……is you.
that is the illusion.”

The draft lacks the mention of Cloud being a heartless puppet.

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“…Do you understand?”	「……理解できたかな？」

•

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“I don’t want to understand.”	「理解する気なんかない」

•

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“But, I want to ask you one thing.	「が、ひとつ聞きたい。
Why…why are you doing this?”	なぜ……こんなことをする？」

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「クックックッ……	Ha, ha, ha…
おまえは役に立ったからな。	Because you were useful to me.
特別に真実を教えてやるのだ」	I’ll do you a favor and tell you the truth.

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“Ha, ha, ha…”	「クックックッ……」
“I want to take you back to your	「おまえには本来の自分を
real self.”	取りもどしてもらいたいのだ」
“The one who gave me the Black Materia	「そしていつかそうしたように
that day…”	黒マテリアを私に……」

The difference in nuance here between the beta and the final script is interesting, as it is easier to conclude in the final text the fact that Sephiroth wants to take control over Cloud again, which is ultimately what Sephiroth achieves from these exchanges with Cloud.

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「失敗作だと思われた	A failed product like you to end up proving
おまえが一番役に立つとは……」	to be the most useful…
「宝条が知ったら	How very upset Hojo would be
悔しがるだろうな」	if he knew.

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Who would have ever thought a	「それにしても失敗作だと思われた	Even so, for a failed product like you to end up
failed experiment would prove	おまえが一番役に立つとは……」	proving to be the most useful…
so useful?”
“Hojo would die if he knew.”	「宝条が知ったら	How very upset Hojo would be
	悔しがるだろうな」	if he knew.

失敗作 just means a failure, or a failed product. However, due to the fact it is the discussion of a failed scientific endeavour, ‘failed experiment’ is just fine.

•

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Hojo!?	「宝条！？
What does he have to do with me!?”	俺と何の関係がある！」

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「おまえは５年前……この事件の後	5 years ago… after the incident here,
宝条によって……創り出されたのだ」	you were constructed by Hojo.

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Five years ago you were…”	「おまえは……	You were…
	そう、５年前だ」	Yes, 5 years ago.
“…constructed by Hojo, piece by piece,	「ニブルヘイムが炎につつまれた	Right after Nibelheim was burnt down,
right after Nibelheim was burnt.”	その後に宝条の手で	Hojo constructed you by hand.
	創り出されたのだ」
“A puppet made up of vibrant	「ジェノバ細胞の	A puppet built out of the unbelievable
Jenova cells, her knowledge,	おどろくべき生命力、能力と	life force and knowledge of Jenova’s
and the power of the Mako.”	魔晄の力が創り出した人形」	cells, and the power of Mako.
“An incomplete Sephiroth-clone.	「セフィロス・コピー・インコンプリート。	An incomplete Sephiroth copy.
Not even given a number.	ナンバリング無し。	No number.
…That is your reality.”	それがおまえの真実」	This is your truth.

The final text is a lot more in-depth about what Cloud is supposed to be. Definitely a great improvement.

In the final game this is when you gain free mobility again. You speak to Tifa to make the scene move on, but you can also approach Sephiroth.

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“Ha, ha, ha…”	「クックックッ……」

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「クックックッ……	Ha, ha, ha…
TIFAが話したがっているようだ」	It seems that Tifa wishes to speak with you.

TIFA	Tifa:
「CLOUD……	Cloud…
話、聞いちゃダメ……」	Don’t listen to what he says…

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“{Cloud}…	「CLOUD……	Cloud…
Don’t listen to him…”	相手しちゃだめよ……」	Don’t deal with him…

On the above two lines, ‘Don’t listen to him…’ is just fine, for both the used and unused lines. However, the words used differ slightly in the Japanese between the two. The unused line more literally means ‘don’t listen to what he is saying’, whereas the used line is more like, ‘don’t engage him in conversation’, or ‘refuse to have anything to do with him’. They come out to basically just ‘don’t listen to what he is saying’, but are simply phrased slightly differently.

TIFA	Tifa:
「耳をふさいで！　目を閉じて！」	Please cover your ears! Close your eyes!

{Tifa}	TIFA
“Cover your ears! Close your eyes!”	「耳をふさぐの！　目を閉じるの！」

The used and unused lines are almost identical, with only a very slight nuance of being more commanding in the used line. Ending a sentence in いで and いて is just short for いで下さい and いて下さい, which is closer to asking, or begging, Cloud to not listen to Sephiroth. Tifa might sound more desperate or pleading. In the used line, she is more *telling* him to not listen to Sephiroth, basically ordering him. She ends up coming across a little bit stronger sounding in the used version.

TIFA	Tifa:
「創り出されたなんてウソ」	It’s a lie that you were constructed.
「私たちには	We have those memories of ours
あの思い出があるじゃない？」	together, don’t we?
「子供のころ、星空の下……」	Sitting under the starry sky as kids…

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“All that talk of Hojo	「宝条に創り出された？	Constructed by Hojo?
constructing you is a lie.”	そんなのウソに決まってるわ」	Of course that is just a lie!
“Don’t we have our	「だって、私たちには	Why, we have those memories of ours
memories together?”	あの思い出があるじゃない？」	together, don’t we?
“Being kids together,	「子供のころ、星がきれいな夜……」	Those beautiful starry nights as kids…
starlit nights…”

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“What’s wrong, {Tifa}?	「どうしたんだ、TIFA？	What’s wrong, Tifa?
I’m not affected by it.”	俺は全然気にしてない」	I don’t care about what he’s saying at all.
“…I wasn’t paying attention to him.”	「……というか	…actually,
	途中から聞いていなかった」	I stopped listening to him part way through.

This used line where Cloud assures that he is not affected has no equivalent in the NIVL_B2 draft.

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「クックックッ……TIFAよ」	Ha, ha, ha… Tifa.
「おまえの記憶を再現することも　できるのだが……」	I could recreate your memories too, but…

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Ha, ha, ha…{Tifa}…”	「クックックッ……	Ha, ha, ha… Tifa.
	TIFAよ」
“Why are you so worried	「その言葉とはうらはらに	To the contrary, why are you
and scared by those words?”	おまえは何をおびえている？」	so scared by those words?
“Hmm…Shall I show everyone	「フム……おまえの心を	Hmm… shall I project what’s in your
here what’s in your heart?”	ここにうつし出して見ようか？」	heart here for all to see?

When Sephiroth says ‘to the contrary’, he is basically pointing out to Tifa that although she is saying strong things to Cloud to try and make him feel better, she is secretly scared inside by everything that Sephiroth says, and Sephiroth is quite aware of this. Thus, her inner fears are quite opposite to her outer vocal support.

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“Ha, ha, ha…	「クックックッ……
You don’t look well.”	都合が悪いそうだ」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“…{Tifa}?	「……TIFA？
Is Sephiroth right?”	セフィロスが正しいのか？」

The above is another example of a text entry that has no counterpart in NIVL_B2.

•

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}…”	「CLOUD……」

The next line is locked/unused in both NIVL_B2 and NIVL_B22.

NIVL_B2 Version

CLOUD	Cloud:
「どうしてだ？　TIFA」	Why? Tifa.

NIVL_B22 Version

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“What’s wrong, {Tifa}?”	「どうしたんだ、TIFA？」

CLOUD	Cloud:
「俺はどんなに自分を見失っても	No matter how much I lose sight of myself,
セフィロスの言葉なんて信じない……」	I’ll never believe Sephiroth’s words…

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Why are you so scared?	「何をそんなに恐れているんだ？	What are you so scared about?
Don’t worry about me.	俺のことならだいじょうぶ」	I’m completely fine.
I’m all right.”
“No matter how confused I am,	「俺はどんなに混乱していても	No matter how confused I become,
I’ll never believe a word	セフィロスの言葉なんて信じない」	I’ll never believe Sephiroth’s words.
that Sephiroth says.”

CLOUD	Cloud:
「それは……TIFA。	That’s because… Tifa.
TIFAがいるからだ」	You’re here, Tifa.

CLOUD	Cloud:
「TIFAが俺のことを	Because you’re telling me I’m
幼なじみのCLOUDだと　言ってくれるからなんだ」	your childhood friend, Cloud.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“But, {Tifa}…”	「でも、TIFA」
“You said, ‘Long time no see,	「TIFAは言ってくれただろ？
{Cloud}’ right?”	『CLOUD、ひさしぶりね』って」
“Those words will always	「TIFAのその言葉が
support me.”	いつでも俺をささえてくれる」
“I am the one you grew up with.	「俺はTIFAの幼なじみなんだ。
I’m {Cloud} of Nibelheim.”	俺はニブルヘイムのCLOUDなんだ」
“No matter how much I lose	「どんなに自分がわからなくなっても
faith in myself,	それだけは真実」
that is the truth.”

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“That’s why you shouldn’t be so scared.”	「だからTIFA……
“No matter what anyone else says to me,	そんなにおびえないでくれ」
it’s your opinion that counts…”	「誰のどんな言葉よりも
	TIFAのその態度に俺は……」

CLOUD	Cloud:
「でも……ちがうのか？」	But… is it true?

Cloud questioning Tifa about the truth only exists in the NIVL_B2 draft. Clearly it was removed to keep Cloud’s conviction consistent.

•

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“No, that’s not true, {Cloud}…”	「ち、ちがうの、CLOUD……」	N, not exactly, Cloud…

CLOUD	Cloud:
「何がちがう？	What’s not true?
俺は……誰だ？」	Who… am I?

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“What’s not?	「何がちがうんだ？	What’s not true?
I’m the same {Cloud} you	俺は……TIFAの幼なじみの	I’m… your childhood friend Cloud,
grew up with, aren’t I?”	CLOUDじゃないのか？」	aren’t I?

何がちがう and 何がちがうんだ have nearly identical meanings, and any slight difference in nuance is too small to fret over. The sentence’s phrasing is ever so slightly different, but retains the same meaning.

TIFA	Tifa:
「そういう意味じゃないの！	I didn’t mean it like that!
CLOUD、落ちついて！」	Cloud, calm down!

{Tifa}	TIFA
“That’s not what I mean…	「そういう意味じゃない……
I don’t know how to say it…”	でも、うまく言葉にできない……」
“{Cloud}, I need some time…	「CLOUD、ほんの少しでいいの。
Just give me a little time…”	時間を……時間をちょうだい」

In the draft version Tifa’s emotions are clearly more upset, with Tifa insisting that Cloud calms down. The line is a lot more passive in the final version, with Tifa pleading for more time.

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「CLOUD……	Cloud…
TIFAを責めるな……」	Don’t blame Tifa…

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“{Cloud}…	「CLOUD……
Don’t blame {Tifa}.”	TIFAを責めるな」
	「私が説明してやろう」	I shall explain it for you.

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「おまえの幼い頃……	Your childhood…
そして少年のころの記憶は	and all of your childhood memories
TIFAの記憶から創られた……」	were created from Tifa’s memories…

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“The ability to change one’s looks,	「他人の記憶にあわせて	The ability to change your looks, voice,
voice, and words, is the power	自分の姿、声、言動を	and words, to match another’s
of Jenova.”	変化させるのは	memories, is the power of Jenova.
	ジェノバの能力だ」
“Inside of you, Jenova	「おまえの中のジェノバが	Inside of you, Jenova
has merged with {Tifa}’s	TIFAの記憶にあわせて	has merged with Tifa’s
memories, creating you.”	おまえをつくりだした」	memories, creating you.

Jenova’s influence is not emphasized at all in the draft, just like the unused line from earlier where Sephiroth spoke of Cloud’s creation.

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Out of {Tifa}’s memory…”	「TIFAの記憶に登場する	The boys that appear in
	少年たち……」	Tifa’s memories…

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「それが、CLOUD。	Those, Cloud, are
おまえの少年の日の記憶！」	memories of your youth!

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“A boy named {Cloud} might’ve just	「その中にはCLOUDという名の
been a part of them.”	少年がいたのかもしれないな」

When Sephiroth says that these are visions of Cloud’s youth, the script gets confusing because this could be interpreted as Sephiroth claiming that Cloud did in fact have a childhood. The way that the line is rephrased in the final script helps keep Sephiroth’s lie alive.

TIFA	Tifa:
「CLOUD、しっかりして！	Cloud, get a hold of yourself!
あなたはお母さんから	You know your mother
生まれたんでしょ！」	gave birth to you!
「人を創り出したりできないわ！	You can’t just construct people!
記憶なんて簡単に	You can’t simply take memories
出し入れできるわけないじゃない！」	and put them in someone’s head!
「あなたは少し混乱しているだけ。	You’re just a bit confused.
私があとで説明してあげる」	I’ll explain everything to you later.
「だからおねがい！	So, please!
この幻から出る方法、考えて！」	Think of a way to escape from this illusion!

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}…”	「CLOUD……」
“Please…don’t think right now.”	「今は何も考えないで。
	おねがい……」

For once, the draft is more detailed here. Even so, the lack of an explanation as to how memories are implanted shines with its absence in the beta script.

This is where the continuation diverges a bit when comparing the draft (NIVL_B2) and the final version (NIVL_B22).

セフィロス	Sephiroth:
「ならば、これはどうかな？」	Well, then, what about this?

【写真をとっている】

“Taking a Picture”

The debug note implies a map jump, presumably to the flashback showing when the photo was taken. No trace of this map jump (to the photo event and back to the present) exists in the game code.

Below is the used scene in NIVL_B22, which goes on for a while before it lines up with the NIVL_B2 draft again.

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“Ha, ha, ha…	「クックックッ……
Think, {Cloud}!”	考えろ、CLOUD」
“…{Cloud}?	「……CLOUD？
Ha, ha, ha…Oh, excuse me.	クックックッ……これは失礼。
You never had a name…”	おまえには名前などなかったな」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Shut up…Sephiroth.”	「だまれ……セフィロス」

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“You still don’t understand?	「まだわからないのか？
Then…”	ならば……」

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“Do you remember the picture that we	「村からニブル山へ出発するとき
took before we headed for	写真をとったのを覚えているか？」
Mt. Nibel?”

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“…{Tifa}, you remember, right?”	「……TIFA、覚えているな？」

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“But there is no way	「……CLOUDは……知るはずもないか」	Well… Cloud wouldn’t have any way of knowing, would he?
he would know.”

Now the script of the draft and the finalized scene match up again.

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“Now…what happened to that picture?”	「さて……写真はどうしたかな？」	Now… how did the picture turn out?

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス
“…Is this it?”	「……これか」

•

Sephiroth	セフィロス	Sephiroth:
“…Do you want to see it?	「……見るか？	…Do you see it?
It turned out pretty good.”	なかなか良くとれている」	It came out pretty good.

•

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}…Don’t…”	「CLOUD……だめ……」

CLOUD	Cloud:
「俺は自分の記憶を信じるよ」	I trust my own memories.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“I…should be in the picture.”	「俺は……写っているはずだ」
“Even if I’m not in there, no worry.	「もし、写っていなくても心配ない。
This is just an illusory world	ここはセフィロスが創り出した
Sephiroth made up.”	幻想の世界」

•

【写真です】

“The Picture”

The game jumps to NIVL_E3, which is a field entirely devoted to the photo. Quickly you are brought back to the burning Nibelheim.

CLOUD	Cloud:
「……ウソだろ？」	…It’s a lie, isn’t it?

CLOUD	Cloud:
「ウソだ！　こんなのウソだ！！」	You’re lying! It’s a lie!!
「５年前、俺はソルジャーになって	5 years ago, I became a SOLDIER and
初めてニブルヘイムに帰った」	returned home to Nibelheim for the first time.

Cloud loses a lot more composure, much quicker, in the draft compared to the final script.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“…Just as I thought.”	「……やっぱりな」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“This picture’s a fake.	「この写真はニセものなんだ。
The truth is in my memory.”	真実は俺の記憶の中にある」
“…Five years ago, I came back to Nibelheim,	「……５年前、俺はニブルヘイムに帰った。
to inspect the reactor.	魔晄炉調査が任務だった。
I was sixteen.”	１６歳だった」
“The town hadn’t changed at all.	「村は全然変わっていなかった。
What did I do? Oh yeah…”	俺は何をした？　そうだ……」

In the final game this is where Cloud will list the various errands he went on in Nibelheim, depending on what the player decided to do in that flashback. Those text entries have no equivalent in the scene draft found in NIVL_B2.

The two used lines that follow, which trigger no matter what the player chose to do in the flashback, also do not exist in NIVL_B2.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“I spent the night and went	「一泊してからニブル山の魔晄炉へ行った。
to the reactor in Mt. Nibel.	俺ははりきっていた」
I was excited about it.”

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Because that was my first	「なぜなら、その任務は
mission after becoming First Class	ソルジャー・クラス１ＳＴになって
in SOLDIER.”	初めての仕事で……」

「ソルジャーに……なって？」

Becoming… a SOLDIER?

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“…SOLDIER, First Class?”	「……ソルジャー・クラス１ＳＴ？」

「ソルジャー？	SOLDIER?
俺はいつソルジャーになったんだ？」	When did I become a SOLDIER?

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“…SOLDIER?	「……ソルジャー？	…SOLDIER?
When did I enter SOLDIER?”	俺はいつソルジャーになったんだ？」	When did I become a SOLDIER?

•

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“Stop, {Cloud}!!”	「やめて、CLOUD！！」	Stop it, Cloud!!

•

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“How did I join SOLDIER?”	「ソルジャーって	How did I become
	どうやってなるんだ？」	a SOLDIER?

•

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Why…why can’t I remember?”	「なぜ……思い出せない？」	Why…can’t I remember?

Here the unused text in NIVL_B2 ends. To refresh the reader’s memory of how the finalized scene ends, here are the last used text entries.

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“I’m…I’m…”	「俺は……俺は……」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“That’s right…”	「そうか……」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“…I didn’t have to worry about it,	「……悩むことはなかったな
because I was…”	なぜなら俺は……」

{Tifa}	TIFA
“…{Cloud}?”	「……CLOUD？」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Let’s go, {Tifa}.	「行こう、TIFA。
I’m…I’m all right.”	俺は……だいじょうぶだ」

Let us mosey away from this beta scene.

---

The Final Version’s Unused Stuff (NIVL_B22)

We are familiar with the unused lines from NIVL_B22 due to the previous analysis, but to keep things ordered I list them here in their own section.

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}…”	「CLOUD……」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“What’s wrong, {Tifa}?”	「どうしたんだ、TIFA？」

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Why are you so scared?	「何をそんなに恐れているんだ？	What are you so scared of?
Don’t worry about me.	俺のことならだいじょうぶ」	There’s nothing wrong with me at all.

{Cloud}	【写真です】	“The Picture”
“…Just as I thought.”

The English text entry copies the used text, yet again disguising a map jump note.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“…SOLDIER?	「……ソルジャー？	…SOLDIER?
When did I enter SOLDIER?”	俺はいつソルジャーになったんだ？」	When did I become a SOLDIER?

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“Stop, {Cloud}!!”	「やめて、CLOUD！！」	Stop it, Cloud!!

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“How did I join SOLDIER?”	「ソルジャーって	How did I become a SOLDIER?
	どうやってなるんだ？」

During Cloud’s breakdown, Tifa stays silent here in the final game.

---

Photo (NIVL_E3)

Location Name

Nibelheim

ニブルヘイム

---

Unused Scene (WOA_3)

The requirement for this scene is that the last field you visited was NIVL_B22. It is clear as day then that after the NIVL_B22 scene, where Cloud realizes he was never in SOLDIER, you were to be transported here.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Hmm…I see,”	「……なるほど」	…I understand now.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Guess I shouldn’t have	「悩むことなんかなかったな」	There wasn’t anything to worry about after all.
worried about it.”

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“Sure, OK.”	「そ、そうよね」	Y, yeah, that’s right.

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“I think I overdid it a little, too.”	「私もちょっと	I guess I freaked out a bit too much
	大騒ぎしすぎちゃった」	as well.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“{Tifa}, you’ll be alright now.”	「TIFA、もうだいじょうぶだ」	Tifa, everything’s okay now.

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“Really?”	「ほ、ほんと？」	R, really?

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Yeah, sorry I made you worry.	「ああ、心配かけたな。	Yeah, sorry to have worried you.
I solved the mystery.”	謎は解けた」	I figured it all out.

{Tifa}	TIFA	Tifa:
“What…do you mean?”	「ど、どういうことなの？」	W, what do you mean?

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“I’ll explain it to you later.	「説明はあとだ。	I’ll explain later.
I need to do something now.”	今はやらなくちゃならないことがある」	There’s something I have to do now.

Previously, when you ran towards the end of this field, you were transferred to NIVGATE. Now that the game remembers that this happened, the border responsible for the NIVGATE teleportation is now cancelled. It is now possible to run a bit further up, where you will now cross a border that takes you to TRNAD_51.

---

Inside Northern Cave, First (TRNAD_51)

Location Name

Inside Northern Cave

大空洞

Great Crater

	北の大空洞５～１です。	Great North Cave 5~1.
	バトルロックしています。	Battle lock enabled.
NOJIMA	ＮＯＪＩＭＡ	NOJIMA

Accordingly, Kazushige Nojima is the field author of TRNAD_51, TRNAD_52 and TRNAD_53.

The unused text that follows complement the used text, but don’t tell us anything new or interesting hence why I keep commentary to a minimum. Extra space between tables indicate that intermediate, used game script happens.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“This is where the Reunion is happening.	「ここはリユニオンの最終地点。	This is the final destination of the Reunion.
Where everything begins and ends.”	すべてが終わり、また始まる場所」	The place where everything ends, and then begins anew.

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}?”	「CLOUD……？」

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Thanks.	「ありがとう。	Thank you.
Leave the rest to me.”	あとは俺が…………{PAUSE}やります」	Please… leave the rest to me.

Although ‘please’ isn’t actually written in the Japanese, Cloud’s speaking suddenly switches to the polite form of Japanese, which is a bit strange and startling given the circumstances. He had been speaking casually up to this point, and suddenly speaking in a formal way has the impact that something has changed inside of his mind. He is speaking like a different person. I’m not sure how this would be properly portrayed in English, but adding in very polite words such as ‘please’, ‘thank you’, and other such proper terms are the best I can think of (as opposed to the more casual ‘thanks’).

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Sorry to make you worry,	「心配かけたけど	I’m very sorry to have worried you.
but I’m all right now.”	もうだいじょうぶです」	Everything is all right now.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“I’ll make sure that the	「黒マテリアは俺がちゃんと	I’ll make certain that the
Black Materia is delivered.”	とどけますから」	Black Materia is delivered.

Strife Delivery Service always gets the job done. In the final version, Cloud doesn’t openly say that he is there to deliver the Black Materia. In the unused text he says this twice.

{Tifa}	TIFA
“{Cloud}!!”	「CLOUD！！」

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Professor Hojo…”	「宝条博士……」

Hojo	宝条
“Ha,ha,ha…	「クックックッ……
this is perfect!!!”	素晴らしい……」
“It means that my experiment was	「私の実験がパーフェクトに
a complete success.”	成功したわけだな」

Hojo	宝条
“What number were you?	「おまえ、ナンバーはいくつだ？
Huh? Where is your tattoo?”	ん？　イレズミはどこだ？」

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Professor Hojo…	「宝条博士……	Professor Hojo…
I don’t have a number.”	俺、ナンバー、ありません」	I don’t have a number.
“You didn’t give me one because you said	「俺、失敗作だから博士が	You didn’t give me one because you
I was a failed experiment.”	ナンバーをくれませんでした」	said I was a failed product.

Hojo	宝条	Hojo:
“What?”	「なんだと！？」	What!?

Hojo	宝条
“What the–?	「なんということだ……
You mean only a failure	失敗作だけがここまで
made it here?”	たどりついたというのか……」

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“I didn’t know the ‘Reunion’ already started.”	「リユニオンが始まってること	I didn’t know this whole time that
	俺、ずっと知りませんでした」	the Reunion had already started.
“But, here I am.	「でも、ここまで来たんです。	But, I managed to arrive here anyway.
And I brought the Black Materia with me	セフィロスの望みどおりに	I brought the Black Materia with me
Just as Sephiroth wanted.”	黒マテリアも持ってきました」	just as Sephiroth wanted.

Hojo	宝条
“Shut up, miserable failure…”	「だまれ、失敗作め……」

It might be recognized that the line “Shut up, miserable failure” is actually the final line spoken before Cloud flies up towards the materia tree and the player is transported to TRNAD_52. However, I place the line here because this is where it is stacked in the text entry list. The list is otherwise very organized, so the text entry’s placement indicates that it was to be triggered earlier in the scene.

{Cloud}	CLOUD	Cloud:
“Professor…please give me a number.	「博士……ナンバー、ください。	Professor…please give me a number.
Please, Professor…”	俺にもナンバーをください……」	Please give me a number…

{Cloud}	CLOUD
“Won’t you give me one? …Professor?”	「ダメですか……博士？」

Hojo	宝条	Hojo:
“I never dreamed what I thought	「私が成功とみなした個体が失敗……	The ones I thought were a success
was a success…was actually a failure,	失敗と判定したおまえが	turned out to be failures… and the one
and that which I considered a	最も優れていたとは……」	I judged to be a failure was actually my greatest success…
failure was my greatest success…”

Rufus	ルーファウス
“What are you guys talking about?”	「おまえたちは
	何の話をしているのだ？」

Analysing the list of text entries, this is possibly the original timing for Cloud’s transition to the materia tree. Tifa’s line “You can’t hear my voice?” is also placed right after Rufus’s line, despite being used much earlier in the final game. The original timing of events remain in a speculative zone.

{Tifa}	：CLOUD・モーション：	:CLOUD – Motion:
“You can’t hear my voice?”	たいじのかっこうから逆さまスタンド	From a fetal position to standing upside down

A debug note acting as a placeholder for an animation where Cloud curls into a fetal position, turns upside down then stands up. The animation was completed, but ironically enough we never get to see it because the screen fades to white when Cloud ascends (immediately followed by a jump to TRNAD_52). Preventing the fade to white allows the animation to be seen, but it may also be viewed in Makou Reactor if you are viewing the PC version.

Click here to watch a gif version of the animation as seen in Makou Reactor

This animation is listed as being made by “tak“, which most likely stands for Takashi Tokita. He has his own debug room and is given ‘Special Thanks‘ in the credits for the Field Section but he is not listed as an actual Event Planner.

But wait, there’s more! Placed right after the command to jump to TRNAD_52 is an unused string of code which is meant to do the following:
– Reset the party setup to Tifa & Barret
– Make Cloud unavailable
– Setting PPV to 999
– Play a movie
– Teleport the player to the Doctor’s office in Junon (where Tifa wakes up)

Triggering this string of code won’t accomplish much though. Because there is no “set next movie: X” command, the game doesn’t know which movie to play and so the game will freeze. We can at least see that this is a remnant from when the events were still being debugged. The reason the game intends to instantly jump to Junon is because in the original Japanese release, the train station flashback scene (MDS7ST33) did not exist. Because this string of unused code is from that development stage, there is no unused jump to the train station.

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Inside Northern Cave, Second (TRNAD_52)

Location Name

大空洞

Great Crater

Same location name as previous field, which was originally translated as “Inside Northern Cave”.

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Unused Northern Cave Field (TRNAD_53)

Location Name

Great Cave

大空洞

Great Crater

Easily accessed via Kazushige Nojima’s debug room, this map is famous for being an early discovery by fans just like Aeris’s presence in the Great Glacier was an early easter egg. The menu is accessible by default so it is easy to check the location name.

In the final game this field is only seen in an FMV format, when Sephiroth’s cocoon descends slightly from the materia tree. TRNAD_53 was probably intended as a transition into that portion of the FMV.

North Cave 5 -3

北の大空洞５～３

Entering the field, you are immediately treated to the message “North Cave 5-3“, while Aeris’s Theme plays in the background. The theme song led many to speculate that Aeris was meant to die in the Northern Crater instead of the Forgotten City, but currently there is nothing else linking Aeris to this spot. My speculation is that it is simply a placeholder theme. Perhaps a sad theme was considered to express the tragedy of Cloud’s psychological downfall, before the atmosphere of doom was picked when the final game ended up using “Those Chosen By The Planet”.

Entering the field without additional modding tools won’t reveal anything else. The player can’t control Cloud, but if control is given it is possible to direct Cloud into the player’s view. The field holds the following unseen models: Cloud, Tifa, Barret, Red XIII, Yuffie, Cait Sith, Vincent, Cid, Rufus, Scarlet and Hojo. The actors are set but there is no play.

When clicking past the “North Cave 5-3” message, the game faces a so-called “Return” command which stops the code from running. Removing the “Return” will trigger the following:
– FMV of Cloud handing over the Black Materia
– Party being reset to Tifa & Barret
– Cloud made unavailable
– PPV set to 999
– FMV of Highwind escaping the crater
– Jump to Doctor’s office in Junon

In other words, this is a slightly more developed version of the unused string of code that we found in TRNAD_51.

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The Original Disc Switch?

At the end of the previous article, I mentioned the fact that earlier in FFVII’s development the game was planned to span two discs, not three. Both an old magazine of GameFan and a hidden text entry from the original Japanese release reflect this notion. I also said that there is reason to speculate that the disc switch was to happen in the Northern Crater, so here goes.

^{Kazushige Nojima’s Debug Room, BLACKBG5}

☞ quit	☞ ：大空洞（やめる）
☞ TRNAD51	☞ ＴＲＮＡＤ５１
☞ TRNAD52	☞ ＴＲＮＡＤ５２
☞ TRNAD53	☞ ＴＲＮＡＤ５３
☞ BLACKBGD	☞ ＢＬＡＣＫＢＧＤ

We are now familiar with the TRNAD series, but what is BLACKBGD doing there? The only purpose of BLACKBGD is to act as a bridge to BLACKBGB, which in turn is responsible for disc switches. The field is responsible for other transitions too; starting and ending the bike chase minigame in Midgar, returning to Cid’s home after a flashback and Cloud waking up in Gongaga after Aeris leaves.

No code is left in BLACKBGB which relates to the TRNAD events or its immediate follow-up in Junon. The two were certainly connected at one point but it remains unknown if this was a disc switch or a normal map jump.

The speculation that the switch to the second disc was to happen in the Northern Crater is thusly one of the weakest ideas presented in this article series. It makes sense though as the fall of Cloud, Sephiroth’s Reunion, the awakening of the Weapons and the summoning of Meteor marks arguably the biggest turning point in the entire story.

FFVII’s cinematic aspects, its FMVs, was a central part of the vision behind the game, hence why they are allowed to take up so much disc space. More than half of the space in each separate disc is devoted to the game’s movies. It is not farfetched to think that the growth of the cinematic vision is what extended the game from two to three discs in the first place.

In the scenario that the disc switch was moved backwards from the Northern Crater to the Forgotten City, one can easily see the advantage here as the crater FMVs did not have to be squeezed into the first disc.

Weak theory aside, at least it raises interesting thoughts about the development of Final Fantasy VII.

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Doctor’s Office, Junon (JUNBIN3)

In the final game Tifa can only wake up in the doctor’s office with Barret in the room. The Japanese game, both the first and second release, has placeholder lines for all other potential party members though.

{Barret}	BARRET	Barret:
“Are you gonna ask?”	「なあ、どうして聞かないんだ？」	Hey, why don’t you ask?

CID

「」

RED XIII

「」

CAIT SITH

「」

ヴィンセント	Vincent:
「」	“”

YUFFIE

「」

Vincent’s name is hard-coded, meaning that no matter what name was selected for him by the player, the name in that text box will be “Vincent”.

This list of placeholders for alternate party members happen twelve times; each set appearing after a used line by Barret.

Heidegger	ハイデッカー
“I’ll tie your arms now.”	「腕をしばらせてもらおうか」

Heidegger	ハイデッカー
“Hey! Walk straight!”	「こら！　まっすぐ進め！」

The text exists in a duplicate group, so Heidegger’s unused text could belong to JUNBIN3 or JUNBIN21. Or he might have once been intended to follow you all the way to the press event, as we later see him running to Rufus when Weapon is about to attack but we never actually see him leave JUNBIN21.

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Gas Chamber (JUNBIN5)

Scarlet	スカーレット	Scarlet:
“This is my special gas chamber.	「私の特製ガスルームよ。	This is my special gas chamber.
Take your time and enjoy	じっくり時間をかけて思う存分苦しんで	Please take your time, and suffer slowly.
a slow painful death.”	ちょうだいね」

{Tifa}	TIFA
“”	「」

Scarlet	スカーレット
“Stuck up ^%$#&!!”	「なまいきね！！」

There isn’t actually a swear word in the Japanese text, but given the situation and Scarlet’s attitude towards Tifa the English line is just fine.

Scarlet slaps Tifa, which acts as build-up for the slap fight that will later take place between them on the Junon cannon. But what instigated the first slap? In the game, we see Tifa exchanging a look with Scarlet, but there’s no dialogue. This is where Tifa’s unused placeholder fits.

Maybe it was intentional in the final game that Tifa’s gaze was enough to agitate Scarlet, maybe not… What would you have Tifa say to Scarlet?

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Junon Office (JUNBIN22)

Location Name

Office

オフィス

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Cannon Turret, Frog Perspective (JUNONE3)

Field is briefly visited after Sapphire Weapon is fired upon.

Location Name

Aljunon

アルジュノン

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To the Airport! (JUNBIN4 or JUNIN2)

^{Used Scenarios Shown Above}

Unused version of used text that clearly happens in JUNIN2 in the final game. Due to the text’s placement in the data, it is unclear if this earlier version was in fact meant to happen inside the newsroom. The alternate text includes no reference to Tifa.

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH
“Let’s run to the airport!”	「エアポートまで走るで！」

{Barret}	BARRET
“The airport?”	「エアポートだぁ？」

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH
“Trust me, trust me.”	「ええから、ええから」

Compared with the final version, the unused bits are shorter.

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH	Cait Sith:
“OK, OK time for Plan B.	「むむぅ～、またまた作戦チェンジですな。	Hmmm, we’re changing the battle plan again.
Let’s run to the airport!”	エアポートまで走るで！」	Let’s run to the airport!

{Barret}	BARRET	Barret:
“Why the airport?	「エアポートだぁ？	Why the airport?
An’ leave {Tifa} there?”	TIFAを放っといて、なんでそんな所へ？」	Why go there, and abandon Tifa?

{Cait Sith}	CAIT SITH	Cait Sith:
“Trust me, trust me.	「ええから、ええから	Trust me, trust me.
We gotta take a chance.”	こないなったらイチかバチかや」	At this point it’s all or nothing anyways.

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Gas Chamber Again (JUNBIN5)

^{Used Scenario Shown Above}

{Tifa}	TIFA
“First you lock me in this weird place,	「自分でこんな変な場所入れておいて
and now you’re telling me to come out?	今度は出てこいですって？
Make up your mind!”	勝手なこといわないでよ！」

Scarlet	スカーレット	Scarlet:
“Don’t make me pry it open!”	「こじあけてやるわ！」	I’ll pry it open!

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Slap Fight (JUNONE7)

Normally, whether you win or lose the slap fight, Scarlet will say “Take her away” afterwards. An error in the programming prevents the player from seeing the Tifa-win-state version of her line. When Tifa and Scarlet exchange slaps to the face, the game counts how many slaps have been received and given. Whoever receives five slaps first, loses. But the requirement for Scarlet’s unused line is that she be slapped SIX times. This is impossible because the minigame ends at five, not six, slaps. Change the value check to five and the line is unlocked.

You quickly find though that the window size was never adapted to fit the text. Both in the English game and the Japanese game, the window is too small. If you have the field text speed set at maximum, the Japanese game will freeze here because you can’t click past the text window.

Scarlet	スカーレット	Scarlet:
“God!	「キ～～～ッ！	Arg!
I can’t stand it!”	くやしい！」	You make me so mad!

Scarlet	スカーレット
“Why are you still standing there!?	「何をぼやぼやしているの？！
Catch her and take her away!”	つかまえて連れていきなさい！」

Scarlet	スカーレット
“Take her away.”	「さ、連れていきなさい」