Dengeki PlayStation Vol.17
Scans & Commentary
Volume 17 of Dengeki PlayStation was released on February 14, 1996. In the context of FFVII’s development, Square had announced on January 12 the same year (a mere month before!) that Final Fantasy VII would be developed exlusively for the Sony PlayStation. The exact length of time it took for Square to create the game material presented in this magazine is difficult to estimate without in-depth knowledge about the game’s development, but it’s reasonable to assume that much of the in-game content is very fresh.
The scans on this page were shared on the official Dengeki PlayStation website and are of decent quality, though not enough to clearly/reliably make out all the text. If you have scans where the Japanese text is clearly readable, please let us know in the forum.
Click on an image to view it in full size.
– Preview of segments “Character”, “Battle” and “World” that are presented and commented in subsequent pages.
– Originally slated for a December 1996 release (as seen above) the final release date ended up being January 31, 1997.
– Squall_of_SeeD transcribed and translated a section of the article, acknowledging some room for error due to text not being easy to make out.
場合によっては、CD-ROM 2枚組、3枚組といったことも考えあれます。
“Depending on the demands of the development, they said they’re considering 2 or even 3 CD-ROM discs.”
Square must have considered a 2-disc game for a few more months at least, as this was mentioned in the May 1996 issue of GameFan (page 23).
– Many of the images and early production material in this magazine can also be seen in the “Making of FFVII” material in the FFVII International “Perfect Guide” disc both in picture and video form.
– Cloud’s Buster Sword here has only one materia slot but was later upgraded to having two slots.
– Highly accentuated height differences between Barret, Cloud and Aerith.
– Cosmo Canyon is seen here with street-type lamps. Ambiguous whether they are supposed to be powered by gas or electricity. The final game replaces the lamps with simple fires.
– The bar field at the bottom was originally 7th Heaven, AVALANCHE’s base of operations, but ended up in the final game as a Shinra bar.
– Trivia: In the game files of the retail release, the Mythril Mines are called “PSDUN”. The file name only makes sense as an abbreviation for “PlayStation Dungeon”, which reflects well the status of this FFVII area as one of the first to be shown to the public.
– The two upper Mako Reactor interior shots are familiar perspectives from the final game, but the third and lowest picture shows a perspective/angle not used in the final game.
– Text box in uppermost Mako Reactor interior shot transcribed and translated by Squall_of_SeeD.
「魔晄炉からは大量のエネルギーが精製
されている。
このままだとこの星は枯れ果ててしまう。」“A great amount of energy is refined from the mako reactors.
If things stay the way they are,
this planet will wither and die.”
– The materia fountain is here inside a dark cave area in contrast to the open, well-lit area players saw in the final product.
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Credits
– koolaidman: Big thanks for sharing the scans on our forum.
– Shademp: Article author and overall commentary.
– Squall_of_SeeD: Transcriptions and translations.
– Lost Levels: Source for date when Square announced FFVII would be developed exclusively on the Sony PlayStation.
– GlitterBerri: Hoster of the May 1996 GameFan magazine scans.
