Sephiroth might be one of my favourite antagonists... ever? And the more I understand Jenova the more I think that's awesome as well.
Was gonna start my 2nd FF7 playthrough today, but after just obliterating disk 2 through to the end of the game I've remembered that sleep is indeed a thing.
So is Sephiroth only Sephiroth during the flash backs, final bosses and when you see him bathing in lifestream since throughout the game Jenova has shapeshifted as him?
That trailer was pretty much the deciding factor for me getting the game. Always thought the music was specifically created for it. Then, a few years later, it popped up on some random advert. It’s called Final Encounter by Steve Baker btw, for anyone that didn’t know...
Safer Sephiroth is Sephiroth's newly regenerated body, taking on the appearance of a transcended angelic being. It's why the theme music for Bizzaro Sephiroth is called "Birth of a God," and the final boss music is "One Winged Angel." Bizarro Sephiroth was the "cocoon" and Safer Sephiroth was what emerged from it. That was the end result of absorbing the power of the Lifestream and him preparing to absorb the whole Planet's.
The final duel between Sephiroth and Cloud happened in the Lifestream. It was their two spirits having one last fight since Sephiroth was still alive... Again, after being killed. Cloud had to finish him off.
Safer Sephiroth is Sephiroth's newly regenerated body, taking on the appearance of a transcended angelic being. It's why the theme music for Bizzaro Sephiroth is called "Birth of a God," and the final boss music is "One Winged Angel." Bizarro Sephiroth was the "cocoon" and Safer Sephiroth was what emerged from it. That was the end result of absorbing the power of the Lifestream and him preparing to absorb the whole Planet's.
The final duel between Sephiroth and Cloud happened in the Lifestream. It was their two spirits having one last fight since Sephiroth was still alive... Again, after being killed. Cloud had to finish him off.
I think Safer was the end physical goal. He needed a new body and that was how he did it. But ultimately he intended to absorb the entire Lifestream, and essentially be the god of the planet. The will that governed all souls and life itself.
(i have a couple of points in this reply to catch up with the thread)
i am getting flashbacks to finishing ff7 a looooong time ago. when i finally actually completed the game fully. on my 3rd try. (i used that summons to get thru safer sephiroth, i was such a newb).
and it still took my friend's roommate to answer "but what is sephiroth even? and whats jenova's deal?". and that took 2 hours. so its not unusualy, Mikey to finish the game and have more questions than answers
btw, i got a used ps1 and a copy of ff7 2 years after it was released. and over 2 years i failed to finish it twice. not until the second play thru did i use materia in any way resembling being competent
and the 3rd time used the
are we still hiding spoilers from thatguymikey? anyway. i got knights of the round summons to finally deal with safer sephiroth once and for all and actually finish the game
. But i finished it, and years before social media could spoil me on Aerith's death to boot. OOF that hurt.
Aerith isnt the first, she was my 2nd or 3rd? in a long line of "my favorite characters (almost) always die." But she probably hit me the hardest. both because it was before i knew a list was forming. her death is such a surprise. it was also the first time i felt that sort of loss so deeply (i was young enough that no one i knew irl close to me had died at that point in my life)
(i have a couple of points in this reply to catch up with the thread)
i am getting flashbacks to finishing ff7 a looooong time ago. when i finally actually completed the game fully. on my 3rd try. (i used that summons to get thru safer sephiroth, i was such a newb).
and it still took my friend's roommate to answer "but what is sephiroth even? and whats jenova's deal?". and that took 2 hours. so its not unusualy, Mikey to finish the game and have more questions than answers
btw, i got a used ps1 and a copy of ff7 2 years after it was released. and over 2 years i failed to finish it twice. not until the second play thru did i use materia in any way resembling being competent
and the 3rd time used the
are we still hiding spoilers from thatguymikey? anyway. i got knights of the round summons to finally deal with safer sephiroth once and for all and actually finish the game
. But i finished it, and years before social media could spoil me on Aerith's death to boot. OOF that hurt.
Aerith isnt the first, she was my 2nd or 3rd? in a long line of "my favorite characters (almost) always die." But she probably hit me the hardest. both because it was before i knew a list was forming. her death is such a surprise. it was also the first time i felt that sort of loss so deeply (i was young enough that no one i knew irl close to me had died at that point in my life)
Regarding Jenova, I think it's worth mentioning a lot of people have always thought it would make more sense or be more elegant if Jenova was the main villain of ff7 since they have the same end goals of absorbing the lifestream. For example, Jenova suddenly activates in the Shinra HQ and goes on a killing spree. It makes sense if it activated because it sensed Cloud (Ie: a piece of itself) and figured out a way to use him for its goals.
Though it is Sephiroth controlling it through his will which is where things become convoluted. Sephiroth is controlling Jenova (presumably because he has its head) whose dismembered corpse is pretending to be Sephiroth to draw Cloud towards the Northern crater.
The plot is confusing, but a lot of it is hidden from the player who has to discover it themselves through exploration
For example, did you know there is a Major exposition dump if you return to the Shinra mansion in Nibelheim after the lifestream sequence in Disk 2?
That's the biggest one. But there are tons of smaller ones some have only been discovered through this website. I think Shademp discovered another only recently where if you return to the Forgotten City in Disk 2 with Cloud before you go to Cosmo Canyon for Bugenhagen. It's bizarre how much is ferreted away.
Chocobo breeding and racing is a game in and of itself. You need a walkthrough for that. But Absolute Steve's walkthrough covers it. To get the best materia and weapons in the game, you kinda need to get a Golden Chocobo. FFVII has a lot of missables so it's key to use a walkthrough because things can be gone forever if you just miss them.
A teenage me bought a guide book way back in 2003 in order to find out about some new cool games. Among many other fantasy titles, there were FF7 and FF9 guides. So I did everything in a kind of reversed order: first, I read the guide, then loved the plot so much that I decided to give this game a shot. Yeah, all the main events had already been spoiled, but everything looked and played out quite differently from what I had initially imagined, so I enjoyed playing it anyway!
For example, Jenova suddenly activates in the Shinra HQ and goes on a killing spree. It makes sense if it activated because it sensed Cloud (Ie: a piece of itself) and figured out a way to use him for its goals.
Chocobo breeding and racing is a game in and of itself. You need a walkthrough for that. But Absolute Steve's walkthrough covers it. To get the best materia and weapons in the game, you kinda need to get a Golden Chocobo. FFVII has a lot of missables so it's key to use a walkthrough because things can be gone forever if you just miss them.
Nothing in the chocobo quest is missable, though, as a point of note.
Actually...I can't really think of THAT many missables overall, unless you're going for absolute perfection of filling all four E. Skill materia and such...but I've never really cared about stuff like that, haha. Alexander and Ramuh... Bahamut ZERO you dig up later if you missed it.
I'm aware of how to get Bahamut ZERO and the big guard enemy skill, which is apparently incredibly helpful. I'm also aware that after defeating Ultimate Weapon you can access a specific materia cave by foot.
I printed off a 12 page chocobo breeding guide from gamefaqs.com. to get the golden chocobo for Knights of the Round. I was more determined to see those final credits, than i was to get it "on my own"
again this was my 3rd and final play of the OG nearly 20 years ago. and the only time I actually finished the game. And KotR was how.
Just want to add this to the list of excellent guides. I’ve played this game over a dozen times, my last go through was finally a 100% run and this guide helped me do it. It’s mobile friendly and well written (and is HTML not a text guide with endless scrolling). I highly recommend.
I’m one of those cracked ppl that still imagines that Jenova assimilated Sephiroth, not the other way around. As Forcestealer said a couple of pages back, they are essentially now the same entity, so it’s a moot point. And the writers confirmed that Sephiroth is indeed the one truly in control. ....I just think the argument that “he resisted the corrupting influence of a million-year-old-Space-Nyarlathotep-with-no-master-save-its-own-insatiable-hunger-for-souls because he was just too awesome” is kind of a head scratcher. People get protective of dear Sephiroth, though, so expect my heresy to be my end! I will die as I lived, praising her name! Jenova, Eater-Of-Ancients! Hail and praise!! DEATH AND REUNION!!
There's 50 missable items in Final Fantasy VII. The list below is taken from Absolute Steve's guide with some modifications by me for clarity. Note that the recommendation to get 99 of something is only if you're going for a 100% item list. Personally, I get 10 of everything, which is enough to equip to every character and still have 1 in your inventory.
1. Iron Bangle - Buy 99 in the Sector 7 slums during your first visit.
2. Ghost Hand - Get them from Ghosts in the Train Graveyard or from Ghosts in the Battle Square (battle #3), but only before getting the Tiny Bronco. After that it's impossible to get.
3. Battery - Keep this in your inventory if you want a 100% item list or use if you're going for 100% treasure.
4. Enemy Skill Materia - Pick up after the H0512 boss battle.
5. Shinra Beta - It's best to steal 99 from these on the Cargo Ship. You CAN, however, win them from Submarine Crew, but not enough to fill your inventory as they aren't random encounters.
6. Ifrit Materia - You're D-U-M-B if you miss this, but it's possible. It's left after the fight with Jenova BIRTH on the Cargo Ship.
7. Ramuh Materia - In the corner of the Jockey Room when coming up with Esther for the Chocobo Races.
8. Vagyrisk Claw - You must steal these from Bagrisks as long as you're Level 77 or LOWER. The best chance for stealing them is at Level 11, but even then the chance is only 4.23%... Wearing a Sneak Glove makes the chance basically 0%, so don't do that.
9. Added Effect Materia - Found in the Cave of the Gi.
10. Yoshiyuki - Acquired by talking to the Old Man in Rocket Town several times. This can be done UNTIL you get the submarine. After that, you won't get it.
11-14. Bahamut Materia/Morph Materia/Luck Plus Materia/Princess Guard - All acquired in the Temple of the Ancients. Give Aeris a weapon and armor that's not unique before Demon's Gate... Accessory and materia will be returned to you.
15. MP Absorb Materia - Acquired from the Stolen Materia side quest in Wutai. This can be done UNTIL you parachute into Midgar, so basically it can't be done on Disc 3.
16. Umbrella - Acquired from the Gold Saucer's Speed Square, Disc 1 only (basically).
17. Mythril Clip - Buy 99 in Junon during Disc 1 (basically). After getting the Highwind this will be gone forever.
18. Shotgun - Buy 99 in Rocket Town during Disc 1 (basically). After getting the Highwind this will be gone forever.
17. Four Slots - Buy 99 in Costa Del Sol during Disc 1 (basically). After getting the Highwind this will be gone forever.
18. Javelin - Found in Gaea's Cliff ONLY.
19. Earth Mallet - Win from Gigas (After Gaea's Cliff/In the Crater). This is the ONLY place.
20. Gigas Armlet - Steal from Gigas (It's possible to steal these from Gigas in the Battle Square on Disc 3, but that takes much longer).
21-23. Neo Bahamut Materia/MP Turbo Materia/Poison Ring - All found in the Whirlwind Maze.
24. Curse Ring - Steal from Ultimate Weapon in Mideel and do the Beat-Up Useless Old Key side quest before Mideel gets destroyed.
25. Warrior Bangle - Steal from Eagle Gun during the Huge Materia quest in North Corel.
26. Ultima Materia - At least make it on the train during the Huge Materia quest in North Corel (and stop the train to save 50,000 gil).
27-29. Battle Trumpet/Scimitar/Leviathan Scales - All found in the Underwater Reactor at Junon.
30-31. Oritsuru/Steal as Well Materia - Can both only be found in the Da-chao cave if you have the Leviathan Scales from the Underwater Reactor.
32. Rising Sun - Steal from Diamond Weapon.
33-41. Max Ray/Aegis Armlet/Starlight Phone/Behemoth Horn/Master Fist/Pile Banger/Grow Lance/HP Shout/Mystile - All acquired during the Midgarx Raid in Disc 2.
42. Graviball - Steal from Shadowmaker (during the Midgar Raid)
43. 8inch Cannon - Win from Grosspanzer*Big (before the stairs to Hojo during the Midgar Raid)
44. Missing Score - In a chest on the stairs to Hojo during the Midgar Raid. Barret must be in your party or the chest won't appear.
45. Shinra Alpha - Steal from SOLDIER:1st on the stairs leading to Hojo. This is the last, but also the best time to get them.
46. Ziedrich - Stolen from Rude (3 times!) in Disc 2: 1) Rocket Town 2) Gelnika 3) Midgar.
47. Touph Ring - Stolen from Reno (2 times!) in Disc 2: 1) Gelnika 2) Midgar.
48. Minerva Band - Steal from Elena (during the Midgar Raid).
49. Reflect Ring - Steal from Ultimate Weapon (ground battles) for multiple copies.
50. Mystile - Use the Crater Duplication Trick to get a 3rd Mystile (unless you wish to duplicate the Mega-All Materia).
Okay but how much of that stuff is crucial or really even relevant in getting the full experience out of FF7? That's what I'm thinking of when I think of missables. Being locked out of quests or content. Maybe significant spells like summons. Barret's ultimate weapon... The Cursed Ring is downright broken so I guess that can be fun.
But I missed a chance to buy an Iron Bangle? How will my experience ever be complete?!
