SPOILERS FFVII:R Chapter 17 Spoiler Discussion

[Jimmy XH]

LAB RAT DOG!

Great chapter and great use of iconic/weird enemies like Brain Pod and Sword Dance. Really enjoyed the dynamic of switching parties and fighting through Hojo's little game. I like how they honed in on how much that awful man is up to on the side.

Jenova was a great fight and the music really set the pulse racing when it kicked in the second phase. I almost had to stop what I was doing to give it a listen, but I'll have another go next time.

Rufus was a tricky character. Had to give him a real think when he kept turning my attacks around.

Have we got a cliffhanger count for this game so far? Or was there a single character who wasn't caught at the last second in a precarious position? I dunno, how did the President even get there? Nice to hear him begging though...

 

[Makoeyes987]

....And can we give a round of applause to Rufus-muthafuckin'-Shinra in da house??????

Holy shit, dat entrance.

This Al-Bhed Asshole using gil, guns, and game-dogs to dance toe-to-toe with a SOLDIER 1st Class.

Like, I cannot believe how badass they made this man. This certainly fits the character of a man who would be stone-cold chill, sitting in a wheelchair with an alien's head on his lap, hidden by just a sheet.

Words cannot express the badassery Rufus exhibited. Even once he got his ass whooped.

"Let's make it a night to remember" indeed.

Also, I'm so glad Dark Star didn't get summarily killed. Now his precious pet maybe gets to live a happy life beyond just trying to maul Rufus' enemies

 

[Theozilla]

Have we got a cliffhanger count for this game so far? Or was there a single character who wasn't caught at the last second in a precarious position? I dunno, how did the President even get there? Nice to hear him begging though...

I think based on the shattered glass hole in his office, it’s supposed to be implied that Sephiroth (either copy #49 or #2) threw him through the glass wall and off the edge?

 

[Wol]

....And can we give a round of applause to Rufus-muthafuckin'-Shinra in da house??????

Holy shit, dat entrance.

This Al-Bhed Asshole using gil, guns, and game-dogs to dance toe-to-toe with a SOLDIER 1st Class.

Like, I cannot believe how badass they made this man. This certainly fits the character of a man who would be stone-cold chill, sitting in a wheelchair with an alien's head on his lap, hidden by just a sheet.

Words cannot express the badassery Rufus exhibited. Even once he got his ass whooped.

"Let's make it a night to remember" indeed.

Also, I'm so glad Dark Star didn't get summarily killed. Now his precious pet maybe gets to live a happy life beyond just trying to maul Rufus' enemies

The way he moves reminded of a certain Bloodborne boss, really badass and savage.

 

[Odysseus]

When do we get The remake version of this:

EDIT:

There we go!

 

[AerithLives]

Okay I gotta say, that Jenova battle theme had me a bit disappointed because I really wanted something more electronic, techno-ish like the OG...and then the third phase started and I got exactly that. Good stuff.

Also, Rufus kicked my ass a few times. Had no trouble with any of the final boss stuff but this guy was something else

Also, a negative: The "trail of blood" section got downgraded hard imo.

I thought the same thing. Same with the beginning of the motorcycle chase escaping the building. A really lost opportunity there.

 

[ForceStealer]

Same with the beginning of the motorcycle chase escaping the building. A really lost opportunity there.

Eh? How was that part downgraded?

 

[AerithLives]

Eh? How was that part downgraded?

It didn't come with the awesome motorcycle chase music.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

Do you think Rufus made Reno and Rude practice that pick up over and over so that he could execute it with perfect casualness whenever he needed it?
(Not saying he knew he would one day need to use it with an Avalanche ex-SOLDIER. Just that the boy has a sense of the theatrical and likes to be prepared).

It just occurred to me - is there an option to play this Remake with the original music?

 

[ForceStealer]

It didn't come with the awesome motorcycle chase music.

I see, but I will say I really loved the swell of the FF7 Main Theme (also Cloud's Theme) when Cloud shows up.

 

[LicoriceAllsorts]

Does anybody have any insights into the significance of Rufus toying with the gil coins? Is that what it symbolises? That he's toying - with money, with power, with Cloud? I feel like this coin trick thing is meant to be the replacement for his rule-by-fear speech, but I must be dense because I'm not getting it. The camera lingers on the coins so lovingly I feel they must symbolise something. But what? What does it mean?

 

[LNK]

Damn, that beginning song was really emotional. I can't tell if its a remake from an OG song, right now or not. It makes me really feel bad for Aerith as a child.

This setting was definitely not in the OG. I liked that quote from Barret. I wonder if its from a book that was read, or a story he was told, as a kid.

Red and Aerith talking about the whispers and destiny was interesting. This wasn't in the OG, but I don't mind. Its been working so far.

That mural was really cool. I loved all the different colors. After really looking at it, I noticed a few things. I can definitely see Leviathan and Phoenix in the middle. There's another summon next to them (maybe a version of Bahamut?) Maybe those 3 are the central summons or deities. There is also a faint circle surrounding a yellow flower (Aerith? She is definitely the key figure in the OG) I also saw 2 different sets of people. Maybe one was the Cetra. There was characature drawings of what looks like Aerith and Ifalna. Those were cute. Then I saw what looked like part of the Ancient Temple!

Jeez, I spent way too long just listening to that song and looking at the mural haha

Again, I can't stand Hojo haha. Hopefully we don't run into him on Costa de Sol in the next part. That would feel too weird for the remake.

I know some people didn't like the "goo" trail of Jenova, but I didnt mind it. Jenova is alien, so I wouldn't be surprised if the blood color was different.

I loved Shinra's speech. He sounded a lot like Dysley, from ff13. His disregard for anyone who doesn't go along with his goal made it satisfying when Sephiroth killed him.

then Barret being killed was definitely out of left field. I'm glad the whispers brought him back though. He is my favorite character in this remake.

The Jenova battle was a lot of fun. I loved the music. Especially the final part. I wonder if its name Dreamweaver has anything to do with some of the visions/illusions that Cloud has had throughout the game. And wasn't that the same clone from Stargazor Heights?

The Rufus battle was probably one of my favorites so far. The battle mechanics never really matter for me, but I've been having a lot of fun with it. This battle really made me have to do more things to beat him.

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

I know some people didn't like the "goo" trail of Jenova, but I didnt mind it. Jenova is alien, so I wouldn't be surprised if the blood color was different.

It's not her blood. At least not in the original game. That would presumably have belonged to all the people in the building who were slaughtered on the way to the President's office.

This cytoplasm is obviously meant to have come from Jenova, of course.

 

[LNK]

It's not her blood. At least not in the original game. That would presumably have belonged to all the people in the building who were slaughtered on the way to the President's office.

This cytoplasm is obviously meant to have come from Jenova, of course.

I always figured that red trail in the OG came from Jenova though

 

[Theozilla]

I always figured that red trail in the OG came from Jenova though

Like Kamata-kun from Shin Godzilla!

 

[ForceStealer]

Yeah I think I kinda figured it was off of her gooeyness. Especially given the huge amount of it right in front of her tank. But now that I'm thinking about it I guess I'm not totally sure. In any case the glowy goo didn't bother me. I would have liked some gashes in the walls though. I figured they didn't super lean into the creepiness here because they had just done a creepy dungeon with Hojo.

On an unrelated note, I appreciated that they still weren't afraid of some goofy humor even in the intense penultimate moments of this chapter. Red in particular throughout, as well as the obvious Lab Rat Dog line. But also with Heidegger, and that poor trooper Cloud scared to death by flinging his sword to prime the window Rufus was great too

 

[LNK]

I agree, some gashes would've added more effect. Kind of like RE2 remake with the Lickers.

I also liked the humor. I'm tough to please when it comes to that. I usually can't stand corny humor in moments that don't really warrant it (IMO) but I liked what they did. Not even just this chapter

 

[HeavyTank]

I had a serious Mandela effect moment with this earlier.

[Original game spoilers only]:
In the original game, I believed:

Spoiler

there was also blood on the cargo ship on the lower cargo ship level (when the trail of blood theme plays and they descend) and also at the Gold Saucer after Dyne attacks.
The unremarkable purple cytoplasm made me check over the game to discover I was wrong about both of those things.

Playing as a kid in 90s/2000s on a small cathode ray tv at night definitely added to the trail of blood section. It may be an experience that can't be repeated which I could probably say more so for the next chapter.
Anyway, I've been fairly disappointed with the whole Drum scenario/section and wish they had removed the whole thing to work on other parts of the game. It's a shame because I think they really did nail the previous chapters.

 

[Scribe]

“Follow the Yellow Flowers”

I’m staring at the mural and there are a lot of random yellow flowers in it. I can’t seem to get a high res screen shot. Does anyone have the ability to get a good screen capture beyond the PS4 share method?

 

[Claymore]

Was definitely worried along with most people when they said that Red XIII was a 'guest' character due to the knowledge of where the game would naturally end, but this was pulled off extremely well. You see his versatility in battle, and the segments of him reaching locations that the others couldn't, really integrated him into the unfolding narrative. Loved his voice and the scenes with Aerith, and damn, he has some great one liners with Barret lol. I'm glad they managed to try some of that banter between them despite not having the prison cell segment.

And yes, Rufus was cool as hell lol.

 

[Lex]

Did anybody else think these symbols were going to be more meaningful in some way?



I thought there was going to be a puzzle involving them at some point after I saw this

 

[Odysseus]

That's their gym badges. Once you beat them all you can take on the elite 4.

 

[Theozilla]

Did anybody else think these symbols were going to be more meaningful in some way?

View attachment 5599

I thought there was going to be a puzzle involving them at some point after I saw this

If X-Soldier's theories about the last couple of chapters being rushed/cut for content are accurate, maybe there was?

 

[Claymore]

They're just the symbols to denote the different departments. I don't think there was meant to be any puzzle involved with that.

 

[Rydeen]

Just finished Chapter 17.

I get it, they were kinda using Hojo's lab as the "actual" final dungeon. I kind of like that, considering Pres is about to die and they needed to switch gears to the next major Shinra villain for the next game. I found it quite well designed. The bosses were kind of easy but fun.

I had such butterflies in my stomach when the party headed to the roof. Was disappointed at the lack of blood, but American ratings. At first I thought the yelling for help was Palmer, but then I saw President Shinra hanging off the edge. The interactions were great here. Then Seph came down with the blade of.. justice? like I thought he would. And so nobody misses President Shinra.

Barret getting stabbed and healed by "fate" was incredibly stupid.

The "Jenova" fight was suspiciously easy, so I was expecting that there would definitely be more challenging bosses after it.

Then Rufus kicked my ass. If anyone's gonna kick my ass in this game, I'd rather it be him. I don't like Cloud much from a gameplay perspective, and his materia was ill suited. I could barely hear Rufus over the music - he's very quiet, which is what I expect from him. Also... he did the thing during the battle. ...and it made me lose a hit on him because he distracted this player.



Wait a minute, did Rufus just say "yeah"? He must be learning this unrefined language from the Turks.

I do think he was too OP. I've said it before, but I don't think Rufus should be this amazing fighter on par with the Turks. Trained, sure, but not as strong as he was. Looks like Dark Nation Star didn't die, I guess. I never really thought of it as an actual pet, but maybe it is.

Since he had a curious lack of a speech, I find myself wondering what his political views are supposed to be in the new game. The only thing know for sure is that he doesn't have the level of patience for waste and incompetence that his father did.

Do you think Rufus made Reno and Rude practice that pick up over and over so that he could execute it with perfect casualness whenever he needed it?
(Not saying he knew he would one day need to use it with an Avalanche ex-SOLDIER. Just that the boy has a sense of the theatrical and likes to be prepared).

Lol I thought the same thing. House arrest must get pretty boring, may as well practice crazy tricks that will probably never happen.

Does anybody have any insights into the significance of Rufus toying with the gil coins? Is that what it symbolises? That he's toying - with money, with power, with Cloud? I feel like this coin trick thing is meant to be the replacement for his rule-by-fear speech, but I must be dense because I'm not getting it. The camera lingers on the coins so lovingly I feel they must symbolise something. But what? What does it mean?

Your assessment sounds about right to me tbh.

That's their gym badges. Once you beat them all you can take on the elite 4.

I may have just woke up the neighbors.