Hopes for Remake & Rebirth (gameplay/combat)

[Lulcielid]

Observation from the new trailer released yesterday. It looks like when Cloud attacks the Mono Drive enemy in the air that he automatically jumped to then attack to close the distance when the attack was pressed, rather than there being a manual jump then an attack press in the air to hit it, so it still makes me wonder if there is any manual jump. It's kinda like Aerial Sweep in KH2, though that works more on a closer range to the enemy and if you are a certain distance from an enemy it won't do it, compared to how far the Mono Drive is to Cloud he still closes the distance. So I'm guessing this is how you'll be able to target larger enemies by targeting higher points on their body to attack those so you won't be stuck attacking their feet the whole time, and it does look like there is some follow up aerial attacks you can do when in the air, but I wonder if it is a full combo like on the ground but of aerial attacks or if it will just alternate between a left and right swing each time you press attack in the air.

 

[Cannon_Fodder]

I didn't even think of using the jump attack to hit big targets, that's a good idea. I'm guessing it's an aerial combo that ends with a downwards slash so the characters don't stay in the air for too long at a time. Cloud's 3-hit ground combo seems to have some end lag too, so I don't think the aerial attacks would feel slow in comparison.

 

[Kain424]

Observation from the new trailer released yesterday. It looks like when Cloud attacks the Mono Drive enemy in the air that he automatically jumped to then attack to close the distance when the attack was pressed, rather than there being a manual jump then an attack press in the air to hit it, so it still makes me wonder if there is any manual jump. It's kinda like Aerial Sweep in KH2, though that works more on a closer range to the enemy and if you are a certain distance from an enemy it won't do it, compared to how far the Mono Drive is to Cloud he still closes the distance. So I'm guessing this is how you'll be able to target larger enemies by targeting higher points on their body to attack those so you won't be stuck attacking their feet the whole time, and it does look like there is some follow up aerial attacks you can do when in the air, but I wonder if it is a full combo like on the ground but of aerial attacks or if it will just alternate between a left and right swing each time you press attack in the air.

This is very interesting because it would seem to imply range is not an issue in the game. In the original, certain characters simply couldn't attack far away foes without long range materia.

 

[Ite]

Maybe he HAS a long range materia

 

[Kain424]

I would love it if that were true. Like seriously. If they essentially kept all the materia and their original functions? I would be over the moon.

 

[OdaDaimyO]

... man... can't wait to do THAT with TIFA!!! Free her from the Shinra SE basement already!!!

 

[Kain424]

Tifa gonna rock some shit, that's for sure.

 

[Ite]

This flying strike is another tick in the (dreaded?) “aesthetic continuity” with AC/C. This looks like the basic attack (combo) we’ve seen throughout the trailers so far, just in mid-air. If this is possible at the start of the adventure, without materia, then by the Temple of the Ancients you’ll be Crouching Tiger-in all over the dang place.

I have no problem with it. It looks cool.

 

[Girl Named Captain]

My hunch is that the jump is default, but only goes to the height in that clip, which is not very high. About the height of your average hovering sentry drone. Then you've got Long Range Materia for an extended max range on your dash and jump attacks. Equipping Long Range and then dashing the length of a Midgar city block would be flippin sweet.

 

[Ite]

Yeah you had no problem hitting those enemies in the OG, so the “dimensionality” of these battles is a kind of illusion. It makes it all look more dynamic and fantastical. I dig

Perhaps everything within a 20 foot sphere of a character is “close range” no matter the height, and that can be doubled with Long Range materia? Flying monsters 40 feet up! Barret can get em. Take this purple thing and goooooo!

 

[Girl Named Captain]

Just paused and zoomed in a bit, and Cloud appears to only have 1 green materia in the Buster Sword, so looks like no Long Range on that clip.

(edit: I guess it could be on his bangle, though. Did his bangle have materia in it when Aerith grabbed his hand..? *rushes off to look*)

 

[Girl Named Captain]

Oh dang! Unless the materia slot goes all the way through the sword and that's just the explosion, he's got a yellow one here! Hmm..I'm guessing Sense?

 

[Claymore]

GUYS! YOU CAN STOP TIME IN TACTICAL MODE!

 

[Ite]

I am extremely excited to play this. The combat looks wonderful. I will waste so many hours watching the game in slow mo.

 

[Kain424]

Yeah, there goes my 2020.

 

[Suzaku]

Really enjoyed what they showed of the combat during the conference. Tactical Mode looks like a great compromise for people who wanted more of the classic turn-based feel.

You basically still get your turn-based command menus, but instead of just waiting for a bar to fill up, you need to move around, attack, guard, and dodge to fill the bar.

The Guard Scorpion fight is expanded into a massive boss battle / action set piece with lots of mechanics and strategy.

The character swapping looks great, with each party member actually having an important function in combat.

Honestly, it's more than I could have ever hoped for.

 

[Ite]

Seriously, if I can open the commands menu whenever I'm in control of Cloud, it basically gives me an unlimited number of rotating slow-mo FFVII panoramas. It's like, on top of a game, they also gave us a magic photo album. I'm in heaven.

 

[FFShinra]

It's.....peeeerrrrfeeecccctttttt!!!!!! I'm so happy. I won't be able to sleep. I need to take time off work. I must watch the city pan again and again!!!!

 

[Claymore]

Seriously, if I can open the commands menu whenever I'm in control of Cloud, it basically gives me an unlimited number of rotating slow-mo FFVII panoramas. It's like, on top of a game, they also gave us a magic photo album. I'm in heaven.

I know right? That was such an incredible feature. I was literally watching the Shinra MP's feet slowly move backwards. This is going to look so amazing in so many encounters and sequences.

Just as importantly, they showed off MAGIC. Been waiting so damn long for it. Though it was only a small taste, I now feel a whole lot more excited about the battle system as a whole. And with the DLC mention of the Summons, this is going to be glorious.

 

[Ite]

The fact that everything costs ATB except basic attack, which gains ATB, is in every respect an upgrade from the original ATB system. It's essentially the same system as FF4-9, but now you're engaged in the process of filling it up, switching between characters to perform basic attacks in order to accelerate their ATB growth, with the added bonus of looking like a cool team! Moreover, now, your ATB gauge isn't just 1, it's 2! So when the gauge is full, you keep the overflow! I'm burning up over this

My 3 biggest questions right now:
-Quoth the demo: "Once an ATB bar is full, you can enter tactical mode." Can we enter tactical mode without a full bar?
-Can you switch between characters in tactical mode? *edit: looks like you can, although when they do so in the demo, both characters had full ATB bars*
-Can we control the camera in tactical mode? *edit: it appears so, although whoever was capturing the footage really loved slowly rotating.*

 

[Cannon_Fodder]

After that trailer, my biggest question is what determines what character skills you have access to. They mentioned something about each character having unique abilities, but are they gained on level up? Do they come from weapons? Do we have character-specific materia this time?

I'm hoping that someone on the show floor who plays the demo takes a picture of the menu (if there is one). I love a good menu.

 

[Ite]

Hmm... thinking about this, what would happen in I put Aeris in the "back row" so to speak. She's my mage/healer, so low on HP with DPS that's based on using materia actions. Because she's not doing basic attacks, she's falling behind Cloud and Tifa in getting full bars. A solution for this would be to have green and red materia increase your passive ATB gain.....

 

[ForceStealer]

Tifa has some interesting ability names in the Airbuster fight. "Axe Kick," "Unbridled Strength," etc.

@Mr. Ite Aeris does do basic attacks, they're just ranged. In the State of Play trailer you you see her flinging little magic balls off the end of her staff at the Sahagin, and in this trailer, when Aps is attacking the prone Cloud, you can see the the same effects hitting Aps for damage coming in from off-screen. (Effects which people noted before look like the flashes that animated her physical strikes in the original game. )

 

[Ite]

@ForceStealer hey yeahhh I see them now. It’s like she has a little ranged cantrip.

 

[Cannon_Fodder]

I rewatched the boss fight and noticed that Barret's Big Shot has been renamed to "Fire in the Hole." I personally like the change, because Big Shot seems a little on the nose. Also, the description of Cross-Slash doesn't mention paralysis at all. Not sure if the effect is gone or if they just changed the flavour text.