Hopes for Remake & Rebirth (gameplay/combat)

[Claymore]

It's hard to tell from just the glimpse we got at just how indepth that menu system will be, so this is an awesome bit of news to know that the strategy will be maintained.

 

[hian]

Paying close attention to the trailer it seems that the "ATB" gauge fills up when attacking, and that when filled allows characters to do personalized special attacks that probably aren't connected to the materia system.

People are already going on about the "limit breaks" used in the trailer, but if people paid attention they'd notice that non of these attacks are done when the limit bar is charged, but rather when the "ATB" gauge is charged.
This seems to indicate that the bar in front of the name is a combo-gauge of sorts that needs to be filled up in order to access special character attacks (perhaps even the other commands such as magic, or summon).

That would certainly be welcome as it would add a layer of personal difference to the characters apart from the limit breaks which the original game lacked, and which also serves to break up the melee combat so it does not devolve into a process of cookie-cutter button-mashing.

I'm really not feeling the design of Cloud though.
Biggs and Jessie look awesome, and whilst Cloud looks decent in motion when you can't make out the details, when he stands still he looks positively horrible.
That hair looks like the kind of cheap wig I expect from low-grade cos-players at gaming conventions.
Those spikes just don't translate well when you've decided to animate pretty much every single strand of hair on his head.
Also, what's up with his face - that last scene when he looks up - seriously creepy and freakish.

I'm indifferent to Barret. He needs to take off those sun-glasses though - Matrix grew out of fashion a decade ago.

So in short - I think the game-play looks okay. Nothing spectacular but not horrible either. I think the design and presentation is generally solid - but I can't stomach that Cloud. Fix his face and hair asap Nomura.

 

[Flintlock]

I wonder if there's another way of filling the ATB gauge. Having to do physical attacks to fill it would put some characters, like Aeris, at a disadvantage. Perhaps it fills with healed HP as well?

 

[hian]

I wonder if there's another way of filling the ATB gauge. Having to do physical attacks to fill it would put some characters, like Aeris, at a disadvantage. Perhaps it fills with healed HP as well?

Because there is so much cutting involded of the clips in the trailer, it's hard to tell if the ATB is effected by other things, or maybe even moving at all times, and simply boosted when landing attacks, so we might actually be looking at a true ATB system for all we know.

 

[AvecAloes]

Maybe there will be a way to choose how your ATB gauge, something like how you could choose what filled your limit gauge (or whatever it was called) in FFX - that way magic heavy characters would have theirs fill by utilizing spells and stuff?

 

[Wolf_]

^ this. I think you will have the option to set it to attack, magic or even cover damage. Dunno if it's been brought up, but I assume the enemies will be in world and we don't get the surprise 'wooosh' and they appear?

 

[Shademp]

Now I'm totally wondering if a female Cloud will be playable

Imagine doing battles as crossdressing Cloud. Beware of the costume-specific limit break, "Fabulouslash!", complete with sexy poses to cause Confuse on all enemies!

Spoiler

 

[Channy]

^ This totally needs to happen.

 

[Tennyo]

I just showed the PSX trailer to a friend of mine and the first thing she said was, "Please tell me they'll have triceratops tanks."

So that begs the question, will they?

 

[Channy]

The random monsters was part of VII's charm. I mean, I haven't really played a recent FF but have they showed tonberry's and Malboro's in high def yet?

But I'm looking forward to stuff like

Spoiler: Hell House

, or encountering a Frog and being turned into one

 

[Lex]

^Indeed they have

You can even have tonberrys as party members in XIII-2 (which was one of my favourite features of that game ever, because I love tonberrys).

Cactuars too!

 

[Flare]

^If the malboros in the Remake aren't as impressive as the ones in XV, I'll be sad. I want them to freak me the hell out (probably from a mixture of their size and if they're deadly).

 

[Channy]

Cheers Lex

Indeed Flare, I want to feel the same oshit terror I did when I encountered them years ago.

 

[Lex]

I mean in fairness though in FFVII they only have a chance to appear for like half a minute while you're walking in a U shape on the outside of Gaea's Cliffs. They're not quite as horrifying as VIII's.

 

[Geostigma]

 

[Lex]

^I find his videos pretty hit or miss in general but I've laughed loudly four times and I'm only three minutes in. Much enjoy <3

 

[Shademp]

I think classic Waiting Time Battle and Active Time Battle systems often get the label of being mindless and slow. In many such games this is true: The combat is meant to have a grinding, relaxing element to it where exciting executions take up a very small part of the experience.

But Action RPGs like Kingdom Hearts II suffer from the same problem of mindlessness and button-mashing, with the only difference being that this tedium is perceived to be happening faster. LOOK HOW FAST I'M SWINGING MY KEYBLADE OH YEAH!

While I do think that classic J-RPGs generally provide a slower experience than Action RPGs, the fact is that there are right and wrong ways to do both. I hope that the FFVII remake won't suffer from the common problems of Action RPGs.

Example: I want there to be a good reason to switch between which characters I'm controlling in the FFVII remake. If there's no reason to switch away from Cloud, then that will lessen my connection with the other playable characters and make the battle system feel shallow.

 

[AvecAloes]

^^ If they implement a good equipment/materia system, it could absolutely encourage you to switch between characters. If you have Cloud loaded up with materia that is physical attack focused, and Aerith loaded down with magic materia, and you come across an enemy that is weak to magic, of course you'll want to switch your control to Aerith. I know you can put any combination of materia on equipment in the OG, making it so that every character can perform every action/spell/whatever, but there were still characters who are just BETTER at magic/attack/steal than others, and I'm sure that will carry over into the new games, as well.

 

[Teioh]

From the recent Gematsu article: "Separate from Limit Breaks, there is another unique system. They can’t show it yet, but the it’ll be different depending on the player’s fighting style."

Has me curious. Does this mean there will be various ways for a player to choose how to fight? A system that evolves from how we go about it? Or is it just that people who are more skilled at pressing the button at the right time will get something extra as a bonus kind of deal?

 

[Flare]

^I was wondering that too. Maybe it'll be like each character's skills level up more in certain areas based on how you use those skills? Like magic power being raised faster if you tend to use materia more often, whereas your strength will raise faster if you use physical attacks more often?

 

[AvecAloes]

^^ that would be like FFII, which was apparently easily breakable. I wonder what they could do to prevent that from happening if that is indeed what they mean. Of course, this is all just wild speculation at this point

 

[X-SOLDIER]

Also, it's worth mentioning that another big reason to move to the combat system that they're using is the cinematic visual style of combat that they've been showing the FFVII-universe being full of since Advent Children, and letting you control something that matches that, but still strives to have a versatility like the original that wasn't possible until now, and that's something they CLEARLY want to bring into the new portrayal of the original.




X

 

[Loxetta]

Something I'd find interesting would be to see status effects continue beyond the battlefield. Like if an enemy casts Silence on you, then even after the fight is over you still are under the spell and can't interact with NPCs until it wears off or you use the item that fixes it (or get another party member to use the spell to fix it). Maybe Fury and Sadness affect the speed that your character moves across the terrain -- imagine chugging a hyper so you can get from point a to point b quicker

Keep the gag weapons, too. Please let me still smack Hojo in the face with a dirty mop. Visible armor and accessories would also be nice.

 

[Cthulhu]

Other FF games have that (persistent status effects) (actually IIRC even the first did), and it can be so annoying - especially Poison, .

 

[Tennyo]

Something I'd find interesting would be to see status effects continue beyond the battlefield. Like if an enemy casts Silence on you, then even after the fight is over you still are under the spell and can't interact with NPCs until it wears off or you use the item that fixes it (or get another party member to use the spell to fix it). Maybe Fury and Sadness affect the speed that your character moves across the terrain -- imagine chugging a hyper so you can get from point a to point b quicker

Keep the gag weapons, too. Please let me still smack Hojo in the face with a dirty mop. Visible armor and accessories would also be nice.

haha I think XII did this.

If I remember correctly there were a few times my party members dropped dead AFTER I was done with a fight because I wasn't paying attention.