Jumping in here — new member and old fan of the OG/Compilation, really loving the expansion of the Remake overall. Haven’t read the last 40-some pages so apologies if some of these points have already been made, but I thought some of the changes in the Remake were interesting re: the LTD.
It actually seems like they’re “toning down” the LT in some ways, or maybe a different way to phrase it — they’re upping the “friends/nakama” angle in terms of Aerith’s relationships. For me, while Aerith’s death was impactful in the OG, I thought there was something lacking in her relationships to all party members not named Cloud. Obviously they were all distraught, but the majority of her interactions were with Cloud, so while there were sometimes moments you got with others — i.e. her and Tifa sitting together occasionally — I always felt that Aerith’s friendships weren’t as fleshed out as they could have been. So when you got each party member grieving her, it didn’t feel quite genuine to me.
Here in the Remake, it really feels like they’re trying to emphasize Aerith’s relationship with the entire team. You get moments where she bonds with Barret over Marlene, her brief moment with Red XIII, and of course the abundance of Aerith/Tifa moments. I find it quite refreshing, and a welcome change from the OG. It’s going to hurt doubly much if/when Aerith dies, because I’ll actually believe the team’s grief.
To that end, in regards to the love triangle, there are several moments that could have been easily given to Cloud to fuel the LTD that were given to Tifa instead. Off the top of my head: Tifa saving Aerith in the sewers and their girl-bonding moment, Tifa saying “We found you” before Eligor, and Tifa pulling Aerith out of the Whispers’ grasp in Aerith’s old room. Cloud was literally standing 5 feet away from her while Tifa was across the room — he could’ve easily done that, so I found it telling that the devs opted to give that moment to Tifa instead.
Cloud also opens up way earlier in the Remake. His first smiles and laughs are shared with the Avalanche Trio. He remembers the Promise on his own and then he and Tifa share a moment in his bedroom where he literally tells her if she needs to talk, he’ll listen, and she says he’s losing his hard edge. Aerith obviously contributes to Cloud letting down his walls, but by the time he meets her again he’s already going through that process.
In addition to that, there were several Cloud/Aerith moments from the OG that were removed or altered. The biggest change I noticed was the removal of the prison cell scene (replaced by Aerith’s room, where we get Aerith/Tifa bonding) that showcased Cloud and Aerith flirting and Tifa getting jealous. Aerith also emphasizes Zack as “the first guy she ever loved,” and there’s no option to ask if it was serious or not. Aerith is clearly still hung up about him, given her entire demeanor in the park and leading up to it ("Are you friends with any other SOLDIERS?").
Aerith herself seems to be pretty encouraging of Cloud and Tifa too — she clearly knows something. She tells Tifa to “follow her heart” and a few scenes later we get Tifa jumping into Cloud’s arms; she teases Cloud about Tifa and the flower; and when Tifa worries about Cloud’s wellbeing in the Drum, Aerith is like “who cares about Cloud, what about you?”
Basically, the real love triangle is Aerith/Tifa/Cloud.
On the other end, Cloud and Tifa’s physicality is incredibly in-your-face. Like, almost every scene they’re together, they’re touching or holding each other or something. I guess the touches could be written off as fan service, but given Cloud and Tifa’s entire motto is “actions speak louder than words,” it’s much more likely to be a deliberate nod to “words aren’t the only way.”
This isn’t to say SE won’t milk the LTD more in Part 2, but I find these changes pretty interesting — just my two cents.
I genuinely think Nojima meant it in a more sweet/intimate way, like "It's a cute scene, so please look forward to it" lol. As you said yourself, they seem to be late-bloomers when it comes to romance (and then they prove us wrong by jumping into each other in the HW scene 
)
Honestly, I did think it was probably the former, but it was fun thinking that maybe he meant (or wished he meant) the latter.
