Not the first one, they claim this on Remake credit too that shows only Aerith's resolution
All the resolutions canonically took place anyway so that argument doesn’t hold mustard
Again I’m going to reiterate my firm belief that all the gold saucer dates will have canonically taken place in the story. Far too much of the key important character development moments take place on the Skywheel with ALL the characters.
Optional or not, there’s no way the developers will have done those scenes for all the characters just as an act of fan service. Key plot points are discussed and confirmed, key character moments reach their natural conclusion having been built up through the game. And this is for everyone, not just Aerith. To write off Tifa’s date as optional fan service is to write off all the others as well by that same argument. That’s my biggest issue frankly, that everyone else doesn’t matter in the story they see, because the story of Final Fantasy VII is ONLY Cloud and Aerith to them, at the expense of literally everything else.
If a scene contradicts their ship, it isn’t canon. Or they’ll misinterpret it to suit their conclusions. But if a single ever so slight implication takes place in any such scene, like Claudia’s saying to Cloud about finding a mature girl, then it goes in the evidence folder.
More to the point with the other gold saucer dates, each and every single one displays Cloud’s character growth. Not just Aerith’s. It’s not a one and done thing, so I’m positive all of them will have an impact for the characters going forward into part 3.