Alone the fact this game HAS A SUBTITLE, makes it already different enough from the OG. The word REMAKE is a special case on its own, because a lot of people don't understand its meaning. The ONLY undisputed characteristic that you'll find in all remakes, is the fact that it builds upon the BASICS the original work was leaning on. This DOESN'T NEED to include the NARRATIVE STRUCTURE of said original work (what the most mistakenly take for granted).
A remake in "traditional" sense, especially in the vg business, is often associated with the overhauling of one aspect: THE GRAPHICS! That's how it gets often done, but nobody said that's the iron rule everyone needs to follow. Locations, character design, fighting choreography (FF7R specific), dialogue-, art-, narrative direction and other aspects are free to mess around with.
ARTISTIC FREEDOM plays a big role here, because it's a GENRE (remakes are normally seen as its own category, right?) that leaves a lot of room for INTERPRETATION. So, people who're jumping to conclusions about how the game's release format should be the same as its 23 year old predecessor, are OBJECTIVELY WRONG.
Now that we've cleared up the game title alone isn't enough for charging against deceit, lets move on to our next topic: MARKETING!
What other possibilities are there to inform the "ordinary" masses about a video game that'll need more than one part to conclude its overall story? For my understanding, SE already used all commercial approaches that are common for video games today. TV advertisement could still be a possibility, but they're used in priority to sell the story and visuals, not about the product's episodic (technically) nature. And I don't think they need to get out of their way doing so. Maybe... FLYERS?!
Or they're organising the staff to make house visits...
"Did you hear about the great miracles of JENOV- I mean... MULTI-PA-"
"Daddy, there's a creepy man at the front door! *shotgun noises*"
... soooo, any good ideas?
When it comes to selling the game, I can assure you they mentioned the multi-part nature, or calling it the first game in the FFVIIR project that's focusing on Midgar (not the continent), in the game's discription at any online store you can think of. This should be evidence enough, but for completion's sake, an example from Amazon.com:
Pre order now to get the Chocobo Chick Summon Materia DLC. A spectacular reimagining of one of the most visionary games ever, FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE rebuilds the legendary RPG for today. The FIRST ENTRY in a MULTI PART SAGA, delivering a level of depth inconceivable for the original. Mind blowing story, unforgettable characters, epic battles and technical excellence collide. The world has fallen under the control of the Shinra Electric Power Company, a shadowy corporation controlling the planet's very life force as mako energy. In the sprawling city of Midgar, an anti Shinra organization calling themselves Avalanche have stepped up their resistance. Cloud Strife, a former member of Shinra's elite SOLDIER unit now turned mercenary, lends his aid to the group, unaware of the epic consequences that await him.
And you can bet on them, they'll use the official discription from their websites and stores for the physical release too!
