SPOILERS One month later. What are your thoughts? (*Open Spoilers*)

[Odysseus]

While I'm not defending the inconsistency, there isn't actually anything noteworthy on 7th Heaven's porch to get to anyway, right?

Thanks to the stool, you have to take a much longer route to get around the bar than if it just wasn't there. It's inconvenient in a very strange way.

 

[ForceStealer]

Also, I am hoping the Zack stuff is merely there as side content, such as a separate "what if Crisis Core didn't end like it did" DLC, that does not affect, or only slightly affects, the main story.

This is the only development from the Zack stuff that I would be okay with.

Thanks to the stool, you have to take a much longer route to get around the bar than if it just wasn't there. It's inconvenient in a very strange way.

Sure, but is there actually a reason to get around the bar?

 

[Theozilla]

A month later and I still absolutely love the Remake. I just finished completely Chapter 8 on hard mode, and I may actually consider going for the Platinum trophy. It's definitely one of my all time favorite PS4 games.
I agree that stuff like the Whispers and the Chapter 18 stuff got a little too cryptic for its own good, but it's really not game ruining factor, or even detriment to me, it's just some additional stuff that's just "there".
Not to say I don't have zero anxieties about how some stuff might get handled in the future installments. For me namely, the nature and exactly how much Aerith "knows" and whether or not she will definitively about her death going into it, and exactly how Zack "surviving" longer than he originally did is going to play out and/or will be resolved; but even with those anxieties, the developer statements (particularly the ones from the Ultimania) give me confidence and faith that by the end of the of the project, the majority of concerns will be addressed and the story will remain recognizably the FFVII story.
Like Jirard The Completionist said in his review of the Remake, for me the new themes and elements of the Remake don't replace the OG's themes and concepts, but rather exist alongside them, even if and when the execution isn't completely perfect (but neither was the OG IMO), it creates a very engaging experience.
As for the more moment-to-moment character writing and dialogue, I find this element of the Remake to be extremely superior to the OG, I find the characters far more engaging and maturely written than they were in the OG (a lot times in the OG I was intently aware of how certain things only "work" because I have to accept these are popeye polygon characters). In the Remake the characterization is far more naturalistic and I love the integration of elements from the Compilation as well as just making the setting of the story feel more "lived-in" and alive. Aerith, Tifa, and Barret all greatly benefit from the expansion and additions to their characters in this Midgar section of the story, especially the cutting of the more juvenile elements from the OG.
I basically see this as a successful video game version of what The Hobbit trilogy was trying to do in regards to expanding the original The Hobbit novel.
The gameplay is extremely fun, I don't think I need to go much further into that. The side-quests I really enjoyed, maybe my standards are just easier to please in regards to what constitutes a "quality" side-quest since I play FFXIV.

And from what I've seen many newcomers are enjoying the Remake fine and easily (though most newcomers "know" the big future plot twists in the same way many people are pre-spoiled on the OT Star Wars before ever actually watching them). And I definitely don't see this as releasing a "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" story but advertising it as "Pride & Prejudice", I don't think that's accurate comparison at all, and I don't see newbies getting that impression either.

EDIT: Oh, if this isn't already known by most and/or helps give greater context, I was introduced to Final Fantasy in general in 2006 thanks to a childhood neighbor friend renting Advent Children on DVD (plus owning Kingdom Hearts games on their PS2), but I didn't actually get into FFVII (or other FF games) until 2011 after discovering and watching Advent Children Complete (and enjoying it a lot more than my zero-context first watch of AC in 2006), after that I immediately got to watching "cinematic" walkthroughs of the FFVII games (except for BC which I just read a summary of, currently watching a walkthrough now) and discovering this site's articles and audiobooks. I then played and completed FFIV (the 3d DS remake) and then played and completed FFVII OG proper (plus FFVI) on mobile a year or two later. Then got into FFXIV in 2018 (and then beat all the KH games on the Remix collections) and just finished FFX HD earlier this year.

 

[Kain424]

This is the only development from the Zack stuff that I would be okay with.

What if they are setting the stage to expand on Cloud and Zack's relationship in the past a bit. Planting seeds about the guy throughout the next game, until it's revealed what his story actually is?

 

[Ite]

This is something that really hurts for me as well. There were scenes I was really looking forward to seeing with a big AAA budget. It's not like they're going to have that opportunity again (knock on wood). I was ready to be happy to see them with the benefit of cinematic camerawork and acting. Then when they come about... they intentionally make this new plot element the focus. Then I to come to the idea that this is intentionally done specifically to illicit a deflated reaction from people like me. And for what? Because the creator's want to go "trollololol we are defying destiny this isn't your FF7 so back the fuck up"? I don't agree with the idea that this is "false advertising" but if this is the kind of subversion they were going for, I can't help but see it as kind of malicious. Which I hope wasn't intentional. It just doesn't run that deep imo - it's not exactly a defiance of destiny to go ahead and make a game that's guaranteed to do well because of the legacy that you're supposedly trying to defy. If you're gonna do something so bold that you know is going to illicit a disappointment from a certain demographic (and if in fact that's what you're hoping for), at least do so while having something a bit more interesting to say.

Truly. A few days after I finished the game I saw this amazing trailer:

And I had this weird moment of hype, like, I was still waiting for the FFVII Remake? As if I had only played the demo and a few extra moments, like Airbuster, the Don’s mansion, and Abzu. I had this weird “Oh I can’t wait to see the Shinra HQ scenes” except... I guess I already did, hey? Their best, most 2020 attempt. Blech.

Edit: I’m hearing a lot of counter-criticism that insists I’d only be satisfied with a 1:1 remake, to that I say please re-read my posts to find where I said that. Fighting in the Don’s lobby as Tifa and Aeris after the twinky bouncer betrays him is not the story of the original, but it was good, and felt like what a Remake should be. Chapter 3 and 4 are almost entirely new content, and while I didn’t find the execution of the sidequests stellar, that a nitpick — a pet peeve — not a criticism. The conceit of those chapters was good for the story. I don’t give a shit that you can’t go into people’s houses, and I’ve always thought the ppl who want some kind of reference to “This guy are sick” were being dumb. As a fan I was prepared to have ennumerous nitpicks and pet peeves, and did my work before playing to let that little voice have its moment, then proceed to the dining car while I enjoyed the new story. But as I said, there’s a wide line between “This isn’t perfect” and “There are time ghosts everywhere.”

 

[Obsidian Fire]

For me, FFVIIR is primarily a lesson in setting audience expectations correctly. Going into it thinking it was a Remake of the OG proved to be very disappointing. Not so much because there were changes, but because a lot changes felt like they didn't make for a better story then the OG had. It really felt like SE was selling a different game then the one they ended up making. And relied on very carefully worded statements from the devs to do so.

Then the Ultimania and some other interviews came out and said it was more of a squeal and that we weren't going to know what "Remake" actually meant for a few years. So I tried viewing it as a Squeal to all the other Compilation games. As it turns out, that view makes the plot a lot more fun. At least when it comes to speculation and how I feel about it going off the rails of the OG. As a squeal, I don't really care how like the OG it is or isn't. I care more about it telling a satisfying story and thinking of all the ways it could do so with the amount of information that we have.

However, that doesn't take away from the fact being a sequel to the Compilation/OG isn't what the game was sold to people as being. It was sold as being the OG with minor changes to fit a modern gaming audience. And I feel like the massive split in the FF7 fandom over the ending could have been avoided if SE had actually sold the game as a Squeal or a Culmination of the Compilation, or something like that. Rather then as a Remake of the OG. The kinds of things people would be scrutinizing would be different as well as why they would be scrutinizing different things. And I don't think there would be this undercurrent of betrayal making the rounds like there is right now.

As for the game itself... SE has one heck of a job to do. They blew their shock factor in the first game and they'll never get to do that again now that we know how far from the main events of the OG this could get. They also are making use of one of the trickiest plot devices to use properly: the events of the present effecting the events of the past. It is really, really hard to write that in such a way there isn't (a) plot holes or (b) taking away character agency. That isn't to say such a plot can't be done well. The problem is that the writers are some of the SE devs that pay the least attention to story continuity and the most attention to rule of cool. I take a look at FFXIII, FFXV and KH and... I have a really hard time seeing the writers of those game stories use that kind of plot well and not making a mess out of it.

What is great (and makes up for the overall plot problems I think the Remake will have) is the character interactions. For all that Kitase, Nojima and Nomura are not that great at story continuity, all three of them write really good character interaction scenarios. This is where all the fun comes in and is probably the best thing I could pay attention to in the Remake as it's the least disappointing aspect about the Remake.

TLDR: The FF7 Remake is an entertaining Sequel/Culmination of the Compilation and a mediocre Remake of the OG. Watching the characters bounce off each other is fun, I just really don't like looking at the overall plot too hard because it has a ton of warning signs all over it for how badly it could go. I hope SE doesn't mangle the overall plot too bad, but based on how much I like the story team's recent games (and the Remake itself), I'm not expecting too much on that front.

 

[Theozilla]

Then the Ultimania and some other interviews came out and said it was more of a squeal and that we weren't going to know what "Remake" actually meant for a few years.

Okay, but the Ultimania and recent interviews haven't said that the Remake is a "sequel" in terms of in-narrative continuity/chronological events. That's just a relatively common fan theory currently.
Now, if you mean "sequel" in the very loose sense like "spiritual sequel", yeah that could be said is an accurate description, but I would still avoid using the term "sequel" because most people (including myself) think of the former definition than the latter when that word is used. Culmination and adaptation I think would be better terms to use. And the developers have been very clear (at least IMO) for a while that the Remake is essentially an adaptation in the way they are approaching the Remake's relationship to the OG (and Compilation by extension).

 

[oty]

For me, FFVIIR is primarily a lesson in setting audience expectations correctly. Going into it thinking it was a Remake of the OG proved to be very disappointing. Not so much because there were changes, but because a lot changes felt like they didn't make for a better story then the OG had. It really felt like SE was selling a different game then the one they ended up making. And relied on very carefully worded statements from the devs to do so.

Then the Ultimania and some other interviews came out and said it was more of a squeal and that we weren't going to know what "Remake" actually meant for a few years. So I tried viewing it as a Squeal to all the other Compilation games. As it turns out, that view makes the plot a lot more fun. At least when it comes to speculation and how I feel about it going off the rails of the OG. As a squeal, I don't really care how like the OG it is or isn't. I care more about it telling a satisfying story and thinking of all the ways it could do so with the amount of information that we have.

However, that doesn't take away from the fact being a sequel to the Compilation/OG isn't what the game was sold to people as being. It was sold as being the OG with minor changes to fit a modern gaming audience. And I feel like the massive split in the FF7 fandom over the ending could have been avoided if SE had actually sold the game as a Squeal or a Culmination of the Compilation, or something like that. Rather then as a Remake of the OG. The kinds of things people would be scrutinizing would be different as well as why they would be scrutinizing different things. And I don't think there would be this undercurrent of betrayal making the rounds like there is right now.

As for the game itself... SE has one heck of a job to do. They blew their shock factor in the first game and they'll never get to do that again now that we know how far from the main events of the OG this could get. They also are making use of one of the trickiest plot devices to use properly: the events of the present effecting the events of the past. It is really, really hard to write that in such a way there isn't (a) plot holes or (b) taking away character agency. That isn't to say such a plot can't be done well. The problem is that the writers are some of the SE devs that pay the least attention to story continuity and the most attention to rule of cool. I take a look at FFXIII, FFXV and KH and... I have a really hard time seeing the writers of those game stories use that kind of plot well and not making a mess out of it.

What is great (and makes up for the overall plot problems I think the Remake will have) is the character interactions. For all that Kitase, Nojima and Nomura are not that great at story continuity, all three of them write really good character interaction scenarios. This is where all the fun comes in and is probably the best thing I could pay attention to in the Remake as it's the least disappointing aspect about the Remake.

TLDR: The FF7 Remake is an entertaining Sequel/Culmination of the Compilation and a mediocre Remake of the OG. Watching the characters bounce off each other is fun, I just really don't like looking at the overall plot too hard because it has a ton of warning signs all over it for how badly it could go. I hope SE doesn't mangle the overall plot too bad, but based on how much I like the story team's recent games (and the Remake itself), I'm not expecting too much on that front.

I think that is quite similar to what I feel as well. My initial reaction was "why did they do this? why did they change the story in this way?". That was promptly answered by another question really, sort of my "second" reaction and the longest one, "if they wanted to tell a new story, why not just change things? come out, say that things will be different, and that's it". It took some time until I realised that, this is the new story that they want to tell. All of it. The Whispers, fate and the original game's sequences being a correlation, change as an in-game and out-game thing, all of that coming together. That was made even more clear by what Nomura said about the meaning of "Remake". This was very much planned. They didnt just change things because they wanted to tell story about change. And of course, what better kind of game to tell that story than the Remake kind?

I'm still havent "made my peace" to it, totally. Partly because the game actually delivers what I wanted in the first place, and partly because I will probably always have that dream in the back of my head. I will always remember the time after that PSX 2015 trailer that, for a second, it was like that dream come true. But atleast, I'm starting to see the Remake as it's own thing. And making up theories, discussing. It ain't half bad. It's definitely the good thing that came out of it.

 

[LNK]

A month after playing, I still feel the same way now, as I did then. I really like the remake and I can't wait until the next game is released.

Are there a few things I didn't like? Of course! But, the good things far outweigh the bad. The character interactions between each other. (Barring dramatic changes in future parts, remake Barret is def in my top 5 of video game characters) The battle mechanics (aerial battle was def annoying at times). The music. The emotional moments.

Nitpicking every little thing, has never been something I could do. It all comes down to if I like the game overall.

The ending was definitely unexpected. But, so was FF9's and that's one of my favorite games of all time.

As long as SE continues on the same path for future parts, I will prefer playing this over the OG

 

[Celes777]

A month later! I had a dream last night and in my dream Yazoo was beating the crap out of Cloud. He was yelling something like "ey, I'm in this game dude! I'm in this game!".

I think that's my prediction of part two

 

[The Twilight Mexican]

Now that'd be meta.