Targeting could also use some improvements – locking on to enemies is all well and good, but when the camera doesn't strictly follow your target, it irritates.ĭespite the focus on the Midgar section, Remake still proves itself a sprawling epic. Normally this isn't too bad, as you can switch to other party members, but on occasion when the plot has you with only one character, it's immensely frustrating. Combine that with certain enemies with debilitating attacks, and you can be left with no escape from damaging attacks. Tapping away at square can lock you into a combo, which is impossible to break to dodge or guard. The new battle system isn’t perfect though.
Weapons unlock new, unique moves, and can be boosted in power, while Materia orbs provide an array of magic, skills, and powerful summons to use in battle. Despite the truncated line-up – expect the remaining five playable characters to debut as the later Remake chapters arrive – there's plenty of customisation to be found. Each has their own specialisations in combat, and you can switch between them at any point, allowing you to juggle battles as you switch between up-close attacks from Cloud and Tifa or ranged moves from Barret and Aerith. Given Remake only adapts a slice of the original, the playable characters are scaled back to a mere four: Cloud, fighter Tifa, gun-armed Barret, and flower seller-turned-healing mage Aerith – updating the old spelling of "Aeris". It's a perfect balance of old and new, and while a "Classic" mode is also included – where characters auto-attack and players only have to make menu selections – it feels staid and frustrating by comparison. Here, players hammer the square button to build up an "Active Time Bar", then tap cross to slow time to a crawl, affording chance to select abilities, magic, or items from a menu.
Instead, director Tetsuya Nomura has modernised the combat but kept the precision and deliberation of the traditional system. This, more than anything, could have broken the spell, turning Remake into just another hack-and-slash action RPG. The biggest change is the shift from static, turn-based battles to a more action-oriented affair.
Final Fantasy VII was always political, but here it's more scathing in its condemnation. While the game's ecological and political messages are even more pertinent now they were more than two decades ago, here Square Enix also delves into how propaganda can turn people against their own interests, with news broadcasts frequently swaying public opinion against Cloud and his allies.
#FINAL FANTASY VIII REMAKE SERIES#
Once again taking on the role of mercenary Cloud Strife, players are drawn into a series of ecoterrorist actions against Shinra, which is draining the planet of its very life essence in order to provide energy. A sprawling megalopolis ruled by the Shinra Electric Power Corporation, Midgar is deeply divided between the rich, who live on the upper strata of the city, and the poor, who live in the polluted slums still on the Earth's surface. The first of several planned instalments to fully adapt the epic scale of the 1997 game, Remake focuses on the section of the story set in Midgar City.