Final Fantasy VII

Final Fantasy VII is a video game that was Squaresoft (now Square Enix)'s first Final Fantasy game on the Playstation. It was later released for the PC, with Eidos Interactive as the distributor. Unlike previous games in the series, Final Fantasy VII used 3D graphics, with fully rendered characters and prerendered backgrounds. Many Final Fantasy fans hold that it is the best game in the series (although many others claim Final Fantasy VI is), and it remains one of Squaresoft's top-sellers of all time. It is also one of the most ambiguous (and, some say, convoluted) games in the series, leaving much of the symbolism and meaning of its complicated story open to debate. Some criticized the installment's (and Final Fantasy VIII) 'futuristic' setting compared to other Final Fantasy games.Most fans of Nintendo were angered by Squaresoft's decision to move the game from the Nintendo 64 to the Sony Playstation.

The game utilizes elements from such sources such as Kabbalah and Norse mythology.

Table of contents

1 Plot
2 Characters

2.1 Playable Characters' Profiles

3 Musical Score
4 Reappearances of FFVII Characters
5
6 See also
7 External links

Plot

The world is controlled by a company called Shin-Ra, who profits from the use of powerful machines (reactors) that pump energy (mako) out of the planet and convert it into electricity, leaving behind a residue with magical properties (materia). The powers in charge of Shinra are fascinated with the idea of the promised land -- where supposedly the land is incredibly fertile and where mako flows abundantly -- as well as the group of people who can find it known as the Ancients or the Cetra. They are opposed by a terrorist rebel group, Avalanche, who believe Shinra is destroying the world by extracting the mako, which is, in reality, a mystical lifestream where souls go to be reborn. To undermine Shinra's efforts Avalanche hires a mercenary named Cloud Strife, an ex-SOLDIER of Shinra, to help them destroy the Mako Reactors positioned in a ring around Shinra's main city, Midgar. Cloud, in the beginning unmoved by Avalanche and the planet's plight, soon begins to see the danger posed by Shinra and by a sinister foe named Sephiroth, and so joins in the escalating conflict to protect the planet and its lifestream.

Characters

The main playable characters in Final Fantasy VII are (in order of appearance) Cloud Strife, Barret Wallace, Aeris Gainsborough, Tifa Lockheart, Red XIII (also called Nanaki), Cait Sith, Cid Highwind, and two extra characters: Vincent Valentine and Yuffie Kisaragi. Sephiroth joins you in a series of flashbacks, but he cannot be controlled or equipped. Important characters for Shinra are Reeve (Head of Development), Hojo (Head Scientist), Heidegger (Head of the Military), Scarlet, President Shinra, his son, Rufus, and the CIA/assassin-like Turks (Elena, Rude, Reno, and Tseng).

Playable Characters' Profiles

Cloud Strife - A mercenary employed by Avalanche that the player begins the game controlling. Cloud is a confused and conflicted individual with an arrogant front. He wears dark SOLDIER clothing, has blue eyes with a mako glow, and his blond hair is bizarrely spiked (a fact that his compatriots often tease him about). He fights with a gigantic broadsword.
Barret Wallace - The leader of Avalanche, a powerfully built black man with a deep-seated hatred of everything Shinra. Mistrusts Cloud at first because of the mercenary's past affiliation with Shinra. Barret lost his arm in a battle years ago, and uses a prosthetic "gun-arm" to fight.
Tifa Lockheart - A childhood acquaintance of Cloud's, she is a skilled martial artist with a cheerful nature. One of the main members of Avalanche, she convinces Cloud initially to take the job. She has long black hair tied back in a loose pony-tail and brown (or red, depending on interpretation) eyes. She is a martial artist and wears a black miniskirt and a white, bare-shouldered middrift T-shirt to improve her flexibility in battle.
Aeris Gainsborough - Soft spoken, fragile, and compassionate, Aeris is a poor flower-seller with healing abilities sought after by Shinra. Due to the threat they pose to her, she asks Cloud to be her bodyguard and subsequently joins Avalanche. She has long brownish red hair she keeps in a braid with pink bows, vivid green eyes, and wears a red mini-jacket and long pink dress. She fights with a metal quarterstaff.
Red XIII - Strong, fierce, and coated with fire-red fur, Red XIII is one large and powerful beast. However, his mind and soul are a different story. With amazing intelligence and a warm heart, Red XIII joins with Cloud after being rescued from a horrible Shinra experiment. Red XIII is the name given to him by Hojo, Shinra's Head of Research and Development. His real name is Nanaki.
Cait Sith - A black and white talking house-cat, friendly but untrustworthy and unreliable at times. Rides around on the back of a "Mog" that also does all his fighting for him. Has a hobby of telling fortunes.
Cid Highwind - A rather crochety character that curses in nearly every sentence, but who remains passionate about his interests and dreams about going into space. A pilot, he wears attire befitting his occupation (gloves, goggles, jacket, scarf) and is skilled with machinery. Has greying blonde hair and blue eyes. Uses a spear in battle.
Yuffie Kisaragi - A ninja, she's sneaky and tries to steal things for herself, particularly materia. She's the youngest, fastest, and least serious member of the group; but eventually even she realizes the gravity of the situation she gets caught up in. Has dark hair, dark eyes, short beige pants, a green sleeve-less turtleneck, and a green headband to match. Uses a shuriken (an oversized ninja star) to throw and slash with.
Vincent Valentine - A dark, brooding character, often gloomy. Has some bad associations with Sephiroth and Shinra, and feels compelled to help Cloud and the others in their quest. Wears all black, except for a deep red cape, matching headband, and gold claw-arm. Has long, messy black hair and red eyes. His special attacks, or Limit Breaks involve monstrous transformations. His mannerisms and appearance have given rise to rumors among the fanbase that he may be a vampire of some kind.
Sephiroth - Said to be the best SOLDIER there ever was. Mysterious and dangerous, with an agenda all his own. Has long, naturally silver-white hair, tourquoise eyes, and wears a black leather trenchcoat with silver shoulder plates over it; underneath the trenchcoat he goes bare-chested. A master swordsman, he uses a long, deadly katana called the Masamune which only he can wield.

Musical Score

Nobuo Uematsu's second work for Squaresoft. There is an original 4-disc version containing music directly from the game, as well as a single-disc album, titled "Final Fantasy VII: Reunion", which is a collection of the most popular tracks, some of which have been orchestrated.

Reappearances of FFVII Characters

Final Fantasy VII proved to be so popular that several characters from the game have appeared in other Square games. Cloud, Tifa, Sephiroth, Vincent, Yuffie and Zack are playable characters in the fighting game Ehrgeiz. Cloud appears as a secret character in Final Fantasy Tactics. Cloud, Aerith, Yuffie, and Sephiroth appear in Kingdom Hearts.

In a break of tradition, after the production of the sequel to Final Fantasy X, the original Final Fantasy VII team decided to follow suit, with a CG movie sequel to be released on DVD. This movie is to be released in Japan in late 2004, with a US release following shortly after.

External links

Gamefaqs entry for Final Fantasy VII