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Welcome to Midgar-RockORG, the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII fan-domain that encourages you to keep on rockin' in Midgar! Bring on your alien Madonnas, your flying rocks, even your silver-haired freakshows; nothing will knock this little planet down.
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In addition to the main domain, Midgar-RockORG is home to several FFVII-related fan resources, including the only Final Fantasy VII fanlisting!
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No Re-make!
After receiving many requests to sign and promote petitions at this site, I realized that I am one of the seemingly few FFVII fans adamantly opposed to a re-make--specifically a re-make for the Playstation 3. I'll admit that my initial reasons were pretty petty -- the sentimental value will plummet! The horror! -- but the more I thought about it and discussed the idea with other people, the more I realized just how illogical the desire for a re-make is.
Probably the most obvious reason is simply there is no need for another FFVII. Although people rant and rave about the English version, it still got it's point across; it was effective enough to spawn a thriving fanbase that's still kickin' all these years after its initial release. Although the recent FFVII renaissance has caused a sudden shortage in the otherwise abundant used copies, Sony has done a great job making their consoles backwards compatible, making Final Fantasy VII still very accessible to the average gamer. What Sony should be doing is following Square Enix Japan's lead by re-issuing the original PS1 game. Consumers at Amazon have already shown that they are willing to pay upwards of $50 for a copy from a re-seller; no one is going to say no if you offer one a brand new copy for $20.
The fact that Sony still hasn't re-issued the game has me completely stumped. You'd think it'd be common sense -- a win-win for fans and company big-wigs -- but apparently not.
One of the most overlooked arguments against a PS3 re-make -- one that I didn't even consider until Chloe brought it up -- concerns censorship. Standards have changed along with the technology; a new FFVII will not be able to get away with the same things the original did. In the way of censorship, Final Fantasy VII was all over the place; it was unapologetically politically incorrect, a little goofy, and charming in its own weird little way. With the dramatic changes in the technology being used and in a more experienced industry, any controversies will be approached with more care by both the developers and the ESRB in the coming years, and a FFVII re-make would hardly be exempt from this process. A photo-realistic Cid stomping around, swearing, and smoking would do more to hike up the rating; you'll notice, as Chloe observed, that Cid does not smoke in AC. Although the cigarette does return in DC, the game hit The States with a "Use of Tobacco" warning on the ESRB label, something absent from the original game despite the cigarette being just as prevelant.
Perhaps most significant to today's gaming market is the fact that AVALANCHE begins as a group of very modern terrorists. Although not at all addressed at depth, the issue would surely stir controversy if the short and blocky characters were changed to super-realistic ones blowing up buildings in this post-9/11 world. The photo-realism introduced on the PS3 would add a new spin on the issues presented in FFVII, and -- if we were to see a re-make -- you can count on meeting a changed Barret, a revamped Don Corneo, not to mention you might as well kiss the Honeybee Inn and Mukki goodbye. Although not necessarily integral to the plot, all of these little details were what made FFVII so special. Fans don't seem to realize that in getting a re-make, they'd be getting a very different product.
Although M-rated games like Grand Theft Auto and Halo have rocked the industry, the fact still stands that E and T games far out-sell those rated M, and that's not a risk Square Enix is willing to take on such an expensive project in their flagship franchise. Besides, wouldn't you rather Square invest in something new and innovative? Or perhaps they should give a less accessible franchise a chance to shine?
And now for my own sentimental reasons: even with all the little grammatical errors of the "inferior" English version of Final Fantasy VII, I still love it. FFVII successfully tapped video game's potential as a medium for interactive storytelling, introducing characters with unheard of depth and development that players genuinely cared about, and using considerably advanced cinematography as a film would to tell its story. It is a truly timely -- almost historic -- game; it set the standard for this industry in its day. It's earned multiple references in the Guinness Book of World Records for its outrageous sales, and I'm sure we'll be hearing of its influence from industry insiders for years to come. Why mess with it?
Having said this, I'd still be very much in favor of a port of the original game to a portable system. I wouldn't even argue if it was tweaked slightly to incorporate the features of the Nintendo DS. Granted, I'm sure even slightly changing the game would call for a re-evaluation from the ESRB, and messing with the formula too much would seemingly chip away at the game's sentimental value. However, a move to a portable system would account for less frivolous "messing", so to speak, and may actually do more to add to the experience rather than rehash it.
A re-make to the Playstation 3 really couldn't offer more to its players than an expensive graphical upgrade. A port to the PSP, on the other hand, would allow players to enjoy the original game anywhere they pleased with a less threatening price tag, and any gameplay advancements offered by the DS (touch-based Materia system? Maps?) would do more to enhance and add new dimension to the original product rather than simply attempting to duplicate it. Although I wouldn't doubt Square would make changes to a PS3 re-make, do you really think it'd be enough to warrant such an expensive overhaul? Square would have to build the entire thing from scratch for this new system; wouldn't that time be better spent making something completely new?
Midgar-Rock is designed and maintained by Stacey Anne. It is in no way affiliated with Square Enix or Sony; it isonly the work of a fan wishing to show her appreciation. No infringement is intended with the making of this site; this is just the work of a fan wishing to share her appreciation. All designs are optimized for Firefox and Opera .