Still Love this Game!!

[CptOvaltine]

I'd like a remake, but done with more fans included, so they dont screw it up like the ff7 remake ( i wasnt a fan due to changing too much)

I've heard a lot of complaints about the ending regarding this being a "future timeline" and that the rest of events may happen quite different post-Midgar. It sounds like a lot of fans having an issue of it not being a remake, but rather an alternate series of events (sort of like the 2009 reboot of Star Trek). Just out of curiousity, is that the case, or was it the additional content that bothered you?

I haven't had a chance to talk to anyone who has played it, so I'm definitely curious!

I've played it...I will say this; it's beautiful, it's fun, and it's full of great little throw backs...but it has almost none of the charm the original had in my opinion. It feels like a new game/story with familiar themes, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. 

Though I'm one of those fans that wanted a 1:1 remake, I was also open minded to a new experience, but instead what I got was a weird hybrid of "this is VII, but it's not really VII".  The ending completely invalidated the entire Remake project and definitely set the tone for alternate storyline. Your analogy of the Star Trek reboot is spot on.  This is more or less a reboot of FFVII, but full of all sorts of Kingdom Hearts level storytelling shenanigans.

It might sound like I hate the game, I don't!  It was actually a lot of fun to play...it just wasn't FFVII and it took me some time to reconcile with that. It's also a great indicator of where Square is at right now and the type of content they want to create.  That's all fine, but I would rather they move on to new IP's then trying to re-invent the old.  It seems to be my opinion about most reboots/revivals these days.

[Boo the Gentleman Caller]

Good right up about your thoughts. I definitely want to play it, but I don't have a PS4. Here's hoping that they port it to PC!

I haven't played it, so I can't speak for the game itself, but... Tetsuya Nomura is batshit insane. I loved the Kingdom Hearts series, have played every game except KH3, and he has made it an absolute jumbled mess. I don't mind a convoluted storyline, but it at least has to make sense. Kingdom Hearts has slowly been falling off the rails, never provides any resolution, and it just all over the place.

I also think Crisis Core was hurt by his creative presence. Great concept, but the semi-retconning and inclusion of insane story elements (Genesis and Angeal and all the weird clones) just hurt the overall product for me.

I love Nomura as a character designer, but as a storyteller...? Not gonna lie, I think he's a hot mess. I say all this to just say that I worry a little about FFVIIR having a similar fate. I don't mind it changing up events with a new "what if" mindset, but if it goes into heavily convoluted storytelling territory... oy vey.

[CptOvaltine]

I love Nomura as a character designer, but as a storyteller...? Not gonna lie, I think he's a hot mess. I say all this to just say that I worry a little about FFVIIR having a similar fate. I don't mind it changing up events with a new "what if" mindset, but if it goes into heavily convoluted storytelling territory... oy vey.

I think that's a great assessment. He has a brilliant mind, I think, but he needs someone to reign him in and help organize his thoughts.  Otherwise we get this "throw every cool idea at the wall, see what sticks, and then try to connect the dots" approach to story telling.

I share your fear that the FFVIIR is going to suffer the same storytelling fate as Kingdom Hearts.  The parts of the Remake that are from VII are strong and familiar.  The new content is...weird, and a bit confusing.  I will say that the entire atmosphere and storytelling have taken a much more "anime" approach then I personally care for, but I know a lot of people like that aspect.

All this to say, the new ending/content is jumbled and is pretty hard to follow without context. If understanding the Remake requires that you understand the original, to me that seems like a fatal flaw in your strategy.