Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the Final Fantasy game we’ve been waiting for for more than two decades- a legitimately stellar game with no caveats holding it back, a game that captures the grand scope and flair of the series’ older entries, a game that does all that while also pushing the series forward in bold ways that will stand the test of time. The hope of a new Final Fantasy game that can do what the lower development costs and cycles of prior years allowed the series’ older instalments to do has looked increasingly out of reach as time has gone on, but Rebirth checks all of those boxes with such staggering conviction, confidence, and panache that it’s hard not to be left wondering how it was even made possible- and with a relatively short development cycle of just four years, to boot.

Picking up exactly where Final Fantasy 7 Remake left off, Rebirth begins with Cloud and company stepping out into a larger world, with Midgar in their rearview mirror, the threat of Shinra on their heels, and the even bigger threat of Sephiroth looming ominously on the horizon. As familiar as that might be to those who’ve played the original Final Fantasy 7 though, right off the bat, Rebirth also makes it abundantly clear that it isn’t just treading old ground. It does so in ways that are, of course, best left unspoiled, but it’s commendable how expertly it strikes a balance between recreating the original game’s most beloved and iconic moments, and putting its own spin on a familiar story in increasingly surprising ways. Like FF7 Remake before it, Rebirth isn’t just reimagining a beloved game- it’s also telling its own story in its own right, and constantly toying with your expectations to keep you on your toes.

"Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is the Final Fantasy game we’ve been waiting for for more than two decades."

Many of the game’s narrative changes also take the form of additive expansions, rather than shake-ups of core elements of the story. Whether that’s by letting you explore different regions of the world and immerse yourself in their different histories and cultures, or by diving deeper into a character’s backstory to reveal new details about their past and lend them much more nuance than their original iteration; by taking scenes and locations from the original game and expanding on them in glorious fashion, or by adding entirely new characters, locations, and arcs- Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth fleshes out and builds on the bones of the game it’s based on in spectacular ways, and it does a much better job than its 2020 predecessor of doing so without ever feeling unnecessarily drawn out. The changes and additions it makes, from the most minor to the most significant, feel meaningful and deliberate, all part of a grand, larger vision that the game is executing on masterfully, with confident cohesion, and with a consistent creative boldness that is rare to see in AAA games of this scale.

Along with being a love letter to the original Final Fantasy 7, Rebirth is also a game that very much stands on its own two legs, regardless of your level of familiarity with FF7. A lot of that is down to its incredible cast, which not only sees returning characters from the first game taking significant strides forward, but also adds entirely new faces who make their own mark on the story in indelible ways. The journey begins with Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, Barret, and Red XIII on the road to Kalm, and right off the bat, it’s hard not to be instantly invested in the dynamic of the group, the changing relationships between different characters, and the ways that each individual develops.

As the story progresses, fan-favourites like Cait Sith, Yuffie, and more enter the fray, and are brought to life with instantly endearing and incredibly fleshed out portrayals. Even many of the less significant side characters that the party encounters throughout the course of the story very frequently leave a lasting impression. And then there’s the cast of villains, from the menacing Sephiroth to the ruthless Rufus Shinra, each of whom elevates every scene they’re in. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a game brimming with immense personality, and though a lot of that is obviously down to its world and setting, the bulk of the heavy-lifting is done by what is probably one of the best casts of characters ever in a video game.

"From big, explosive set pieces to jaw-dropping spectacles in the world, from heartfelt and endearing interactions between characters to flashy, bombastic boss fights, Rebirth maintains an incredible sense of pace and momentum from start to finish by never letting you sit too long before giving you another memorable moment or sequence, propelling you forward to the next big story beat."

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth also captures attention – again, regardless of your familiarity with the original game – by constantly hitting you with unforgettable moments. From big, explosive set pieces to jaw-dropping spectacles in the world, from heartfelt and endearing interactions between characters to flashy, bombastic boss fights, Rebirth maintains an incredible sense of pace and momentum from start to finish by never letting you sit too long before giving you another memorable moment or sequence, propelling you forward to the next big story beat. That it does so, and does it as well as it does, in spite of being the massive, globetrotting journey that it is is an accomplishment that shouldn’t go unnoticed. Admittedly, the writing, performances, and animations sometimes veer a bit too far into cartoonish territory, which may not be to everyone’s taste, but the game always wears its heart on its sleeve, and to me, there’s an undeniable charm to that. Meanwhile, the ridiculously excessive anime grunts of Final Fantasy 7 Remake have also been toned down significantly, which is another plus.

But of course, Rebirth isn’t just about the story and its many prescribed, painstakingly handcrafted, and unforgettable moments. Unlike Final Fantasy 7 Remake, the sequel is also a game that’s much more willing – to an astounding degree, in fact – to let its players make their own fun. Rebirth adopts an open world approach, with a seamless, enormous map consisting of more than half a dozen different regions, and though progress through the world is often gated by the story, never does it feel like the game is limiting you or your desire to explore in any way.

For starters, each region of the world is massive in and of itself, and that becomes clear very early on, as soon as you’re past the first couple of hours and enter the Grasslands area. The strength of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s exploration doesn’t just come from pure size though, because just as responsible – if not more so – is the design. All too often, open worlds end up feeling like vast stretches of procedurally designed play space that house repeatable content to drive more engagement from the players, but Rebirth’s world exhibits the sort of meaningful variety of meticulous, handcrafted design that elevates it to an entirely new level. From the lush plains of the Grasslands to the blasted and war-torn ruins of the Junon region, from the pristine beaches and festive vibe of Costa del Sol to the absolute attack on the senses that is the brazenly gaudy Gold Saucer, Cloud and company visit a vast variety of locations throughout their epic, globe-trotting journey, and each of them is an absolute joy to discover, explore, and simply exist in.

Beyond the visual variety itself – which is breathtaking in and of its own – the regions and locales of the world also meaningfully differ from each other in how you interact with them. Running across the plains of the Grasslands is a very different experience from scaling the intimidating crags of Mt. Corel, while incredibly enough, different regions of the world also offer their own unique traversal mechanics in the form of different chocobo types that are unique to their region and can soar through the air, climb up sheer cliff walls, and more.

"Rebirth’s world exhibits the sort of meaningful variety of meticulous, handcrafted design that elevates it to an entirely new level. From the lush plains of the Grasslands to the blasted and war-torn ruins of the Junon region, from the pristine beaches and festive vibe of Costa del Sol to the absolute attack on the senses that is the brazenly gaudy Gold Saucer, Cloud and company visit a vast variety of locations throughout their epic, globe-trotting journey, and each of them is an absolute joy to discover, explore, and simply exist in."

Plenty of other elements inject further variety into the world as well- like a specific section of the Corel region with ziplines scattered everywhere, or a lighthouse in the distance that overlooks the entirety of Junon from a perch. Even in its more guided and linear areas, like its dungeons, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth exhibits much better design sensibilities than Remake, and frequently offers up branching paths, hidden areas, optional fights against tougher foes, unique traversal sequences, light puzzle solving, and more (though admittedly, those traversal sequences – climbing walls in particular – often suffer from stiff controls). A lot of the times, the exploration also feels surprisingly diegetic, with elements in the open world itself drawing your eyes to points of interest, with birds, glowing crystals, chocobo chicks, and more leading you to side activities.

The game also does an excellent job of making exploration feel genuinely rewarding from a mechanical standpoint. For starters, once again, it does that through the sheer variety of the things you do and the activities you engage in. There’s a ridiculous amount of things to do in each region- you’ll be scaling towers, taking on combat challenges, repairing choboco rest stops, and much, much more, and on top of bringing its own unique flavour to the larger experience, each activity also feels rewarding in its own unique way.

Lifesprings are a treasure trove of crafting resources, and can also reveal new backstory about the region you’re in or uncover new item crafting recipes. Summon crystals are worth seeking out, because the more of them you find, the easier it becomes to add that region’s Summon to your arsenal. Then there are the Mogstools, where, after engaging in a minigame that sees you wrangling mischievous mooglets, you can trade in Moogle Medals for items. Each region also has a unique line of side quests revolving around the party trying to get their hands on mysterious, ancient artifacts for Chadley known as Protorelics, and each of these questlines is an absolute blast, not only because of how they connect and the mysteries they tease, but also because of the unique twist each of them brings from a gameplay perspective. And of course, there are also plenty of individual side quests to tackle in each region, and it’s surprising how genuinely engaging the vast majority of them are, with legitimately well-told smaller stories that focus on individual characters and parts of the world.

On top of that, no matter what side activity you engage in, you also gain World Intel, which is essentially a currency that you can use to purchase new Materia from Chadley. Everything you do in the open world ends up feeling rewarding one way or another, and just as crucially, it’s all incredibly fun. And I haven’t even touched on the game’s abundance of minigames, each of which feels surprisingly well-built and fun to play. Scattered throughout the world, you’ll find minigames both new and familiar, from Intergrade’s Fort Condor to the dangerously addictive Queen’s Blood, from chocobo races to playing the piano, from catching mischievous mooglets to the plethora of the minigames that you’ll find in places like Costa del Sol and the Gold Saucer. You’re obviously going to have your own favourites, but each minigame feels delightful in its own unique way, almost like Square Enix is taking a page out of Yakuza’s book (or Like a Dragon, as it’s now known).

"Above all else, this is a very well thought out and smartly designed game, where it never feels like any part of the experience doesn’t justify its existence in some way or another."

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s progression mechanics boast the same level of depth and density that the rest of the game does. If Final Fantasy 16 felt too straightforward in its progression and customization mechanics to be an RPG, Rebirth swings in the exact opposite direction. The newly introduced Party Level system does a lot of the heavy-lifting here. Completing quests, side quests, activities, and more nets your entire party with combined XP, and each time your party levels up, each character gains access to new unlockable skills on their individual skill trees. These trees take the form of Folios that will be familiar to fans of Final Fantasy 10’s Grid Sphere, and the unlocks they give you access to range from new skills to Synergy Abilities (more on this in a bit) to upgrading your base stats and more.

On top of leveling up each individual character and the party at large, each character also gains weapon levels, which allows you to equip your weapons with an increasing number of perks with varying buffs and bonuses, while beyond that, you’re also constantly asked to keep an eye on the gear that your party members have equipped, and what Materia you’ve decked that gear out with- while each Materia, of course, levels up the more you use it as well. Beyond that, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth gives you further control still of your gameplay experience with the introduction of the new item transmutation mechanic, which lets you use a device gifted to Cloud by Chadley to make items and gear out of crafting resources. Using your item transmuter also levels it up, further unlocking new and better things for you to craft.

From the progression mechanics and their many layers to the amount of things to do in the open world and the astounding variety those activities boast, everything in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth feeds back into itself in an incredibly satisfying manner. Above all else, this is a very well thought out and smartly designed game, where it never feels like any part of the experience doesn’t justify its existence in some way or another.

Tying it all together is, of course, the spectacular combat. When this combat system was introduced in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, it was widely praised as one of the series’ best to date, so it’s no surprise that a version of it that is somehow even better is one of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s biggest and brightest highlights. Like in Remake, the combat here strikes an ingenious balance between the turn-based trappings of the original FF7 and the real-time action that is expected of most modern AAA games, and while that foundation in and of itself is enough to carry an entire game (as some might argue it did in Remake), Rebirth builds on it with plenty of significant improvements. Chief among them are the new Synergy Abilities, which are combo attacks that see two characters coming together to unleash special moves. There’s an impressive amount of permutations and combinations on offer, with different characters working with each other to turn the tide of battle in different ways, while each Synergy Ability also comes with typically flashy cinematics that are a joy to behold each time.

"There’s a lot going on in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s combat, and when it clicks – which it does often, thanks to how effectively it’s implemented and how cohesively it’s all brought together – it feels absolutely exhilarating. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration in the slightest if I were to call it one of the best combat systems I’ve ever experienced in a game."

Another one of Rebirth’s strengths in the combat department is how different and fun each character feels to play as. Each character attacks, moves, blocks, and dodges in their own way, and on top of having their own unique attributes, strengths, and weaknesses, they also come with their different sets of abilities, and often, entirely unique mechanics, from Red XIII’s Vengeance Mode, which is kind of an inversion of the ATB system, to Yuffie’s ninjutsu skills, which allow her to blend melee, ranged, and elemental combat in devastating fashion. With more than half a dozen fully playable characters, that level of depth and variety across the entire cast becomes that much more impressive.

Constantly swapping between characters, paying attention to enemy attacks, dodging and blocking in real-time, pressuring and staggering foes, managing your ATB gauge and Synergies, unleashing Summons and Limit Breaks, mastering the unique mechanics and play style of each character- there’s a lot going on in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s combat, and when it clicks – which it does often, thanks to how effectively it’s implemented and how cohesively it’s all brought together – it feels absolutely exhilarating. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration in the slightest if I were to call it one of the best combat systems I’ve ever experienced in a game.

On the technical side of things, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is an impressive accomplishment, if not the unabashed masterwork that it is in other areas. Obviously, this is a gorgeous game to behold, and that’s as much down to its tech as it is to the stunning art design, and the imaginative and vivid ways in which it brings the world of Final Fantasy 7 to life, like we’ve never seen it before. At the same time, however, it does have some rough edges. During my time with the game, I’ve experienced a fair few minor technical issues- occasional frame rate hiccups, texture pop in, lip syncing issues, and the like. I don’t want to overstate the significance of these issues – they are all minor infractions at best – but collectively, they are, at the very least, noticeable. Then again, the fact that seamless traversal and near-instantaneous fast travel is possible in a game of this scope shouldn’t go unnoticed, so there are definitely way more pros here than cons.

I’d also be remiss to not mention the stellar soundtrack here. Final Fantasy 7’s music is iconic, to say the very least, and just as Remake did, Rebirth reimagines and revitalizes it in spectacular ways. New tracks and wondrous recreations of old favourites come together in a soundtrack that’s full of tunes that I’ve been quietly humming to myself for days at this point- and I doubt I’m going to stop anytime soon. Time and again, I find myself wondering how the Final Fantasy series can keep hitting the ridiculously high standards it has set for itself in the musical department without any missteps, and once again, Rebirth has left me gobsmacked. Whether you’re in a tense, explosive boss fight or having a blast in a quirky minigame or doing anything else in between, the music here never misses the mark.

"Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is nothing short of a spectacle, an epic journey full of bombastic action, heartfelt emotion, and unforgettable moments- a celebration both of itself and the legendary game it is based on, one that brazenly and loudly demands your attention, and actually manages to hold on to it, because all of its flash is backed by just as much substance."

I don’t say this lightly, but Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is one of the best Final Fantasy games of all time. It’s nothing short of a spectacle, an epic journey full of bombastic action, heartfelt emotion, and unforgettable moments- a celebration both of itself and the legendary game it is based on, one that brazenly and loudly demands your attention, and actually manages to hold on to it, because all of its flash is backed by just as much substance. From storytelling to world design, from exploration to combat, from visuals to music, from the amount of content it offers to how much meaningful variety that content exhibits, in nearly every way that matters, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth surpasses expectations, to say the very least. Years ago, Square Enix made a promise that felt destined to be broken- the promise of an epic recreation of Final Fantasy 7 that would not only capture the iconic RPG’s highlights, but also push the franchise forward in exciting new ways. It almost seemed too good to be true. Years ago, that promise was made, and with Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, impossibly enough, it has, at long last, been fulfilled.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.