Much like the original release of Final Fantasy 7, the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy also features iconic and beloved characters. However, one of the new characters introduced in Remake—Chadley—has turned out to be a fan-favorite thanks to his demeanour and general dislike for the Shinra corporation. This led to the belief that he might even become a playable character in Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3. However, in a recent interview with Restart, director Naoki Hamaguchi has noted that, while he can’t confirm or deny that Chadley will be playable, he will still play an important role in the story.
Hamaguchi also noted that we will see more of his character arc evolve, especially with his tendency to talk too much when he finds a subject he is keenly interested in.
“We understand that many fans are fond of Chadley,” he said. “However, whether he’s become a playable character is something we’re unable to comment on at this time.”
“That said, Chadley will continue to play an important role even in the final installment of the trilogy. His strong curiosity and tendency to talk a bit too much – inherent traits that he’s aware of and somewhat self-conscious about – will be further explored in the third game, too. It’d make me happy if players could warmly follow how Chadley becomes involved in the story and what role he takes in supporting it.”
Chadley was introduced quite early in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, acting as the central hub for players to take on additional combat challenges through VR missions. Through him, players could also unlock new summon materia. Chadley also gave us additional side objectives that could be completed over the course of the game, like using the Assess skill on a certain number of enemies or causing specific enemies to get Staggered.
Through this, players could get their hands on powerful materia like Parry, First Strike, and Skill Master. Completing all of Chadley’s challenges also opened up a final optional boss fight—Bahamut—which rewarded players with the Bahamut Summon materia.
The character returned in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, frequently appearing in new towns that players traveled to and giving out more optional objectives to complete. Chadley, along with an AI he created named MAI, was also responsible for many of the game’s open-world activities. However, his presence in the game started to wear thin for many players owing to how often he would keep talking.
Chadley’s impact on the story in Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 remains to be seen. However, Hamaguchi had previously said that the team has no plans to bring in large changes to the original Final Fantasy 7 story. He spoke about trusting the game’s writer, Kazushige Nojima, to not bring in large changes, since it was “one of the aspects of development we were most sensitive about.”
“When it comes to the overarching story, I place my trust in what Kazushige Nojima writes and have no intention of altering that based on my judgment,” he said. “However, with the significant increase in visual fidelity in these remakes, arranging events and the passage of time exactly as they were in the original game can sometimes result in scenes that feel implausible.
“When changes in time or dates don’t feel convincing, it also breaks the player’s emotional engagement.”
In the meantime, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox Series X/S on June 3rd. For more details, here is everything you need to know about its Xbox Series X/S release.
