Final Fantasy 7 Remake Won't "Drastically" Change The Original Story, Co-Director Says

Ever since the first chapter in Final Fantasy VII Remake came out in early April, fans and critics alike have debated the meaning of its ending. Well, we have more information from the creators of the game on that front, but it's maybe not the clarification that we've all wanted.

Warning: major spoilers for FFVIIR ahead.

According to an interview translated by Twitter user @aitaikimochi from Final Fantasy 7 Remake Ultimania--a 750-page book that accompanies the release of FF7R--co-director Yoshinori Kitase says that Square Enix will not drastically change the story of the game to make it completely different than the original.

This would seem to contradict major elements of FFVIIR, including the new "Whispers of Fate" enemies who are determined to make sure that the story plays out the exact same way. Throughout the game, multiple characters hint that the player is experiencing the events of the game in an alternate timeline, and we even see flash-forwards to certain events that don't take place in the game. The final boss of the remake is a manifestation of these Whispers called a Harbinger, and Cloud kills it at the game's conclusion. Several other events of the game also differ substantially from the original, including the possible survival of Cloud's comrade Zack.

It's not at all clear what this means for future entries in the FFVIIR cycle, and we're not likely to know until the next game comes out. In the meantime, if you're keen on trying the game on hard mode, or if you're struggling on where to find the Materia orb, we have you covered.