I've played many great games, but this is the GREATEST of them ALL.
I first played this game when I was 13 years old. I was a kid back then whose biggest memories of video games were Mario, Sonic, Street Fighter, and Mortal Kombat. While all of the aforementioned games are classics in their own right, none of them made the kind of emotional impact and impression on me the way Final Fantasy VII did. Only recently have I begun my second play through of the game. In two short days, I have invested over 18 hours of my time and have quite easily remembered why this game holds a place in the depths of my heart. Without too many spoilers, the story follows these lines. The main character of this game is Cloud Strife, a former member of an elite unit of soldiers, appropriately called SOLDIER. The game starts off in the city of Midgar with Cloud joining a resistance group called AVALANCHE. This group is led by the unforgettable Barret Wallace, the leader of AVALANCHE. Their goal is to destroy a Mako Energy Reactor. Mako energy is the lifeline of the planet; it is the life force that cycles to and from living organisms to keep the circle of life going. By sucking this energy out of the planet, the Shinra Corporation is slowly, but steadily killing the planet. The story begins as a quest to save the planet from an evil corporation, but as events unfold, the game turns into so much more...
Two other main characters in this game are; Aeris Gainsborough (a flower girl from the slums who is the last of the Ancients) and Tifa Lockheart (a childhood friend of Cloud's). The cast of characters are rounded out by Red XIII, a wolf like creature, Cid Highwind (an airship pilot), Yuffie Kisargi (an 18 year girl Ninja), Cait Sith (a cat who controls a magical mog), and Vincent Valentine (a failed Shinra experiment). Although it seems early on that Shinra will be the main antagonist, the true villian in this game is none other than the legendary warrior and member of SOLDIER, Sephiroth! I won't say any more about the characters other than that they are the BEST and MOST INTERESTING set of characters in ANY VIDEO GAME. Their stories are compelling, they have motivations for their actions, you genuinely feel for these characters and learn to love and hate them. No game has ever had a set of characters that made me care the way Final Fantasy VII has. This group is one for the ages...their quest to save the world is one of the best stories around. So now that I've gone over the fact that the characters and the storyline are as good as they will ever get in video games, one might ask, how does the game play? The game uses a turn based active time battle system in which you select actions in real time. Time passes while you choose your actions so it is best act with haste. The abilities found in this game are extremely diverse. There is magic for just about everything. Final Fantasy VII uses the materia system to level up character abilities. Each materia can be placed into weapons or armor strategically. Some weapons/armor allow materia to grow at faster rates than others. The possibilities are endless. Unlike other battle systems, after about 10-15 minutes of playing around with it, you'll get it. The graphics in this game are very good for 1997 standards. In fact, back then, the graphics in this game set a benchmark for how good graphics could be on console games...Now...in 2007...the graphics look like crap compared to games like Heavenly Sword and Gears of War...Nonetheless...the art direction is lovely and the graphics work well to tell the timeless tale that is Final Fantasy VII. Far more timeless and impressive than the graphics of this game is the soundtrack. THIS GAME HAS THE BEST SOUNDTRACK OF ALL-TIME...Well...maybe I'm pushing it, but god I love the soundtrack! It is so beautiful...the music really fits the mood and most importantly...the music is so memorable. When replaying this game, it was the music that brought back all the memories of my childhood. The soundtrack in unforgettable and if it isn't the best of all-time, it sure as heck stands REALLY high up the list of all-time greats. Final Fantasy VII also has one of the greatest plot twists of all-time. I'm sure you probably know what it is, but I'm not going to be the jerk to spoil it for you kids who might be reading and DON'T KNOW. Trust me...NO VIDEO GAME will EVER...make you want to KILL THE LAST BOSS the way this game will. God of War comes close...but Ares doesn't hold a candle to Sephiroth...
YOU WILL WANT TO KILL SEPHIROTH...BADLY....
As for the topic of replay value...this game will take anywhere from 40-100 hours to beat. It'll take about 40 hours to beat the main story, but if you want to unlock all of the goodies and defeat Ruby and Emerald Weapon (the two super bosses), then this game will take a good 100 hours to complete. Either way...it is a very enjoyable and rewarding 100+ hours of play time. I could sit here and write pages and pages about how great this game is and how much I love it, but I'm going to go back and play the game instead...
THIS GAME IS AN ALL-TIME GREAT! In my opinion...IT IS THE GREATEST OF THEM ALL...
The characters, story, and the music are aspects of the game that will forever stay in your heart. Even after 10 years...you will remember this game. That is the mark of a REVOLUTIONARY GAME.