The game that sparked a revolution is as strong today as ever. A little dated, but a 10 nonetheless. A must play.
Graphics are first Playstation-era, so you can't really hope for too much, but it's not bad. The world map and in down/dungeon graphics are kind of subpar, considering the excellent work done by other games before this was released. But, the FMV sequences and battle graphics make up for this fault. The backgrounds are so-so, nothing special.
Sound is top notch, as Nobuo Uematsu always does a great job of pleasing the ear. From the character themes to the all mighty "One Winged Angel", the game is full of wonderful in game music. Sound effects are recycled through the game, but you really don't care too much.
Story : Amazing. A tale that grips right to the end, they did this game right.
And with so many memorable moments, it is truly a modern myth, and should have it's own myth study done on it.
Slight mistranslations are in the game, and while it's awesome, just don't expect to completely understand it right away.
Gameplay is pretty general for a Final Fantasy. Random encounters, summoned monsters, attacking with magic or weapons, you know, the everyday stuff. The new things here are the full blown 'Limit Breaks', which are super attacks that charge up as you are damaged, and the Materia system. Instead of just learning spells, you equip materia spheres into your weapons or armor, and gain the ability of that sphere. Spheres include your general elemental spells in Final Fantasies, summoned monsters, and fun add-on magic, like the ability to cast Fire on all enemies at once, or hit an enemy and steal at the same time. The Materia system is a good system, and adds a touch of tactics to FFVII. />
Controls are pretty simple, easily picked up on in minutes. Equiping materia becomes second nature just as easily, and the menus are straightforward.
Final Fantasy VII was big enough to essentially revolutionize the RPG world when it was released, and popular enough to have 3 more games made about it, as well as a full blown theatrical sequel. After 10 years, it remains really popular, and this remains a good game, definitely worth a try if you can get a copy, even if it's borrowing from a friend. A great game that unfortunately shows its age a little much nowadays, Final Fantasy VII is a good, no scratch that, MUST HAVE game to have in the collection.