Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2is one of the most anticipated games for the next few years. Veteran fans and new fans whose first experience was the first part ofFinal Fantasy 7 Remakefound a lot to love in the first remake title. Initially, fans ofFF7were concerned with the scope of the remake, as it was focused entirely on just one segment of the original.FF7 Remakesurprised many with a fully realized version of Midgar and more fleshed out iterations of its characters. But now thatFF7 Remakewill be introducing players to its full open world, the style of the game could change drastically.
The next chapter in the remake project already has an ambitious amount of content to reckon with. With so manynew areas inFF7 Remake Part 2to feature, a new travel system and potentially a new “phase” of the game loop will likely make an appearance. It’s possible the new game will feature an overworld mode similar to most of the classicFinal Fantasygames. More likely, though, is thatFF7 Remake Part 2will incorporate a travel system similar toFF15with vehicular and Chocobo travel featuring prominently.
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Travel Will Likely be Different in Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2
All ofFF7 Remake Part 2took place within the confines of the city of Midgar. The original segment ofFF7and escape from Midgar were just the opening hours of the overall game. While Midgar was expanded into a full-fledged city to fill out the forty-hour game, it still only needed a simple system to travel through its locations. Areas inFF7 Remakelike Wall Market were changedto be more expansive, but still weren’t necessarily very far from each other. Running from one side of the game’s environment to the other (outside of Shinra facilities) is only about a half-hour affair. Fast travel is implemented later in the form of Chocobo wagons that carry players to different areas.
While this system works well inFF7 Remake, how large the rest of the world will likely be necessitates a different form of travel. The characters are shown to have left their vehicles behind after the battle with Sephiroth inthe extended ending showcased byIntergrade. That same ending sees the characters hitch-hike most of their way to the mining village of Kalm, their next destination. While players will likely spend a good chunk of time there if the flashback sequence is still included from the original, they’ll soon be on their way to pursue Sephiroth across a huge expanse.
It will be interesting to see if Chocobo travel is introduced as a more long-term way to traverse the game’s overworld if players will spend most of their time on foot. The group would soon find their way toChocobo Bill at his ranch inFF7 Remake Part 2to find a faster route through the swamp and past the Midgar Zolom. This presupposes that the basic flow of events will follow the original narrative, of course. While players acquire the Chocobo fairly early on, the original game doesn’t allow them to keep their newfound steed beyond the Mythril Cave.
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FF7 Remake Part 2’s Travel Should Learn Lessons from FF15
It’s more likely that once players reach the second continent inFF7, its core travel will shift. Players could acquire the buggy or another Chocobo early on after making the trip from Junon, and it’s also easy to imagine that the overworld will be realized in a more “logical” way, with cities like Costa Del Sol and Corel more directly connected by roadways. This would point to some locations that were separate from the overworld being incorporated, like the railway segment from the original. It’s also an interesting note if traveling on foot will show every character interacting like inFF15,especially with just how manycharacters could be part ofFF7 Remake Part 2.
Fans who played the original game likely can’t help but imagine the exploration of the world ofFF7in a drastic way. That isn’t to say it can’t be done well. The shift from isometric and broad camera angles will be a huge shift if the game doesn’t feature a separate overworld. Imagining the entire world ofFF7in the same scale asFF15is staggering.FF7 RemakeandIntergradehave already brought huge changesto the original, and mechanically this travel change could become one of its biggest.
While the potentials for overworld travel inFF7 Remake Part 2are interesting, there will be pitfalls to avoid as well. One common complaint aboutFF15was how limited the travel by car was at the beginning. The car was glued to road and essentially on a rail system that made it very cumbersome to many players, and they would often find themselves choosing to travel by foot. Later on in the game, players would often travel by Chocobo. Many of these issues were addressed with later patches, but hopefully Square Enix will use that experience to improve on travelingthe map ofFF7 Remake Part 2.
Imagining howFF7 Remake Part 2will handle traveling the broader world leads to a lot of interesting possibilities. The world will undoubtedly be larger than ever, if Midgar inFF7 Remakeis any indicator. The thick forests, snow-capped mountains, and expansive deserts of the originalFF7translated into a fully-realized 3D world is very enticing for many veteran fans. With how muchFF7 RemakeandIntergradehave already set up the next chapter, expectations aboutFF7 Remake Part 2are already high for many, but seeing the classic overworld reworked into a full environment is something to look forward to.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2is currently in development.
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