Pure Genius (Final Fantasy VII (PS))

Member Name: MaynardRob

Product:	Final Fantasy VII (PS)
Date:	15/08/01 (59 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great Storyline, Great Characters, Great Concept

Disadvantages: None whatsoever

Three short words.... Oh my God.... if you have a playstation there is no excuse for not owning this game. By now I'm sure everyone has heard of it but at the time of it's release it was a little obscure, as previous final fantasy games were not the most well known. I bought it based on reviews of it being the biggest and best game ever, taking 100 hours or so to complete. For the most part the reviews were true, but if you set out to complete the game without doing smaller tasks then you can get it done in 40 hours or less.

As soon as you start the game there is a great video introduction showing the city of Midgar, and the "Flower Girl" who features so much in the story. Oh I mentioned the story, rest assured this game has the best storyline you will ever find in any game. It was begging to be made into a film. Sadly the storyline for "The Spirits Within" is not based on Final Fantasy VII. As you progress through the game you will understand the story better as the plot constantly continues to thicken, and towards the end the true genius comes out.

The graphics are good, but some would consider them to be a little shabby. Mainly it's the arms on the characters that look abnormal. But the battle screen graphics are good, with great summon spell sequences. The video sequences however, are top notch. The game does not suffer from any slowdown despite the huge size, basically because it is spread over three cds (yes it's really that big!).

The characters in the game are interesting to say the least. There's the main spiky-haired character Cloud, his friend the big Mr. T lookalike Barrett, and as far as enemies go you can look no further than Sephiroth. The incredibly powerful one decides it is his destiny to rule the world (sounds unoriginal but trust me, it's better than that) and seemingly no-one can stop him. Despite several meetings with Sephiroth the team don't actually g
et to fight him until the absolute end.

The battle sequences are also first rate, they are of sorts turn based but the character stats change how it goes greatly. And the magic system is amazing. The materia idea is genius itself and although it's hard for me to explain, it is superb. Things that add to the battle are elemental attacks, status like sleep, poison etc., items, and limit breaks. A limit break occurs when a character has suffered a lot of pain and anger builds to give them a huge attack. The attack is usually pleasing to the eye and takes alot of HP from the enemy. HP? You'll have to get used to that. HP = Hit Points, MP = Magic Points.

I've had the game for what must be at least three years now and it still outshines most modern day games. Without a doubt the best RPG ever and a must have game for anyone, not just RPG fans. If you haven't played it for a while you can start again like I recently did, and it keeps you occupied for a long time. Lots to do in the game, the chances are you'll probably never do all that there is to do in the game. The game is incredibly cheap now and if you have a playstation this should be your next purchase.... if you don't already have it.... which you probably do.

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