Final Fantasy 7 Revelation Doubles Down on Open World Maximalism, and That Is a Good Feature
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
Final Fantasy 7 Revelation embraces full open world maximalism, offering massive exploration and quality-of-life choices despite familiar complaints about intrusive tutorials and map bloat.
Square Enix is officially going all-in on open world maximalism with Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, the final installment in the ambitious remake trilogy led by director Naoki Hamaguchi. Following hands-on preview time with the upcoming title, critics noted that while the game is packed with side content and traversal upgrades like airship gliding and combat-ready Chocobos, it still bombards players with constant menu pop-ups and tutorial interruptions. Even so, this massive approach continues the design philosophy seen in Rebirth, which divided players between those who welcomed the endless activities and critics who labeled the map design as bloated.
Part of the broader conversation around Revelation involves player choice and agency, particularly given recent features like built-in dialogue fast-forwarding highlighted during Sony's State of Play broadcasts. While some online communities questioned why dialogue skipping needed to be marketed as a core feature, it ultimately gives players the freedom to engage with the massive runtime and complex systems however they prefer. Whether someone wants to strictly follow the main narrative path or spend dozens of hours clearing every regional icon, the game accommodates multiple playstyles without forcing a single rigid pace.
Ultimately, the sheer scale of Revelation reflects a development team willing to take big creative swings with a classic formula rather than playing it safe. While the relentless onslaught of UI interruptions and notifications can stall the immediate momentum of exploration, it remains a minor hurdle for a project aiming to deliver this level of grand scale. Cloud and the rest of the crew are heading toward a massive conclusion, and the open world baggage feels entirely worth the ride for fans of modern RPG scale.
Tags: Final Fantasy VII Revelation, Square Enix, RPG, Open World, PlayStation 5
Original article: Eurogamer