!!Pages for other entries in the Compilation:
[[index]]
* ''YMMV/FinalFantasyVII''
* ''YMMV/BeforeCrisis''
* ''[[YMMV/FinalFantasyVIIAdventChildren Advent Children]]''
* ''YMMV/DirgeOfCerberus''
* ''YMMV/FinalFantasyVIIRemake''
* ''YMMV/FinalFantasyVIIEverCrisis''
* ''YMMV/FinalFantasyVIIRebirth''
[[/index]]
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* {{Adorkable}}: Zack can be very endearingly awkward at times.
* AntiClimaxBoss: The FinalBoss is fairly simple and straightforward to defeat. It has two phases, one where it sticks its sword into the ground and one where it lifts its sword. While the sword is down the boss won't attack directly, only summon {{Mooks}} to attack you, but they're weak and easily defeated, and drop healing items to boot. While the boss' attacks when it lifts its sword ''do'' pack a punch, they're all telegraphed and you have time to heal between them. Due to an AbsurdlyHighLevelCap, the final boss will be even more of a joke if the player invested a lot of time on Missions.
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic:
** ''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4u1dmTuj4oE "Why?"]]'' is a J-pop theme, which plays during the game's ending and segues into the end credits. It's easily the standout among the soundtrack, as the vocals (by Ayaka) are awesome and it doubles as a TearJerker[[note]]especially once you see the English translation of the lyrics and realize [[spoiler: the song is essentially from Zack's [=PoV=], telling Cloud it's okay for him to open up a little and let others in.]][[/note]].
** Most of the game's soundtrack accounts to this (which shouldn’t be too surprising considering that it was composed by Takeharu Ishimoto, who is highly regarded for his work on ''VideoGame/TheWorldEndsWithYou'' and it’s [[AwesomeMusic/TheWorldEndsWithYou excellent soundtrack]]), such as some of the remixes of music from ''VII'' such as "On The Verge of the Assault" which is a remix of Those Who Fight. An epic version is part of the ending credits music.
** Also, [[https://youtu.be/qrEfUXnZf5Q "The Price of Freedom"]]. Whilst this pops up in one or two cutscenes, this music finds its place in the background of Zack's final battle.
** [[https://youtu.be/Ea4BOCFK1Hg "Fulfilled Desire"]] (also called "Living Legacy"). Think long orchestral theme incorporating several other themes - Aerith's, the ''VII'' battle theme - and you have this track.
** [[https://youtu.be/m8RRnICu-ck "The World's Enemy"]] It's a remix of One-Winged Angel. 'nuff said.
** Genesis's boss tunes, especially [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHs9ao9k42g "Those Who Accept the Protection of the Stars"/"The Planet Has Become My Guardian"]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wy5d2SCLbFU "The SOLDIER Way"]] are quite appropriate for the battles, despite all the heavy metal, or rather, because of it for some.
* BaseBreakingCharacter: Angeal in a nutshell. He does have his fans who appreciate his manliness, courage, poignant and close relationship with Zack, and [[spoiler:having one of the saddest death scenes in the compilation,]] but he has also garnered a sizable hatedom due to his constant need to spout long-winded platitudes about "honor", often to the point of absurdity (which even ''Sephiroth'' makes fun of him for).
* BrokenBase:
** As a {{prequel}}, the {{retcon}} of major events like the Nibelheim incident in ''VII'' is very divisive among the players, especially between those who played the original first and those who didn't. Notably, Zack's death in here actually has a notable number of detractors, stating that it is a glorified anime-style LastStand against a legion of soldiers which is inferior to the "realistic" death he was given in the original. On the other hand, the defenders of the scene state that the idea of having Zack, a '''SOLDIER 1st Class''' getting gunned down by only ''three'' normal Shinra infantrymen is even ''more'' "unrealistic" and would have made the scene reek of PlotlineDeath and DoomedByCanon. The fact that ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'' not only went with ''Crisis Core's'' take on the death, but eventually outright incorporated the entire game into the Remake project's canon with the ''Crisis Core Reunion'' remaster, has also been divisive.
** The new voices actors for the English dub. While most of them are okay, Zack's in particular is highly divisive, with a very vocal contingent of fans preferring Rick Gomez's original voice over Caleb Pierce. Naturally, one of the first mods created for the Steam version of the game was restoring the original voices.
* CompleteMonster: [[EvilGenius Professor Hollander]] was the chief of Project G, creating both Angeal and Genesis, yet was passed over for promotion in favour of Hojo and his Project S, resulting in Hollander being stuck in a dead-end job. Resenting the [[Characters/FinalFantasyVIIShinraInc Shinra Electric Company]], Hollander would manipulate and collaborate with an adult Genesis to take revenge; Genesis defected with an army of [[Characters/FinalFantasyVIISOLDIER SOLDIER]] operatives whom Hollander would turn into Genesis Copies: slaves to Genesis' will suffering LossOfIdentity instigating the Genesis War, which led to much death and destruction, with Hollander having no regard for civilians. Falsely promising to cure Genesis and his Copies' Degradation, an impatient Genesis would eventually infect Hollander with his cells and [[ItsAllAboutMe only then did Hollander try in earnest to find a cure]]--almost harvesting a comatose Cloud Strife to do so.
* CreatorsPet: Genesis Rhapsodos. Designed by Creator/TetsuyaNomura as a tribute to Creator/{{Gackt}}, and talked up by other characters as one of the greatest [=SOLDIERs=] ever, fans hate him for his selfish and petty behavior, his constant LOVELESS rantings, and being retconned into the backstory of the ''VII'' world. His inclusion in the iconic Nibelheim Incident to help motivate Sephiroth's StartOfDarkness is particularly loathed. This is also a major reason why some fans are soured on the idea of a sequel to ''VII''--because it's heavily implied that Genesis would play a more substantial role in such a GrandFinale to the series, and unless an earnest effort is made to make him more likeable and empathetic, fans have little interest in seeing him return to help save the world.
* DemonicSpiders: Take your pick: Wasps that are highly defensive against weapon damage and have insta-death abilities, those blobs that are highly resistant to ''all'' damage and are capable of casting spells in the max damage range, or... just see the damn article already. This game has a lot.
* DisappointingLastLevel: The final dungeon is one of the shortest in ''Final Fantasy'', and very straightforward as well. It's five areas long, two of those areas are optional, and the third is little more than the room before the FinalBoss, so you can explore the two required areas, grab the seven Goddess Materia to open the passage to the final boss, then go and face them. The optional two areas make it a little longer, but are still unremarkable; a series of old prison cells that boil down to the player having to fight enemies to get the keys to doors to progress, and unlocking the cells for some minor items and shortcuts between areas. At least there's a boss at the end.
* EnjoyTheStorySkipTheGame: For the most part, the story is well-received and Zack's likability as a character can make up for its shortcomings. Gameplay, however, was a little more mixed. The combat is fairly simple, slot machine mechanic makes leveling up nearly luck-based, and the side missions are a bit repetitive.
* EnsembleDarkhorse: Kunsel is a MauveShirt who doesn't even get a unique model or ever show his face, but he is remembered for being a good, loyal friend to Zack who would jeopardize his standing in the company to help him out. His fans were upset that his fate was LeftHanging after he sends an email saying he's going to come find and help Zack after he escapes from Nibelheim. [[spoiler:When [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake the remake of the original game]] name-dropped Kunsel in a late-game chapter, ''Crisis Core'' fans rejoiced to hear him acknowledged.]]
* EventObscuringCamera: The camera hugs the walls, to the point where if you're against a wall you can barely see anything. Averted with the ''Reunion'' remaster, where the camera can be freely moved at all times.
* GameBreaker: [[GameBreaker/CompilationOfFinalFantasyVII Here]].
* GoodBadBugs: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsN1x4oDa8k A bug]] in the ''Reunion'' remake causes audio from the original English dub to play instead of the current actors, to the delight of a significant portion of fans that prefer the original voice actor for Zack's performance over the new one.
* HarsherInHindsight: "I won't forget." Considering [[DeadPersonImpersonation what happens]] [[ForgottenFallenFriend next...]]
* HoYay: See [[HoYay/FinalFantasy here]].
* JerkassWoobie: Genesis might be a cocky jerk, but consider the events of the game from his perspective: He's one of the stars of SOLDIER when suddenly, he receives a small wound and his body begins to degrade (and considering that it happens over the course of five years it likely wasn't comfortable). Hollander informs him of the truth about Shinra, thus giving Genesis extra incentive to rebel[[note]]while this isn't the case for most of the members shown in ''Crisis Core'', remember how many people at Shinra are legitimate assholes[[/note]] and he also begins considering himself a monster, implying that he's taking a ThenLetMeBeEvil stance.
* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: While the remake overall is largely seen as positive, there are some glaring things that weren't changed that have drawn fans' ire. For example, there's all of the PermanentlyMissableContent, none of which has been changed, although the presence of New Game+ alleviates this. Missions remain nothing more than gated-off chunks of the same several maps, which was noticeable but acceptable in the PSP days when there were hardware limitations, but is far less acceptable 15 years on.
* MagnificentBastard: [[TheManBehindTheMan Lazard Duesericus]] is the [[BastardBastard illegitimate son]] of President Shinra who grew up in the slums of Midgar. Every bit the brilliant mastermind as his brother, Rufus, Lazard uses his genius and charisma to climb the ranks of the Shinra Electric Company, eventually becoming the Director of the SOLDIER program while secretly embezzling money to fund Dr. Hollander’s experiments to create an army against Shinra for Lazard’s own vendetta against his father for abandoning him and his mother to poverty. Coordinating strategies for both [[PlayingBothSides SOLDIER and Genesis’s forces]], Larzard orchestrates Dr. Hollander’s jailbreak when Shinra’s forces detain him. Becoming an Angeal copy, Lazard has a [[HeelFaceTurn change of heart]], turning on Hollander and Genesis, helping Zack Fair stop the villains’ plans, and [[HeroicSacrifice dying while protecting]] Cloud Strife from Shinra’s forces.
* MemeticMutation:
** Most any of the computerized voice clips that play in battle. "Activating Combat Mode!", "Conflict Resolved", "Modulating Phase!", "Power Surge!"
** Describing a sequence of events that always end with- "And suddenly, there's Angeal saying, 'Prove your honor to me!'" no matter the source material.
** Me? Gongaga. [[labelnote:Explanation]] A line from Zack talking to Cloud about his hometown. Out of context, it sounds a bit silly, and was originally parodied as a WebVideo/{{Vinesauce}} inside joke. It later took off in 2020.[[/labelnote]]
* MisBlamed: Nomura was thought of as being the sole creative mastermind behind the series - when he is not one of the head writers (if anything) nor was he the director. Not helping was [[WebVideo/FinalFantasyInANutshell RABToons]] said "Nomura" for every funny plot beat.
* SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound: "Modulating Phase!" and the (hopefully) subsequent "Power Surge!". In addition, in the remake, critical hits now deliver an extremely satisfying gunshot sound in addition to the "Shing!".
* {{Narm}}:
** There's a scene in which a Genesis copy eats some of Zack's hair, and the way Rick Gomez delivers the line "No way! He just ate my hair!" sounds unintentionally hilarious because although there is a note of disgust in his voice, it also sounds like he's somewhat fascinated by it anyway.
** During the flashback to Sephiroth, Genesis, and Angeal, in training, Genesis prepares to blast Sephiroth with magic only for Angeal to grab his wrist to stop him. He then says, in a rather unconcerned voice, "Stop. You'll destroy us all." The quite obviously better and simpler wording could have been something like "Stop, you could hurt him." but the line they did go with, combined with Angeal's DullSurprise as he says it in both expression and voice, make it come off as him being overdramatic when he's supposed to be the voice of reason in the trio. The ''Reunion'' remake thankfully changes this line to "Stop, you'll destroy this place", implicitly referring to damaging the simulation room, and Angeal is more emotive when he says it.
*** This is then not helped by what happens next, when Genesis attacks Angeal and knocks him aside, snapping "That's no way to talk to a hero!" Seeing Genesis lash out at his friend in his fervor should be a surprising moment, except that Genesis' "attack" takes the form of a FacePalmOfDoom where he [[YourHeadASplode blasts Angeal's face with an explosion]], which just looks silly.
** The narrative and characters in-universe consider LOVELESS to be a piece of classic literature on the level of Dickens or Tolkien, with theatrical adaptations about it selling out regularly and people making their careers publishing research papers analyzing it. The problem is that from what the player sees of LOVELESS, there is nothing that warrants such widespread pop-cultural appeal -- it's a story about three friends who [[WeUsedToBeFriends become enemies through war]] and one of them becomes StarCrossedLovers with a woman of the opposing faction. The way characters obsess over the text and its true meaning makes them come off as pretentious, ''especially'' Genesis, who treats it like it's some holy text.
** The ClimaxBoss fight with [[spoiler:Hollander]] quickly becomes silly when you behold his cinematic attack -- he reaches into his satchel, [[{{Hammerspace}} pulls out a giant missile]] bigger than him that he has trouble holding, and throws it at Zack.
** The death scene at the end can also qualify. Here, we go from a silent, sudden death to a heroic passing-of-the-torch speech that seems to drag on forever, then a J-pop song plays as Angeal appears to take him off to the Lifestream. However, when you translate the lyrics of the song in question, this can be safely in the NarmCharm area.
* NeverLiveItDown:
** The fans will never forget Angeal's nickname of "[[GenkiGuy Zack the puppy]]" for him.
** Also, how the hell did the [[spoiler:last Wutai Spy disguise himself as a kid]]? Clearly, this is an inconsistency, not bound by the laws of physics and only takes a WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief to appreciate. It brings some jokes asking if [[spoiler:the Wutai Spy]] can shapeshift. As such, expect some guides or walkthroughs commonly pointing out this incident.
* ParanoiaFuel: The "Find the Wutai spies" sidequest that happens midway through the game. It's because the spies perfectly disguised themselves to look like any other ordinary NPC you can meet, and that only weird lines of dialogue and placement on the stages serve as clues pointing out to the suspicious individuals. [[spoiler:The last spy is even (improbably) disguised as a kid!]]
* PlatonicWritingRomanticReading: Zack and Cissnei are meant to just be friends, as evidenced by him getting with Aerith (which was a fact from the original game), yet their relationship comes across as two people in a flirty and potentially romantic relationship. Several scenes meant to be about their friendship, such as Cissnei's conflicted emotions about hunting Zack later, read more romantically than the developers likely meant. Not helping is how Zack's relationship with Aerith, while still focused on, is not as developed by comparison, and the fact that Zack's parents ask Cissnei to join the family (read: marry him) when she visits them hoping to find him.
* PlayerPunch: [[spoiler:Zack's death]]. It says a lot about the game's directing that, even though it's a ForegoneConclusion most fans knew about going into the game, it is still a genuine TearJerker -- knowing it's coming does nothing to blunt the blow of how painful it is to actually play through it and watch it happen. ''Reunion'' makes it more of a gut punch with certain things added [[spoiler:like adding Angeal's death in the second DMW batch of memories as well as ending said wave with it and a new render of Aerith ''looking directly at player'' as the DMW fails and Zack dies shortly after]].
* TheScrappy:
** Genesis, largely for the fact he spends a lot of the time he's on-screen reciting bad poetry. There is also the small problem of him being [[ItsAllAboutMe a self-centered asshole]], who directly and indirectly causes every tragedy that happened in the game (And several in ''Final Fantasy VII'' to boot), in an attempt to remove an ailment which was his own fault to begin with, while the plot attempts to treat him as TheWoobie.
** ''No one'', even in-universe, likes Dr. Hollander. Think Hojo, but without the competence and snark that make Hojo a LoveToHate villain, so Hollander just comes off as an inept and cruel coward.
* ScrappyMechanic:
** The impossible-to-dodge cutscene attacks that bosses are fond of using, especially in Hard mode. The most flagrant Hard Mode example being in mission 5-1-2 (a fight with Bahamut) where Megaflare (the cutscene attack) will kill you in one hit if you take the mission shortly after gaining access to it, in spite of the game calling its difficulty "Normal". Yes, a mission that's impossible without specifically preparing for the inevitable one-hit kill by an undodgeable attack is just normal... ''Reunion'' thankfully fixed this by adding a BreakMeter mechanic that allows you to weaken or cancel cinematic attacks if you have the damage for it.
** The DMW system randomizes when Zack levels up, when his Materia levels up (as well as which ones level up, and how much), when he can perform {{Limit Break}}s, and randomly heals him or gives him temporary stat buffs. While leveling up isn't entirely random[[note]]Zack ''does'' gain Exp by defeating enemies and the DMW won't trigger a level up until he has enough Exp, but Exp is a hidden value and the original PSP game never clarifies this[[/note]], the ability to level up Materia and execute Limit Breaks relying on random chance is ridiculous.
*** In fact, not helping with the massive amount of RNG in place, the {{Limit Break}}s can also trigger certain memories. You need to trigger ''each individual memory at least once per character'' for HundredPercentCompletion in the DMW itself, with the reward being the Genji Armor.[[note]]Raises Zack's HP limit to 99999 while providing [[ImmuneToFlinching Endure]] and [[GradualRegeneration Regen]] buffs.[[/note]] However, getting them to show up and trigger a new memory instead of one you have seen several times before requires you to be nothing short of being BornLucky as you need to effectively pass multiple rolls of the dice in a single instant. On top of all this, to access either the Genesis, Summon and Chocobo Modes, you have to succeed in lining up the DMW reels and hope that RNG favours you. It's noted that you ''lose'' the Genesis portrait upon death until you regain it again by chance, making HundredPercentCompletion ''completely'' up to luck.
** All encounters are on fixed places, even if you cannot ''see'' them. This means you can accidentally re-enter a "conflict" as soon as you have "resolved" another, simply because you took one step in the wrong direction. It is possible to avoid ''most'' fixed encounters by hugging the correct ledge/wall, but some are unavoidable, specially during "open world" maps and bridges. After hours playing the game you will likely cringe every single time you hear "Activating Combat Mode!".
** The PermanentlyMissableContent. While some are inconsequential like mail and materia that you can just get later on, there is the Research Shop QMC+ which is in a chest at Gongaga, the Phoenix Summon in Nibelheim and various missions that require talking to [=NPCs=] in which missing them will make you regret saving your game. Missing the last two will make HundredPercentCompletion impossible.
* SignatureScene
** The three-way duel between Sephiroth, Genesis, and Angeal, is regarded as one of the coolest scenes in the game.
** The boss battles with [[spoiler:Angeal Penance]] and [[spoiler:Sephiroth]] are highlights of major plot developments with high emotional states and difficulty.
** The ending. [[DoomedByCanon Good god, the ending...]]
* {{Squick}}: Sephiroth's fanclub, the "Silver Elite" is headed by a mysterious "Chairwoman H." The game implies this is Hojo. Okay, he's the head of Sephiroth's fanclub, not so bad... until you read the email where he informs the club members of what Sephiroth uses to wash his hair, including rose and vanilla-scented perfumes, and says he goes through a bottle of conditioner every wash. Get your BrainBleach ready--first, think about the possible ways Hojo could know Sephiroth's bathing habits. Second, think about why he would ''want'' to know. Hair care isn't exactly pivotal to scientific research... [[spoiler:Then remember that Hojo is, in fact, Sephiroth's dad.]]
* SurprisinglyImprovedSequel: While ''Dirge of Cerberus'' was poorly received, ''Advent Children'' was contentious, and ''Before Crisis'' was never released outside Japan, ''Crisis Core'' gained the honor of being regarded as the best ''Final Fantasy VII'' spin-off, for its worldbuilding of Shinra and Midgar, its likeable and well-developed protagonist, and fun Action-RPG gameplay. It isn't universally loved, but the fanbase is much warmer to it than the other entries in the ''Compilation''.
* SuspiciouslySimilarSong: Many have noted "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3Y13pFs58M Combat]]" (the battle music for a good chunk of the random battle encounters) sounds strangely similar to "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaNLvjCkYDE Hollywood]]" by {{Music/Madonna}}.
* TheyChangedItNowItSucks:
** Just as it was in [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake the previous game]], Caleb Pierce's performance as the new voice of Zack has been criticized as a major step down compared to Rick Gomez, whose stint in the role was [[SugarWiki/SuperlativeDubbing rather beloved]]. Common criticisms are that many of the line deliveries sound odd and wildly inappropriate to the scene at hand. Worse, since the game's script remained almost entirely the same for the remake, this means previous players have to deal with his voice saying the same things, which at least could have been avoided if the script was changed a bit.
** Fans of the OverlyLongFightingAnimation [=FMVs=] for Summons lamented the change to much shorter videos in ''Reunion'', feeling that the longer animations made their awesome displays of power more dramatic and powerful.
** The (highly contentious) Moogle design from ''Final Fantasy VII Remake'' was preserved for ''Reunion'', except now it's even more jarring because they kept the old Moogle "voice".
* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: The Wutai War was well-established in the backstory of the ''VII'' world, and it was known from ''Before Crisis'' that Shinra also waged war with a much larger, more violent precursor to AVALANCHE (and ''Crisis Core'' and ''Before Crisis'' were directed by the same person, Hajime Tabata). Here, the game starts with the Wutai War in its final stages and it's over after the first chapter, and Wutai remnants and AVALANCHE play no role in the story beyond a few Missions and a MythologyGag or two. Zack's role in either conflict could have served as the basis for the main story of this game just fine, instead of focusing entirely on the Genesis War.
* TooCoolToLive: Zack is suave, charming, confident, friendly, morally upstanding, and an extremely skilled SOLDIER. Even if you don't know his fate going into the game, a CrapsackWorld like ''VII's'' won't let someone like this survive forever.
* UnintentionallyUnsympathetic: The game tries to sell Genesis as a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds, desperate for a cure to his genetic degradation to the point he's willing to wage war for it, and he's really just an UnwittingPawn to Hollander [[spoiler:and Lazard]] for their revenge schemes. Except he's a selfish, arrogant, long-winded jerk, the injury that triggered the disease is his own fault for showing off and refusing to back down in his duel with Sephiroth, and a strong case could be made that if Genesis hadn't started his rebellion against Shinra, the events that set Sephiroth's StartOfDarkness in motion probably wouldn't have happened. Hell, Genesis spends much of the game mocking both Angeal and Sephiroth for their inner conflicts, even though the three of them are supposed to be friends and those two really don't want to see Genesis as their enemy. Exactly at what point is his behavior supposed to inspire sympathy?
* {{Wangst}}:
** A lot of Angeal's WhatMeasureIsANonHuman. Considering that Zack calls him out on it, it seems to be somewhat intentional.
** The main reason why practically no one took Genesis as a WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds. His drive to cure his degradation made him both indirectly and directly responsible for everything bad happening in ''VII'', especially his actions in Nibelheim.
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