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E3 2015 was full of exciting news, but it's no surprise that the long-awaited announcement of a Final Fantasy 7 HD remake is a top contender for show stealer. Real life Pip-Boys and backwards compatibility on the Xbox One are both very exciting too, but gamers have been waiting for more than a decade to return to the most popular installment in the Final Fantasy series.

In the age of HD remakes, most developers follow a pretty simple formula for this sort of project. The team makes enhancements to the game's graphics and tweaks the controls to feel more at more on the current-gen consoles. Toss in a few shiny, updated cinematic cut scenes and then throw a $60 price tag on it. Although Final Fantasy 7 is beloved enough that the usual treatment would still make it a best-seller, it sounds like the team at Square Enix has something much more elaborate in store for this remake.

In an interview with Famitsu, Square Enix's Tetsuya Nomura explains that the FF7 Remake won't just be a fresh coat of paint. The team plans to help the game evolve, so that it fits into the current landscape...

“I can’t get go into details, but this is not a simple remake. Let’s say for argument’s sake that we only pretty up the graphics for current gen hardware, I don’t think that would surpass the original version.”

The idea of expanding on a classic like Final Fantasy 7 seems like a very scary task. Fans adore the original game and may react poorly to seeing changes to the original game's plot and characters. Nomura avoided specific details, but went on to explain what the team has in mind at a very high level.

“The original version is a game that came out in 1997, and if you look at it today, you can feel how dated the graphics and the game system are... However, that’s also part of Final Fantasy VII.”

"We haven’t shown any gameplay yet, but since we’re updating them quite a bit, please look forward to that... Since we now formally revealed Kazushige Nojima’s name for the scenario, there will be more plot devices in the story, so I think you can also look forward to that."

More plot devices in the story definitely makes it sound like the team is planning to expand the original story in some way. Although the most devout of fans may be upset by this news, making changes and additions to ensure that a modern audience connects with the adventure seems like a smart move to us. There's no denying that this game will be a major hit, but enhancing the gameplay may help make it a contender for one of the best games of the year, rather than just a stand out remake.

What do you think about the changes that are in store for Final Fantasy 7? Would you rather a strict HD remake? Let us know in the comments.

Final Fantasy 7 Remake is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

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Source: Famitsu