Fans are busy spending plenty of time as Yuffie in the recently released PS5 upgrade to Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Yuffie's DLC, INTERmission, is surprisingly challenging and meant to be played after completing the main game, using all the experience one has gained from beating the 2020 JRPG.
There are also only a few tutorials offered besides the ones explaining Yuffie's unique combat abilities, so anyone who has not played the Final Fantasy 7 Remake in a while might be lost at first. The following ten tips should help make the journey through these two chapters a little easier. Most of these tips should also help during the main game.
Updated on December 29, 2021, by Jason Wojnar: With the recent PC release of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, many newcomers are surely going through this magnificent release for the first time. This new edition also comes with all the bells and whistles added to the Intergrade PS5 re-release, including the story expansion starring Yuffie Kisaragi. This list, and its new entries, will help those going through it for the first time or who want to take the challenge up a level and do it on hard mode. Though the PC release has a slew of technical issues, Final Fantasy 7 Remake is still a marvelous adventure to play.
Before Doing Hard Mode, Grind In The Battle Arena
Players need to do some serious preparation before diving into the second playthrough. First and foremost, reach level 50 by going into the Shinra Combat Simulator and doing the bouts until maxing out the level cap. Once that is done, max out various Materia with the same method.
The AP Up Mateira helps significantly in this process. It does not take as long as in other RPGs, but players still might want to listen to some music or a podcast to pass the time.
How To Keep Your Health And MP Up On Hard Mode
After beating the campaign for the first time, players unlock hard mode. They keep their level, but the combat is significantly harder and items are completely disabled. With this in mind, players have to find new ways to keep their MP and HP up without resorting to items. To restore health without using MP, use the Chakra and Pray Materia.
These two abilities heal the character and party by using the ATB gauge. Players might need to grind these out for a little bit if they didn't use them enough in the first playthrough. To keep MP sustained, break as many boxes as possible to collect Mako Shards. In this mode, not even resting on benches restores MP.
Assess Everything
Given the dynamic battle system of Final Fantasy 7 Remake combining elements of the ATB system and real-time elements from series like Kingdom Hearts, it can be difficult to figure out enemy weaknesses. A foe's Achilles heel often goes deeper than just figuring out its elemental vulnerability.
By using the Assess ability earned through equipping the Assess Materia, Yuffie can easily learn an enemy's attack patterns and quickly find out the best way to counter their moves. After learning the trick to a combatant's strategy, a once almost impossible enemy becomes significantly more manageable or even a cakewalk.
Keep Your Distance
Yuffie uses a giant shuriken as her main weapon. The player has two main attack moves; close-range attacks and a throw. If an enemy packs a punch and lacks any significant long-range attacks, it is best advised to throw the shuriken at it.
The weapon then floats around the enemy and deals damage over time until it returns to Yuffie. During this time, Yuffie can still attack with the square button, dealing even more damage. Keeping a distance also helps get a better view of the battlefield and see what moves enemies are going to use, providing more time to block or counter.
Use Sonon's Abilities
Shortly into the campaign, Sonon Kusakabe joins Yuffie. Players are unable to directly control him but they can still issue commands and use his charged-up ATB bars.
Be sure to always utilize Sonon's unique weapon abilities. It can be easy to forget about them and just focus on Yuffie, but this would be a huge mistake. Any period Sonon has a full gauge is wasted time. It does not cost MP, so there is no reason not to utilize these abilities constantly.
Focus On Staggering Opponents
When it comes to enemies who are not taken out with just a few hits, the player is generally going to want to focus on staggering opponents as quickly as possible. The Assess ability generally points out moves and strategies that quickly fill up the Stagger gauge.
Once an enemy is staggered, they are significantly more vulnerable. Many boss strategies revolve around staggering them. Save up Yuffie's biggest attacks and the Limit Breaks for when the boss is staggered and they will be mincemeat in no time.
Get Used To Blocking
Especially in the early hours of the DLC, certain enemies can take out huge chunks of Yuffie's health in just a moment. To best protect against this, it is recommended to get used to guarding with the R1 button.
Some moves can even be blocked entirely with Yuffie's guard up. If a certain boss or enemy is quickly causing a game over, paying attention to guarding against attacks often significantly tips the balance of the scales in Yuffie's favor.
Exploit Elemental Weaknesses
This should be a no-brainer to anybody with even the slightest amount of experience with JRPGs. When an enemy is clearly using an elemental attack or is themed around one of them, attack with the magic to which it is the most vulnerable.
Some enemies' elemental weaknesses are less obvious, so Assess should help determine the best move to use. Some enemies are almost impossible to beat or take significantly longer to take down without exploiting the elemental weakness.
Keep Sonon Alive
In addition to making the best use out of Sonon's abilities, also make sure he stays alive during a bout. It can be easy to forget about his health bar and focus on keeping Yuffie healthy and well-guarded. However, Sonon both does extra damage and serves as another target for the enemies.
If Sonon's HP hits zero, then all the enemies will focus purely on Yuffie. Sonon can also be used to heal both himself and Yuffie during the heat of combat either with items or healing magic.
Use Synergy Once The ATB Gauge Is Full
Press L2 to activate Synergy between the two-party members. This allows Yuffie and Sonon to perform special abilities similar to dual techs from Chrono Trigger. The one drawback is the ATB gauge charges particularly slowly, so only activate Synergy once the gauge is already almost full.
The special abilities performed here are powerful, so be sure to take advantage of them. It can be just the thing needed to take out that last chunk of health on a boss.
You Can Dodge Many Attacks
Considering the turn-based nature of the combat and the Final Fantasy series' penchant for slow-paced gameplay, it can be easy to forget how vital movement is in the remake.
Staying far away from enemies is important for the most part, but Yuffie can dodge many moves if the player is fast and attentive enough. Stay far away enough from an enemy and long-range attacks can be easily outmaneuvered. If the player is on their toes, certain devastating moves are completely avoidable.
Change Weapons And Master Abilities Frequently
Final Fantasy 7 Remake encourages using different weapons and switching things up in order to master abilities. Each weapon has its own unique ability, and using it enough while the item is equipped earns the character the right to use the move even when something else is equipped.
With this in mind, it is recommended to master an ability as quickly as possible even if the weapon does not complement one's play style. The same goes for Sonon. Even though players do not directly control him, they still use his abilities.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake was released on April 10, 2020, and is available on PC, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5.