Final Fantasy 7 Remake launches in just less than two months. Square Enix is preparing for the JRPG by releasing a large variety of multimedia, including screenshots and trailers. Just recently Square Enix revealed the modern looks for Final Fantasy 7's remade Carbuncle and Chocobo summons. Today, Square Enix has gone one step further by releasing Final Fantasy 7 Remake's opening introductory cinematic movie.
The opening movie is as awesome as Final Fantasy 7 fans would expect from Square Enix in 2020, just as Final Fantasy fans were in awe of the cinematics in 1997. The trailer is an impressive 5 minutes and 21 seconds long and makes the most of the full time. Not only does the cinematic do an incredible job of introducing Final Fantasy 7 Remake's setting, Midgar, but also its key protagonists, Aerith and Cloud. Even more importantly, it establishes the game's early conflict involving the Shinra corporation stealing from the Lifestream of Gaia to power Midgar.
First the trailer tours Midgar, revealing a large populace in abject poverty but otherwise doing their best to get by. The children then see one of Midgar's reactors glowing green, its earthly power source heavily insinuated. Then there's Aerith, basking in Gaia's Lifestream from a leaky pipe. This is a recreated scene from the classic Final Fantasy 7 and shows Aerith's deeper connection to the planet. Though Aerith having beautiful flowers to sell portrays that message rather well, too.
As exciting as it is to see Final Fantasy 7 Remake recapture the themes of the original of the game so well, there's one other thing from the trailer that's even more exciting. The trailer features a unique version of the iconic Final Fantasy 7 song "One Winged Angel." It's much more somber and slow than the full version, but Final Fantasy 7 fans will immediately recognize it as the first hint towards the coming of Sephiroth.
Even for a 5-minute trailer, Final Fantasy 7 Remake's opening cinematic flies by. It's full of awesome visuals, direct references to the original Final Fantasy 7's cinematics, and story-building. It's both pure fanservice and also a great introduction to Final Fantasy 7 Remake. In fact, players will probably jump straight into gameplay after viewing this cinematic. It definitely instills a feeling of wanting to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake as soon as possible.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake releases April 10 on PS4.