Crisis Core Final Fantasy 7 Reunion: Does it work in a post-remake world, or is it too stuck in the past?
We are once again revisiting the origin of Cloud’s strife.
Following our preview of Crisis Core's impending remaster, Alex and I sat down to chat about its place in the new post-remake Final Fantasy 7 universe, and whether it still holds up as a prequel in that context, over some gorgeous 4K gameplay footage.
There’s no doubt that the burgeoning media franchise that is Final Fantasy 7 has picked up a lot of new fans since the remake launched in 2020, introducing an entire generation of fresh players to a universe that has been steadily expanding since 1997 with multiple prequels and film projects making up the “Compilation of Final Fantasy VII” metaseries.
Crisis Core originally released in 2007, ten years after the original game, and is widely considered to be the best of FF7’s spin-offs, chronicling the life of a key fan-favourite character and re-examining a pivotal moment in the timeline that casts a deep shadow over the rest of the series.
Which is why Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion is such an interesting project: the event it leads to – indeed, all major events in the FF7 timeline – are very much subject to change, as it appears that FF7 Remake characters are somehow conscious of their fates as depicted in the original game.
Crisis Core Reunion has been spruced up with new character models and VO to bring it in line with FF7 Remake, and has been marketed as “more than a remaster”, so there is a question hanging in the air as to whether or not it will somehow reflect the wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey nature of the remake.
In a world where endless crossovers, expanded continuities, and multiverses are as common as television soap operas, the concept of a self-aware remake isn’t much of a head scratcher for modern audiences. But you can’t help but wonder: if a remake assumes too much prior knowledge of the source material, then who exactly is it for?
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion will release on December 13th for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.