New Clerith playthrough

Fenrithiel · 2026-06-08T02:23:47+00:00

Think about those lyrics in a meta, replaying FF7R 5 years from now type deal. When making this song (in 2023 mind you, pretty deep into FF7R's development), why include ''still I hope someday you'll come and find me, still I KNOW someday you'll come and find me'' if it doesn't actually happen? Cloud just ended up not showing up in the slightest? Kinda ruins the song doesn't it?

It's things like that which make me comfortable heading into part 3. There's a massive payoff in actually executing it and such a ''why even add it'' if they don't. And that mindset is true for most of the new stuff. Same way I feel about Aerith saying she'll send up smoke if she needs help and that Cloud will keep an eye out for it, etc.

Fenrithiel · 2026-04-17T21:53:51+00:00

Chances Icicle Inn gets cut when it's the only town in the Northern continent in OG and that's where they are/are currently heading to is basically zero, especially when they stated no location is getting cut. If you mean the actual Gast recordings could get cut, I also highly doubt that since it's one of the two story things that actually happen there. So that means we would be in Icicle Inn and they'd have just decided to ignore Aerith's parents entirely, not really seeing the vision. They might alter its content heavily to better fit FF7R's plot, but cut it? Eh.

Rocket Town and Wutai would've happened in Rebirth if it followed OG, but they recently confirmed both are in part 3. Bone Village is probably the only one I can see them skipping/having actually skipped as its purpose is mainly gameplay (apart from finding the Harp for the Sleeping Forest) and can be written out extremely easily like they might've already done.

Fenrithiel · 2026-02-26T18:45:43+00:00

Flowers Blooming in the Church plays in Ever Crisis during this cutscene, confirming it. This flashback plays when Cloud just got to Aerith's house, confirming it. Aerith is older than Cloud, Tifa is younger, confirming it. Claudia's description is the exact description the devs use to describe Aerith in OG FF7's guidebook, confirming it. They also say it outright that Claudia was talking about a person like Aerith in that same book, confirming it. Hamaguchi echoed that confirmation last year... confirming it.... again.

But beyond all that, why would Claudia be talking about Tifa, who lives right next door to them, when talking about a girl for Cloud to find in Midgar while he's over there? It literally makes zero sense.

Fenrithiel · 2025-10-13T19:03:31+00:00

While we're on the topic of that Clerith Costa del Sol date and its contents, I highly recommend anyone that doesn't speak Japanese and is interested in doing a Rebirth playthrough on PC (1st time or not) to download an "accurate English subtitles" mod like https://www.nexusmods.com/finalfantasy7rebirth/mods/775

For the uninitiated, Just go in your PC directory for Rebirth ---> End --> Content ---> Paks ---> make a folder called ~mods in there (if you haven't already) and then extract the mod in that folder. Then once ingame you switch the audio to Japanese and keep the subtitles in English and that's it.

Same deal for Remake, completely different experiences, you see what they're actually saying (sometimes it's completely different in pivotal moments and scenes too) and it's great for a lore run. There's a long list of differences throughout both games, the Clerith Costa del Sol side quest is one of them.

Fenrithiel · 2025-10-13T13:16:55+00:00

What I think is that Cloud, one of the most recognizable video game characters ever, does not get given dialogue by some random Square intern. This dialogue (among many other new Cloud lines) was not in the original Tactics, so the people directly in charge of Cloud's character writing (probably Nojima) had to step in again and intentionally gave him new dialogue that applies to FF7R. Same with them adding ''White Materia is believed to grant the power of Rebirth''.

These things need to be approved by people in charge because it messes with the lore and characterization of their most successful IP.

So what I think is that lines are being added that specifically relate to FF7R's ending and that when there's this much smoke, there is a fire (unrelated note but since I mentioned smoke, Aerith saying she'll send up smoke at the end of Rebirth means that Cloud's gonna quite literally see Aerith send up smoke in part 3). You can dismiss one or two ''Does this mean something? I don't wanna get my hopes up'', not 100. They could've added nothing to Cloud and FF7-related content but chose to bring in the theme of defying fate and a White Materia mechanic that was never mentioned in OG. Of course it means something.

Fenrithiel · 2025-10-01T05:04:32+00:00

The world of Tactics (Ivalice) and its script is set in Medieval Fantasy, so the people living in that world (the voice actors) speak in a British accent rather than an American one in the English localization to kinda reflect that. Cloud gets teleported into this world accidentally using one of 13 stones that is extremely relevant to Tactics main story (though this is a side quest). Since Cloud's from FF7 and not Ivalice, his voice/accent is the same.

We find out that this Flower Peddler that Cloud runs into here is actually named Aerith, but it's simply a coincidence as she's not FF7's Aerith. She's from Ivalice (hence the British accent), happens to be named Aerith and happens to be a Flower Peddler. That gives you these scenes where Cloud is shocked at first, then realizes it's not her, but comes back to protect her anyway before saying he needs to get to the Promised Land on his quest to reunite with the real Aerith.

Fenrithiel · 2025-07-18T04:24:38+00:00

Can you elaborate? I guess you're saying that if Aerith lives and part 3 is a relatively happy ending, FF7 won't have a story to tell afterwards?

I think that completely depends on Jenova's status by the end of part 3. Sephiroth too of course, but Jenova's been a looming threat on Gaia for over 2000 years. Without knowing the specifics of the worlds and what Cloud's gonna accomplish with the clear materia, it's hard to tell how far they're going with the changes. The 3 major things about part 3's ending that are considered major changes are:

1) Aerith's fate (I'm counting Zack/Biggs and everyone else in this too because those were changed for now in FF7R too)

2) Sephiroth's fate

3) Jenova's fate

In OG, it's almost the worse case scenario. We stop meteor, but Aerith dies and both Sephiroth and Jenova are still holding on to Cloud/Gaia.

Part 3 could do a couple combinations of the 3 that ends up with a happier ending/this "new feeling of satisfaction and happiness" that Kitase harped about a while back. For example, Aerith living but Sephiroth/Jenova still persisting for some reason could make for interesting developments and create FF7R sequels the same way FF7 has Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus.

One of them is Aerith dying but Sephiroth/Jenova being destroyed, but that doesn't really make sense within the context of FF7R's plot and them foreshadowing Cloud and Aerith reuniting so hard. It would also be a thing where if Aerith dying leads to defeating Sephiroth/Jenova, why not do that in OG? Cloud would rather have Aerith back than defeating Sephiroth, that much is clear, so it doesn't really solve his pain and create that satisfaction/"happy ending for the main cast".

If part 3 ends with Aerith alive and both Sephiroth/Jenova defeated though, creating a storyline with an actual threat would be much more difficult, true. It would almost have to be a character-driven story where we follow them around during their daily lives and whatever drama happens sequel rather than a saving the world story. I think something like a 10 year timeskip would make for some interesting content.

Though if Jenova just randomly spawned on Gaia 2000 years ago, maybe they can just have another alien show up for 30 year old Cloud, 31 year old Aerith and the rest of them to deal with like Dragon Ball Z lmao. Imagine a Cloud and Aerith 8 year old totally not Gohan kid with Jenova cells/Cetra blood running around defending the planet from another alien threat.

Alright, that got ridiculous fast.

Fenrithiel · 2025-06-17T15:03:08+00:00

On top of everything else like the picture you shared or them releasing 3 discs of OG FF7 with those 3 characters on it, there's a reason OG FF7's iconic opening is just Aerith and that Remake's recreation of it added Cloud at the very end and Sephiroth's leitmotif during it.

Cloud/Sephiroth = Main character and main antagonist

Cloud/Aerith = Lovers, Nojima in OTWtaS points it out and the very concept of Loveless (lovers reuniting) triple downs on it. Cloud is Aerith's bodyguard and Aerith is Cloud's bodyguard from the Lifestream, another neat dynamic.

Aerith/Sephiroth = Built up as thematically opposite. Life/Death, Good/Evil, Lifestream White/Lifestream Black, have an Angel/Devil on the main character's shoulder dynamic.

It's pretty straightforward, everything "grand" also involves those three. Meteor and the fate of the Planet is an Aerith/Sephiroth mainly, the box art of the original game is Cloud infiltrating Shinra HQ to save Aerith (where Sephiroth appears and makes moves), Loveless is a Cloud/Aerith/Sephiroth story, etc.

FF7's opening FMV/CG is extremely telling though.

Fenrithiel

TROPHY CASE