Summary
Final Fantasygames used to come out within a year or two of each other. The more technology has increased, the longer it has taken for Square Enix to launch mainline games in the series. For example,Final Fantasy 15was released in 2016, whileFinal Fantasy 16was a 2023 game.
Seven years is a long time to wait for the next big iteration in the series, even though there are plenty of spinoffs and remakes likeFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthfor fans to enjoy. PerhapsFinal Fantasy 17, when it is released, can learn something fromFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirth’sdesign.
6Keep The Party Around At All Times
But With A Twist
Where do party members go when they aren’t in the active party? It’s always been a weird thing in RPGs with large parties. If the end of the world is coming, shouldn’t everyone be involved?Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthsolves this issue in two ways. First, when players are exploring the open-world sections of the game, everyone can be seen outside and inside of battles. They may not do damage, but background characters like Barret, for example, will be shown using their weapons.
It makes the game feel like the characters are truly a team. There are also sections where the party splits up into two distinct teams, allowing players to experience the game from different perspectives.Final Fantasy 17should follow both of those ideas, but also tweak them by adding the ability to switch out party members mid-battle like inFinal Fantasy 10.
5The Villain Should Be An Omnipresent Threat
From Sephiroth To The Turks
Some RPGs like to hold back their villains for cutscenes, showing what they are doing while the heroes are accomplishing their goals. It can build tension, but when these villains are saved for the end, it makes them feel less impactful because they didn’t interact directly with the heroes as much. Thankfully,Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthdoesn’t do that, and it has two sets of villains. First, there is Shinra, who constantly hounds the partythrough The Turks, mostly.
Sephiroth also shows upin Cloud’s head to distract him from the task ahead. He also makes appearances to the group by using one of the robed figures as a conduit. It’s just great to see the villains ofFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthbe a constant thorn in the party’s side, andFinal Fantasy 17would be wise to take note.
4Dynamic Boss Battles
Make Every Battle An Event
One of the main reasons whyFinal Fantasy 17should follow the multiple-parties route see inRebirthis to make boss battles more exciting. BecauseFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthimplements strict parties for certain situations, the developers were able to fine-tune the story to match boss fights. One early example is the fight against Elena and Rude of The Turks in the Mythril Mines.
Cloud, Tifa, and Aerith take part in that battle, allowing for some unique dialogue. While that exciting romp is going on above, Barretand Red XIIIare down below dealing with their own boss issues. The cinematic boss fights in the remake games are unlike anything RPGs have done before outside of other Square Enix titles likeKingdom Hearts.
3Keep Cities Big
Make Them Feel Alive
RPGs, starting in the 80s and carrying right through to the early 2000s, evolved their towns. By the time the genre got to the PS2 generation, cities were massive, or at least they looked that way. When it came to the HD era, towns kind of took a backseat in a lot of high-profile RPG series. They were pretty scattered inFinal Fantasy 13,moving forward with little interactions between players and NPCs. This includes the latest entry too,Final Fantasy 16.
They were set dressings, which was fine, but it didn’t feel as immersive. The only outlier isFinal Fantasy 14,but as an MMO that’s a whole other ballgame. The point is thatFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthdoes a great job giving the old glow-up treatment to all the towns from the original game, with Gongaga standing out in particular. Hopefully,Final Fantasy 17can be just as vibrant, varied, and colorful.
2Mini-Games Are Everything To Final Fantasy
Let’s Move Away From Cards Though
To throwFinal Fantasy 16under the bus again, that game was devoid of mini-games. It seems likeFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthhas made up for this lack of mini-games, because there are over a dozen in the latestFinal Fantasyrelease. There are of course old classics like G-Bike and Chocobo Racing which were in the PS1 version.
Then there are new mini-games too, like the RTS-like game, Gears and Gambits, and the card game, Queen’s Blood. That is the third card game in the series, and while it’s good, it’s not likeFinal Fantasy 17needs one. It also doesn’t need to copy any of these mini-games, but it should at least have similar offerings.
1Keep It Silly
From Moogles To Parades
The bottom line is,Final Fantasy 17should be able to be flexible between its serious story and goofy moments.Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthis ultimately about the destruction of the world, which is a cliche for a JRPG, but there’s more to it. As serious as it can get between loved ones dying and relationships breaking,Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthsaves plenty of room to pick players up through fun and humor.
That’s whyFinal Fantasy 7is so magical to people even decades later, and even though the remake did change things. For example, there is aside quest inFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirththat turns the heroes into frogs, while another turns Cloud into a Moogle. Those are just two examples, but overall, the game is not afraid of having fun, andFinal Fantasy 17shouldn’t be either.
