While playing video games, gamers are likely to find themselves falling into certain habits. Most players won’t be surprised to catch themselves leaning to the side in real life in an attempt to dodge an attack in game, or subscribing to the belief that an attack will do more damage if the button is pressed harder or faster. These are classic examples of the RPG logic that inspires memes. Final Fantasy 7 Remake takes one such habit and grinds it to dust, as it forces players to use items in order to survive, especially in the early stages of the game. This goes contrary to the training that many games have provided fans on how the should handle consumable items.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake does a lot of things right, but its combat system can be very difficult to grasp at first. Many players may find themselves struggling to get through certain fights, as the sheer amount of damage that Cloud and his friends are taking is just too much to manage with simple Cure Materia. This problem persists throughout the entirety of the game, and will probably remain in the second installment as well. Eventually players will realize that they need to use items if they want to get through the game.
How often have players found themselves overencumbered in games such as Skyrim only to skip past a horde of consumable potions, ingredients, and scrolls in search of something else to drop or sell. In a strange and probably unintentional way, video games have trained players to horde their consumable items, keeping them in store for the right moment. Of course, that moment tends to never come, and players will find themselves defeating the last boss with a slew of helpful items covered in dust at the bottom of their inventory.
Final Fantasy games are particularly to blame for this, as players gain access to spells that are capable of accomplishing the same thing as many items. Why should players waste an antidote when they could use Esuna to cure poison instead? Likewise, a cure spell can heal up damage just as if not more effectively than a potion, so maybe it would be best to save that potion until later since it could come in handy. Often this kind of thinking backfires against the player, making certain challenges much more difficult than they need to be and preventing the player from engaging with everything a game has to offer.
By contrast, players will be forced to rely on potions, ethers, antidotes, and other items throughout their time in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, largely in part due to the game’s unique combat system. Whereas games like Dark Souls have coached players to avoid taking damage at all costs, one of the first challenges players face in understanding Final Fantasy 7 Remake‘s combat is realizing that they will take damage. Not everything can be blocked or dodged, so sometimes the player is forced to soak up damage and figure out the best way to heal it.
Mana conservation can also be extremely important, and often it will be much easier to simply use a potion or two than it is to cast a cure spell, especially out of combat. This lesson probably won’t carry on past this game, but it is interesting nonetheless. Perhaps if other titles want to encourage players to use items, they should balance encounters with the assumption that players are using them. As it stands, most games are doable without items and then become much easier with them, but Final Fantasy 7 Remake is different, as some encounters are nearly impossible without the use of items.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake is available now exclusively on PS4.
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