One of the most striking scenes in the original Final Fantasy 7 is the brief moment during Cloud’s flashback when Sephiroth joins your party. In that title, as opposed to Final Fantasy 7 Remake, players get only the merest clues about Sephiroth’s power and identity in the game’s Midgar Arc, and Cloud’s (faulty) recap of their shared history serves as the enigmatic ex-SOLDIER’s first proper introduction.
In Cloud’s Final Fantasy 7 recollections, he and Sephiroth were assigned to kill a monster that has been wreaking havoc near Nibelheim. When they encounter the monster, it immediately one-shots Cloud, who at that point has laughably bad stats. Then Sephiroth takes over. He withstands the attack that killed Cloud, taking zero damage, and then one-shots the monster himself.
It’s kind of a cheap trick, in that it hijacks players’ agency and forces them to watch a rigged fight—but it’s also effective. At that point in the game Cloud already seems pretty cool and plenty strong, but that scene establishes Sephiroth as a god by comparison, contributing to his gravitas as one of the greatest villains in Final Fantasy, and video game history as a whole.
Some fans have argued that Remake‘s handling of Sephiroth, who is an aggressive presence from the beginning of the Midgar arc, shows too much too soon, denigrating the villain’s potential dread. And there is a case to be made there. Sephiroth was originally partially inspired by Jaws; he is a rarely seen but keenly felt presence throughout the game, an enemy that is everywhere and nowhere, whose very existence inspires dread. But Final Fantasy 7 Remake‘s new approach also sets up a unique opportunity for the character that is worthy of his evil legacy.
Something strange is afoot in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, and only Sephiroth and Aerith seem to have an inkling about what it is. Things are deviating from the first game’s timeline, as evidenced by the survival of several characters who died in Final Fantasy 7, including Zack Fair—possibly in an alternate timeline or different dimension. The mysterious Whisper enemies seem to be attempting to course-correct away from these deviations. Sometimes this works in the heroes’ favor, like when Barret is revived after being shot. But generally, the heroes are opposing these emissaries of fate, who appear to be aiding Sephiroth.
It is possible that Aerith and Sephiroth, due to their respective connections to the Cetra and Jenova, are aware of the events of the original Final Fantasy 7. They may have even experienced those events before, firsthand, as evidenced by the presence of fleeting flashbacks for events that have yet to happen. We will eventually learn that Cloud’s memories are faulty, and that he couldn’t cut it as a SOLDIER. In fact, he doesn’t appear to be anyone special at all. Yet Aerith develops an instant attachment to him, and he is a point of obsession for Sephiroth, so it seems likely that he is the key to this potential time-loop—perhaps acting as an unwitting, mutual chess piece for the flower girl and the one-winged angel.
This theory could potentially account for Cloud and Sephiroth’s cryptic final duel at the end of Remake. Since Sephiroth seems to have the ability to control the Whispers, at least partially, it seems a safe bet that he has a clearer picture of what is going on than Aerith, but both characters to seem to know more than they let on. The power to control fate, to deny people the ability to choose their own destiny, is inherently villainous, and Square Enix could use it to build of Sephiroth’s legacy with another relatively simple trick, not unlike Cloud’s flashback in the original Final Fantasy 7.
If Cloud still recounts his history in Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2, Square Enix should not settle for merely demonstrating Sephiroth’s power. That ship sailed with the final boss fights in Part 1. Rather than re-emphasizing Sephiroth’s well-established power, Square Enix could demonstrate the character’s extreme cruelty. To do this, the game should put players in control of Sephiroth, and by proxy, his ability to control the Whispers and alter fate. Furthermore, it should force the players to use that agency to perform some terrible, villainous action, like the razing of Nibelheim.
To begin with, it would be tremendously satisfying to finally sit in the driver’s seat of a challenging villain fans have fought in countless other games. Sephiroth’s power is obscene, and being able to wield it for a short sequence would be memorable. Done properly, it could be chilling as well. Rather than hijacking players’ ability to act, and making them feel helpless, Square Enix simultaneously empowers players and makes them feel guilt over their actions, because responsibility comes hand in hand with agency. Sephiroth becomes a mechanism to briefly make players evil, similar to how he periodically controls Cloud in the original game.
The scene does not need to necessarily play out in Nibelheim, either. While it is unlikely that Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2 will reach this landmark moment, Square Enix could theoretically put players in charge of the most famous character death in the history of video games. Rather than watching Aerith die, players could be forced to use the Whispers to frustrate Aerith’s plans to change her fate. Even if Cloud ultimately manages to undo the cycle that he, Zack, Aerith, and Sephiroth are caught up in, Aerith’s death could be cemented as an immutable tragedy.
Admittedly, there is a great deal of conjecture regarding the true significance and allegiance of the Whispers. It is also possible that there is a hidden detail in Remake Part 1 that sheds light on Sephiroth’s true goals, seeing how Final Fantasy 7 is full of overlooked details about Sephiroth. Even if Sephiroth does not control the powers of fate directly, there is no reason players can’t step into the SOLDIER’s boots for a brief moment.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake is available now for PlayStation 4.
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