Despite what the inventive crew at Square Enix would have us suppose, Destiny and Fate most likely nonetheless have a significant function to play in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and past. Even although SOLDIER Zack Fair appears to have escaped dying and joined the remainder of the solid in a brand new timeline, the more than likely consequence is a very completely different—however equally tragic—accident.
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Spoilers for the unique recreation and FF7 Remake comply with.
In the unique Final Fantasy VII timeline, Cloud and Zack are wounded by Sephiroth following what’s referred to as “The Nibelheim Incident,” 5 years earlier than the occasions of the primary recreation. The mad scientist Hojo kidnaps and experiments on them for 4 years, enhancing Cloud’s energy however scrambling his mind. After Zack breaks them out, they journey round for a few 12 months till Shinra catches as much as them on the outskirts of Midgar. Originally, Zack dies combating Shinra troopers, however as a result of the occasion defeats the Whisper Harbinger on the finish of FF7 Remake, occasions prior to now, current and future are altered.
Remake’s ending cutscene exhibits that Zack survives the battle and helps Cloud make his approach towards Midgar. It’s believable these occasions occur in an alternate timeline distinct from the brand new continuity. However, it’s completely doable that when the occasion entered the Singularity on the finish of Remake and destroyed the Whispers, they didn’t return to their authentic world. Instead, they had been taken someplace completely different: a timeline created by the destruction of the Whispers through which Zack is alive.
Producer Yoshinori Kitase has confirmed already that Zack performs a much bigger function in FF7 Rebirth than the unique recreation.
“Within the original Final Fantasy 7, Zack Fair doesn’t appear as much,” Kitase informed IGN in a September 2023 interview. “As for Rebirth, there will be a new episode with Zack that will contain even more of him than the Remake. I’m not able to say much more than this as I would like for players to play and experience this with it in their own hands.”
How is all of this going to shake out precisely? Well, Rebirth Creative Director Tetsuya Nomura confirmed on the official PlayStation weblog in September 2023 that the second a part of the trilogy ends on the Forgotten Capital, which is the place Sephiroth kills Aerith whereas she’s attempting to the White Materia to summon Holy.
“The future — even if it has been written — can be changed,” Aerith says within the June 2022 First Look Trailer for Rebirth. The authentic timeline has already been “written,” so to talk, which is why the Whispers strove to protect this particular future. In different phrases, occasions can and may play out as they initially did aside from in cases the place characters make completely different decisions.
The Whispers might not be round anymore to make sure that every little thing goes precisely in response to plan, however it’s all however sure that Aerith will nonetheless attempt to summon Holy herself and be threatened by Sephiroth. Assuming all people exists in the identical continuity, what is going to Zack be doing whereas Cloud and pals pursue Sephiroth? In all chance, after arriving on the Sector 5 Church within the post-credits scene of the Remake Intergrade INTERmission chapter starring Yuffie, he’ll attempt to monitor Aerith down.
A fittingly tragic end result of all this might be for Zack to lastly catch as much as Aerith on the finish of the sport within the Forgotten Capital simply in time to push her out of the best way and take the hit himself. The Whispers might not be round to make sure that Zack dies, however his continued existence within the timeline presents all types of cosmic continuity points. This might be the proper tragic ending to Rebirth that evokes Aerith and Cloud to proceed their mission to cease Sephiroth in a approach that thematically echoes the unique with out getting too convoluted. In this style, Aerith might efficiently summon Holy to cease Meteor sooner than within the authentic, however who is aware of what sort of repercussions all of this could have.
Is it truthful for him to make the last word Zackrifice? Probably not, however one thing about it feels becoming however.
Pre-order Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: Amazon | Best Buy | GameStop
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