As April 10th gets closer and closer, Square Enix is dropping more and more tantalizing morsels for the new Final Fantasy VII remake. Recently, fans were given the opening cinematic for the game. Here are my thoughts on the Final Fantasy VII remake opening movie.

Hype for this game continues to grow as Square Enix releases more and more for the game. The latest release is the opening cinematic sequence from the game as seen below:

As I have stated in previous articles, I have never played the original game, but I do know bits and pieces of the story that I have collected over the years. I hope with this in mind, I can give a different perspective compared to those who have played the original game.

Now with that out of the way, what did I think of this opening sequence? I think this is a stunningly beautiful opening, but I also think they did a good job adding a very ominous tone to it as well. And don’t think I didn’t notice the whisper of One Winged Angel in the music which I think is a very nice touch. The terror of Sephiroth is just below the surface.

There is not much said in this opening and no sweeping monologue setting up the rules of this world. What is in the opening focuses on showing bits and pieces of the personalities of well known characters like Aerith, Barrett and Cloud.

One example is with Aerith. Her introduction starts with her looking at the lifestream that is seeping out of a pipe and then something spooks her. Now I don’t know what spooked her. We see her running away from the whatever spooked her and she bumps into a man passing by where she drops some of the flowers she is carrying. As she tries to pick them up, one of the flowers is crushed. She cradles this broken flower as if she has lost a dear friend. Is the crushed flower symbolism of what happens to a character who will remain nameless for spoiler purposes that Aerith has a deep connection to? Or is it symbolism for the blatant disregard that people have for the planet? It could very well be both if one really thinks about it, and I really like that they layered in that level of detail in this opening sequence.

Then there is the scene with Avalanche. Members of Avalanche (Jessie, Biggs and Wedge) have just taken out the guards. In steps the gigantic Barrett. Barrett quickly takes command of the situation which establishes him in the player’s minds that he is the leader. He then orders the “merc” to come down. What I like about this part is how it succinctly establishes a piece of Barrett’s personality, and his viewpoint on Cloud. It shows his distrust and dislike of Cloud simply by calling Cloud a dehumanizing nickname. The disdain we can hear in Barrett’s tone speaks volumes on how he feels about Cloud.

And then there is Cloud himself. He follows Barrett’s command and gets down, but he does it in a very aerobatic way. Was it necessary he do that? No, but is it a way to showcase his ability and lay down some dominance? Yes. Cloud shows no emotion when he lands showing that Barrett’s dehumanizing nick name and tone of his voice didn’t affect him. This shows a very cold and indifferent Cloud that fans of the original will recognize.

And can we just talk about how well the opening sequence built up tension and how well it flowed from scene to scene? The main transition to Aerith is beautiful and reminiscent of the original opening. And I like how the music really added an eery beauty as tension is built up. Without having to know the story, a newcomer can easily pick up that there is something very wrong in Midgar.

Essentially, this opening sequence did a fantastic job establishing who the major characters are that players should pay attention. It also shows bits and pieces of their personalities, their interactions with others, and hints about their backstories. It would have been easy to have an opening sequence that went into a long exposition dump of the rules of this world. Instead, they focused on the characters. They establish that it is the characters that drive this story. All the rest, the rules of the world and all, can be discovered as the game progresses. I really like this, and think this is a very strong opening to what is looking like will be a fantastic game.