#Naoki Hamaguchi

[planckstorytime]

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: A World Beyond Anger (Part Six)

VI. … And Why It Doesn’t Matter

You thought I was done complaining? No, never.

Doubtless someone will punch holes in my theory, and I wouldn’t even feign indignation. The truth is that none of the explanations posed by fans have established a coherent story. But the fact that this is where our attention has been directed – away from the emotional moments that give stories relevance in the first place – exposes the shallowness of this trade-off. Even if my desired theory comes to fruition, I don’t think it redeems Rebirth’s rendition of Aerith’s death.

The consistency, or lack thereof, between the obnoxious multiverse stuff and the franchise’s established lore ultimately matters little when you’ve already squandered that critical moment that makes us care. From whatever universe you view it, Rebirth demonstrates a puzzling ambivalence to Aerith’s passing. The impact of loss never lands, because moments later you have Zack stepping in for a tag-team match with Cloud against Sephiroth. It’s framed as some fist-pumping “fuck yeah” moment, complete with embarrassingly out-of-place musical callbacks and quotes from Crisis Core (2007). It doesn’t feel like purposeful whiplash to create a sense of disorientation, but rather completely tone-deaf and disrespectful fanservice, all during a moment that should leave the player feeling hollow. And no sooner has Aerith left the building than she rises again like the goddamn Undertaker, kicking ass and eliminating any modicum of loss. Whether she’s in the lifestream or a parallel timeline or a phantom of Cloud’s addled mind is a distinction without a difference. Her death – and perhaps all death in the series – has lost its significance, because it feels merely inconvenient.

Hironobu Sakaguchi, creator of the Final Fantasy series and story planner for the original FF7, channeled the pain and shock of his mother’s death into the loss of Aerith. Where once there was a source of joy, now there is only a void that will never be filled. In the original game, you’ll always have that empty slot on your party selection screen to remind you of who you’re missing. It’s an aching, uncomfortable treatment of death in fiction that was unconventional for its medium at the time. It cut straight to players’ hearts. With this is mind, does Rebirth capture anything remotely comparable? Should we call Sakaguchi and tell him his mom is still kicking somewhere?

When asked about the scene by Game Informer, Nomura had this to say:

“Prior to Final Fantasy VII, there have been other titles where characters have experienced tragedy, but many of them have come back or been revived in some ways. But I believe that loss is something that happens unexpectedly, and it’s not something so dramatic or drawn out, but is something in which a person that you have just conversed with is suddenly gone and never to come back. I believe that the person who dies should not return in this title, and that is what we did with the original… I do believe that the way we have depicted it brings about a new emotion and a new feeling for both players who have played the original Final Fantasy VII and newcomers.”

I struggle to conceive what this “new emotion” could be. Bewilderment? I can’t imagine another response when the developers diminish the tragedy of a lost friend because they want you to be more invested in keeping track of the stupid cartoon dog! Nothing can rationalize the cluttering of this sequence with a shell game that asks us to follow the Black/White/Clear Materia. This sequence, and the events immediately leading up to it, should not have been reduced to a gimmick of prestidigitation. We’re not wondering what we’ll do without Aerith – we’re wondering which sleeve she’s hiding in, so to speak. All of these unnecessary contrivances dare you to solve them, encourage you to switch off your Lizard Brain. But if you turn off your Lizard Brain and welcome those higher mammal functions, you’re bound to see how stupid all of this truly is. For Christ’s sake, we’re naming these worlds after dog breeds! Is that really worth what we’ve lost?

Mechanically-speaking, too, I feel the 1997 game better executed the subsequent battle. There’s an often overlooked quality of the Jenova LIFE fight: It’s really easy. Equip the Water Ring you picked up five minutes earlier and you’ve essentially won the fight. This works really well because you’re not supposed to be thinking hard about strategy and tactics or rocking out to Jenova’s awesome theme song – the battle just gives you time to chew on what’s happened, all the while Aerith’s theme softly rings in your ears. Rebirth gives you a complicated, high-flying, multi-stage boss fight that drops your dead friend’s musical motif midway through. Now, your party is dropkicking an eldritch monster and shouting quips, while electric guitars and synths blare in the background. You need to be actively paying attention for the hour-long boss gauntlet that follows, and it feels wrong to me. I didn’t party wipe; I’m not bad at this game (I beat Gilgamesh at level 49, prior to the endgame) – but micromanaging a chaotic battle drains what little emotion remained. I just felt numb in between fits of laughter.

That is to say, the ending of Rebirth feels like a trip to the dentist.

New mysteries take priority over an earnest portrayal of events, and I just don’t think they’re compelling enough to warrant that. Our knowledge of them has barely advanced since part one. We knew going in that Zack was in a different world, denoted by a different Stamp. And now we know… that there are different worlds denoted by different Stamps. For all the rigmarole, we learned shockingly little. The mystery didn’t really progress, aside from showcasing such a circus of inconsistencies that we’re basically forced to accept that it operates on dream logic. The true ending remains to be seen, but if the clues only amount to “the clues not adding up”, then I’d say that this plotline hasn’t felt rewarding.

My gut tells me this all leads to a cul-de-sac. I judge these riddles as cynical mystery boxes with little concrete direction. Rebirth backtracks on several of Remake’s more audacious changes, completely dropping plot points in some cases. I suspect the final game will do the same, and we’ll have something approaching the original. After all, this “adds up” to Advent Children, by Kitase’s admission. The man likewise expressed that the story will likely be adjusted based on audiences’ responses to the ending of the second part. Given that the narrative disruptions have had mixed reactions at best this time, I believe it’s fair to guess that we’re just looping back to the OG plot anyway.

With all of this in mind, attempting to unravel these unknown elements seems like a massive waste of time. I don’t find this ending quite as intolerable as that of Remake, but it still comes off as tacky and desperate. I think the third part will likely still be fun and contain many of the great moments from the latter half of the original. But I can’t hide my disappointment that, even though my worst nightmares about the project didn’t come to pass, it didn’t fully rehabilitate itself in my eyes either.

I won’t lie – when I started to feel that familiar anger rising again, I got scared. I didn’t get the clean resolution that I wanted, and I worried that destructive obsession would take me over again. I feared I was about to relapse into the world’s stupidest addiction.

All of a sudden, it clicked together. I spent 120 hours staring straight at the answer, oblivious to it. Yet it finally came to me.

FULL ESSAY: https://planckstorytime.wordpress.com/2024/05/11/final-fantasy-vii-rebirth-a-world-beyond-anger/

[gamemories]

[graphicpolicy]

Naoki Hamaguchi is a Guest at Otakon 2024

Naoki Hamaguchi is a Guest at Otakon 2024 #otakon #otakon24 #otakon2024

Naoki Hamaguchi will be a guest at Otakon 2024. He is a director at Square Enix, the company known for the “Final Fantasy” videogame franchise. Hamaguchi joined Square Enix in 2003, working on the critically acclaimed “Final Fantasy XII.” Since then, Hamaguchi has been involved with several revered “Final Fantasy” titles, including the “Final Fantasy XIII” series and the mobile game, “Mobius…

[dianeyang]

I asked Naoki Hamaguchi, the director of Final Fantasy VII Remake & Rebirth, and Yoshinori Kitase, the producer of the game and director of the original Final Fantasy Vll, to sign my sefikura fanart... and they signed it for me， YIPPEEEEEEEE

[silvergreenseraphim]

“But the team was cautious in its approach to handling Sephiroth. After all, he's one of gaming's most iconic and influential antagonists, so naturally, fans will be touchy about any substantial changes.

"We felt it was necessary to have this very clear depiction of how he came to be the person that he is now in Rebirth," director Naoki Hamaguchi says.

"Even as a developer creating this game, seeing Sephiroth discover the truth and fall further and further into darkness – like falling from grace – and depicting this in his expressions, I could truly feel bad for him. Throughout the course of Rebirth, I believe players will not only grow to relate to and understand Cloud, but also Sephiroth through this game much more."

—Game Informer, 2023

—

I am going to cry. I am already hurting reading this. I love Sephiroth as a frightening villain but it’s his downfall that grips me the most. If it made Hamaguchi-san feel bad just creating it more clearly than ever in Rebirth, I can’t imagine what we the viewers will be feeling 😢

[demifiendrsa]

FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH – Summer Game Fest 2023 Trailer

Japanese version

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the second game in the Final Fantasy VII remake trilogy, will launch for PlayStation 5 in Early 2024. It will ship on two discs.

Screenshots

Overview

Get a first glimpse at the captivating story, thrilling gameplay and expansive world of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the highly anticipated new story in the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy VII remake project. In this standalone adventure, Cloud Strife and his friends have escaped the dystopian city of Midgar and embark on a new journey across the wide world of Gaia to pursue the vengeful swordsman, Sephiroth. Find out which mysteries the party will uncover when Final Fantasy VII Rebirth arrives on PlayStation 5 in early 2024. Players can explore an expansive world, all brought to life with a new level of graphical fidelity, developed specifically to leverage the power of the PlayStation 5 console.

Developer comments

How is development progressing on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth? Yoshinori Kitase, Producer: “Development is progressing smoothly and according to plan. We are currently working on nailing down a release date for the game.” How will players journey through the world outside of Midgar in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth? Naoki Hamaguchi, Director: “Players will be able to journey across the wide and multifaceted world with a ahigh degree of freedom, experiencing a myriad of different stories along the way.” What are some of the key things to look forward to in the Final Fantasy VII Rebirth story? Kazushige Nojima, Story and Scenario (Stellavista): “Players will witness a chain of narrative developments that lie at the very heart of the Final Fantasy VII story while discovering each character’s destiny.” Do I need to play Final Fantasy VII Remake to enjoy Final Fantasy VII Rebirth? Motomu Toriyama, Co-Director: “No—we have made preparations—so that players who did not get a chance to play the first game can fully enjoy Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.” Has the battle system changed from Final Fantasy VII Remake? Teruki Endo, Battle Director: “In Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, new comrades will join you in battle and you can cooperate with other party members in even closer ways than before.” Will Final Fantasy VII Rebirth have new original music? Keiji Kawamori, Music Supervisor: “Many new tracks have been created for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and we will be making some new arrangements of tracks from FINAL Final Fantasy VII Remake as well.”

[altocat]

Naoki Hamaguchi: The choice to allow the player to control Sephiroth was made after creating a flashback sequence with Cloud and the Soldier. We wondered how we could add some sort of "surprise effect" at that juncture. Controlling only Cloud, with Sephiroth managed by artificial intelligence, would not return that emotional impact we were instead trying to achieve. We wanted the player to feel more empathy with Sephiroth, and that's why we believed that making it playable was the best way to create a bond with the user. After the flashback in fact the players begin to witness the corruption of the Soldier. Sephiroth goes from being the legendary soldier to becoming an evil creature. I repeat: having Sephiroth as a playable character is the best way to allow the player to understand his point of view, and thus adds an extra emotional layer to all future encounters with the character.

—

I hope they let us control him at other points too, like during certain parts of the library sequence. I want to see more scenes from his perspective.

BuT sEpHiROth WaS aLWAys EvIL!!111

I really do hope this brings in a new generation of Sane!Seph enjoyers. I really do think the intention was always to make Sephiroth a multi-layered complex villain. We're supposed to fear him and hate him, but also pity him as well. This is actually a refreshing turn of events imo as it fleshes out Sephiroth more than what we had before, not including CC and FS. Sephiroth was a really interesting character pre-Jenova. That history is critical because it shapes him into a very interesting VILLAIN as well. So I hope we get a lot of emotional goodies along the way.

[roseartsandfics]

Birthday Giftart for floralprophecy

Here is a lovely birthday giftart for my bestie @floralprophecy ! Here is a little something for ya! We got Tifa Lockhart offering you a bday cake, Aerith Gainsborough and Sephiroth offering you lovely bday gifts! 🥳

I mostly drew these threesome from the Remake, and they aren't as bad to draw as I expected, I struggled with Tifa's arm guard and Sephiroth's belt. It was my first time drawing Tifa in her Seventh Heaven outfit in the Remake, because I adored her in the Remake (Rebirth, Crisis Core Reunion and and Advent Children as well) ^^. I also adored Aerith in the Remake as well :3. It wasn't too bad drawing Sephiroth, but I do like to draw more of Remake! Sephiroth a whole lot, and hopes of doing them more :3

This was finished earlier and my apologies for a late display lol. Added shadows and Tifa’s abs, which I struggled to draw. Eh, it'll do for now, and Tifa still looks pretty good in my style at least ^^

Hope @floralprophecy has a wonderful birthday! 🎂

Aerith Gainsborough, Tifa Lockhart, Sephiroth and Final Fantasy VII Remake ©Tetsuya Nomura, Naoki Hamaguchi, Yoshinori Kitase, Roberto Ferrari and SQUARE ENIX

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth ©Tetsuya Nomura, Naoki Hamaguchi, Yoshinori Kitase, Roberto Ferrari and SQUARE ENIX

Artwork ©RosePrincessArts

No copyright infringement is intended

Used: Sketchbook app from iPad

[finallyfantasy7]

Question: How is development progressing on FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH?

Answer: Development is progressing smoothly and according to plan. We are currently working on nailing down a release date for the game.

- Producer Yoshinori Kitase

Question: How will players journey through the world outside of Midgar in FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH?

Answer: Players will be able to journey across the wide and multifaceted world with a high degree of freedom, experiencing a myriad of different stories along the way.

- Director Naoki Hamaguchi

Question: What are some of the key things to look forward to in the FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH story?

Answer: Players will witness a chain of narrative developments that lie at the very heart of the FINAL FANTASY VII story while discovering each character's destiny.

- Story & Scenario Kazushige Nojima

[satoshi-mochida]

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth launches in early 2024

Gematsu Source

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will launch for PlayStation 5 in early 2024, Square Enix announced. It will ship on two discs.

Here is an overview of the game, via Square Enix:

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the second entry in the Final Fantasy VII remake project, which retells the story of the iconic fantasy game that redefined the RPG genre in three distinct games.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth picks up with iconic heroes Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII after they escape from the dystopian city Midgar and sees them embark on a journey in pursuit of Sephiroth, the vengeful swordsman from Cloud’s past who was thought to be dead.

In this standalone adventure, players will explore an expansive world, all brought to life with a new level of graphical fidelity, developed specifically to leverage the power of the PlayStation 5 console.

As players unravel a gripping narrative rich with mysteries to uncover, they will also witness the personal journey of each party member and strengthen their bonds to work together and face off against powerful enemies.

“We’re honored to bring Final Fantasy VII Rebirth to players around the world early next year,” said producer Yoshinori Kitase in a press release. “In the next installment of this thrilling tale, Cloud and his friends—both new and returning—will embark on a new adventure, so all players can enjoy this story, even those without any familiarity with the previous title or the original Final Fantasy VII. The entire team has worked fervently with love and adoration for the world of Final Fantasy VII to deliver an unforgettable experience for new adventurers and longtime fans alike, reaching new heights of cinematic storytelling, immersive and fast-paced combat, and rich exploration across a vast world. We can’t wait to share more details later this year.”

Square Enix also shared a number of developer comments on the game’s official Twitter account leading up to today’s announcement. Here is the full compilation:

How is development progressing on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth?

Yoshinori Kitase, Producer: “Development is progressing smoothly and according to plan. We are currently working on nailing down a release date for the game.”

How will players journey through the world outside of Midgar in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth?

Naoki Hamaguchi, Director: “Players will be able to journey across the wide and multifaceted world with a ahigh degree of freedom, experiencing a myriad of different stories along the way.”

What are some of the key things to look forward to in the Final Fantasy VII Rebirth story?

Kazushige Nojima, Story and Scenario (Stellavista): “Players will witness a chain of narrative developments that lie at the very heart of the Final Fantasy VII story while discovering each character’s destiny.”

Do I need to play Final Fantasy VII Remake to enjoy Final Fantasy VII Rebirth?

Motomu Toriyama, Co-Director: “No—we have made preparations—so that players who did not get a chance to play the first game can fully enjoy Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.”

Has the battle system changed from Final Fantasy VII Remake?

Teruki Endo, Battle Director: “In Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, new comrades will join you in battle and you can cooperate with other party members in even closer ways than before.”

Will Final Fantasy VII Rebirth have new original music?

Keiji Kawamori, Music Supervisor: “Many new tracks have been created for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and we will be making some new arrangements of tracks from FINAL Final Fantasy VII Remake as well.”

Watch a new trailer below. View a new set of screenshots at the gallery.

Summer Game Fest 2023 Trailer

English

Japanese

[planckstorytime]

Jesus Christ, I Hate Tumblr

So, for anyone who read the FF7 Rebirth essay on Tumblr, rather than the main site, it turns out that several paragraphs (basically ones that came before/after images) were just... not there! So the essay made no sense and a bunch of my points were completely lost! Stay classy, Tumblr. If you have any interest, please check those sections again to see the updated version. I sincerely apologize for the issue.

[shawnthewonder]

The Cast of Final Fantasy VII Will Be at Otakon

I'm eagerly prepping for this weekend. Yoshinori Kitase and Naoki Hamaguchi will be at Otakon along with the English voice actors this weekend in DC Aug 2-4.

I'm trying to find every Final Fantasy thing I own for them to sign and trying my best to get a FF cosplay by this weekend. I'm so excited.

[ghostofnibelheim]

So we finished Rebirth and here's what I think happened.

Naoki Hamaguchi: Okay so you kind of made a mess of everything in Remake so for Rebirth I'll be taking control. You sit here with your toys and be good while I put all of my focus on patching up all these plotholes and giving the fans the remake experience they really wanted.

Nomura: This doesn't sound fair.

Hamaguchi: You can have one chapter where you can write anything you want.

Nomura: just one?

Hamaguchi: Just one.

Nomura: I want the last one then.

[janeiteoftheslums]

This isn’t new but I’m repeatedly astounded when people continue to speculate that the story of FF7 is going to change drastically in Rebirth, in particular that characters who died in the original will survive or that another character who survived the original will die this time around.

From IGN interview with Yoshinori Kitase, Tetsuya Nomura, and Naoki Hamaguchi, September 20, 2023.

[dianeyang]

FREE Sefikura handout at Anime NYC!!!

Hello my beautiful beautiful fellow sefikura shippers🥺 if you are planning to visit this year’s Anime NYC, from August 23rd to 25th, please come by my indie game booth (located in Hall 1B, 1B-49) and collect some sefikura fanart! I’ll be more than happy to make some new friends🥺🥺🥺

and yes - these were the fanart that i asked Naoki Hamaguchi and Yoshinori Kitase to sign for me back in June…

(note: the booth i am running is not at Artist Alley, as it is not an art-based booth - it’s a game booth located in Play NYC, Hall 1B.

[remedialreviews]

Remedial Rewards 2023

I didn't follow the Academy Awards at all this year, though of course I watched Ryan Gosling's performance of "I'm Just Ken" afterwards. I hardly know or care who was nominated, and was devastated to learn that my worst picture of the year came away with 7 trophies. Truly, these are the Remedial Rewards! In no particular order, then, the winners in my esteem (from 42 watched pictures) are:

Best Picture

Monster

Godzilla Minus One

Past Lives

Perfect Days

Evil Does Not Exist

Best Director

Hirokazu Kore-eda - Monster

Takashi Yamazaki - Godzilla Minus One

Wim Wenders - Perfect Days

Celine Song - Past Lives

Ryuske Hamaguchi - Evil Does Not Exist

Best Lead Actor

Kōji Yakusho - Perfect Days

Ryunosuke Kamiki - Godzilla Minus One

Hitoshi Omika - Evil Does Not Exist

Greta Lee - Past Lives

Cailee Spaeny - Priscilla

Sophie Wilde - Talk to Me

Paul Giamatti - The Holdovers

Emma Stone - Poor Things

Jun Jong-seo - Ballerina

Soya Kurokawa - Monster

Best Supporting Actor

Hinata Hiiragi - Monster

Kuranosuke Sasaki - Godzilla Minus One

Robert Pattinson - The Boy and the Heron

Teo Yoo - Past Lives

Minami Hamabe - Godzilla Minus One

Sakura Ando - Monster

Eita Nagayama - Monster

John Magaro - Past Lives

Arisa Nakano - Perfect Days

Hidetaka Yoshioka - Godzilla Minus One

Best Adapted Screenplay

Takashi Yamazaki - Godzilla Minus One

James Gunn - Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3

Sofia Coppola - Priscilla

Robert L. Baird, Lloyd Taylor, Troy Quane, Pamela Ribon, Keith Bunin, Marc Haimes, Nick Bruno - Nimona

John Francis Daley, Chris McKay, Michael Gilio, Jonathan Goldstein - Dungeons & Dragons

Best Original Screenplay

Yuji Sakamoto - Monster

Wim Wenders, Takuma Takasaki - Perfect Days

Celine Song - Past Lives

Ryuske Hamaguchi - Evil Does Not Exist

David Hemingson - The Holdovers*

*Pending its plagiarism case

Best Production Design

Suzie Davies - Saltburn

Anri Jojo - Godzilla Minus One

Masato Nunobe - Evil Does Not Exist

Andrés Villagrán - El Conde

Tamara Deverell - Priscilla

Best Cinematography

Linus Sandgren - Saltburn

Yoshio Kitagawa - Evil Does Not Exist

Łukasz Żal - The Zone of Interest

Franz Lustig - Perfect Days

Atsushi Okui - The Boy and the Heron

Best Costume Design

Sophie Canale - Saltburn

Evil Does Not Exist

Wendy Chuck - The Holdovers

Thierry Delettre - The Three Musketeers: D'Artagnan

Stacey Battat - Priscilla

Best Film Editing

Hirokazu Kore-eda - Monster

Ryusuke Hamaguchi, Azusa Yamazaki - Evil Does Not Exist

Clémentine Decremps, Toni Froschhammer - Perfect Days

Paul Watts, Andreas D. Nold - The Zone of Interest

Ryuji Miyajima - Godzilla Minus One

Best Makeup & Hairstyling

Priscilla

Saltburn

Evil Does Not Exist

Barbie

Bottoms

Best Sound

The Zone of Interest

Godzilla Minus One

Evil Does Not Exist

The Boy and the Heron

A Haunting in Venice

Best Visual Effects

Godzilla Minus One

Dungeons & Dragons

Barbie

Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire

Best Original Score

Eiko Ishibashi - Evil Does Not Exist

Naoki Sato - Godzilla Minus One

Joe Hisaishi - The Boy and the Heron

Ravi Basrur - Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire

RADWIMPS, Kazima Jinnouchi - Suzume

Best Original Song

I'm Just Ken (Barbie)

Kanata Haruka (Suzume)

Prathi Gaadhalo (Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire)

Dance the Night (Barbie)

The Ballad of Lucy Gray Baird (The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes)

Best Stunts

John Wick Chapter 4

Salaar: Part 1 - Ceasefire

Godzilla Minus One

Dungeons & Dragons

Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3