Yeah, others have repeatedly hit the nail on the head. First time around it's probably one of the best bits of the game. Especially first time playing a FF game and you're overawed by Sephiroth's damage. Sadly on subsequent playthroughs it takes an age and you don't get anything tangible from it.
I've played through the game multiple times, and I never really understood the Kalm flashback hate. No, you're not leveling up, but you are progressing through the story. The flashback has a lot of good exposition, the atmosphere is well done, and it sets the context for your adventure across the world. As someone who plays JRPGs mostly for the story, I don't mind it at all. It's not my favorite part of the game, but I don't dislike it at all, and wouldn't skip it even if I could -- just like I wouldn't skip the first few chapters of a book on a second reread.
exactly, that's how i feel... i play my games for story first, gameplay second... these flashbacks are an essential part of the story and should not be skipped or ignored, a lot of hard work went into them to just go "aw, skip it"...
if i worked hard on something i'd be a bit disheartened to see people making comments like "i got up to make a sandwich during the cutscene cause i couldn't skip it" or in this case "i taped the Circle Button down"... and the people at Square worked hard on those flashback scenes setting the mood of the story with music, lighting, sound effects, camera angels, everything painstakingly placed for us to enjoy a good cinematic story like they wanted to present to us...
"The real question is why would anyone play this game more than once."
~ Shorty, circa. 2013
HA! saw that in the FFX "OMG Really!?!?" thread... anyway the answer's simple... cause it's a masterpiece in gaming...
truth is that's totally subjective... some people may like great games like FF VII, X, & XIII while other like complete dreck like Call of Duty or Madden Franchises, of course the no-necks and Jarhead wannabe's will see it the other way saying their games are the best ever while RPGS are total crap... that line is further divided between Western and JRPG fans, and even further between those two groups, FF Vs DQ for example, and yet again, ad nausium...
point being the games that speak to you most personally are the ones that will stick with you and warrant repeated replays, while those that don't just sit on the shelf year after year...
I don't understand it. When I started being interested in RPGs, like 50 years ago, their main aspect was the story. The flashback is the story. No matter how many of it is confabulated, that is something which is an important aspect of Final Fantasy VII's story anyway.
How old are you?Originally Posted by Sephiroth
That was a joke.How old are you?
I have no hate for the Kalm flashback or the "Cloud's memory jigsaw in the lifestream" sections of the game. When I was young, about 10 years old, I though the storyline was much more complex than other games at that time. But that's why I enjoyed re-watching them when the time came. Besides, the Kalm flashback takes Cloud from being the strongest character on your team to being a mere newcomer in SOLDIER. I found the fight with the Dragon amusing, he lasted 5 seconds.
"What brought me here?
Back to this space.
To beyond the stars,
I long to return..."
Now you remind me of EDI from Mass Effect.That was a joke.How old are you?
If the flashback weren't there, the great, tense scenes where Sephiroth/Jenova taunts Cloud on the way to the Crater for the first time wouldn't make any sense. There's a lot they have to set up for the punchline to make sense.
I've always thought that the final twist with Tifa and Cloud in the Lifestream was the best part of the game. After that point, the story just seems to coast toward the ending to me.
Back when FFVII was a brand new game, I had one of those bootleg memory cards that had an absurd amount of space on it. I had multiple saves right before scenes or segments that I enjoyed. The flashback segment is one that I particularly played through a lot because I enjoyed the atmosphere and direction of how events played out, even though what was shown wasn't what actually happened in terms of key details.
I will admit that I enjoyed it far more the first time I played through it, but I just love when games integrate gameplay aspects to prove a story based point they are trying to make. Many people forget that Sephiroth's build up was very slow and deliberate. He is casually mentioned, but the game makes sure to let you know that the dude is terrifyingly powerful. The trail of blood sequence in the Shinra HQ was cool and all, but actually seeing Sephiroth in a rain soaked battle easily dispatch a powerful enemy through the confines of the battle system really hammered the point home. Many games use this sort of storytelling/gameplay tactic, and I find that most of the time it is a great way to let an element in a game unfold.
The cinematography of the whole scene was astounding, as well. The camera angles in places like the Shinra Mansion and the Mako Reactor helped support the tone of the story at the time. They aren't subtle or whatever, but they work. The spiral decent into the basement of the Shinra Mansion where Sephiroth pieces his past and motivations together was downright spooky.
Long story short, this is a part of the game I look forward to every single time. I can see how it can be a chore for some, but I prefer to soak in the presentation the game was aiming for.
Yeah, I have to say, I've never hated the flashback scene. I think it's an incredibly well written and executed part of the game's story. And I do love story in games. Maybe if I was playing FFVII just for the gameplay, I'd get upset over such a lengthy stall, but why the heck would I do that? I mean, the gameplay's good, but it's an RPG, it's all to serve the story, I'd never boot the game up just to get into a couple random encounters. Maybe to fight a particular boss, but then that's what save files before boss encounters are for.
Why would people hate such a great part of the story?
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