This summer, fans can dive intoFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade, all of its PS5 glory, and everyone’s favorite ninja, Yuffie Kisaragi. Unfortunately, this does make any sort ofFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2proper releasing this year seem much less likely, but it does give fans some big answers.
For example, in the original game, Yuffie was entirely optional and only obtainable after a certain part. This DLC will be bringing her into the main story, specifically meaning the events are designated to take place during the main game. As a result, it is much less likely that Yuffie is an optional character, and it’s likely to bring her into the game in more meaningful ways. For Yuffie, this is great, but hopefully, this is a one-off. There’s a few reasons that this shouldn’t happen to the otheroptionalFF7character: Vincent Valentine.
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FF7 Optional Characters: Yuffie and Vincent Valentine
What this DLC seems to effectively do is provide new background information on Yuffie, thereby explaining and better situating her role in the story. This is all good and well, especially since it will presumably bring her back in a permanent role comeFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2. On the other hand, there’s no need to do so for Vincent Valentine. His relationship with Lucrecia, hisknowledge of Sephiroth, and his desire for vengeance against Dr. Hojo are all motivators that need no further explanation; however, that’s not to say he should remain optional either.
Right now, development is focused onFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2, not more DLC. Fans have no idea how far into the story Part 2 will make it, though, but it’s possible it doesn’t get far enough to introduce Vincent. Adding him as DLC between Part 2 and Part 3, as is Yuffie’s role, would track as a bad pattern, but again, he doesn’t need what Yuffie’s DLC accomplishes. Instead, introducing him earlier inFF7 Remake Part 2or even saving him forFF7 Remake Part 3would be a much better move. It should be noted that these two characters are the only “optional” ones, but they are far from the only characters that could be milked in an episodic nature—the potentially bigger problem here.
Episode Yuffie and Episode Vincent Could Fall into FF15’s Trap
If providing DLC to clue in key information/background information sounds familiar, it’s because that’s exactly whatFinal Fantasy 15did. Episode Gladio, Episode Prompto, Episode Ignis, and Episode Ardyn all provided background info (Ardyn and Prompto) or filled in missing events from the story (Gladio and Ignis). The reasons were never fully explained, but some financial losses likely led Square Enix tocancel theFinal Fantasy 15DLCwhich followed: Episodes Aranea, Lunafreya, and Noctis. It stands to reason that, despite one supposedly dealing with an alternative end, they would have done the exact same.
The episodic nature ofFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2does cause some concern that smaller DLCs will be used to flesh out story beats or provide background info—all of which some will inevitably argue belong in the game proper. It’s not hard to see a structure like “Final Fantasy 7 Part 1, Yuffie DLC, Part 2, Vincent DLC, Part 3, Zack Fair DLC, Part 4” almost ad infinitum. Instead, while it works for Yuffie and she also serves as a motivation in transferringFinal Fantasy 7 Remakefrom PS4 to PS5,FF7 Remake Part 2or evenPart 3should just use Vincent Valentine as what he should be: part of the main story
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2is in development.
MORE:Why Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade Tweaked Yuffie and Sonon’s Appearances
