Product Description

This is where the story of Final Fantasy 7 begins. It seems that an evil power company called Shinra has found a way to mine the planet's life energy, draining it from the planet and using it to control the universe. Fortunately, a resistance organisation known as AVALANCHE has vowed to put an end to Shinra's destructive practices. The story focuses on Cloud, an ex-soldier of Shinra, who teams up with AVALANCHE, and along the way encounters some very mysterious and powerful allies who help him fight against the deadly creatures Shinra has created to protect its empire. You, as the game player, will decide their fate.

Featuring seamless 3-D gameplay and animation, Final Fantasy VII contains hundreds of pre-rendered, computer-generated backgrounds and features real-time battles, vast map screens, and a complex and engrossing storyline. Published on three CDs, Final Fantasy 7 is one of the largest and most richly detailed gaming experiences ever created.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #14088 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Eidos
• Platform: Windows 95

Amazon.co.uk Review
The enormous PlayStation console smash hit Final Fantasy VII makes a successful debut on the personal computer, converted beautifully by designers Squaresoft and Eidos Interactive. Gamers familiar with Squaresoft's popular Final Fantasy series should have little trouble grasping the seventh title's action-packed, role-playing game play. However, Final Fantasy VII's excellent documentation and intuitive controls ensure that beginners won't feel overwhelmed.

Players assume the role of Cloud Strife, a defector of Shinra, the evil corporation maintaining control over the planet. As the game opens, Cloud joins "Avalanche", a resistance group determined to foil the corporation's diabolical plans. Final Fantasy VII features an extremely complex storyline, offering many hours of game play (over 60 minutes of impressive cinematic sequences are also included).

Final Fantasy VII's gameplay involves exploration, puzzle solving, and real-time combat. Players control Cloud during exploration and take on additional party members for battle sequences, which include both fantastic weaponry and dazzling spells. While the graphics are top-notch--and support 3-D hardware accelerators to sharpen the character models--the sound effects won't impress many; Squaresoft made little effort to utilise a personal computer's sophisticated sound card to its potential.

Although deeply rooted in the limitations of the PlayStation console (limited menu system, weak music, no voice-overs), Final Fantasy VII's highly addictive, easy-to-learn gameplay should provide adventure and role-playing fans many hours of enjoyment. --Doug Radcliffe, Amazon.com

Pros:

• Epic storyline
• Well-developed characters
• Beautiful graphics and spell effects
• Complex magic system

Cons:

• Dialogue can get cheesy
• Weak sound
• Frustrating interface

Manufacturer's Description
An evil and powerful corporation is slowly draining life from the planet in an effort to control the universe. However, a small rebellion, known as Avalanche, has vowed to put an end to this destructive plan. You take on the role of Cloud Strife, an ex-soldier of the evil Shinra corporation, who joins Avalanche as a selfish mercenary but becomes much more involved in this mysterious epic of friendship, love, and the battle between good and evil.

Customer Reviews

There aren't enough stars in the universe to rate this game
I feel that the above reviews don't try to emphasize just how good a game FF7 is, and whilst I say this, I don't think anything I can say can improve the situation, because words are too primitive to describe it.

Five years ago, I sat in my classroom, arguing with my friends. My point was, and I was defending it wholeheartedly, Ocarina of time was the greatest game ever. However, an opposing friend laid his best card on the table. What about Final Fantasy 7?
"Yeah!" everyone shouted. "No way" I committed.
However, I ordered the quickly disppearing game and loaded it into my CD drive.

I never looked back.

This is not a game. It is a legacy. A legend. A story that defines everything we can feel as humans, and everything we want as consumers. Utterly satsified with this game, I want a sequel to its story. You are consumed by its emotion, hard core raw edge emotion. These characters are your friends, and you know them intimately. The story and the path you traverse with your companions is frought with danger, self discovery and surpirse. The whole way through you're learning about Cloud's past, and what can I say apart from, you actually can't wait to find out more.

When a certain character passes away in this game, you are devastated, because of the way it is presented to you, and because of the way you knew the character, and because of the way you know the other characters are all affected by the death.
It sucks you in!! You feel real emotions towards this! This can't be a simple game! This is fantastic!
Anything that can bring out an emotion from you should be commended, but this whoa.... commendations would go to a whole new level.

By the time you've endured the entire game, you feel empty, because there is a void in your life left by the game. And don't think this kind of thing is only for people who are "sad". I'm a sport junkie. But one day I wanted to play computer game, and ended up in the middle of something far more important. This thing affected me greatly, and now I won't be separated from it.

The music only brings you in further. My God, I feel tired now just thinking about the game so much.
You know when you want to impress upon someone just how much you love your favourite song/film/book? Well this is my description to you.

If you can, play this game, because it might just bring out something good in you.

If I could give it more stars I would!!!!!
Final Fantasy VII is, in my opinion, just about the best RPG ever to be created. I remember when I first bought it on PSX and I didn't have a memory card (daft I know) I would spend forever playing it to try to get as far as I could. It's just so addictive. I eventually got a memory card and completed the game a few times, but not all the side quests, and still hadn't beaten Ruby Weapon or Emerald Weapon by the time I had sold my playstation. That is now my aim with the recently purchased PC version of it.

There's lots to do on this game, whether you are into snowboarding, motorbiking, battling or even shooting hoops on a basketball ring, this game has something to offer EVERYONE. You'll see reviews saying that there's 40-60 hours gameplay on this from start to finish. If you ignore the side quests you can do it in 24. If you fancy having a play it can be well over 100 hours!!! So start drinking lots of coffee, you've a lot of late nights ahead!!

Enjoy

A one off? I think so!!!
In one word, this game is magical. It's an incredible journey that starts from the most humble beginnings to a magnificent ending. I spent an entire summer playing this game and in a strange (and maybe quite sad way) it changed my life! It brought out emotions in me that I never really knew I felt before! As other reviewers have said, the graphics are a little dated, but the soundtrack and storyline are absolutely unbelievable! You will become so gripped in this game by the lives of the characters that are all so different yet so similar you wont want to give up. And if you are not deeply moved by the death of certain characters then you really have no soul!! It may be difficult to get hold of nowadays but if you can get your hands on it it's a real gem, there's nothing more to say about this game apart from there's been nothing like it before and I doubt there ever will be again! It's a magnificent experience to have played it so buy it NOW!!!!!