The sequel to Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth will be eschewing some of its predecessor’s difficulty, and that’s a very good thing to hear. Learning from the past has been a core tenet of the FF7 Remake trilogy from the start, both in how its story builds on that of the original PlayStation game and how the gameplay of each installment evolves from the one before it. FF7 Rebirth already marked a considerable shift from FF7 Remake with its larger scope and new features, and that trend of evolution seems set to continue with the FF7 Remake Part 3.

While FF7 Remake Part 3 has yet to be formally announced or given an official title, it’s no secret that the game is coming in the near future, and some promising details have already begun to emerge. That’s in large part thanks to Naoki Hamaguchi, the director of FF7 Rebirth, who has been willing to share some of his personal insights on the trilogy’s development and what to expect from the entry. Specifically, he’s explained how he feels that one aspect of Rebirth in particular was too hard and how this difficulty needs to be addressed in Part 3.

FF7 Remake Part 3 Is Dialing Back The Platinum Difficulty

The Director Of FF7 Rebirth Has Promised A Change

nomination at The Game Awards 2024, FF7 Rebirth isn’t a perfect experience, and even its own director agrees that there are a couple of dark spots on the otherwise impeccable remake. Speaking to Daily Star, Hamaguchi discussed some of the things that he hopes to do differently for FF7 Remake Part 3 in response to Rebirth’s reception:

I think there is one other thing actually, which I can say was a mistake on my part, something that I've already apologized for - and I definitely will not do again, which is how difficult I made it to get the Platinum Trophy. So rest assured I have learned from that and in future I will not be making Platinum Trophies that difficult.

While an actual apology for something like this may seem superfluous, it’s one made with very good reason in this case. A Platinum Trophy, the award given to those who have collected all the other Trophies in a PlayStation game, marks the ultimate achievement for any player seeking to prove their dedication. FF7 Rebirth’s Platinum Trophy has become widely derided as one of the most aggravating in recent gaming history due to the unreasonably high degree of difficulty in attaining it.

Hamaguchi’s statement here is a pretty clear indication that the developers have their ears to the ground as they proceed full speed ahead into development on FF7 Remake Part 3, and it promises that changes are coming. It paints a promising picture of Part 3 as a game that can follow in Rebirth’s footsteps while learning from its mistakes. For completionist players, the thought of an easier Platinum in FF7 Remake Part 3 will elicit a deep sigh of relief, especially from those who have attempted the feat already in FF7 Rebirth.

FF7 Rebirth’s Platinum Doesn’t Respect The Player’s Time

Tedious Grinds And Unfair Challenges Don't Make For Engaging Gameplay

The biggest knock against FF7 Rebirth’s Platinum is the merciless demand it places upon the player’s time. While a normal playthrough of FF7 Rebirth typically clocks in at around forty to fifty hours, attempting to earn all the game’s Trophies can take upwards of two hundred hours or more. That’s a hefty commitment for any game, but the time investment might not seem so bad if it was at least fun; unfortunately, earning FF7 Rebirth’s Platinum Trophy isn’t very fun.

In contrast with FF7 Remake’s linear world, Rebirth offers more of an open-world experience with more opportunities for exploration, side quests, and minigames. Many of the game’s Trophies are tied to these optional challenges, and the glut of content means that earning the Platinum Trophy quickly turns from a test of the player’s skills to a test of how much time they’re willing to spend grinding through everything. Exploring an open world should feel like going on a grand adventure, but earning all of Rebirth’s Trophies feels more like doing chores.

In addition to requiring hours of grinding, the tasks required for FF7 Rebirth’s Trophies are also maddeningly difficult. The endgame VR combat missions are a brutal meatgrinder without checkpoints that can quickly eat through hours of playtime without any meaningful progress being made. Even seeing everything that Rebirth has to offer isn’t enough, as the Platinum Trophy requires players to beat the game on Hard Mode, which is only unlocked after completing it on a lower difficulty first. The whole experience is an unreasonable time commitment that asks far too much while offering far too little in return.

FF7 Remake Part 3's Platinum Trophy Should Still Be Challenging

Achieving The Ultimate Prize Can Be Both Tough And Rewarding

Just because FF7 Remake Part 3’s Platinum will be easier than Rebirth’s doesn’t mean it should be a walk in the park. The main thrust of Part 3’s Platinum should be on challenging content that remains a consistent and interesting part of the overall experience, not something that feels segregated into its own little corner. That might mean a lessened focus on Rebirth's plethora of minigames, a point that Hamaguchi also touched on in his interview, but doing so would pave the way for a tighter, more focused experience overall.

FF7 Remake Part 3 has already been set up to have everything it needs to be a great game: beloved characters, finely-tuned mechanics, and an unforgettable story, and those are the things its Trophies should focus on. There can be true challenges found in the course of exploring a well-crafted world and overcoming the enemies found along the way. FF7 Remake Part 3’s Trophy list doesn’t need to be bloated with repetitive challenges that only serve to artificially lengthen an already satisfying experience, and the endless gauntlets of brutal enemy fights should remain a thing of the past.

Earning a Platinum Trophy represents a game’s highest honor, and it should be a moment filled with triumph rather than just a sense of relief that it’s finally over. It's an accomplishment that puts players in an elite club of those who have conquered every challenge the game has to offer, but that club might be a ghost town if the challenges in question were to remain as unreasonable as what FF7 Rebirth demanded. Hopefully, Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3’s Platinum Trophy will still be a difficult, yet rewarding process without becoming an unfair one.

Source: Daily Star