Final Fantasy 7's romance options are one of the most well-known aspects of the game. By the nature of being such an iconic game, there were certain things I knew about FF7 before I ever played it for myself. Aside from knowing who Sephiroth was and Aerith's fate at the Temple of the Ancients, I knew that the game involved a love triangle between Cloud, Aerith, and Tifa. Love triangles always tend to be popular talking points among fans, so I didn't really think much of it until I became more familiar with the Final Fantasy series at large.

I've recently been playing my way through the games in the Final Fantasy series that I never had before. Aside from making it harder to appreciate Final Fantasy 8, the first game I'd ever played, I now realize that Final Fantasy 7's romance options stand out from the rest of the series. Mainly, they are unique because most Final Fantasy games don't give players this much agency over the relationships between characters. Given that FF7's romance is still so notable, I'm honestly surprised no other game in the series has tried to recreate it.

FF7 Was The First Final Fantasy With Romance Options

Older Final Fantasy Games Had Romance, But No Choice Was Involved

In a world where Baldur's Gate 3's romance options exist, Final Fantasy 7 letting you choose who to ride a glorified Ferris wheel with may seem very tame. FF7 was also not the first video game to include romance options in general. However, this was the first time the Final Fantasy series specifically allowed players to have a say in the love lives of the characters.

That isn't to say that previous Final Fantasy games didn't feature romance for their protagonists. Final Fantasy 2 has Firion and Maria, Final Fantasy 4 has Cecil and Rosa, and my personal favorite Final Fantasy couple, Celes and Locke, comes from FF6. While all of these games had romances involving main characters (I would argue Celes and even Locke are deuteragonist and tritagonist respectively to the oft-absent Terra), these romantic subplots were built into the game's narrative and didn't require any input from the player.

In contrast, Final Fantasy 7 gives players the choice of whom to bring on the Skywheel at the Gold Saucer. This choice in the original is somewhat obscured through dialogue options leading up to the actual date, so it isn't as simple as picking the person you want to go on the Skywheel with. That said, the result is based on your choices up until that point, and you'll likely end up with who you want to go out with, though the game's hidden point system is weighted slightly towards Aerith.

No Final Fantasy Game Since FF7 Has Included Romance Options

FF8 And Future Games Don't Let Players Influence Romance

Following Final Fantasy 7, no other mainline Final Fantasy game included romantic options, hidden or otherwise. The only exception is Final Fantasy XIV, which allows players to marry one another, but there still aren't romance options built into the game's narrative. Moving forward from Final Fantasy 7, romance went back to being something that was planned by the game's story and couldn't be influenced by the player.

Final Fantasy 8 and Final Fantasy 10 both put a lot of emphasis on their central love stories, so it makes sense that choice couldn't really be implemented into these types of stories. Still, it's a little surprising that other games didn't include similar options to Final Fantasy 7. Of course, a future Final Fantasy game could include romance options, but it's still a little shocking that it hasn't happened in an original title since 1997.

FF7's Romance Is So Popular, I'm Surprised The Series Hasn't Tried To Recreate It

Final Fantasy 7's Romance Options May Have Been Overemphasized By Players

Square Enix must know the romance options in Final Fantasy 7 were part of the game's appeal. In Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, not only is the hidden approval system easier to track and shape to your liking, you can also go back to the Gold Saucer level with Chapter Selection and set your date to go however you want after beating the game. With this recognition of the mechanic's importance to players and the prevalence of debates over Cloud's canonical love interest, it's a wonder Square hasn't tried to recapture this energy with a new romance choice in later games.

Part of me wonders if perhaps the love story in Final Fantasy 7 was never really meant to be multiple choice. While there are romantic undertones to the Skywheel dates, they are all far from confirmation of anything. Tifa struggles to confess her feelings, Aerith is more focused on Cloud's struggles with being his true self, and Cloud fails to return Yuffie's affection.

The game is also mechanically biased towards Aerith, who I think makes the most sense as Cloud's love interest from a storytelling standpoint. Fighting for what's important before it's too late is a big theme in Final Fantasy 7, and can be seen right away with Avalanche's mission to save the planet. While Aerith's death is impactful even if she's just Cloud's friend, I think this message is even stronger if she is the party member he cares about the most.

This makes me question if romance options never returned in later Final Fantasy games because they were never meant to be there in the first place. Final Fantasy games tend to have largely linear narratives that are designed to tell a specific story with strong themes. That's not to say a game with romance options can't also have thematic stories, but the more control the developers have over a game's narrative, the easier it is for them to tell the exact story they want.

FF7 Part 3 Will Likely Determine The Future Of Final Fantasy Romance

FF7 Part 3 Could Ignore The Previous Game's Choice

We'll likely get an answer to just how important FF7's romance options really are when part 3 of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy comes out. One good indication will be whether the approval meter returns. It wasn't in Final Fantasy 7 Remake, so if it was only in FF7 Rebirth to determine the Skywheel date and then gets dropped, I think it would be safe to say that the romance options weren't largely important to the overall story.

If Final Fantasy 7 part 3 doesn't give any weight to the romance options from FF7 Rebirth, then I wouldn't be surprised if the Final Fantasy series in general continues to leave romance up to the developers. Alternatively, if FF7 part 3 really does take your choice into consideration and has it change the story in some way, then this could mean future Final Fantasy games could be open to allowing for more player agency in the narrative. I see this as the less likely option, but we'll have to wait to know for sure.