Final Fantasy VII: Remake Intergrade (NS2) Review
Summary: FFVII Remake Intergrade slams onto the Switch 2 with a superb port that shows what Nintendo's new system is capable of
4.5
Flawless functionality
Let’s get this out of the way. When it first came out, I did not like Final Fantasy VII Remake. It didn’t click for me.
But several years later, here I am reviewing (and reappraising) Final Fantasy VII: Remake Intergrade on Switch 2 – and I couldn’t put it down; moreover, thanks to it being on the Switch 2, I didn’t have to.
It clicked, and for the past week, I have been glued to it.
The first thing I reappraised was the controls. I ditched the classic control scheme of my earlier playthrough. It’s a bizarre halfway house between turn-based and action RPG controls and manages to irritate both halves of my brain. (That is, the side that loves turn-based combat and the other side that just wants to stick my boot in.
After playing Final Fantasy XVI and loving how immediate the fights were, coming back to VII Remake was a lot easier. Moreover, after I started using Normal, I realised how similar it is to one of my favourite JRPGs, oft-overlooked Wii classic The Last Story.
Fights are flashy, fast-paced, and your attacks have a certain sense of heft that never fails to satisfy. Though admittedly, when everything is popping off at once, and the screen is a wash with numbers and particle effects, it gets difficult to follow exactly what’s happening until Cloud falls flat on his arse.
What I found most impressive, though, is how all of this was happening on a 7.5-inch screen in my lap. I know portability isn’t the big feature it once was since Handheld PC gaming became a thing, but there’s something about the way the Switch makes the whole experience feel so seamless and simple that impresses me to this day.
Does it run as well as it does on the PS5? No, but, honestly, who was expecting it to? However, is it comparable? Absolutely. The Switch 2 port is effectively the PS5 version’s Performance mode, running at a rock-solid 30fps with a few nips and tucks that take into consideration the limitations of the hardware. In the end, the presentation is somewhere above the PS4 and nipping at the heels of the PS5.
In other words, it’s the easiest way to play Final Fantasy VII Remake on the go. It looks gorgeous, and it runs well. Square should be applauded for its efforts here. This is how you effectively port a big-budget AAA game to the Switch 2.
There is one caveat, though. One (game) key thing to bear in mind. It is a hungry beast and will gobble up your storage space. Regardless of whether you opt for the ‘physical’ or digital version, it takes around 90Gb of storage. It’s another one of those pesky Game Key cards, but thanks to the size of the damn thing, they couldn’t have fitted on a Switch 2 card anyway.
The other thing that still regrettably suffers from bloat is the narrative. Final Fantasy VII Remake effectively covers the first disc of the original. The time from that iconic opening to leaving Midgar back in 1997 was about 15-20 hours if you knew what you were doing. In Remake, it’s 30-40+, and that’s if you ignore the side missions and whack the reviewer-friendly Head Start Mode on.
On the plus side, doubling the time spent with the core lineup of Cloud, Tifa Aeris, and Barrett in Midgar gives the cast and world a little more room to breathe, the set pieces are bigger, and the whole thing feels like it’s been dialled up by several notches.
My favourite addition, though, is the extra time spent with Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge. They feel more like characters in their own right and less like hangars on. Matt Jones, as Wedge, in particular, manages to steal every last scene he’s in.
How Remake plays with and reappraises the meta-narrative of FFVII is also incredibly clever, as if the game is aware that it’s a retelling and that, damn it, it is going to hit those story beats whether you want it to or not.
The downside to this attitude, though, is that Cloud and co. aren’t just fighting destiny this time, but personal growth. 40 hours in, and Cloud is still a prick, Barrett is still a cartoon, and Tifa is just as hopeless, and twice as annoying. Aerith is the only character to have gained some kind of perspective by the end of Remake, while Jessie Biggs and Wedge each get their own arcs that are far more engaging.
I get that they’re trying to keep it faithful, but making most of your main cast unlikable for a solid 40 hours makes the game almost fun in spite of them. It didn’t matter when this section of the story took ten hours, but you can’t have Cloud go through all that he has, spend so much time living in the slums, become a vital part of the community, and still be the same tiring edgelord from the opening.
Final Thoughts
Final Fantasy VII: Remake Intergrade is easily one of the finest ports on the Switch 2, second probably only to Cyberpunk in terms of scale. It combines solid performance with a level of presentation that’s not far behind the PS5 at times – An impressive feat, considering you can play it during your commute.
Just be aware it’s a voracious beast that will consume half your internal storage before you even press start.
If you’re yet to experience Final Fantasy VII Remake (or thinking about giving it a second chance), Integrade for the Switch 2 is a wonderful way to reacquaint yourself with this bombastic meta-analysis of one of the finest JRPGs ever made.
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