Fans shouldn't be overwhelmed by Final Fantasy 7's decades-spanning saga, as there's a logical and (mostly) canonical way to play them. Final Fantasy 7's sprawling epic has been ongoing since the original's release in 1997, and the story is on the road to reaching completion over 25 years later. The game has had its share of several spin-offs, a couple of films, and main games that fill in critical blanks as the narrative continues to expand. As Square Enix's most iconic and successful Final Fantasy project, the publisher has made it simple to jump into the series through multiple consoles and meaningful quality of life upgrades.
Anyone unfamiliar with other games in the Final Fantasy series should know immediately that the number is a misdirection. There's no reason to have played any other Final Fantasy before the seventh entry, as each game has a self-contained story with characters and worlds independent of one another. Final Fantasy 7 was a huge step forward as it was the first of its lineage to embrace 3D fully - and the first not to be released on a Nintendo console. The game sold more than 10 million copies worldwide, making it one of the most successful titles Square Enix has ever published and developed. The title's success was an excellent opportunity to take one of the franchise greats and expand upon it - which, years later, the team would define as "The Compilation of Final Fantasy 7."
This compilation would consist of games and films that would further flesh out the world of Final Fantasy 7 and slowly work behind the scenes to complete an eventual goal of a future sequel of the original title. The next time fans hear from Final Fantasy 7 would be Before Crisis: Final Fantasy 7. This mobile game took place six years before the events of the original game, but its overall story isn't critical to consume; which is for the best as there is no way to play the game at all since it shut down years ago - and released outside of Japan. The following list will cover the mainline entries that are playable today in some form, with one exception that may require a little legwork to locate a copy. The order listed is the order recommended one to play through to grasp the whole story before the release of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth - FF7 Remake's direct sequel - later next winter.
Start With The Original Final Fantasy 7
The game that started it all - Final Fantasy 7, follows Cloud Strife as he joins a band of mercenaries seeking to free the world from the Shinra Electric Company before they destroy the planet. The narrative changes gears as the actual villain shifts from Shinra to one of the franchise's penultimate villains, Sephiroth. The game plays like a traditional turn-based RPG utilizing the "Active-Time-Battle" system where players must wait before they can attack, but foes can still strike, making every action count. On the original PlayStation, the game comprised three discs due to its massive size and the content packed into it. Final Fantasy 7 is the definitive game to start with and is recommended by the writers and developers to understand what's to come.
Thankfully, the game isn't limited to the original PlayStation; Final Fantasy 7 has released on all consoles and PC hardware, including Nintendo Switch, PS4, and the later generations of Xbox consoles. Many fans will recommend playing the game with mods on PC to improve the game's graphics and translation, all readily available on Steam. However, for those looking for a quick-start experience, the recent Square-Enix releases are the way to play due to their quality of life upgrades, such as tripling the game's speed, turning off random encounters, and unlimited special attacks.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Should Be Played After FF7
Releasing 10 years after the original Final Fantasy 7, Crisis Core follows a character often mentioned and slightly followed in the original named Zack Fair. Zack's story takes place before the main story of Final Fantasy 7 and touches more on the origin of several title characters from the original. Players will get a better look into the conflict of Wutai, the life and struggles of Shinra's elite military unit, SOLDIER (of which Sephiroth himself was a part of,) and Zack's fate following the events of the game. The story of Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 can get a bit campy at times with some cheesy dialogue that falls short of the original's writing, but Zack himself is a fantastic character that players will find themselves getting attached to. The gameplay is more action-focused than the original title and utilizes a strange roulette system known as the DMV or the "Digital Mind Wave" that affects what bonuses Zack can have in combat, like infinite magic.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 needed a rerelease. It's challenging to acquire as it was only released as a physical game on the PlayStation Portable. However, in a recent 25th anniversary Final Fantasy 7 live stream, the developers revealed that Crisis Core would be remastered as Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion. The game will retread the entirety of the PSP classic while providing a graphical overhaul and some combat-focused quality of life updates. However, the elephant in the room will be the ending of the game. The original's conclusion has seemingly been changed due to the events of Final Fantasy 7 Remake - this winter, players will discover if Crisis Core: Reunion is essential to FF7 Rebirth's story.
FF7: Dirge of Cerberus Should Be Played Following Crisis Core
The black sheep of the compilation, Final Fantasy 7: Dirge of Cerberus, follows the brooding protagonist Vincent Valentine. This red-cloaked shape-shifting character was an optional party member in the original game. Dirge of Cerberus takes place after the events of Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children, a film sequel to the PlayStation classic, and marked a radical departure for Square-Enix in terms of game design. Dirge of Cerberus was a third-person action/shooter/RPG released for the PlayStation 2 and had a mixed reception and a troubled development cycle.
The story of Final Fantasy 7: Dirge of Cerberus is considered by some fans to be nonsensical. Even though it manages to tie up some loose ends for characters like Vincent and the villainous Hojo, Dirge of Cerberus still ends on a cliffhanger. Nevertheless, it's a unique experience worth going through at least once for fans. Although the game isn't available on any modern consoles, it runs reasonably cheap on second-hand sites. As the game canonically was the furthest point in the original timeline, time will tell if it will also see a remake to bring it in line with the new vision for the series.
Final Fantasy 7: Remake Is The Most Recent FF7 Game
The most recent release in the Final Fantasy series for PC, PS4, and PS5, Final Fantasy 7: Remake again, places players in the shoes of protagonist Cloud Strife and company as they battle against the ruthless Shinra corporation. However, the approach this time is wildly different, as the title Remake has a very different connotation to those who have played the original title. The worst kept secret, Final Fantasy 7: Remake is a sequel to the original Final Fantasy 7, as it is tasked with literally "remaking" the events of the original compilation. The remake takes the starting city (known as Midgar) segment from the original game and expands it from two to 30 hours, as the entirety of the remake takes place in just the starting city. In addition, the gameplay diverges significantly from the PlayStation original, with an entirely action-oriented battle system that allows for players to switch on the fly between three party members in fast-paced combat.
Players that pick up the PS5 version will be treated to a bonus DLC scenario, Final Fantasy 7: Intermission, that sets up for a future sequel. Final Fantasy 7: Remake is part one of three, as was just revealed during the anniversary live stream. Part two, titled Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, will be arriving next winter, and development on the third and final part has already started. To fully round out a Final Fantasy 7 education, it's recommended that fans and newcomers alike also watch Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children, as there are clear nods to the film in the most recent installment. With an entire two winters until the release of Rebirth, there's plenty of time for anyone to catch up on the Final Fantasy 7 Saga with these games.