Final Fantasy VII might be one of the best RPGs of all time but it can also be notoriously tricky. The game is from a time when players didn’t expect titles to be a walkover. Additionally, there’s also the fact that the remake has introduced a variety of new features and mechanics. What this means is that even experienced players might not be familiar with everything in the new release.
Fortunately, there are some handy tips and tricks that can help users master the gameplay. Anyone planning on picking up Final Fantasy VII Remake should read through these hints before starting. Otherwise, you might end up reaching a point where things get too tough.
Take notice of enemy weaknesses
Enemies in Final Fantasy VII nearly always have some sort of weakness. These elemental weaknesses will allow you to deal out more damage if you use a certain type of attack. On lower difficulties, it is not really necessary to take much notice of them. But in hard mode, you will need to take advantage of these weaknesses. A good idea is to use lower-level spells to discover what does extra damage. That way you don’t waste your precious MP and can then use higher-level magic once you know what is most effective.
Customize party members with quick combat controls
Although Final Fantasy VII Remake never really goes into detail about quick combat controls, they are very useful. Going into the options menu and opening Battle Settings will give you access to the quick combat controls. From here, you can customize every party member with up to four commands. Once these commands are assigned, you can use them with the quick access buttons on your controller. The benefit of this is that you can use an action instantly without having to go into the menu. Combining that with character switching gives players the ability to use Action Points insanely quickly and do all their moves.
Have extra healers
While many RPGs only require you to have one or two healers in a party, that’s not the case here. Due to the fact that you can only restore magic points in battles on hard mode, it’s necessary to spread out spell casting. Otherwise, you may well run out of MP before you can heal everyone in your party. The best plan is to make sure all of your characters have some Healing items. That way they can pick up the slack so your main healer can recharge, ensuring your party remains effective.
Make use of HP Up items
One of the most important items in Final Fantasy VII Remake is HP Up. This materia provides a health boost to whichever character is currently holding it. When playing on hard mode, HP Up is pretty much essential. Ideally, you should give every character in your party an HP Up. If possible, use the most powerful ones you can get your hands on, giving your party a big increase to their maximum health. Of course, this will be particularly useful when fighting bosses that can wipe out a party in a single attack.
Combine Magnify and Healing items together
Even though you want to ensure you have multiple healers in your party, you will still want a main healer. Whoever is the best suited to this task in your party should have two types of items. One of them is obviously Healing materia but they should also hold Magnify items as well. This will allow the characters to heal more than one person at a time. In fact, some allow you to heal the entire party at once. This becomes essential in the more difficult battles as healing one party member at a time will lead to failure.
Equip Steadfast Block to build your ATB bar
The ATB bar is part of the Active Time Battle system in Final Fantasy VII Remake. Building it up is an essential part of battling enemies, allowing you to use powerful moves and attacks. A good way to add to it is to use the Steadfast Block item. This basically just adds to the ATB bar every time you block an attack. So not only will you be able to reduce incoming damage but can also make yourself more powerful. Powering up the materia to its highest level can be incredibly helpful in boss battles.
Use the character switching mechanic
Although character switching is not vital for normal playthroughs, anyone wanting to play on harder difficulties should utilize it. That’s because switching characters is necessary to be the most effective in battles. As a general rule, enemies will target the character you are currently controlling. So switching often can help to even out the damage among your entire party. It also ensures you are dealing out the most amount of punishment to opponents. The best thing to do is get in a swing of doing just a few actions before switching to the next character.
What are your favorite tips for playing Final Fantasy VII Remake? Tell us in the comments below!
Category: Guides
