4.5/5 ★ – pumpkinsoup's review of Final Fantasy VII.

I've loved FF music for a while now, but I didn't play a single FF game until now. And then I played nonstop for a week. I wasn't expecting to love this as much as I did. I went into FFVII completely blind (well, except... you know... The Spoiler That Everyone Knows™), so I was completely blown away by the character development, plot twists, and themes. There were several times when I was just sitting there like :O during cutscenes. The story / world-building were great, but I feel like it was the characters that make this game shine. Cloud Strife has gone from "that edgy guy with the sword in smash" in my mind to one of my favorite characters of all time. And the other party members have interesting character arcs as well. So does it live up to the hype? As somebody who is NOT viewing this game with any nostalgia whatsoever, I can say YES, this is a great game. It definitely has its faults. A lot of them. But this game still managed to go beyond my expectations despite its flaws. Final Fantasy VII is unlike anything I've ever seen before, and I'm so glad I got to experience this game. And yes, the music slaps even more now that I know the context.