Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth vs Remake: Do you need to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake before Rebirth

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is coming soon, but what if you didn’t play Final Fantasy 7 Remake? Should you play Remake before diving headfirst into Rebirth? There are a few factors to consider. There are no doubt people who are excited about the upcoming second installment in the FF7R trilogy, but what if they didn’t play the first one? If you passed on the first game but are excited for the second, there’s no judgment here.

However, if you’re wondering if you need to play Remake before Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, I’m here to give you some advice. This is just the opinion of one writer, who has more than 100 hours in both games. This will also feature no spoilers for FF7 Rebirth.

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Do you need to play FF7 Remake before Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth?

The world of Gaia is vast and feels far more open than the stifling Midgard (Image via Square Enix)

Do you need to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake before you play the intense, emotional rollercoaster that is Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth? Personally, I would say “Yes, absolutely,” because the stories are intrinsically connected. Sure, simply playing the Midgard scenario on the PlayStation is certainly enough and gives you the broad-stroke details.

However, there are storyline changes and new additions to the universe of Final Fantasy 7, thanks to Remake and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. In particular, the Whispers. These mysterious entities are, for one reason or another, trying to change or stop changes to the flow of time. Not a whole lot is known about these right now.

On a personal level, I think you should play Remake first; it’s not as necessary as you might think. Square Enix released a “Story So Far” recap on YouTube that shows the most important story beats from FF7 Remake. You can also view this in the main menu of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth - just select “The Story So Far” so you can watch a recap.

You can also watch the recap if you don't have time for 60+ hours of gameplay (Image via Square Enix)

It’s helpful to play Remake to get used to the combat systems and how the various characters play, though. Not much changes on the combat level, as far as how characters play, but there are new mechanics and new systems, such as the Folio system. It’s helpful to play Remake first, but it’s not at all necessary.

Without spoiling the ending of Remake or the beginning of Rebirth, the latter takes place almost immediately after the ending of the first game. That’s another reason I think it’s worthwhile to at least play the former first.

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Ultimately, it’s up to you, but after giving it a great deal of thought, you do not need to play Final Fantasy 7 Remake before FF7 Rebirth. I do recommend it, or at least to watch the story recap, but it’s far from necessary.