FINAL FANTASY 7 REMAKE

[TheLastCandle]

Genesis was the most cringeworthy addition to the FF7 world. I liked Crisis Core's gameplay, but Gackt Genesis was terrible.

[Aaron]

Considering his behavior towards Cloud in Advent Children - yeah, I know, we were talking about FF7 core, not Compilation - I'd say Sephiroth is definitely fixated on Cloud. I mean, the whole "tell me what's precious  to you so I can take it away" thing? Seems a little more personal than his old "I'll just destroy the planet" plan. And looking at Crisis Core in particular, he was even a little fixated on Zack, who was essentially proto-Cloud.

 

Dude obsesses is what I'm saying.

 

So, yeah, the plot of VII does seem like a get-back-at-Cloud plan. Seems like a theme.

Yeah but Advent Children came /after/ FF VII story wise.

 

Its perfectly reasonable to want revenge on someone who two years ago stopped your entire plans for world domination. Lot more reasonable than taking out the entire world because one guy doesn't believe youre a prophet.

 

Also why all the Genesis hate? I actually liked him as a character .-.

[Gegenji]

Sephiroth had zero problem with Cloud when they first met. But after Genesis pulled that stunt im Nibel it all went down hill.

 

...

 

Plenty instances of games having background lore added and stuff way after release to further the depth. I hardly think Sephiroth would be as popular as he is now or FF VII in general without crisis core.

 

It's not about when they first met. What I'm talking about is the incident in the Nibelheim reactor. You know, where Cloud stopped him from reuniting his mother and flung him down into the Lifestream despite being run through? Leaving him near death forcing him to be recuperating up in the north for the entire duration of the game up until you finally find him and Cloud gives him the Black Materia. Genesis had absolutely nothing to do with that, unless Crisis Core forced (and I am really of the opinion that Genesis is "forced") him to have also been there and somehow aided in Sephiroth's freakout over being a test tube baby.

 

And FF7 was super popular well before Crisis Core came out, and Sephiroth still being toted as the coolest villain ever by FF7 fans. The game's popularity is why Advent Children and Crisis Core were created - to capitalize on a popular game. Crisis Core did not make FF7 nor Sephiroth popular.

 

EDIT: Also, Sephiroth's "revelation" was in core FF7, before Genesis was introduced as a character, too. That's what the whole Nibelheim reactor scene is about. Genesis, as I have mentioned, feels horribly tacked on and unneeded to me - only existing at all because the producer really likes Gackt and wanted to try and fit him into his continuity. It smells of Mary Sue-ism and pandering of the highest caliber to me.

 

"Oh, no. It wasn't Sephiroth realizing he was an artificially-made super-soldier made from the DNA of someone believed to be of an ancient race - but actually a shapeshifting alien - that made him snap and decide to deal with the problem of humanity. It wasn't being stopped dead and nearly killed by some inferior, no-name low-class SOLDIER failure that made him spiteful. It's because he hung out with bad boy Genesis and got a scar."

 

If anything, I feel the addition of Genesis CHEAPENS Sephiroth because he steals away Sephiroth's agency as a villain.

[Aaron]

Sephiroth had zero problem with Cloud when they first met. But after Genesis pulled that stunt im Nibel it all went down hill.

 

...

 

Plenty instances of games having background lore added and stuff way after release to further the depth. I hardly think Sephiroth would be as popular as he is now or FF VII in general without crisis core.

 

It's not about when they first met. What I'm talking about is the incident in the Nibelheim reactor. You know, where Cloud stopped him from reuniting his mother and flung him down into the Lifestream despite being run through? Leaving him near death forcing him to be recuperating up in the north for the entire duration of the game up until you finally find him and Cloud gives him the Black Materia. Genesis had absolutely nothing to do with that, unless Crisis Core forced (and I am really of the opinion that Genesis is "forced") him to have also been there and somehow aided in Sephiroth's freakout over being a test tube baby.

 

And FF7 was super popular well before Crisis Core came out, and Sephiroth still being toted as the coolest villain ever by FF7 fans. The game's popularity is why Advent Children and Crisis Core were created - to capitalize on a popular game. Crisis Core did not make FF7 nor Sephiroth popular.

 

EDIT: Also, Sephiroth's "revelation" was in core FF7, before Genesis was introduced as a character, too. That's what the whole Nibelheim reactor scene is about. Genesis, as I have mentioned, feels horribly tacked on and unneeded - only there because the producer really likes Gackt and wanted to try and fit him into his continuity.

I'm talking about this

WTBJd0Loap8

 

That was before Cloud threw him in the reactor. That was the turning point. 

 

If Genesis never existed (taking into account the games timeline not the way they were implemented IRL). Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went all "Mother I will bring us to the promised land"

 

And note I said /as popular/ not /made popular/

[Manari]

Genesis was the most cringeworthy addition to the FF7 world. I liked Crisis Core's gameplay, but Gackt Genesis was terrible.

 

This. I couldn't agree more. I played Crisis Core because I was honestly interested in Zack, and I really wanted to see how they handled his end. But I wasn't expecting the mountain of filler crap they heaped into the game. Mostly caused by Genesis. He was a terrible addition.

[111]

I felt the plot of FFVII made sense when I played it as a 3rd grader, I still felt it made sense playing it a few years ago.

 

I felt Crisis Core made way less sense by comparison.

 

Sephiroth's descent into madness and anger is pretty well played out. He has a psychotic break at discovering his past, and then is further corrupted by jenovah. It's not that complicated of a story (which makes it odd by FF standards) but there was no need to shoehorn in other motivations.

[Gegenji]

That was before Cloud threw him in the reactor. That was the turning point. 

 

If Genesis never existed (taking into account the games timeline not the way they were implemented IRL). Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went all "Mother I will bring us to the promised land"

 

Except he wasn't there in the original and it still happened. The only people at the Nibelheim reactor were Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, and Tifa. There was another nameless grunt, but he died when the bridge collapsed. Sephiroth jumped to the conclusion - albeit correctly - that he might be like the monstrosities in the capsules on his own. He didn't need a Gackt insert to lay it all out for him and somehow know all about Hojo's dirty secret.

 

EDIT: Also, I've heard plenty of FF7 fans who also viciously hated how Gackt was forced in to be the explanation for everything. They enjoyed the game, mind, but cite Genesis as being the worst part of Crisis Core.

[Manari]

 

Except he wasn't there in the original and it still happened. The only people at the Nibelheim reactor were Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, and Tifa. There was another nameless grunt, but he died when the bridge collapsed. Sephiroth jumped to the conclusion - albeit correctly - that he might be like the monstrosities in the capsules on his own. He didn't need a Gackt insert to lay it all out for him and somehow know all about Hojo's dirty secret.

 

This is exactly how I feel. I didn't play Crisis Core because I wanted to be force-fed some new J-pop character who by his very nature would have to be completely inconsequential to the main story in FF7 or else they would be retconning. I played it because Zack didn't get much screen time or back story and I wanted to know more about him and his life, since everything you think Could is was actually Zack anyway. Angel I could almost forgive, he didn't bother me too much. Though I didn't like how the iconic buster sword was originally his. Not that I really ever liked that sword design to begin with, but I digress.

 

I hated every scene in Crisis Core that contained Genesis and his terrible dialog and forced motivations. He was completely unneeded.

[Aaron]

That was before Cloud threw him in the reactor. That was the turning point. 

 

If Genesis never existed (taking into account the games timeline not the way they were implemented IRL). Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went all "Mother I will bring us to the promised land"

 

Except he wasn't there in the original and it still happened. The only people at the Nibelheim reactor were Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, and Tifa. There was another nameless grunt, but he died when the bridge collapsed. Sephiroth jumped to the conclusion - albeit correctly - that he might be like the monstrosities in the capsules on his own. He didn't need a Gackt insert to lay it all out for him and somehow know all about Hojo's dirty secret.

This is where you're missing the entire point.

 

From Genesis wiki

 

"His words, combined with what Sephiroth learns about his origins in the Shinra Manor, spark his descent into madness, and he burns Nibelheim to the ground and is seemingly killed by Cloud within the reactor."

 

 

Genesis /led/ sephiroth to read those notes and all that in VII

 

 

SE didn't just ADD him for no reason. They made him the catalyst for Sephiroths decent into madness.

 

 

CC ties in perfectly with VII. And as I said. Genesis was the real reason Sephiroth went mad.

[111]

That was before Cloud threw him in the reactor. That was the turning point. 

 

If Genesis never existed (taking into account the games timeline not the way they were implemented IRL). Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went all "Mother I will bring us to the promised land"

 

Except he wasn't there in the original and it still happened. The only people at the Nibelheim reactor were Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, and Tifa. There was another nameless grunt, but he died when the bridge collapsed. Sephiroth jumped to the conclusion - albeit correctly - that he might be like the monstrosities in the capsules on his own. He didn't need a Gackt insert to lay it all out for him and somehow know all about Hojo's dirty secret.

This is where you're missing the entire point.

 

From Genesis wiki

 

"His words, combined with what Sephiroth learns about his origins in the Shinra Manor, spark his descent into madness, and he burns Nibelheim to the ground and is seemingly killed by Cloud within the reactor."

 

 

Genesis /led/ sephiroth to read those notes and all that in VII

 

 

SE didn't just ADD him for no reason. They made him the catalyst for Sephiroths decent into madness.

 

 

CC ties in perfectly with VII. And as I said. Genesis was the real reason Sephiroth went mad.

 

I mean you could remake Romeo and Juliet, and add a new character makes the two fall in love. Like some person who just talks about how great Juliet is to Romeo. But you don't need to because the story already makes sense.

 

The story in FFVII already made sense.

 

You can argue that maybe it makes /more/ sense now, but in the years leading up to crisis core, people were never going 'WHY DID HE READ THE NOTES'

 

'WHY, OH WHY'

 

'CLEARLY WE NEED A J-ROCK SINGER TO BE ADDED TO THE STORY TO EXPLAIN THIS INCONSISTENCY'

[Dravus]

I'll be honest and say that I didn't like Crisis Core. It fleshed out Zack fairly well but FF7 highlighted everything that was important about Sephiroth's descent into madness without the need for all the awkwardness that came with suddenly adding new 'important' characters who didn't show up in the original game at all.

[Aaron]

That was before Cloud threw him in the reactor. That was the turning point. 

 

If Genesis never existed (taking into account the games timeline not the way they were implemented IRL). Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went all "Mother I will bring us to the promised land"

 

Except he wasn't there in the original and it still happened. The only people at the Nibelheim reactor were Sephiroth, Cloud, Zack, and Tifa. There was another nameless grunt, but he died when the bridge collapsed. Sephiroth jumped to the conclusion - albeit correctly - that he might be like the monstrosities in the capsules on his own. He didn't need a Gackt insert to lay it all out for him and somehow know all about Hojo's dirty secret.

This is where you're missing the entire point.

 

From Genesis wiki

 

"His words, combined with what Sephiroth learns about his origins in the Shinra Manor, spark his descent into madness, and he burns Nibelheim to the ground and is seemingly killed by Cloud within the reactor."

 

 

Genesis /led/ sephiroth to read those notes and all that in VII

 

 

SE didn't just ADD him for no reason. They made him the catalyst for Sephiroths decent into madness.

 

 

CC ties in perfectly with VII. And as I said. Genesis was the real reason Sephiroth went mad.

 

I mean you could remake Romeo and Juliet, and add a new character makes the two fall in love. Like some person who just talks about how great Juliet is to Romeo. But you don't need to because the story already makes sense.

 

The story in FFVII already made sense.

 

You can argue that maybe it makes /more/ sense now, but in the years leading up to crisis core, people were never going 'WHY DID HE READ THE NOTES'

 

'WHY, OH WHY'

 

'CLEARLY WE NEED A J-ROCK SINGER TO BE ADDED TO THE STORY TO EXPLAIN THIS INCONSISTENCY'

I don't deny the main purpose of CC was to draw in money. What confuses me is why people assume CC was just thrown in for money because in actuality they tied it in well with the original VII. Its not perfect but its good enough. Nothing in the lore was drastically altered since the original VII had a deal of vagueness anyway.

 

And good things came out of it. Got to know Zack as more than just that "black haired dude in my mind", got to see how Sephiroth was before he went crazy. Got more of Cloud and Aeris before all hell went through and so on and so on.

 

Also I liked Genesis as a character but it seems that I'm alone in that regard.

[Gegenji]

Genesis /led/ sephiroth to read those notes and all that in VII

 

 

SE didn't just ADD him for no reason. They made him the catalyst for Sephiroths decent into madness.

 

I never said he was added for no reason. I am saying there was no reason to add him. There's a big difference there.

 

In the core FF7 game, Sephiroth realizes on his own that something's amiss when they find those capsules in the reactor. He's different, but he doesn't know exactly why. That pushes him to look into the research and notes at the building where ShinRa's people were stationed. He finds out that he isn't truly human - he's created using the cells of Jenova, who is believed to be of the ancient Cetra. Those who continued to wander instead of settling and becoming the current people of the Planet.

 

Those who gave up the Cetra way of life, turned against his mother's people and left them to die out. He decides to be the avenger of the Cetra, using his power to make those who settled pay. He sets fire to Nibelheim, kills Tifa's father, and heads back to the reactor to rescue his mother from her confinement.

 

Tifa chases after him, and Cloud and Zack chase after Tifa. Tifa is struck down, as is Zack. Cloud, seeing his childhood friend and his buddy laid low, takes up Zack's sword and challenges Sephiroth for taking everything from him. They fight and, despite getting run through, Cloud grabs hold of the Masamune and flings Sephiroth into the core of the reactor.

 

So, a self-appointed avenger of an ancient people was not only defeated by the child of the race he felt betrayed the Cetra. But it wasn't even someone bolstered with Mako. It was a SOLDIER failure. Someone who, in his eyes, wasn't even worth paying attention to. That's who nearly killed him.

 

Genesis wasn't needed for any of that. He just doesn't add anything that wasn't already going to happen. All it does is try to take the agency away from Sephiroth and give it to Genesis. He couldn't figure out something was wrong on his own - despite killing a Dragon basically by himself. He wouldn't know to go do the research that would lead to the realization - despite knowing the mansion (referred to as Shinra Mansion!) was being used for ShinRa research.

 

He had to be told. Directed. By, what seems to me, to be little more an a fan-insert. I'm not the biggest fan of Sephiroth - as mentioned, I feel he's a knockoff Kefka with mommy issues - but I still feel that the addition of Genesis as a character cheapens him, takes away some of his agency, and ultimately makes him a less effective villain because Genesis is suddenly the mastermind behind everything.

 

As you said, it was cool that Zack got fleshed out more and we got a chance to see Sephiroth before he went mad - I can agree on that, it's nice to have more context on how they both were before things went so wrong. And I've heard the gameplay for Crisis Core itself was pretty neat - with the roulette Limit Breaks and stuff. But I still cleave to the opinion that Genesis was an unnecessary addition and should not have been included.

[Aaron]

Genesis /led/ sephiroth to read those notes and all that in VII

 

 

SE didn't just ADD him for no reason. They made him the catalyst for Sephiroths decent into madness.

 

I never said he was added for no reason. I am saying there was no reason to add him. There's a big difference there.

 

In the core FF7 game, he realizes on his own that something's amiss when they find those capsules in the reactor. He's different, but he doesn't know exactly why. That pushes him to look into the research and notes at the building where ShinRa's people were stationed. He finds out that he isn't truly human - he's created using the cells of Jenova, who is believed to be of the ancient Cetra. Those who continued to wander instead of settling and becoming the current people of the Planet.

 

Those who gave up the Cetra way of life, turned against his mother's people and left them to die out. He decides to be the avenger of the Cetra, using his power to make those who settled pay. He sets fire to Nibelheim, kills Tifa's father, and heads back to the reactor to rescue his mother from her confinement.

 

Tifa chases after him, and Cloud and Zack chase after Tifa. Tifa is struck down, as is Zack. Cloud, seeing his childhood friend and his buddy laid low, takes up Zack's sword and challenges Sephiroth for taking everything from him. They fight and, despite getting run through, Cloud grabs hold of the Masamune and flings Sephiroth into the core of the reactor.

 

So, a self-appointed avenger of an ancient people was not only defeated by the child of the race he felt betrayed the Cetra. But it wasn't even someone bolstered with Mako. It was a SOLDIER failure. Someone who, in his eyes, wasn't even worth paying attention to. That's who nearly killed him.

 

Genesis wasn't needed for any of that. He just doesn't add anything that wasn't already going to happen. All it does is try to take the agency away from Sephiroth and give it to Genesis. He couldn't figure out something was wrong on his own - despite killing a Dragon basically by himself. He wouldn't know to go do the research that would lead to the realization - despite knowing the mansion was being used for ShinRa research.

 

He had to be told. Directed. By, what seems to me, to be little more an a fan-insert. I'm not the biggest fan of Sephiroth - as mentioned, I feel he's a knockoff Kefka with mommy issues - but I still feel that the addition of Genesis as a character cheapens him and makes him a less effective villain.

Seohiroth acted way different from Kefka IMO.

 

Sure, genesis probably didn't need to be added. But it didn't really hurt anything. That's the point I'm trying to get across.

 

Genesis rekt Sephiroths mind -> Sephiroth eventual goes to Shinra Manor to verify -> Sephiroth finds out that Genesis was right -> Sephiroth proceeds to destroy everything. -> Cloud stops him

 

Que FF VII

 

I hardly see the issue of adding Genesis. If anything he also shaped how Zack was before he died too.

[Gegenji]

But it didn't really hurt anything. That's the point I'm trying to get across.

 

Genesis rekt Sephiroths mind -> Sephiroth eventual goes to Shinra Manor to verify -> Sephiroth finds out that Genesis was right -> Sephiroth proceeds to destroy everything. -> Cloud stops him

 

And I'm postulating that it does hurt the story, because it takes away Sephiroth's agency and self-afflicted spiral into insanity in the search for the truth of his past. He didn't need Genesis to "rek" his mind - he had enough reason to question and seek answers on his own. The entire flashback scene in the original game is rife with him being horribly awkward with how normal people do things - even questioning why he knows so little about his own family. The seeds were already there without Genesis adding the fertilizer.

 

EDIT:

Seohiroth acted way different from Kefka IMO.

 

Also, I compare Sephiroth to Kefka in the vaguest of senses. Both are experimental super-soldiers (SOLDIER vs. Magitek) that end up going nutso and killing their superior (President ShinRa vs. Gestahl) before becoming the main villain of the story and seeking to destroy the world (Meteor vs. Warring Triad). Safer Sephiroth even seems to be taking the "angelic destroyer" angle from Kefka's final form.

[Aaron]

But it didn't really hurt anything. That's the point I'm trying to get across.

 

Genesis rekt Sephiroths mind -> Sephiroth eventual goes to Shinra Manor to verify -> Sephiroth finds out that Genesis was right -> Sephiroth proceeds to destroy everything. -> Cloud stops him

 

And I'm postulating that it does hurt the story, because it takes away Sephiroth's agency and self-afflicted spiral into insanity in the search for the truth of his past. He didn't need Genesis to "rek" his mind - he had enough reason to question and seek answers on his own. The entire flashback scene in the original game is rife with him being horribly awkward with how normal people do things - even questioning why he knows so little about his own family. The seeds were already there without Genesis adding the fertilizer.

 

EDIT:

Seohiroth acted way different from Kefka IMO.

 

Also, I compare Sephiroth to Kefka in the vaguest of senses. Both are experimental super-soldiers (SOLDIER vs. Magitek) that end up going nutso and killing their superior (President ShinRa vs. Gestahl) before becoming the main villain of the story and seeking to destroy the world (Meteor vs. Warring Triad).

Ummm, in CC Sephiroth was awkward about how normal people do things as you say without Genesis even talking.

 

Genesis solely influenced Sephiroth more into thinking he was a monster. He didn't plant anything. Sephiroth went to "read those notes on his own" after that incident.

 

Take everything into account. If that didn't happen Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went haywire.

 

It doesn't hurt anything. Genesis just gave Seph that extra push.

[Gegenji]

Ummm, in CC Sephiroth was awkward about how normal people do things as you say without Genesis even talking.

 

Genesis solely influenced Sephiroth more into thinking he was a monster. He didn't plant anything. Sephiroth went to "read those notes on his own" after that incident.

 

It doesn't hurt anything. Genesis just gave Seph that extra push.

 

Right, so there was already stuff in place to make Sephiroth question things without Genesis' input - why is he so different from everyone else? He did not need the extra push, and I believe implying that he did hurts him as a character. Again, this is personal opinion on the matter.

 

And we know Sephiroth would've gone haywire because that is what happened in the original game, without any need for clarification. He managed to go crazy just fine on his own. Without Genesis' help. He's a self-made villain, and adding Genesis takes that away from him.

[Aaron]

Ummm, in CC Sephiroth was awkward about how normal people do things as you say without Genesis even talking.

 

Genesis solely influenced Sephiroth more into thinking he was a monster. He didn't plant anything. Sephiroth went to "read those notes on his own" after that incident.

 

It doesn't hurt anything. Genesis just gave Seph that extra push.

 

Right, so there was already stuff in place to make Sephiroth question things without Genesis' input - why is he so different from everyone else? He did not need the extra push, and I believe implying that he did hurts him as a character. Again, this is personal opinion on the matter.

That's a pretty kinda small reason not to like a game.

 

I never heard of people not liking CC because Sephiroth didn't go mad on his own.

 

But w/e I guess.

[Gegenji]

I never said I didn't like the game. As I mentioned, it's neat to see more about Zack - since Cloud basically took up his mantle and he had a history with Aeris before the game start. And seeing Sephiroth and how he acted before it all went south is pretty cool (further cementing how out of place he felt with the rest of SOLDIER). And the gameplay and roulette Limit Breaks were also really interesting.

 

The issue I have isn't with the game as a whole. The issue I have is with the unnecessary inclusion of the Gackt-fan insert. Everything else is fine. I just do not like Genesis.

[TheLastCandle]

I don't understand why you keep saying things like this, Aaron: "If that didn't happen Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went haywire."

 

Are you suggesting that the Gackt character's motivation was in the scenario writers' minds as they were developing FF7 from 1994-1997? Because before Crisis Core was written, Sephiroth DID go haywire without Genesis' influence.

[Aaron]

I don't understand why you keep saying things like this, Aaron: "If that didn't happen Sephiroth most likely wouldn't have went haywire."

 

Are you suggesting that the Gackt character's motivation was in the scenario writers' minds as they were developing FF7 from 1994-1997? Because before Crisis Core was written, Sephiroth DID go haywire without Genesis' influence.

Im talking from a in universe continuity point not from when each game was made.

 

In universe its safe to guess if Genesis didn't influence him to go to Shinra manor. The odds of the events of VII happening wouldn't have been as high.

 

 

Sephiroth was just confused. He could have just learned to live with it. Genesis was the shoe in that made him decide to go to Shinra manor.

 

And the constant reference that genesis is a j pop star is really irrelevant. He played his part in game.

[Gegenji]

Sephiroth was just confused. He could have just learned to live with it.

 

He could've just lived with the unanswered possibility that he might be like the a bunch of mako-infused freaks in a bunch of pods in front of a chamber that has his mother's name on it?

 

And Gackt's j-pop popularity status IS relevant - because the producer of Crisis Core was a big fan and wanted to have him have a bigger role in the realm of the FF7 continuity beyond just doing some music. So he, on his own, sat down with Gackt and developed this character and forced him into the plot. Answering questions that were never asked and never needed answers, let alone with ones that take away Sephiroth's agency and make his suddenly-existing-"best buddy ever" Genesis the mastermind behind his descent into madness.

[Aaron]

Sephiroth was just confused. He could have just learned to live with it.

 

He could've just lived with the unanswered possibility that he might be like the a bunch of mako-infused freaks in a bunch of pods in front of a chamber that has his mother's name on it?

 

And Gackt's j-pop popularity status IS relevant - because the producer of Crisis Core was a big fan and wanted to have him have a bigger role in the realm of the FF7 continuity beyond just doing some music. So he, on his own, sat down with Gackt and developed this character and forced him into the plot. Answering questions that were never asked and never needed answers, let alone with ones that take away Sephiroth's agency and make his suddenly-existing-"best buddy ever" Genesis the mastermind behind his descent into madness.

Person who inspired said character =/= actual character. 

 

The pop star didn't tell SE "Make my character make SEPHIROTH go mad" if anything all he did was help design his personality. And SE wounded up working that into said plot themselves.

[Gegenji]

The pop star didn't tell SE "Make my character make SEPHIROTH go mad" if anything all he did was help design his personality. And SE wounded up working that into said plot themselves.

 

"I went to eat with him one time and described the Final Fantasy VII universe in rich detail. And it turned into this process of collaboration, creating the character together. Then we went to the studio and recorded the Japanese voice with all that in mind. So he really was a creative partner in all of this. And we really wanted the connection between Dirge of Cerberus and Crisis Core." - Hideki Imaizumi, the producer of Crisis Core.

 

"Imaizumi and Gackt came up with Genesis's design, describing everything from his attitude to his clothes" according to the wiki page. Again, it's not damning evidence that he had a part to play in Genesis' ultimate role - but I don't think it was wholly SE's idea either to suddenly have Gackt's insert character so crucial to the plot of the original game. It was all Imaizumi, who - to my eyes - basically added Genesis in as a blatant example of a Mary Sue character.

[Arik]

I'm a big fan of VII and have been since it was released; it was frankly the first FF installment that really drew me into the series as a kid. It inspired me to later go back and play its predecessors as well as VIII+ (VI and IX ranking way up there with it) but VII will always be my favorite. This is for a plethora of reasons; from its' story and characters to the sentimentality of it just being my first srs play through of a FF game and the first time I really started paying attention to Japanese video games/animation/etc. I am well aware of the fact that nostalgia probably plays a huge role in making me biased, and I'm totally okay with that.

 

That said: I never really understood all the debate that seemed to surround FF___ being better than FF___ -- and more importantly how vehement and even bitter some people can get about it. It's pretty obvious that a lot of the installments draw inspiration from a variety of their predecessors while throwing out new concepts to change things up. Given it's all technically in the same series, I tend to view it in an almost AU light I suppose; taking elements from previous characters/stories/worlds and putting them into a new environment or making changes here and there to see how that would affect the story. In the end, everyone's going to have their own favorites and preferences, but no one's wrong for wherever they may fall on the 'fandom' spectrum-- We're all fans of FF in the end, we might just like different installments more than others.

 

As far as the VII spin-offs/additions that were added later on, I've got to agree a lot with Gegenji on this. I liked CC a lot, mostly because I was excited to explore Zack's character and get to see him in action. The gameplay itself even turned out to be a lot of fun, so that was a major bonus. But Genesis? I like Gackt's work as a musician, I thoroughly enjoyed what he did for DoC, but it was completely unnecessary to force him into such an integral part of the main story. I have no problem with cameos, but why not just insert him as an easter egg NPC somewhere in the world? Or hell, plaster his face on billboards like some sort of canonical musician and celebrity in Midgar? There were better ways to go about executing an homage to the guy without majorly influencing the story itself.

 

At any rate, Sephiroth's motivations were perfectly fine as they were in VII. To insinuate that he had to be directed or influenced by someone else just to investigate his obvious differentiation from other SOLDIERs takes a lot away from the character's integrity, in my opinion. The fact that he clearly knew he was different, and was bound to eventually wonder why, was more than enough.

 

While I understand there are some people out there who thoroughly enjoyed Genesis as a character as well as what he meant for Sephiroth's story-- and everyone is absolutely entitled to their own opinions-- the whole thing just makes me cringe. In fact, I often find myself trying to pretend like that wasn't even a thing to start with and I swear my brain tries to selectively remove Genesis from the picture when I think about the VII plot and all of its additions these days.

 

I don't doubt they'll find ways to allude to him in the VII remake, I just hope they keep it subtle. Honestly, the more true they stay to the original game's story, the happier I'll be. (Even if that means just paying for a shinier version of a game I've already played/beaten.)