Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion gives players a glimpse into the events that lead into the story of the original Final Fantasy 7. This ranges from when best friends Cloud and Zack meet for the first time to Sephiroth holding himself up in Shinra Manor to find the truth of his past. Naturally, considering one of the few things that was known about Zack before he got his own PSP game was that he was dead, fans knew from the start that the game wouldn't be easy on their emotions.
One of the ways that Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion dares to make its players feel things is by giving the iconic and ruthless villain a tragic backstory. Fans are left to watch as Sephiroth deals with the revelations presented before him, and it's hard to not feel sorry for one of the "edgiest" characters out there. His story deals with similar themes to another edgy character, Shadow the Hedgehog, and if one looks at their past and how they learn about who they are, there are some interesting similarities.
Crisis Core Final Fantasy 7 Reunion's Sephiroth
Throughout most of Crisis Core, fans get to spend time with Sephiroth before he learns of his "familiar heritage." As just a 1st class SOLDIER, Sephiroth seems as cool, collected, and terrifying as ever, yet he works alongside Zack just fine. As his friends, Genesis and Angeal, desert Shinra over their strange transformation due to the Jenova cells within them, Sephiroth is left in a rather vulnerable position that may surprise fans coming from the original FF7, or even FF7 Remake.
As the game begins to come to a close, Genesis reveals the truth of Sephiroth's upbringing to him, revealing him to be yet another Jenova Project experiment. For the first time, players get to watch as Sephiroth is ultimately unnerved by of it, and once he seals himself up in Shinra Manor, there's no going back. Nibelheim is burnt to the ground, and from the fires emerges the silver-haired swordsman who wishes to rule the world of destroy it. He seems to accept his upbringing, but only after knowing his old life was a complete lie.
Sonic the Hedgehog's Shadow the Hedgehog
Shadow the Hedgehog was born on the Space Colony Ark as part of Project Shadow, which was spearheaded by Eggman's grandfather, Professor Gerald Robotnik. As part of Project Shadow, Professor Gerald made a deal with the Black Arms alien race that if he was allowed to use Shadow's DNA to help his experiments and research, the Black Arms would be allowed to claim Sonic's planet as their own once their home comet orbited back around to it in fifty years. While Professor Gerald agreed to this, he also made Shadow himself into a failsafe against them.
Unfortunately, despite Professor Gerald's wishes to stop the future alien invasion, it's heavily implied that Gerald conspiring with aliens led to the tragic violent shutdown of Project Shadow by G.U.N. This attack was what took Maria Robotnik's life, who was Professor Gerald's beloved granddaughter and the very person Project Shadow was made for. Once Maria was found to be dead, Gerald went insane and changed Shadow's purpose and even memories from prison. He would only remember his true purpose in his own game, Shadow the Hedgehog, after suffering from amnesia following the ending of Sonic Adventure 2 that nearly killed him.
Where Sephiroth and Shadow Differ
These two characters share surprisingly similar backstories and motivations. Both of them were created as part of an experiment dealing with alien DNA that ended up being the undoing of those that made them. The two also undergo an identity crisis that ends up changing the course of their roles in the series at large. However, it could be argued that Sephiroth's new role is more stable than Shadow's, which has been rather hard to pin down between games.
Shadow and Sephiroth's big difference seems to be in exactly how they handle their respective identity crisis. When Sephiroth finds out the truth of his upbringing, he slowly falls into the insane, Jenova-loving mindset he's been known for in his many other appearances as Final Fantasy 7's main villain. Meanwhile, on Shadow's end of things, finding out the truth about his creation is what eventually leads him to be able to let go of his past entirely. Sephiroth also loses his life-long friends, Genesis and Angeal, as they all deal with the fact that they're man-made "monsters," whereas Shadow finds a place where he belongs with fellow Team Dark members Rouge the Bat and E-123 Omega.
Both Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion and Shadow the Hedgehog's overall stories prove that these well-known "edgy" characters in video games have vulnerable sides to them despite their reputations. Or, that they did, in the case of Sephiroth, who abandons it in favor of following Jenova. Even still, it seems that the writers wanted to make it clear that even though these characters are known for being strong and intimidating, they still have some moments of weakness, no matter how rare. While Sephiroth hasn't been shown being human in his emotions in years, Shadow still has his moments, though his have been rather rare in more recent Sonic media.
One thing that's worth noting is that these two characters are mainstays in fan discussions for similar reasons, too. Some fans believe that Sephiroth's tragic backstory in Crisis Core can change the impact of the character's ruthless villainy in the main story of Final Fantasy 7. Shadow deals with similar flack from fans at times as his writing tends to be inconsistent from one Sonic project to the next; the reason as to why or how he's Sonic's rival being different almost every time he shows up. Compared to Shadow, Sephiroth's role in Crisis Core is arguably more consistent, but the Sonic series is currently undergoing massive brand stability changes, so this may change in the near future.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
