The price of freedom is steep, as Zack Fair learns in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion. A prequel to the original Final Fantasy 7, its story deals with friendship, loyalty, and what it means to be a hero. After the game went without any sort of release for 15 years, the Reunion remaster seeks to improve upon the original while making it more cohesive with the FF7 Remake Project - including replacing the original Crisis Core voice cast.
When the game first released in 2007, Zack was voiced by Rick Gomez, the actor who had played him in the theatrical Advent Children movie. Now fans can expect any future appearances of Zack to feature Caleb Pierce, the new voice actor featured in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion. Both bring their own unique flavors to the table.
Rick Gomez's Zack Fair
It's understandable why some fans had trouble saying goodbye to Zack's old voice, as Rick Gomez played every appearance prior to Final Fantasy 7 Remake. This includes Zack's cameo in Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep, and his first appearance was certainly an emotional one as Zack's spirit talking to Cloud in Advent Children. To many, Gomez's acting hit the perfect balance between cool and childishly confident.
The way Gomez portrayed Zack helped highlight how the SOLDIER starts off like an overexcitable puppy, but ends up weighed down by his heroic burdens. Hearing his voice grow heavy as he realizes he's burdened Aerith as well as Cloud when reading Aerith's letter of wishes is a perfect emphasis on how everything compounds to change Zack throughout Crisis Core. Still, some of his lines felt one-note, as if he was directed to only focus on Zack's heroic side rather than his vulnerabilities.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion's Zack Fair
One of the reasons why Crisis Core was remastered is to have a version more in-line with the FF7 Remake Project. As a result, Reunion features Caleb Pierce as Zack; the new voice actor brought on as part of the series' recast. Many fans weren't sold on the voice when they got a surprise look at the end of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, but now Pierce gets to go more in-depth with the character.
Most thought that due to the more high-pitched, almost nasally sound to Zack's voice, he sounds more like a nerd than a hero - and to some degree that remains. However, it may be on purpose. Zack sounds genuine when he isn't talking up his dream of being a hero, and as players progress through Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion's chapters, they'll get to see Pierce's Zack truly shine after the dramatic and heartbreaking conclusion to chapter five.
Comparing The Old and New Zack Fair
It seems that the two different portrayals of Zack have opposite problems. Where Gomez's Zack is commonly seen as befitting a noble hero, the more somber moments tend to fall flat. Many fans had an issue with how Pierce came off as unnatural and fake in Final Fantasy 7 Remake. However, when talking to other SOLDIER operatives or Aerith, and especially once Zack is forced to grow up halfway through the game, the new Zack sounds more human, emotional, and real.
There's an argument to be made that there's more depth to Pierce's Zack, as players hear him make goofy, silly noises before calmly telling civilians to get to safety with plenty of heart. The scene where he tells Cloud that SOLDIER is a den of monsters is one great example, as he goes from gentle and kind to protective and jaded within two lines. Pierce may have been chosen to portray Zack almost like an average guy to emphasize Zack Fair as an everyday hero; which adds to his desire to be one.
Gomez's voice for Zack radiates confidence, making him sound like a true hero without having to earn it. It could be argued that this voice for Zack takes away some of the hero's journey, but it also helped fans grow attached to a character they may have already known was dead prior to playing Crisis Core. Being attached to Zack still gives scenes like his death a powerful punch as he became a role model for players and Cloud alike.
In the end, fans are more than welcome to prefer one Zack over the other. Their pros and their cons make both voices like two sides of the same coin, which might explain why the change from Rick Gomez to Caleb Pierce was - and still is - so hard for loyalists to adjust to. Still, for those who enjoy Pierce's portrayal of Zack Fair, they have the FF7 Remake trilogy where Zack has come back from the dead. While it's sad that Gomez most likely won't return to the role, the original game is still around, and fans will likely mod the old voice cast into its Reunion remaster so that the improvements can be enjoyed with the original Zack Fair in tow.
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
