The cliffhanger ending at the end of the first installment of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy has set the stage for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth to deliver on some of the heaviest moments from the original game. However, if Square Enix wants to keep that momentum going from the second title to the third, then the best ending location to make the most out of the drama between Final Fantasy 7 Remake's characters might not be where many fans are expecting it to be.
This is specifically looking at the events at the City of the Ancients roughly halfway through the original Final Fantasy 7, where a character critical to the plot meets their untimely end. Considering the impact of this moment, a large part of the fan community assumes that this might be the best place to end Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. While this death could be a strong ending, heading all the way to the Northern Crater could better set up for the third game.
City of the Ancients Leaves Too Much for Final Fantasy 7 Part 3
The City of the Ancients is an easy first choice when trying to look for where Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth might end, thanks to how impactful the death of Aerith at the hands of Sephiroth is at this location. It would act as a harsh loss to end the second game on, with the final game being a focused quest to avenge Aerith and stop Sephiroth for good. That being said, ending here has the problem of leaving a massive chunk of the story for the third game to cover if Square Enix is still set on making the Final Fantasy 7 Remake into a trilogy.
While the death of Aerith is one of the most memorable moments in the original Final Fantasy 7, it can be surprising to remember exactly how early it occurs in the grand scheme of the game's plot. Ending here would put the Great Glacier in the same campaign before the hunt for the Giant Materia, fighting the Weapons, and the final assault of Sephiroth together in the third game. Considering that whatever comes after Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth should be a solid end to this new trilogy, having too many of these storylines could get in the way of the final confrontation with Sephiroth and possibly even the Whispers.
Northern Crater Leaves Cloud at his Lowest Point
Instead of ending with the death of Aerith, the game should look to the moment that is truly the lowest for Final Fantasy 7's protagonist Cloud throughout the entire original plot. This is in the first visit to the Northern Crater, where Cloud is once again compelled by the Jenova Cells that give him the strength of a SOLDIER First Class to give up the black materia to Sephiroth. It is a betrayal of his own body, after having not been able to save Aerith, and already handing over the black materia earlier.
Ending the game here would have the credits rolling with Cloud having not only betrayed his friends, but being cast into the Lifestream itself once the Weapons are summoned and Meteor has shown up in the sky. It's an emotional beat that goes beyond the death of Aerith, and compounds the many failures that Cloud has to endure throughout the plot of the original Final Fantasy 7. This would also be a great setup for the next game in the trilogy.
If the trilogy does continue to follow the events of the original game, that would leave the final part of Final Fantasy 7 Remake starting off with an alternate protagonist as Tifa attempts to put the team back together. Not only would this give Final Fantasy 7's Tifa a great chance to shine on her own in these remakes without being in the shadow of Cloud, but it also sets up for an impressive mid-point to have the original protagonist return. Altogether, dropping Cloud into the Lifestream right before the credits roll is the best for the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy as a whole.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is set to release in Winter 2023.