When it releases, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is expected to continue the new story of Cloud Strife and his friends immediately where FF7 Remake, the first part of the planned trilogy, left off following events in Midgar. Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth has a ton of narrative ground to cover, but based on events in Remake, there's a strong chance it could completely deviate from the original game. If this proves to be the case, the new timeline established could pave the way for some unexpected crossovers between other games in the huge JRPG franchise.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake was an incredible success for developer Square Enix. Rebuilding one of the most beloved video games of all time from the ground-up was an unenviable task, and failure could have damaged the original's legacy. Thankfully this was avoided, and the game received critical acclaim, managing to strike the perfect balance between staying true to the source material and freshening itself for a new audience. Rebirth will look to build on this success, and with a huge chunk of Final Fantasy 7's story left to tell, it certainly has the scope to surpass its predecessor while presenting a wholly new version of events.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's New Timeline Could Present Interesting Story Developments
Final Fantasy 7 Remake introduced entities known as whispers, harbingers of fate whose job is to ensure things play out the way they are supposed to. These whispers emerge at key points in Remake's story, wherever the plot looks like it's about to deviate off its original course. The climax of the game sees Cloud, Aerith, and the others in their party defeating these whispers, which means there is essentially nothing stopping the saga's key events from completely changing or disappearing altogether.
The consequences of this could be far-reaching, and depending on how creative the writers want to get, may open opportunities that have never been possible in Final Fantasy's long history. Not only could defeating these whispers mean that Final Fantasy 7's story changes, but it could open up the door to other characters from the franchise being introduced into this universe. Fan-favorite faces such as Squall Leonhart, Zidane Tribal, or Tidus could feasibly cameo in Cloud's world, showing fans that the Remake universe isn't siloed like the original game's.
Of course, if characters from other games in the series popping up is too on the nose, references to other worlds could serve the same purpose in a more subtle way. Cloud and Tifa stumbling across some sort of window into the world of Final Fantasy 12's Ivalice while exploring beyond Midgar's walls, for example, would be a great way to completely subvert fans' expectations, even if it initially seems far-fetched. However, with so little currently known about the direction of Rebirth's story, it's entirely possible that it sticks closer to the original than fans expect.
There could only be minor changes, with huge story elements from Final Fantasy 7 such as Aerith's death still playing out exactly as before. But with so much work done to establish the new rules in this timeline, and the pivotal role that the whispers seemingly play, it would seem like a missed opportunity if the game's writers didn't seize the chance to throw a couple of extra curveballs in. Whichever way the story plays out, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth remains one of the most anticipated games of the year, and hype for the project will continue to grow as more information is released.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is set to release for PS5 in winter 2023.
