During the recent PlayStation State of Play presentation, the show concluded with a look at the PS5 upgrade for Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Titled Integrade, the updated version includes what fans would expect like graphics updates and quality of life improvements. But surprising fans, the trailer showed off a new episode focused on Yuffie and ended with the appearance of several characters that haven't been referenced in mainline Final Fantasy 7 in quite a long time. The final moments of the trailer showed off soldiers that appeared to belong to the radical group Deepground and one its violent generals, Weiss, from the 2006 spin-off game Dirge of Cerberus.
With so many different changes to the story of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, this still seems an odd choice, one with interesting implications. Although Dirge of Cerberus wasn't well received by some fans, fewer still considering the title as not being canon at all, obviously Square Enix intends to bring elements of that game into its new world of Final Fantasy 7 Remake.
Is Final Fantasy 7 Remake Adapting Dirge of Cerberus?
One of the most important things for fans to keep in mind is that Final Fantasy 7 Remake is (and has already) shifting the canon of the original compilation of games and other media into its own world. The main themes of defying fate are present in FF7 Remake as possible impact of Versus 13 from Tetsuya Nomura. A big part of the original game's planning and now of the remake, Nomura seems to be using FF7 Remake as a way to create a more condensed version of the original world. Bringing in disparate elements from some of the spin-offs has been something fans have speculated about since the game's announcement. How they will be used will be what's interesting to see going forward.
In Dirge of Cerberus, Deepground and Weiss were suborganizations that broke away from Shinra proper. Weiss was one of many subjects of genetic manipulation by the scientist Hojo, other candidates including of course Cloud and Sephiroth. In that game, Deepground and Weiss are on a mission to finish the job that the Weapons had begun by eliminating human life from the planet. The story can get convoluted and muddies the waters of the core FF7 in a way that Kingdom Hearts fans are all too familiar with now, but with how many changes were made in FF7 Remake, it's likely that the role of Deepground and Weiss will be altered as well.
It's likely that Weiss will be more directly related to Shinra and Sephiroth in FF7 Remake, maybe as another failed clone of Sephiroth or some other kind of experimentation. It's worth noting on a visual level that the image fans saw of Weiss saw him wearing a shirt or coat that was very reminiscent of the one's Cloud and Sephiroth wear. Purely speculation but given FF7 Remake's pretty drastic changes so far, it might be a way for Square Enix to integrate characters from the spinoffs in a more concise way.
Fans will have to wait until June 10 to see how the new developments unfurl, but it is already complicating how Square Enix will narrow down how far FF7 Remake Part 2 gets into the rest of the original storyline. Seeing how it handles expanding the original storyline while bringing in distantly related elements like Deepground will certainly be interesting, especially for diehard fans of Final Fantasy 7.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade will be available on June 10, 2021 for PS5.
