Easter eggs commonly appear in videogames and even trailers these days, but sometimes they go beyond being a fun in-game joke. Some developers take it upon themselves to drop cryptic hints about their plans for upcoming expansions or even new titles, like the Destiny poster found in Halo 3: ODST five years before Destiny's release.
Some fans of Final Fantasy VII have been relentlessly scouring the brief Final Fantasy VII RemakeE3 announcement trailer looking for clues about the game. While nothing particularly significant about Final Fantasy VII has been found, a connection to another Square Enix game has been discovered.
The scene in question falls at about the 20 to 22-second mark in Final Fantasy VII Remake trailer, seen below. While attention would generally be drawn to the freeway sign or the cars on the road, the object in question is actually to the right of the road, on the side of a building. The banner, when zoomed in on, contains an image of Aya Brea from the Parasite Eve series, in her standard garb from its latest iteration, The 3rd Birthday. The banner also has the word "Valentina" on it, which brings to mind Final Fantasy VII's Vincent Valentine, but otherwise the significance is unknown.
[HTML1]
The meaning of this easter egg is a mystery at this time; considering the immense detail work that went into creating the Final Fantasy VII Remake trailer, it's highly unlikely that it's an oversight or mistake that was left in. Some fans have theorized that it may hint at a future sequel to the Parasite Eve series, or even a remake of the first game, which came out only a year after Final Fantasy VII and shared the same producer, Hironobu Sakaguchi. However, it's also entirely possible that it's a nod to the loose ties between Final Fantasy VII, The 3rd Birthday, and Final Fantasy XIII.
Lightning, the star of Final Fantasy XIII, was designed as a female version of Cloud Strife, Final Fantasy VII's main protagonist. She even received a Cloud costume in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII as a nod to this relation. However, her Japanese voice actress also voiced Aya in The 3rd Birthday, and Square Enix included an unlockable Lightning costume for Aya, as well as an unlockable Aya costume for Lightning in Dissidia 012. It's definitely a loose connection, but it may have been a way of acknowledging the crossover without being as obvious as sneaking in a Lightning cameo.
Fans' minds are already brimming with questions about how the Final Fantasy VII Remake will be handled, and what content may be added or cut. This mysterious but intriguing easter egg will undoubtedly just add more questions rather than answering them.
Do you think this easter egg is a hint at something new for the Parasite Eve series, or does it mean something else? Let us know in the comments!
The Final Fantasy VII Remake's release date is TBA, and will be available for the PS4.
Source: Jin115
