2020@E3

FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE

Developer/publisher Square Enix Format PS4 Release March 3

When you rework one of the most influential games of all time, there’s a range of expectations, all of which are so far through the roof they’re practically in orbit. To hold the attention of a contemporary audience, Final Fantasy VII needs more than a facelift. Equally, when you’re revisiting the source of a generation’s love of videogames, you have to tread carefully. And yet, here we are: breathless, mid-clash, suspended between the past and the present.

Indeed, it’s a particular kind of suspension – Cloud’s Buster sword slicing through the air in super-slow-motion as sparks graze his perfectly rendered cheek – that is key. Final Fantasy VII Remake’s combat system comprises two separate modes. The first is action mode: we hammer buttons to hack at a Scorpion Sentinel and fill our ATB gauge, dodge blows, or switch between and reposition characters. Then there’s tactical mode: when our ATB gauge is ready, we can slow down time.

In this state, we scroll through a menu that recalls the original game’s turn-based interface – and have time to think. It frees up some mental space to assess a fight, and decide which limit break attacks or spells to spend meter on. It’s a wonderful callback with a modern twist. Despite the change in pace, the pulse of the action doesn’t slow, Nobuo Uematsu’s orchestral theme thundering in our ears. We unleash a barrage of slashes on one leg until we can enter tactical mode, then switch to gunslinging heavy Barret – positioned at the Scorpion Sentinel’s rear – and cast a Thunder spell. It hits the enemy’s elemental weakness, and staggers it.

This is what we’re after, although we weren’t expecting it: once staggered, an enemy takes far more damage than normal. And so we quickly change our plans, switching back to Cloud and activating his slow but hard-hitting Punisher mode before laying into the Sentinel. Later, tactical mode helps us see we need to destroy a certain part of the machine before whittling down the main health bar. Indeed, we push our efficiency to such thrilling extremes that the boss falls in record time. It’s been a while since we felt this slick playing a show demo.

And, honestly, it’s been a while since Final Fantasy felt this assured – this cool. To achieve such a confident result with this, a feverishly anticipated project years in the making, is a feat worth celebrating – and getting excited about. It’s just as well: seeing as though this first release will only span the Midgar section, we might be playing Remake for the foreseeable future.

ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW HORIZONS

Developer/publisher Nintendo (EPD) Format Switch Release March 20

Oh Nintendo, you tease. Having given us what we came for, it hit us with the sucker punch: yes, here’s your first look at Animal Crossing on Switch, but it’s not coming this year. The old “please understand” talk was delivered as politely and apologetically as has become tradition, with the publisher insisting it’s all about ensuring development staff have a good work-life balance. Which is, come to think of it, fitting for a game that’s always managed to find a sweet spot between effort and reward.

There’s more work for the development team, then, and more for the player this time around. The philanthropic Tom Nook has branched out his property development empire to include a getaway package to a deserted island. Though when you arrive there, all you have to show for it is a cramped tent, a fold-out camping cot, a lamp and a cheap radio. Presumably we’ll meet his business partner Ja Rule later on.

You’re really starting from scratch, in other words, and leans into its DIY elements, inviting you to craft