FINAL FANTASY VII

Steam Deck/Controller Configuration Tips!

My recommendations for Steam Deck button mappings:

Personally my favorite game of all time it has an amazing story with character's you will grow to love but even so even I can admit that the gameplay doesn't hold up compared to this day and age of video games because this was made in 1997 but I would highly recommend this to anyone who is even remotely into rpg's because it's a classic that revolutionized how rpg's have come to be made nowadays

Once upon a time, this game was broken. It was practically impossible to get a controller to work with it without using a custom launcher. At some point Square finally gave this game some minimal touches and it now works with XBOX/Playstation controllers.

Everything that made the PS original an instant classic seems to be here and the fights themselves look crisp at 4k which is probably a bit more than I expected. If you want to make it look even cleaner, you can probably still use the custom launcher (google it) and that can give you the avenue to download updated enemy models and fight stage backgrounds.

It's a classic - if you played the PS version, you are getting the same thing with PC niceties like playing in a window and various screen resolution options, and the ability to mod the game of course, but other than that it is the same. I've enjoyed replaying it here, it is fun to get the achievements.

This review will be a bit weird and unusual. I love Final Fantasy as a franchise, but I never really got the appreciation for 7 as being the pillar of the whole franchise and the best of the best. I have now completed the game and I kinda get it, but in reality this game is not that good.

In detail what I mean is that the game is part of gaming history and a generational game that revolutionised the JRPG genre. For that time specifically this game can be considered a gem, but looking back at it, I cannot recommend to play this specific version of 7. The plot, music, characters and music I loved, but the gameplay and specifically this PC port as this is the original Eidos version, it did not get a remastered like 8 and lacks crucial quality of life changes such as a comprehensible control option and changing the inputs for controller which makes some minigames impossible and makes the game at certain sections immensely unenjoyable. The constant barrage of minigames from the game (all of them are jank and suck) are also detrimental to the experience.
I'm not a fan of the materia system as well, it can be grasped, but it took me until the end of the game to get a form of the build going, since characters in gameplay lack the variety and well "characteristics" that make them memorable, anyone can be made anything, but there are bad options in builds as well. 8 is such a better implementation of a similar gameplay system and 7 was a slog to get through.

Still why do I give this a positive review? The plot. It is phenomenal. While there are many, and I mean, MANY soap opera elements to it and it does meander after you leave Midgar and until the start of Disc 2. At the start of Disc 2 you are taken on a fast paced, riveting and occasionally moving plot. Naturally everyone knows the main beats, because it is common pop culture knowledge, but there are some surprises left in this game still.

I recommend to experience the story, but not the actual game. As it stands, I will give this game a 7/10 but the more I think about the lacking elements of the gameplay, compared to the phenomenal highs of the plot I cannot give a higher score than this.

Cait Sith is the GOAT and I would play slots with Sephiroth again, if only one of his moves wouldn't take almost 3 minutes to complete. I mean really, I could write this whole review again while that plays over and over, because he mashes that all the time.
The rough edges are really rough, but the journey makes up for it.

I have been on and off during this game play because the story is so long, and there are endless mazes/searches and too many little monsters to face randomly. Whether like it or not, the game presents an unprecedented world view from the air, the ground, under the sea and the past, the present and the future. It successfully tells a consistent and heartfelt story, although i did not always enjoy (due to the many sub-tasks and less important plots) while playing. Still want to recommend this game to others, since this is one of a kind classics.

What can I say about this game that haven't been said, I have never played it before so I wanted to try to see what the people that played it when it came out experienced, and almost 30 years after its release in 2025 I see it, saying that is a good game stays short,there is a reason why is considered a legend in video games and I can confirm it, so if you like JRPG classic combat you have to play it, not just for an archaeological or academic reason, if not because it is a genuine great game with an amazing history and characters

This game suddenly requires linking to the Square-Enix account. Linking to another account is fine but not when Square-Enix's website cannot be reached and cannot detect my functioning internet connection. Steam support cannot handle, I spent half a day searching for solutions and ways to reach Square-Enix support site only to find the sites are MIA and unreachable. And I can't play the game because of this EXTRA step. And it's not just FF7, I can't play my FF8-13 also because of this EXTRA step. This is ridiculous. Square-Enix already screwed me once with the mobile versions FF1-FF6 by doing a pixle remake and making the old versions of my FF1-FF6 only playable on the last device that had the game installed. And now that device has broke down after nearly a decade of wear and tear. Now, if I want to play FF1-FF6, I have buy them all over again. If Square-Enix enjoy making their games so inaccessible and do things that waste customers' money, fine. I will never purchase anything developed by Square-Enix again! I should have known that Square-Enix has become a cash grab developer when they made games like FFBE, Mobius FF etc. It was foolish of me to think that this attitude of Square Enix's won't affect single purchase games.

Conclusion: Square Enix is also corrupted to the core now, just like Activison and EA. From what I understood, this EXTRA step of needing internet access to play SINGLE PLAYER,/SINGLE PURCHASE game was to prevent piracy. So Square Enix is protecting their own interest by sacrificing players'. Stay away from from all of Square Enix's products as you would with EA and Activision.

While not without its rough edges, FF7 is an enjoyable RPG which only slightly outstays its welcome. To be honest I definitely see myself coming back for the achievements, as by the end it had grown on me a lot

Es un juego viejo que no ha envejecido bien debido a que los graficos de esos años eran muy basicos y actualmente se ven algo mal, pero para mi sigue siendo un exelente juego y uno de los que mas cariño le tengo.
Si no lo has jugado nunca recomiendo el uso de MODs, principalmente de texturas y modelos de personajes. El mod Manager de "7th Heaven" es espectacular para ello.

I'm surprised how much fun I had playing this game for the first time in 2025. Goes to show that a good story and interesting characters goes a long way.

Played well on Steam Deck with 7th Heaven mod frontend. Enjoyed the 60fps, better character models, and full voice acting. 10 of 10. Would Echo S again.

Finally able to pull a long play through after putting it off for so long, all I can say is I understand it now. The music, the vibes, the world building is amazing and I'm not even half-way into the game.
I am a Zack Fair fan first as Crisis Core on the PSP was my first ever final fantasy game not really caring about other characters except Aerith and that Cloud was just another background character to me with the overused emo and brooding personality but going deeper into world, the story , exploring each of the party member's backstories and personalities made me a fan of the whole FFVII game, even the graphics I started to not even mind. A MUST PLAY.

Game won't launch stuck at 10% because DRM network requirements trying to connect offline/broken square enix servers.

Great game.

Terrible steam port that prevents you from actually launching the game

MUITO BOM!

entendi o poque desse jogo ser tão aclamado, com certeza é o melhor final fantasy dentre os 7 primeiros e faz jus ao hype que tem, personagens muito interessantes, e trilha sonora é muito boa principalmente a do sephirot que é um show a parte.
Vale muito a pena jogar!

All time classic. Strongly recommend installing 7th Heaven for easy to use mod support allowing you to remaster the game to your liking. Avoid voice acting mods your first time round, dialog in the game is fairly simplistic and often poorly translated which becomes a lot more noticeable when its spoken aloud

Without the Qhimm mods, it's pretty archaic by all standards, but that does not detract the fact that it's a legendary game.
With the Qhimm mods, what can we say, that's an experience in it's own universe of awesomeness.

If it's not in your Steam library already, (have you been under a rock?) it should be, if not, that's almost criminal.

A Timeless RPG Classic!
Final Fantasy VII is a masterpiece that revolutionized the RPG genre and remains one of the most beloved games of all time.
The game’s story is a blend of action, drama, and deep emotional moments.
Themes of identity, loss, and friendship are explored with great depth, making the characters feel real and relatable.
Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, and Barret become unforgettable companions, and their personal journeys resonate long after the game ends.
The turn-based combat system is both accessible and strategic, with the materia system offering a vast array of customization options for each character.
The world of Final Fantasy VII is expansive, filled with memorable locations, side quests, and secrets, encouraging exploration.
The music, composed by Nobuo Uematsu, is iconic, with tracks like "One-Winged Angel" and "Aerith’s Theme" leaving a lasting impact.
Visually, though quite dated by today’s standards, the game’s pre-rendered backgrounds and character models have an undeniable charm that adds to its nostalgic allure.
The pacing is near perfect, with a sense of adventure and tension that drives the story forward.
Final Fantasy VII is more than just a game; it’s an experience that redefined RPGs for a generation.
Its influence on the industry is undeniable, and it continues to captivate players, old and new.
If you haven’t played it yet, you’re missing out on a piece of gaming history.

Great Game, good story and characters, the combat is cool even if a bit simple at times. Loved it

From the lense of 2024, the game hasn't aged great. I found the controls pretty clunky and the older graphics made some buttons and world items you were supposed to click on quite hard to see. In 1997 they would look state of the art so I can't fault the game when I am playing it nearly 30 years later. A few of the minigames only explained what to do once and then threw you right into it leading to a lot of frustration because I didn't grasp what I was supposed to do. Was a fun running joke I said to friends that whenever I got stuck I was officially dumber than an 8 year old in 1997 who could figure it out back then. I even ended up having to write down some button translations since the game didn't display the playstation controller buttons. I had a crash 20 hours in that completely deleted my save file which was annoying, but besides that it ran pretty well. Despite this the world, map and animations of moves and attacks actually weren't half bad for a game so old. Much like FFX, it was cool summoning giant creatures to turn the tide of battle.

When it came to combat, the game actually didn't show its age at all. FF7 features a turn based system, but with a timer that signified when you and enemies could take a turn. This means that while you are trying to figure out a plan of attack, the enemy can hit you. While I still prefer straight up turn based, I kind of loved that challenge. Having to think on your feet and be prepared meant that you could get punished for making mistakes more. Each team member could for the most part be built however you liked so there wasn't any real restrictions on who you had in your party unless you were doing a specific quest for one of them. The materia system allowed for sick combos and the balancing of those with how much hp and mp the character had led to some tough decisions and setups.

The story of FF7 really shines and stands the test of time. It hits all the emotions and is well worth putting up with the really old gameplay. It brought a lot of challenges and really tested my patience at times, but I am really glad I played it. It has made me even more excited to see the story and characters in a modern light with the remakes and I now know what all the hype behind it was. I can completely understand why everyone lost their minds about it back when it came out and despite all its flaws I would still recommend it for jrpg enthusiasts.

OK, I see why this game gets all the acclaim that it does.

The events leading up to the end of disc 1 made me cry. The music, the story, the resolution... All up there. Controls being annoying are the only weakness, as this wasn't a proper port and you still have to use the keyboard a lot.

Such an epic tale to be told, The Romance, The Drama, The Filler episodes, The Action, The Betrayal, etc. I could go on forever, but why sit here reading about some twit with a fascination in word usage about cloud and friends epic adventure and go experience it for yourself. you deserve it.

Love this game saw that you can finally bring Aeris back and had to try it. Plays great and looks better than the original version. Also some nice skips that are possible on this version that wont work on the original game.

The most popular Final Fantasy game for a good reason. Genuinely one of the best stories, with some of the most likable characters I've ever seen, period.

Really enjoyed this one. Wish I could've grown up with this. Great story made me forget about the 90s polygon graphics and blurry backgrounds (I will mod it if I play again).

It should be noted that the game needs remapping before play. Defaults for the minigames will make you wanna throw your controller/deck across the room. Highly recommend original PS1 with A/B (X/O) swapped to modern. Also fixes the keyboard prompt opening the game.

Good af. Played III, IV, VIII-X2, XII, XIV, XV and it's literally one of the best. Def download the 7th heaven mod tool and get yourself the 60 fps patch, along a few re-textures and its like a modern game.

play the psx version first to get used to a proper control mapping then its good

only just got out of midgar but so far the characters, music and story are amazing.

the biggest problem has gotta be the port, they make you use a launcher that forces you to sign in. for a singleplayer ps1 game this is incredibly stupid. its also missing the features from the console ports like the cheats that let you fast forward, become invincible and disabling encounters on the fly.

luckily there is a way to avoid these problems with the 7th heaven mod manager. sadly you can't become invincible with it but there is a other mod for that

The story is great, played it right around when rebirth was coming out so I would know how the original story went for when I actually play rebirth on PC soon.

I played this on the steam deck oled and it worked great on it after modding it. Definitely use the 7th heaven mod manager (there is a version made specifically for Linux/steam os). There is no way I would have to a rated playing this without graphical mods, the 60 fps gameplay mod and especially the echo-s7 mod. I highly recommend the last mod as it gives voices to literally every single character and npc in the game plus it has auto text advance.

I actually did not care for the style of turn based gameplay this has as you don't know when exactly the enemy will attack. I'd die use a true wait mode mod so it would behave more like a regular turned based game.

Overall I love the characters and again it was great to play on a handheld device after configuring all the mods correctly. Play this first if you have never played the remake games yet (despite the janky this game has) as they are more than just a typical remake. I won't spoil anything here but let's just say remake has a deeper meaning.

Very excited to dive in to rebirth in the coming weeks as long as it runs well.... Fingers crossed lol.

While 6 is still my favorite ,there is just something special about 7 that still holds up even today. ff7 is a timeless classic and what makes it even better is the modding community. i recommend 7th heaven for your ff7 modding needs, with mods that add better graphics, complete voice overs to restoring cut content etc. to a total refresh of the game like with new threat 2.0 that adds quite a bit and even allows you to save a certain someone.

everyone should play this game. If you have a problem with the extremely dated graphics, the community tab has a ton of great guides for how to mod the game, which is extremely easy and makes the game look 100 times better.

EDIT: even if you don't want to mod the game, i'd still recommend playing the game through the 7th Heaven MM. Its free, allows for some nice customization for the games resolution, etc, and is infinitely better than using the launcher that steam gives you

One of the best Final Fantasy games for sure. Didn't like it for the 7 unfinished playthroughs, but on that 8th playthrough (played on console, hence the low Steam playtime, currently on my 10th playthrough, my first with mods), I finally got into it, and I've loved it ever since. The materia system is so cool, the dungeons are fun, the story is fantastic, just a great game from start to finish. But honestly, the official translation sucks. It's poorly written, every dialogue feels stilted, it's good enough for you to get the story, but nothing more, honestly might be the worst official Final Fantasy translation. Even on a first playthrough, I recommend using the Shinra Archaeology Cut mod with the Vanilla preset. The mod itself restores a ton of cut content, but the Vanilla preset changes nothing but the translation to be closer to the original Japanese script (afaik), and it's better written in every way. Less typos, more natural dialogue, good stuff. Couple that with the 30fps battles mod and you're honestly good to go.

The 7th Heaven mod manager itself also has some neat features like anti-aliasing, resolution options, analogue control for 360 degree movement, realtime lighting, and a setting to change the color scheme of the game to simulate how it would look on official Japanese hardware at the time like the game was designed for, which looks a lot better imo.

I recommend FF7 itself; I do not recommend purchasing the PC version of this game. The game is incredible for its time, with phenomenal music, a beautiful world, captivating characters, and a riveting story. Some mechanics feel dated, and you 100% need a guide as some crucial items are easily missable, but it's an experience worth giving a try. However, the PC version of this game has instability issues which result in random crashes - and since this game has no autosave, that can mean losing lots of progress. Additionally, the cloud saving feature it boasts is done through Square Enix, which forces you to sign in with a Square Enix account in order to actually play the game. I think this means you can't play this version without an Internet connection, which is absurd given the game's older than Steam itself. Also, if the cloud saving feature fails for any reason, you can't even save locally, which at one point made me lose progress as well. I'd say about 15-20% of my playtime on Steam was having to replay sections due to these issues. This made minor annoyances (high random encounter rate, unskippable cutscenes, RNG on fleeing battles) turn into major frustrations. The breaking point for me was when I experienced a crash right as I was about to defeat the final boss! At that point, I gave up and used a save editor to breeze through the final gauntlet because I just didn't have the patience any more.

If you want to play the original, either use an emulator (which comes with the benefit of savestates) or play the new console versions (which are more stable and come with QOL features like speed-up and disabling random encounters). The only good reason to play this version is if you'd like to indulge in mods, but otherwise, don't buy this.

Timeless and got me super invested in the story

Aerith is best girl

One of the best games I have ever experienced in terms of story, combat and world-building.
Feel free to download 7th heaven mods for a more crisp experience in terms of elevated fps and enhanced character models.

-ECHO-S is a must have as well due to the amount of effort they put into voice acting which can help make the story easier to digest as you go along-

But even without mods this game is still a masterpiece, even after 28 years since its release.

The Most Cherished Final Fantasy! The Best!

If you like sci-fi fantasy then this is up your alley

It's Final Fantasy VII. Assuming you can accommodate it's age, the game is as good as ever. As a very old game it can run on just about anything.

Note: Many controller issues can be resolved by turning on Steam Input, though you still need to progress past the Key Layout screen with the keyboard.

This old PC/PS1 game has mid 90s graphics and MIDI music. It's showing it's age. But the gameplay still pulls through. Square added cheats for those who want to play again but not grind, which is nice and all but I'd recommend maybe just being a gamer and playing it without cheating.

Peak FF tbh but why can't they just patch in the console boosters for christ sake? Having to go to some stupid website to enable them is so unintuitive.

Just as I remember. If you find it crashing, take it out of full screen mode. Other than that it works great and still able to play many hours of this.

Can't even get into the game on Steam Deck due to the third-party Square launcher. Also requires an internet connection to play.

This a game i have played and adored since i was young, however this version is awful. I've spent an hour trying to get it to work in my steam deck, played it for 5 minutes and requested a refund. Once installed you have to register with square enix before you can play. This sounds easy but they make it difficult, I managed to link my steam account, however I had problems entering my dob as their website wouldn't respond and open the drop down boxes. Once installed, I was thinking it had the same character boosters you get on the ps4 version as the game is slow by modern standards however it doesn't (my bad - i should have looked harder into it). However to activate the boosters I had to try and activate them through the website by enabling cloud saves, however there's no option to do that, just an option to buy the game. In short avoid this version as it's just a hassle. If you can get it to work it plays just like the original did.

It's Final Fantasy VII. You already know it's legendary. The mods just make it look and feel the way your nostalgic brain remembers it-and yeah, it's still worth every second...

Great game (4/5) with a few flaws (and its not graphics nor age).
Strong points:
1. Storytelling and characters are superb. Cloud/protagonist does not fit traditional/cliche masculine frames, at best I can describe him as Don Quixote x Orpheus, he is very attractive and deep character as well as his companions, especially Tifa.
2. The level design is a cinematic work of art combining 3D figurines with prerendered landscapes. It does not look dated like one might say, it looks different. Blaming it for not being realistic is like blaming "Dark Crystal" for not being CGI. The game is not at all obsolete.
3. Game mechanics are essentially turn-based strategy with a time-limited decision making and diverse strategies provided by combining materia (spells) and equipment.
Flaws:
1. UX is rather bad and UI is confusing and inefficient. Curiously it is not very different from original Pokemon for Gameboy.
2. You can get stuck quite a few times, having no clue how to move forward. If you value your time I recommend having a walk-through at hand.
3. Localisation is poor and quite a few in-game dialogs look rather awkward.
4. Like in many others Japanese RPGs, random battles with mobs can get quite irritating and tedious.

I remember the the 90's and this being one of the first RPG's I ever played. The intro haunts me still and sends shivers through me in how incredible it is whilst still being quite simple. It is a perfect game, without doubt! The story is rich, it is topical, the characters are likeable ( mostly ) and the world is engaging and changing.

To say they don't make em like they used to is an understatement with this game! And although it is not my favourite of the series, it will always hold a strong place in my heart.

Playing it in recent years is just as fun and if anything, i prefer them without voices as it allows the player to put more imagination on to them.

I have treasured memories of playing this a long time ago. But it is VERY hard for me to play now. I feel extremely limited and coerced.

its too annoying to enjoy.

There is a Square Enix login that you need to do to play this game. It seems to no longer work at all. So the game won't launch.

After starting this game at least half a dozen times, I finally finished a playthrough this year. 27 years is quite late to "getting it", but I completely understand now why so many consider this game the peak of the series. The message is simple but powerful, and the characters are incredibly memorable. While this port might not be the best package out of the box to experience FF7, it's more than made up for by all the modding potential it has. Want higher resolution world textures? There's a mod for that. Want different character models? There's a mod for that. Heck there's even a mod that adds voice acting if you don't want to read everything yourself.

One of the best stories ever told in a computer game! Default keyboard layout is harsh, to say the least, but you get used to it. The music is excellent, too, especially for the time. So where's the soundtrack!? (throws cash at his drink coaster) Rats, wrong kind of Square, I guess.

This game has an amazing story and great game play. It's been my favorite since it's come out and I've played it more than I can count. I highly recommend jumping in and enjoying this story!