How to Use FF7 Rebirth Chocobo Scent to Complete Excavation Intel

In Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Excavation Intel, you need to use your Chocobo’s scent to find treasures in the game’s open-world regions. This guide will explain how to use the FF7 Rebirth Chocobo Scent feature so you can find hidden items on your map to complete Excavation Intel.

How does FF7 Rebirth Chocobo Scent work?

If are confused how Chocobo Scent works in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, you are not alone! While the Chapter 2 tutorial briefly touches on how to use the feature, the mechanic’s actual controls can be a bit confusing at first. We’ve got you covered, though, as we’ve had over 120 hours in the game to master it.

Here are the steps on how to use Chocobo Scent in FF7 Rebirth:

• Ride your Mount until you see a blue question mark “scent” icon pop up near your Chocbo’s head.
• Stop as soon as you see the question symbol, and hold “Up” on your d-pad to use the Chocobo “Scent” mechanic.
• Your Chocobo will lower its nose to the ground and begin sniffing.
• Keep holding down on the d-pad and use your right joystick to rotate your camera. Next, line up the white arrow question mark scent symbol so it’s facing north.
• As soon as the white arrow is rotated to the top of the blue question mark symbol, a light blue scent trail will appear on the ground in front of you.
• Have your Chocobo follow the scent line until you see a bright glowing light on the ground.
• Walk your Chocobo so it’s standing over the glowing light, and then hold “down” on your d-pad to have your Chocobo dig up the hidden item in the ground.

How to use Chocobo Scent in FF7 Rebirth

The first step is a bit tricky as Chocobo Scent locations are randomized throughout FF7 Rebirth. These typically are spots you will stumble upon while exploring the game’s open-world sections. However, every region also has Excavation Intel research from Chadley that uses this feature.

You will know you are in a Chocobo Scent area when a blue question mark symbol appears in the air, as can be seen in the picture below:

Have your mount stop walking as soon as the blue question mark symbol appears. Next, hold “Up” on your d-pad to have your Chocobo start smelling the ground. You will now notice a white arrow will appear on the outside of the symbol’s circle. However, you can control which way this arrow is facing by rotating your in-game camera with your controller’s right joy-stick. The goal here is to rotate the arrow so it’s facing north (or is on top of the question mark).

Once you get the symbol’s white arrow facing north, a light blue scent trail will appear on the floor. Depending on where you are at in the level, you may need to use the Chocobo Scent a second time to make the trail re-appear. Just make sure wherever you are at, to rotate that white arrow so it sits on top of the question mark symbol.

As you follow the blue scent trail, it will eventually lead you to a glowing blue and white light on the ground. Slowly walk your mount over the spot and then hold “Down” on your D-Pad to make your Chocobo start digging (or Scour). If you’ve done this correctly, your Chocobo will uncover the hidden item.

The FF7 Rebirth Chocobo Scent mechanic can be a little finicky at times, especially when you are standing on uneven ground. More specifically, the scent trail can get broken. If you see a bronze/orange light at the end of your trail instead of the white glowing orb, you will need to re-establish your scent. This is not the treasure, and it just means the scent trail clipped into the level.

If this happens to you, just hold “Up” on your D-Pad again and rotate the white arrow until it’s facing north again. Once the scent trail is re-established, you can keep walking until you find the actual hidden treasure. While it can be a bit challenging at first, you will want to master the Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Chocobo scent feature as its needed for Excavation Intel. Completing the Chadley research will lead to new FF7 Rebirth Item Transmuter recipes for crafting material.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is now available on PlayStation 5.