FFVII Remake Development Team Discusses Sephiroth’s Early Appearances

In honor of the Final Fantasy VII 25th anniversary, Square Enix’s released a number of announcements and new details about the entry and its games. Most recent is a FFVII Remake official interview discussing Sephiroth and various design decisions. Most notably, it talks about design decisions relating to his appearance visually and in the story.

Editor’s Note: There are spoilers pertaining to Sephiroth and FFVII Remake chapter two below.

The interview with development team members went over various parts of Sephiroth’s appearance in FFVII Remake chapter two. For example, it goes over the lighting for the scenes, him showing up earlier in the story than expected, and the early Nibelheim flashbacks. Scenario Designer Co-Director Motomu Toriyama first explained it was to show Sephiroth’s prominence in this retelling and Cloud’s life.

Here’s Toriyama’s statement.

There was the intention to show the effect that a most likely imagined Sephiroth had on Cloud’s mind at an early stage, but his earlier appearance was also because his existence had a massive influence on the world of Remake itself.

Additional commnts went over their appearances. Graphics and VFX Director Shintaro Takai noted special shaders for the Nibelheim flashbacks were designed to make “memories are distorted” and “feel like an illusion.” The Lighting Director Iichiro Yamaguchi also noted the use of lighting with the flames to create tension and make sure Cloud and Sephiroth “did not look too flat.”

Final Fantasy VII Remake is available for the PlayStation 4. FFVII Remake Intergrade is available for the PlayStation 5 and PC. FFVII Rebirth will appear on the PS5 in 2023.