Barret in Final Fantasy VII Almost Ended Up Being a Bowman

One of the most iconic things about Final Fantasy VII character Barret Wallace is his arm. One of the first things players see about Barret in FFVII and its remake is the massive machine gun he wears in place of his right forearm. However, if things had gone a bit differently in the game’s development, the eco-warrior of the Sector 7 Slums might have had two arms and a bow.

【FFVIIオリジナル版小ネタ】
FFVIIの企画がスタートした当初からキャラクター像があったバレットですが、当時は世界観が未確定だったため銃の代わりにボウガンがついていたんですよ！初期プロットでは、アバランチメンバーとコスモキャニオンへ行く約束をかわすエピソードも！♨️👕🍕#FF7R #FFVII25th pic.twitter.com/s2OrA0rkU7

— FFVII REMAKE (@FFVIIR_CLOUD) March 13, 2023

Barret’s origin was the subject of a new bit of trivia from the official Final Fantasy VII Remake account. The post brings a brief tidbit from the pre-production days of the original game. At the time, Barret, Cloud (or rather, Cloud’s “berserker” predecessor), and Red XIII were the first characters being worked on by the development team. This was even before the team had a firm idea of what the world of Midgar (or New York) would be like. This early concept of Barret’s character had the big man equipped not with a big gun, but a “bowgun.”

The post didn’t quite specify exactly what the concept of Barret in early Final Fantasy VII might have looked like. “Bowgun” is an alternative name for a crossbow, but the term is also applied to many gun-like fantasy weapons that shoot bolts rather than bullets. Even Final Fantasy itself has its own bowgun, in the form of Edgar Figaro’s Auto Crossbow weapon in Final Fantasy VI. Whatever that prototype Barret might have been, the finalized version has his own array of weapons that extend beyond guns.

Another bit of trivia dropped included a cutscene from early in the game. In one set of dialog lines cut from the final version of Final Fantasy VII, Barret converses with the members of his Avalanche cell: Jessie, Wedge, and Biggs. Prior to the mission to take down Mako Reactor No. 5, Barret psyches up the team with a promise that when the job’s done, they’ll all take a visit to “the place where Avalanche was born… Cosmo Canyon.” He talks up the Canyon’s food, drink, and even the possibility of hot spring baths. After Jessie inquires after Cloud, he responds “He’ll come along, too.”

Final Fantasy VII Remake is available on the PS4, PS5, and PC.