Final Fantasy Fun

Ragtag party assembled, it's time to break into the Temple of the Ancients. But first, we need a key to unlock the Path of Plot Advancement.

We drag our reluctant tails back to the Gold Saucer. Speaking of which, I missed a spiffy FMV during our first visit, when I was trying to take Aeris around for a date. Check out the Gondola ride starting around 11:00.



Sorry, Aeris. Let's pretend my Cloud took you on that date earlier, okay? You're allowed to call me cheesebrain.

All right, back in the present...

( On with the playthrough )

Okay, Nibelheim Backstory Dump over. Now we can explore the world map. Guided by random npcs saying "a man in a black cape went thataway," we pack our bento boxes and strike out across the Midgar Marshes.

Oh look, a planarian! They have the cutest woogly googly eyes.



Uh oh... it seems...hungry?

( On with the Playthrough )

Last time, we psychoanalyzed the most blockheaded hero in the history of gaming...



...and put him through his paces as a cross-dresser and champion of put-upon sex workers (in which task he failed miserably, since we left Don Corneo alive with his family jewels intact. Phooey).

Reluctantly, I must set Wall Market frivolity aside and get back to saving the Planet.

( On with the playthrough )

Into Midgar we go! I hope I don't bore you with my Maechen imitation, but I'm seeing so many things now that I didn't understand the first time I played FFVII. Warning: there will be spoilers referring to events later in the game.

The opening FMV is still a lot of fun, with retro CGI graphics transitioning smoothly into live gameplay.



While I've been enjoying my 8 month sojourn in 16bit/retroland, it feels luxurious to come back to a PS1 game with backgrounds detailed enough for storefronts. (I briefly misread "Goblins Bar" as "Goblins Ban[k]" and was thinking, "Gringotts" even though this game predates HP.) And yep, there's Loveless, a play that's referenced in most of the FF7 spinoffs. Someday I need to get my hands on Crisis Core.

Aeris' etherial appearance contrasted with urban grunge is a startling juxtaposition, reminding me of my own experience moving from green countryside to the big city (which I've since fled). She walks the old-school players out of the shadows and into the Brave New World of FF7, where the visual setting is now a major (if not the dominant) character in the story, as it will be for all future FFs.

( On with the playthrough )

"Dude" in black with long katana, Final Fantasy V concept art:



Dude in black with long katana, Final Fantasy VII concept art:



DAMMIT AMANO I WANT A PIRATE CROSS DRESSING SEPHIROTH AND I WANT HER NOW.

mako_lies just drew my attention to this Yuffie (ff7) and Faris (ff5) ficbit:

A ninja and a pirate walk into a bar....

I love crossovers playing on different inflections of the same trope.

And Faris, of course.

ETA: YES I HAVE NO BRAIN and forgot that mako_lies is also the author because I can't remember pseuds sorry facepalm.

I really got into the Final Fantasy bandwagon with VIII. While I have actually played through VII once and vaguely remember it, many of the details are fuzzy, and I recall being extremely confused by the whole Cloud-Sephiroth backstory (clone, puppet, wha?)  Also, I didn't entirely grasp where I was or what I was looking at the first time through most of Midgar, since I was playing with a lousy TV or a confused Mac Molar trying desperately to emulate a PS1.  Now, armed with a PS3, good speakers, and a screen I can see, I'm trying it again.

So yeah. I don't know if I'll get through it, but for the moment I have joined in the group playthrough here in ff7_oldschool .

I've always been fond of VII, but it's never been THE GAME the way some other games (RIVEN, FFX) are for me. 

Title: Going Somewhere
Fandom: Final Fantasy X / VII: OGC
Characters: Auron, Aeris
Rating: G
Word Count: 900
Spoilers: end of FFX

A/N: I'm not quite satisfied with this snippet, which came to me in the midst of a migraine. However, the idea captured my attention. It was vaguely inspired by the Ellone & Auron piece I recommended recently, plus a replay of Kingdom Hearts. (Also, apologies for old-game spelling; I'm still not used to "Aerith").

( Auron marched through flowers )

Some months ago, I posted a comment in capslock_ff that wasn't capslocked. You know what the penalty is? One must create a Sephiroth/Barret fic or fanart as penance! Small wonder that I disappeared from fandom for months. So, anyway, in light of recent discussions, it seemed like it was time to pay my penalty.

 

Brace yourselves.

WHAT:FANART/PHOTOMANIP
TITLE: "Let Me Be Your Angel"
FANDOM: FFVII AC
WHO: BARRET / SEPHIROTH
RATING: PG-13

Click thumbnail to make head explode:



Base: Gack! from here.