FF7 Revelation Dev: We Still Don't Know the Perfect Combat Balance

Ever wonder how developers decide how much turn-based combat to keep in a modern remake? For Final Fantasy 7 Revelation, battle director Teruki Endo is still wrestling with that exact question. And after three whole installments, he admits he hasn't found a definitive answer.

Speaking in Edge magazine issue 429, Endo explained that every sequel brings a dilemma: "If the game becomes too complex, that's a problem. But if there are no entirely new elements, or if we only make minor adjustments, we risk failing to meet players' expectations and not giving them that sense of freshness when they play again." His solution? Rebuild every element from the ground up. "I always make a point of considering the purpose, significance, and role of every element," he said.

For the FF7 Remake trilogy, Endo drew inspiration from the "festive atmosphere" he felt in the original 1997 RPG. "I've increasingly wanted to explore how we could make even bolder, more playful additions to the game," he noted. One of those additions is the FITS system, a sort of job system that lets you change party members' abilities and how you approach combat. But don't worry about Materia losing its spotlight. "Our approach has always been to place Materia at the center of customization," Endo said. "Instead, we've made a conscious effort to position FITS as an element that allows players to further sharpen and specialize the direction of Materia-based builds."

Balancing real-time action with turn-based strategy has been a constant struggle across Remake and Rebirth. Both games included a Classic mode that lets your party fight automatically while you focus on commands — a feature Square Enix said back in 2019 would "thrill fans who prefer the original FINAL FANTASY turn-based battle systems to real-time combat." Endo added: "Across all three titles, we've repeatedly fine-tuned this balance through trial and error. The difficult part is that I still haven't decided on a definitive 'correct answer' for myself."

But that uncertainty isn't a bad thing. In fact, it might be why Endo hasn't gotten tired of working on the trilogy. "I think [it] may be one of the reasons I've been able to keep working on these games across all three installments without getting tired of it," he said. That's a pretty refreshing take in an industry where burnout is common.

Turn-based RPGs are making a comeback lately, thanks to games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which mixes classic turn-based combat with real-time inputs for parries and dodges. It'll be interesting to see where Square Enix takes Final Fantasy after Revelation. In the meantime, Final Fantasy Resonance launches this month and should satisfy anyone craving a full turn-based entry. And according to Endo, the original 1997 RPG "is very much enshrined within the story," though newcomers can still jump in with the Remake trilogy.

What do you think — should FF7 Revelation lean more into turn-based combat, or keep pushing real-time action? Will you be picking it up?