What might I do (a thousand nights with out you)

Disaster Core: Ultimate Fantasy VII has had a considerably legendary standing for me over the previous half-decade or so. I didn’t get into the Ultimate Fantasy VII compilation till only a few years in the past after I lastly performed by the PlayStation unique for a short-lived characteristic collection right here at Destructoid. I completely fell for the sport and its world earlier than I watched the credit roll on it. I needed extra, however by then, the PSP was already a dinosaur, and for no matter cause, Disaster Core by no means discovered its approach onto PSN. Not eager to drop the cash on a handheld for only one recreation, I used to be left to admire what I perceived it to be from afar.

Final 12 months, when Sq. Enix introduced Ultimate Fantasy VII: Ever Disaster, my first thought was how I’d lastly be capable to see Zack’s story for myself. Positive, a free-to-play cellular gacha recreation would unlikely be the easiest way to expertise it, however I figured it could be higher than watching a playthrough of it on YouTube. Seems, Sq. Enix had a greater choice in retailer with Disaster Core: Ultimate Fantasy VII Reunion.

Disaster Core: Ultimate Fantasy VII Reunion (PC, PS4, PS5 [reviewed], Swap, Xbox One, Xbox Sequence X|S)
Developer: Tose Co.
Writer: Sq. Enix
Launched: December 13, 2022
MSRP: $49.99

I’ll say the timing of Disaster Core: Ultimate Fantasy VII Reunion strikes me as a bit odd. On one hand, the unique Disaster Core was a well-liked sufficient recreation to ascertain its protagonist Zack Truthful as greater than a raven-haired doppelgänger of Cloud. Then again, the one cause anybody bothered with that model of Disaster Core was as a result of Ultimate Fantasy VII gave gamers a great cause to care about his story. In case your expertise with the FFVII universe began with Ultimate Fantasy VII Remake, you won’t know who Zack is outdoors of his temporary cameo on the finish of it, nor why he deserves his personal spin-off over Remake‘s extra established characters.

I might say to totally respect what Disaster Core is delivering right here, you most likely ought to have at the least a primary information of Zack’s function within the larger FFVII story. However given the course of the story is now up within the air, think about Reunion an introduction to a person who’ll doubtless play a major function in Ultimate Fantasy VII Rebirth.

And likelihood is by the point you beat Reunion, you’ll like Zack loads. He’s made to be likable, with an infectious can-do angle and a considerably dewy-eyed notion of the world round him. He doesn’t see the issue with the physique counts he racks up on the missions he’s assigned. He simply desires to be a First Class SOLDIER like his heroes Angeal and Sephiroth. I virtually felt dangerous for him at the start as a result of, having been round Midgar a couple of times myself, I do know that sort of naiveté has no place in a world run by the Shinra Electrical Energy Firm. His narrative arc is robust, and the sport’s use of a pre-corrupted Sephiroth works properly right here. Simply don’t be shocked in case you roll your eyes at a number of the most exhausting dialogue of the mid-2000s.

You’ll hear a variety of character chatter all through the sport’s 10 chapters. Not solely is Reunion totally voiced, however the recreation is overflowing with cutscenes. It typically felt like I used to be watching the sport greater than I used to be taking part in it as a result of its precise gameplay sections are temporary. Each mission Zack is dispatched on consists of a brief, linear jaunt riddled with typically repetitive battles that almost all gamers ought to blast by slightly rapidly earlier than queuing up one other little bit of story. Sometimes, the sport will introduce a fast change-up in gameplay that’s meant to liven issues up, however these one-and-done moments don’t actually land in addition to they need to. The usual fight itself has been refined from the PSP unique, giving gamers a one-button melee combo along with a number of items of immediately accessible Materia. It’s clearly taking some cues from Remake, as does the UI, however Reunion forges its personal identification with Digital Thoughts Wave (DMW) system.

The DMW is mainly a multi-faceted slot machine that’s at all times spinning within the higher lefthand nook of the display. Should you handle to land a mix of character portraits, numbers, or each, it’ll grant you buffs, Restrict Breaks, or summons throughout battle. The system is totally random, which means you possibly can get a particularly highly effective Restrict Break in opposition to some primary grunts you’d haven’t any downside disposing of in any other case or wrestle to get something useful whereas preventing a number of the recreation’s extra highly effective bosses.

I just like the chaos of all of it, however tying Zack’s degree upgrades to touchdown a 7-7-7 spin isn’t precisely honest to the participant placing their time into finishing his journey. I believe extra folks can be amicable towards the DMW if Zack leveled historically, however as I mentioned, I just like the chaos of all of it.

What I don’t like is the construction of Disaster Core. Whereas there’s nothing too objectionable about its primary narrative missions–although the Aerith chapter is a little bit of a momentum-killer–the a whole bunch of side-missions you might be inspired to finish don’t do the sport any favors. These missions are a relic of the PSP period of gaming, consisting of quick fight eventualities that’ll doubtless take you lower than a minute to finish. Most of those missions happen in a small variety of places, and there are simply so many instances I can hassle to trudge down the identical chrome hallway, preventing the identical 4 monsters, earlier than I cease caring and transfer on.

Additionally, it’s 2022. Please don’t make me learn emails in a recreation to unlock missions or different content material. I barely learn my emails at my actual job.

The upside to finishing these missions, past the requisite reward you earn, is a few of them contribute to Reunion‘s narrative depth and world-building. The draw back is there are 300 of them with little selection, and solely a handful must be thought of important to unlocking Zack’s full potential. I don’t know precisely what number of of those aspect missions I truly bothered to finish, but when I had compelled myself to spend extra time on them, I might most likely be giving this recreation a decrease rating.

It’s a disgrace these missions are so boring as a result of they’ll typically be pretty to take a look at. Outdoors of these boring, barren chrome hallways, most of Reunion is kind of lovely. It might not measure as much as different latest Ultimate Fantasy video games, however Tose Co. did an unquestionably high quality job of remastering it in Unreal Engine 4. Although, it may also be bizarre to take a look at instances with current-gen character fashions rigged to 15-year-old animations which are by some means extra cartoonish now that everybody appears like an actual individual.

Disaster Core: Ultimate Fantasy VII Reunion is a gorgeous remake of a good-but-not-great recreation. Its construction is extra well-suited for the platform it originated on, and a number of other of the one-shot gameplay ideas it introduces don’t actually land in addition to they most likely did in 2007. Nonetheless, it’s acquired allure, and I really like the unpredictable nature of the DMW and the way it impacts the strong fight mechanics. I don’t assume Zack’s journey will resonate with me for so long as Cloud’s did, however I’m comfortable to have been given an opportunity to get to know him higher earlier than he pops up in Ultimate Fantasy VII Rebirth.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}