Final Fantasy VII Remake details Tifa, Barret, battle system, materia, summons, and Sector 7 slums; western box art

A tribute to the original box art.

Square Enix has released new information and screenshots of Final Fantasy VII Remake highlighting Tifa Lockhart, Barret Wallace, the battle system, materia, summons, and the Sector 7 slums. Additionally, Square Enix revealed the game’s box art for North America and Europe.

Get the details below.

■ Characters
Tifa Lockhart (voiced by Ayumi Ito)

A loyal member of AVALANCHE─an underground organization opposed to Shinra─Tifa also runs Seventh Heaven, a popular bar in the Sector 7 slums. Although she bears a terrible grudge towards Shinra, she is not convinced that bombing mako reactors is the solution. As she struggled to reconcile her cause with her conscience, Tifa was reunited with her childhood friend, Cloud, for the first time in years…
Barret Wallace (voiced by Masahiro Kobayashi)
The leader of an independent AVALANCHE cell in Midgar, Barret was disavowed by the old guard for his extreme methods that attracted too much attention. He subsequently came to Midgar, where he resolved to continue to pursue his vendetta against Shinra with a small but trusted group of followers. When not fighting against the corporation, he and his comrades serve in the neighborhood watch and keep the people safe─including his daughter Marlene, who he dotes on as a loving father.
■ Battle System
Analyze the enemy’s weakness and action patterns, and choose magic and abilities. This is a highly strategic battle system that fuses intuitive action with a Final Fantasy-esque command battle system base. By consuming the “ATB Gauge,” which fills as time passes and based on character actions, you can use battle commands such as “Ability,” “Magic,” and “Item.”
Wait Mode
By opening the command menu during battle, you will enter “Wait Mode,” where time will slow and you will have the time to properly think about your strategy. From the command menu, you can select “Ability,” “Magic,” “Item,” and “Limit Skill.” Determine your enemy’s weakness and the battle situation, then choose your next action.
Shortcuts
Commands can be mapped to button shortcuts, enabling you to execute them in battle instantly, without having to access your commands menu. Employ your favorite abilities quickly and effortlessly so you can stay in the thick of the action.
Stagger
As an enemy sustains damage during battle, the focus gauge below their HP bar will gradually fill up. When this bar is maxed out, the enemy will become staggered for a short time. During this period, it will not only be unable to act, but it will also receive additional damage when attacked.
—Cloud’s “Burst Slash” ability allows him to easily fill up the Burst gauge.
Ally Commands
You can take full control of other party members during battle with the press of a button, and you can also instruct them to carry out certain actions by using the L2 and R2 buttons to access their command menus in Tactical Mode.
Limit Break
As you take damage over the course of a battle, your limit gauge will gradually fill, eventually enabling you to execute powerful abilities unique to each character.
—Tifa’s Limit Break: “Somersault.”
—Barret’s Limit Break: “Greande Bomb.”
■ Materia
By attaching materia to your weapons and armor, you can gain new abilities and customize your characters further. Countless types exist, from those that bestow magical spells to versatile actions, as well as some which enable you to summon powerful beings to aid you in battle.
Moreover, some items have linked materia slots, which allow certain materia to interact with each other and produce unique and surprising effects.
Magic Materia
—Lightning
Materia that lets you use lightning elemental magic such as “Thunder.” Materia will develop as you use it, allowing you to use even more powerful magic. Thunder evolves from “Thunder” to “Thundara” to “Thundaga.”
—Time
Materia that lets you use time magic such as “Haste” to increase the action speed of your party, “Slow” to slow down the action speed of enemies, or “Stop” to temporarily halt enemy movement. This magic bestows the target with a time-related state change.
Support Materia
—Elemental Materia
Materia than can attach the magic materia’s elements to weapons or armor. When attached to a weapon it adds its elemental attack, and for armor its elemental resistance.
The combination of the magic materia “Ice,” which enables the use of ice elemental magic such as “Blizzard,” and the support materia “Elemental Materia,” grants the weapon ice properties.
■ Summons
When equipped, summoning materia adds an additional gauge that, when filled, grants you the ability to call forth otherworldly entities to fight alongside you for a limited time. These summoned beings possess a will of their own and will engage enemies independently, culminating in a devastating attack they execute before departing the battlefield.
—Summons can be issued commands and activate unique abilities.
Ifrit
A fire summoned monster with a ferocious, demonic form. Although he is merciless beast that relentlessly burns everything to dust, he is also a reassuring ally once he lends you his strength.
—Ifrit’s special move: “Hellfire.”
■ The World of Final Fantasy VII Remake
Locations from Final Fantasy VII have been faithfully recreated in high quality. Several locations that could not be explored in the original version have also been added.
Sector 7 Slums
The slums beneath the Sector 7 plate. A dim town where the sky is blocked off, its buildings are made out of the scraps produced during the construction of Midgar. From the “7th Heaven” bar to the “Beginner’s Hall” by its vigilante committee, the Sector 7 slums is home to a lively community.
7th Heaven
A bar in the Sector 7 slums. A place for laborers to relax every night. It is known for its famous cocktail the “Cosmo Canyon,” and the smiling face of its show girl Tifa. There is also a darts game where the men of the town compete for the high score. After closing, 7th Heaven becomes the base of operations for the anti-Shinra organization AVALANCHE.
■ Screenshots
■ North American and European Box Art