‘Final Fantasy 7’ Remake Officially Confirms Major Spin-Off Crossover

Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth have already shown that Square Enix isn’t interested in delivering a simple recreation of the original 1997 RPG. While both games follow the broad outline of Cloud’s journey, they’ve also introduced new mysteries, expanded storylines, and characters pulled from elsewhere in the franchise’s growing universe. Now, director Naoki Hamaguchi has offered one of the clearest explanations yet for why.

During a recent Q&A event in Shanghai, Hamaguchi was asked whether Cissnei, the former Turk who first debuted in Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 before returning in Rebirth, would appear in Final Fantasy 7 Revelation. While he stopped short of confirming the character’s return, his answer revealed much more about Square Enix’s plans for the final game in the trilogy. “Well, at this time it’s best not to say whether Cissnei will appear or not,” Hamaguchi said. “But there is one thing I can tell you.”

Hamaguchi Confirms More Spin-Off Characters for ‘Revelation’

Image via SQUARE ENIX

According to the director, the remake trilogy was never intended to function as a straightforward remake of the original game.

“This Final Fantasy 7 Remake series is not simply a recreation of the original work, but rather, our goal is to create a single, new Final Fantasy 7 that incorporates the settings and concepts of all the previous spin-off titles such as Advent Children, Dirge of Cerberus, and Crisis Core.”

That philosophy has already been visible throughout the trilogy, which has already introduced characters connected to Dirge of Cerberus and brought Cissnei back into the spotlight after nearly two decades away from the franchise. According to Hamaguchi, that approach will continue in Revelation. “So, since that concept will of course carry over into Revelation as well, not limited to Cissnei, for the last entry, there will be characters that have appeared in the various FF7 compilation games that I think will be there,” he said.

The comments effectively confirm that Revelation will continue pulling from across the wider Final Fantasy 7 compilation rather than focusing exclusively on the events of the original PlayStation classic. For longtime fans of Crisis Core, Advent Children, and other spin-offs, that likely means more familiar faces are waiting in the wings when the trilogy reaches its conclusion next year. Whether those appearances end up being major story elements or smaller nods remains to be seen, but Hamaguchi’s latest comments make one thing clear: Square Enix views the remake trilogy as something much larger than a traditional remake: a version of Final Fantasy 7 that brings the entire franchise together.

Release Date

July 14, 2005

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  Ayumi Ito

  Tifa Lockhart (voice)

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  Takahiro Sakurai

  Cloud Strife (voice)

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  Showtaro Morikubo

  Kadaj (voice)

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  Maaya Sakamoto

  Aerith Gainsborough (voice)

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