1/3 Compliments For Your Posts, I Totally Agree. If That, To Some Extent, Is A Common Tendency Of Every

Wutai: etymologies and possible real-life references

As suggested by my profile pic, Remake Yuffie stole my heart. The DLC made a great job introducing her and giving her deep characterization and motivations for the following parts of the story. I have no doubt Wutai is going to be great, and I had a lot of fun trying to find the possible sources behind the creation of Yuffie's homeland, anyway, I'm not a sinologist nor an expert of eastern religions, so everything in this post has to be taken with a grain of salt.

The following post has been inspired by this post by@allsortsoflicorice and the following TLS thread (thanks!).

-

Wutai (ウータイ) is an island state in the far west of the FFVII world map. It had always been a proud and powerful nation, and when Shinra Electic Power Company menaced to establish its economical domain with the installment of Mako reactors on its soil, the nation wadged a war that lasted several years. In 0001, after the capture of Fort Tamblin, Wutai's leader Godo Kisaragi finally surrendered to Shinra and Wutai became a mere touristic attraction, even if resistance cells continued their work and became affiliated with Avalanche.

The village stands at the base of a mountain, immersed in a wide forest and crossed by a river. The architecture of the buildings is inspired by real-life far East style and there's a big statue of a local deity carved on the side of the mountain facing the village.

Wutai is the homeland of Yuffie Kisaragi. In the original FFVII, since Yuffie was an optional character, also Wutai was an optional and perfectly skippable location, nonetheless many cultural references were mixed to create this beautiful place.

Moreover, I think we can expect Remake Wutai to have a more influent role in the FFVII universe, since the shape of a pagoda already appeared in Aerith's mural painting, between Cosmo Canyon and the Cetras.

Final Fantasy games are well known to be based on a heterogeneus mix of cultural influences, from Polytheistic to Monotheistic religions and myths, up until Eastern religions and phylosophies that are especially prominent in Wutai.

One of the main themes of FFVII is the cycle of life, symbolized by the Lifestream as both the physical and metaphysical place where souls merge together and allow the rebirth of new life forms in a neverending cycle. This theme is reminiscent of the concept of Saṃsāra, originated in India and then exported to the far East lands through Buddhism (e.g. Melphie's pinwheel hair-clip could symbolize this theme).

Buddhim in particoular seems to have been a great source of inspiration for the creation of this amazing location.

-

Wutai is the real toponym of a Chinese holy mountain, referring to its uncommon shape and it is one of the four sacred mountains in Chinese Buddhism (and Taoism). Interestingly enough there's an old legend about this mountain that involves the King of Dragons.

To provide context, dragons are sacred creature in Eastern folklore. Most of oriental dragons stem from the Chinese version, called Long, traditionally depicted as a snake-like creature with four legs and/or wings. Unlike their western counterparts, Longs are benevolent beings, associated with power, good luck, fertility and rain. They use to dwell in rivers, lakes, seas, they roam the skies and control weather ("Raya and the last dragon" provides good and simple examples of this folkloristic creatures and their legendary powers).

It's not farfetched to see the nod between the Dragon King and the presence in FFVII Wutai of Leviathan, a dragon-like summon that could be achieved in the OG after completing the Pagoda side quest, and that serves as Wutai guard water-deity.

Leviathan was introduced for the first time in the franchise in Final Fantasy II as a monster, while with Final Fantasy III it became a recurrent Summon associated to water, often known as "Sea King" or "Lord of all Waters". The name comes from the homonymous demoniac creature, a fearsome evil sea serpent of the Middle Eastern mythology that symbolizes chaos. FFVII Leviathan preservs just the name of this biblical reference but embodies perfectly the iconography and symbolism of Chinese Longs. Indeed the village is built on a big river.

(from the Fort Tamblin section of Crisis Core: Leviathan fountain on the left, and Wutais banners, depicting a serpentine creature wrapped around a sword, on the right)

As we said before, there's a huge sculpture carved in the side of the mountain facing the town, called "Da-Chao statue", a water deity.

It's hard to establish the real etymology of its name, since it's written in katakana (ダチャオ), but it could come from the chinese

This word exists also in Japanese (pronounced oosho) and it could be roughly translated also as "big tide" (spring tide is a phenomenon occurring twice a month during full moon and new moon, when Earth, Sun and Moon are aligned, affecting tide's range that reaches its maximum). Worth noting that Leviathan can perform "Tidal Wave".

The statue is also formed by four figures. It could be a loose reference to the myth of the Dragon Kings of the Four Seas: during a period of drought the four dragon managed to make it rain without the permission of the Jade Emperor, so he punished them imprisoning them all under a mountain, where the dragons decided to turn themselves in rivers.

The group has to use the "Scales of the Sea God" (or Leviathan scales) to extinguish the fire in the cave on Da-Chao mountain, and the item can only be found in Junon underwater reactor, which could refer to the legendary Dragon King that lived in an underwater palace.

Alternatively, since the central statue has four arms (six in the pagoda version), it could be a refernce to a Buddhist guard deity called Mahakala (derived from the Hindu Shiva). Notably, this deity is associated - at least in China - with sexuality and fertility, and Don Corneo made his last despicable attempt to choose a girl between Elena and Yuffie on this statue.

From Ultimania Omega: in the guest room there's a painting representing four Buddhist figures and a six-arm deity in the middle.

Among the enemies that can be found on Mount Da-Chao, there's Garuda (ガルーダ) a Hindu and Buddhist creature, while in Crisis Core there's another set of recurrent enemies called "Vajradhara", related to Buddhism as well, while the Wutaian organization "Crescent Unit" could refer to the lunar phases and so be linked to the aforementioned meaning of Da-Chao.

-

During the pagoda side quest, after which the the group receives Leviathan summon materia, Yuffie is forced to fight five warriors, one for each stage of the building.

The names of these fighters probably come from the names of western playwrights, with the ecception of Yuffie's father, whose name is anyway related to theatre:

Gorkii -> Maxim Gorky

Shake -> William Shakespeare

Chekhov -> Anton Chekhov

Staniv -> Constantin Stanislavsky

Godo -> Godot

In Japanese, each one of them has a different way of speaking.

This odd relation with theatre could be explained by the fact that the chinese word "wutai" (same tones) can be written in two different ways:

The word 舞台 (butai) in Japanese specifically means "theatre stage" or "theatre setting".

The inspiration for this part of the game could be the traditional Japanese Noh theatre. Usually Noh plays are composed of five standalone pieces selected from five different categories, and many of the plays include shapeshifting creatures.

As stated before, Godo is the only fighter whose name is not that of a playwright but a fictional character, Godot. It could be linked to the fact that the word ゴドー in Japanese is homophone to 悟道, a Buddhist term referring to the path to the enlightment.

As a boss, Godo becomes a monster that, in my opinion, is a reference to Asuras, Hindu demigods with three faces and four arms that appear also in Buddhism. In the latter, it is traditionally told that Asuras were dismissed by the heavenly world they shared with gods, which could be a loose reference to Wutai losing the war (in this case "Godo" could be linked also to the English "God").

-

Finally: Yuffie Kisaragi.

Yuffie is not a real name, especially not a Japanese one since the sound fi doesn't exist in that language. The only real-life connection I could find is a very similar Chinese female name, Yufei 雨霏, whose meaning is something like "happy even though it rains", which fits her personality.

Kisaragi is often mistankenly translated as February but in reality 如月 was the old name for the second month of the Japanese lunar calendar that, traditionally, marked the beginning of spring.

I'm totally clueless about the meanings of Melphie and Sonon's names.

-

Sadly I haven't found any hint about what could be the origin of Da-Chao beans, nor any further reason behind the name of "Fort Tamblin" (タンブリン->tambourine).

If anybody has suggestions or corrections they'll be very well appreciated!

CHAINSAWMAN SPOILER!

Denji bragging about his previous dates..

...His actual previous dates

A good match indeed

If this isn't soulmate material than I don't know what is. She looks so proud 🥲😂

Happy 25th anniversary Final Fantasy VII ❤️

Graphics enhancement, 23 years later!

This might be the cutest FF VII lore fanart I've ever seen

oopsie, sketched some quick ff7 stamps bc i thought the idea of shinra making Stamp stamps was silly, and then i just had a great time playing crisis core reunion so here we are!!

so annoyed i couldnt remember if there is any unique identifiable flora to nibelheim, so i just decided cloudberries would be a good substitute since they are a) pretty damn hardy, b) punny and c) very tasty. these are based on stamps i vaguely remember from childhood, very cool!! :)

FFVII Remake Easter Eggs and compilation continuity - Part 8: OG FINAL FANTASY VII

 ELEMENTS USED IN A DIFFERENT CONTEXT OR FOR A DIFFERENT PURPOSE

SAVE POINTS

The save points of the original FFVII consisted in an angled C (”check point”) floating on a crystal base. In the REmake there are no more save points but the same symbols appear on the healing benches.  

PHS

In the OG the player could use the PHS tool in the world map or at the save points to switch the party members. In the Remake there are PHS terminals in Shinra HQ that the group use to communicate and switch between two parties in Chapter 17. 

  TIFA’S PIANO

During her childhood Tifa had a piano in her bedroom. Among the many posters of the REmake there are some with the image of a keyboard, one of them indeed hung in Tifa’s bedroom.  

THE HOUSE SPECIAL

We know from the original game that Avalanche was originally founded in Cosmo Canyon. This is also the name of one of the drinks served at Seventh Heaven, Avalanche’s hideout. 

OG: Cosmo Canyon... This is where AVALANCHE was born...

Remake: Our house special: the Cosmo Canyon. 

BEST GUIDE

When Sephiroth, Zack and Cloud arrived at Nibelheim  years before, Tifa escorted them to the reactor, saying she was the best guide of the town. In the Remake too she proposes to be Cloud’s guide in the Sector 7 slums (reference more clear in the Jp version).

OG: I’m the number one guide in this town.

Remake: I know these streets better than anyone. (Jp version: I’m the best guide of the slums).

PARACHUTING

In the OG Cloud and the others parachuted themselves on Midgar from the Highwind, in order to prevent Hojo to use the Sister Ray to help Sephiroth. In the Remake Cloud, Jessie, Biggs and Wedge parachute back in Sector 7 after the mission in Chapter 4.

MUSEUM

At Gold Saucer, Dio had a personal museum with a big picture of himself. Moreover, he had also a massive gold statue at the top of the amusement park. In the Remake, the 60th floor of the Shinra building hosts a museum where there’s also a big golden statue of the President. 

VIRTUAL REALITY

Bugenhagen has a 3D holographic symulator in the Cosmo Canyon observatory, necessary for his planetology studies (Shinra machinary he received from Professor Gast). “Cosmos theatre” is a 3D virtual reality symulator where visitors can learn about the Ancients and the Promised Land. 

DA-CHAO

During Intermission Yuffie uses to eat “Da-chao beans”. Da-Chao an important water deity of Wutai and its massive statue is sculpted in the mountain overlooking village. 

WALL MARKET

In the original FFVII, the Honeybee Inn was a brothel, while in the Remake it’s a night club. Anyway, the hand massages at Madam M’s parlor are kind of allusive, especially the Luxory Course.

ARENA

The Battle Square (or Battle Arena or Colosseum) was an area of the Gold Saucer, where Cloud could entertain Dio with a match in exchange of the Keystone. In the Remake, also Corneo has a Colosseum at Wall Market.

DATES

In the OG, depending on the player’s choices, Cloud could spend a date at the Gold Saucer with Aerith, Tifa, Yuffie or Barret. A similar system exists also in the Remake and it affects a cutscene at the beginning of Chapter 14. 

SHOWMAN

During the date at the Gold Saucer, Cloud and the girl (NB: not Barret) had to take part to a stage show where they played the parts of the knight and the princess. In the Remake, in order to obtain the dress-up to infiltrate Corneo’s Mansion, he has to take part to a dance show at the Honey Bee Inn. 

THE PRINCESS 

Princess Rosa was one of the protagonists of the Gold Saucer show, played by Aerith, Tifa or Yuffie during the date. In the Remake Cloud can read a letter in the room of Jessie’s father, where Jessie announced to her parents that she obtained the part of the princess in a show at Gold Saucer. 

Jessie Raspberry as...the Princess?

FIREWORKS

There were fireworks creating a romantic atmosphere during the ride on the gondola at Gold Saucer. In the Remake, if Aerith is wearing the red dress, her appearance is accompanied by fireworks and red carpet. 

KISS

The LTD has split the fandom for ages, but the only two girls who have ever been shown kissing Cloud are Yuffie (during her GS date) and Jessie (if the player manages to end the bike minigame in Chapter 4 with HP above 80%).

DREAM

In the OG Aerith appeared in Cloud’s dream just before getting to the City of the Ancients, the place where Sephiroth killed her. In the Remake this dream is hinted in two scenes:

1) The way Aerith appeared at Cloud at the beginning of Chapter 9 recalls the way she appeared in his dream (which triggers in Cloud a vision of her death). 

2) She appears in his dreams again during her resolution scene, using gestures and words that hint at her death. 

VOICES OF THE PLANET 

Aftyer Meteor was summoned in the OG, Cloud and the others could hear the scream of the Planet from the Highwind. In the Remake, when the group faced Sephiroth at the end of the highway, the Whispers start screaming in pain and Aerith said those were the voices of the Planet.  

OG: RedXIII: Did you...hear something? - Tifa: The Planet’s scream...or Meteor? Is it this Planet? - Cloud: Hey, how do we know that this is really the Planet’s scream? - Tifa: Did you forget? Bugenhagen told us.

Remake: What you heard just now were the voices of the planet. Those born into this world. Who lived and who died. Who returned. They're howling in pain. (...) They... Their words...they don't reach him. All these moments and memories, precious and fleeting...they're like rain rolling off his back... And when they're gone, he won't cry...or shout...or anything.

CLOUD VS SEPHIROTH

In the original FFVII, after the defeat of Safer∙Sephiroth, Cloud and Sephiroth had a final mental duel. At the end of the Remake Sephiroth mentally drags Cloud to the “Edge of Creation” with a symilar dynamic.  

Talk about a coincidence!

Crisis Core and Advent Children References

Second post about CloTi and ZeriTh hints in FFVII Remake!

Find the previous post here.

THE PERFECT OUTFIT

Be sure to pick an outfit that goes with mine, okay?

Leave it to me, Tifa!  😂

In order to sneak in Don Corneo’s palace, Aerith and Tifa wear nice elegant dresses, and Cloud has to disguise himself as a lady. It’s interesting how Cloud and Tifa’s outfits can match in colors, fabrics and details:

These are the OG canon outfits. To get this combination the player has to choose the Mature dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and complete Chocobo Sam odd jobs in Chapter 9. The odd jobs depend on the answers given at Wall Market: if the player prefers Tifa probably Cloud will get this dress. The CANON dress. 

To get the satin outfits the player has to choose the Sporty dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and complete Madam M odd jobs in Chapter 9. Same logic: if the player prefers Aerith, probably this will be Cloud’s dress.

For this last combination the player has to choose the Exotic dress for Tifa in Chapter 3, and skip the sidequests in Chapter 9.

It reminded me how Cloud and Tifa’s outfits perfectly match also in Adven Children.

The choice of Aerith’s dress depends on how many Odd Jobs in Chapter 8 were completed:

6 sidequests: red dress

3-5 sidequests: long pink dress

0-2 sidequests: short pink dress

They don’t match with Cloud or Tifa’s, but her two new dresses are pink and also the train of the OG red dress has a lighter shade...

Do you remember the promise she shared with Zack in Crisis Core?

(Yes, I edited the picture. No I didn’t alter the meaning. Link for the whole scene).

These details are AMAZING 💗

What a coincidence!

FFVII AFFECTION MECHANICS LIST

Probably this article was better suited for Valentine's day but I'm not well known for my perfect timing... :)

I thought it could be useful to have a full list of the OG variables that affect the date mechanics, a description of the actual Remake mechanics and the differences between the two games all in one post.

I had initially planned to add here also the Wall Market dress mechanics but this post is long enough and the Remake dresses are just so amazing that they absolutely deserve their own post and my complete devotion💖

So...Let’s get to the list!  

OG AFFECTION POINTS

A reminder before reading:

Not all the optional choices of the game affect the scores.

Not all the optional choices that affect the score are mandatory.

Only four characters are associated to the affection mechanics and they start the game with different pre-set scores: Aerith 50, Tifa 30, Yuffie 10*, Barret 0. Aerith and Tifa are the most probable outcomes for the date.

The two main events influenced by the affection points are the Gold Saucer date and the scene under the Highwind. The charcter who has the highest score will spend a night with Cloud at the Gold Saucer; the dialogue between Cloud and Tifa before the final battle will be more explicitly romantic if Tifa has at least 50 points.

The characters are not in competition with each others, most of the choices affect the points of just one character at a time and sometimes they even affect uniformly more than a character. As a general rule, the points increase when Cloud tries to be a kind person and decrease when he's willfully mean.

The outcomes for the date and the HW scene can be different: it's not necessary to achieve Tifa's date to get the high affection HW scene, nor dating Aerith automatically triggers the low affection version. It is perfectly possible to get both Aerith's date and the high affection scene with Tifa.

MIDGAR:

1. On the train after the attack at the Reactor No. 1, when Jessie tells Cloud about the IDs:

Jessie: I know! Next time, I'll give you one I made myself.

"Thanks anyway" (No change)

"Looking forward to it" (-3 Tifa)

2. [Optional] At 7th Heaven, if Cloud bought Aerith's flower:

Tifa: But...A flower for me? Oh Cloud, you shouldn't have... - Cloud: No big.

"Give it to Tifa" (+5 Tifa)

"Give it to Marlene" (+5 Barret)

3. [Optional] If Cloud talks to Tifa when she's behind the bar:

Tifa: Sit down. How about......something to drink?

"I don't feel like it" (No change)

"Give me something hard" (+5 Tifa)

4. When Cloud tries to leave Seventh Heaven:

Tifa: So! You're really leaving !? You're just going to walk right out ignoring your childhood friend !? - Cloud: What......?

"How can you say that!" (+5 Tifa)

"...Sorry" (No change)

5. [Optional] The morning of the attack on the No. 5 Reactor:

Tifa: Good Morning! Cloud! Did you sleep well?

"Next to you, who wouldn't?" (+5 Tifa)

"Barret's snoring kept me up..." (+5 Barret)

6. On the way to the Reactor 5, getting through the train without being caught by the security system

Succeed (+5 Tifa, +5 Barret)

Fail (No change)

7. When Cloud is hanging after the explosion of the Airbuster in the Reactor 5:

Barret: Hey, you gonna be awright?

"(Be strong)" (+2 Barret)

"(I don't know if I can hold on)" (-3 Barret, +1 Tifa)

8. After falling in Aerith's church, when the girl is trying to run away from Reno:

Push a wrong barrel (-3 Aerith)

Tell her to fight the troopers (-1 Aerith)

Tell her to run (No change)

Tell her to run, but she has to fight (-1 Aerith)

Push the right barrel (+1 Aerith)

9. At Aerith's house, when Cloud says he wants to go back to Sector 7:

"No way!" (+1 Aerith)

Aerith: Is Tifa......a girl? - Cloud: Yeah. - Aerith: A girl...friend? - Cloud: Girlfriend?

"Yeah, that's right" (-5 Aerith)

10. When Cloud and Aerith are going to split up after getting to Sector 7 gate:

Cloud: Thanks. I guess this is goodbye. You gonna be all right going home? Aerith: Oh no! 'What ever will I do!?' ...isn't that what you want me to say?

"See her home." (No change)

"Go on to Sector 7" (+1 Aerith)

11a. [Wall Market option A] Talking to Aerith if Tifa is chosen as Don Corneo's bride

"You alright?" (+3 Aerith)

"We gotta help Tifa!" (-2 Aerith)

11b. [Wall Market option B] Talking to Tifa if Aerith is chosen as Don Corneo's bride

"You alright?" (-2 Tifa)

"We gotta help Aerith!" (+3 Tifa)

11c. [Optional] [Wall Market option C] If Cloud is chosen as Don Corneo's bride and acts hesitant

Don Corneo: You don't like me? There...there isn't someone else, is there?

No, only you (No change)

Yes, his name's Barret... (+5 Barret)

12. When Corneo throws the group in the sewer:

Talk to Aerith first (+3 Aerith)

Talk to Tifa first (+3 Tifa)

13. [Optional] After the plate fall, if Cloud talks to Marlene at Aerith's house:

Marlene: Guess what? Guess what? Aerith was asking me lots of questions. Like what kind of person Cloud is. I bet she likes you, Cloud!

"I don't know" (+3 Tifa, -3 Aerith)

"Let's hope so" (-3 Tifa, +3 Aerith)

14. At Shinra HQ, after meeting Red XIII and before fighting Sample H0512:

Cloud: We'll take care of that monster. Somebody take Aerith somewhere safe...

"Tifa, I'm countin' on you!" (-2 Tifa)

"Barret, take care of her!" (+2 Barret)

15. When party splits up to escape Shinra HQ:

Cloud: If all five of us go together, we'll be noticed. Let's break up in two groups.

Whoever is in the party gets a +2 boost

16. [Optional] Talking to Tifa in the jail (this option can be repeated indefinitely):

Tifa: Psst (Can we get out?)

"Leave it to me" (+1 Tifa)

"Kinda hard" (-1 Tifa)

17. In the jail, when Cloud thinks about the other party members:

I wonder how [Barret/Aerith/Red XIII] is doing

The first one gets a +3 boost (no change for Red XIII)

The second one gets a +1 boost (no change for Red XIII)

No change for the last one

18. After leaving Midgar:

Barret: ^#$^%......awright. Go Northeast to a town called Kalm. If something happens, we'll meet up there. 'Sides, we can't have 5 people strolling down the fields. It's too dangerous. Split us into 2 parties...

Whoever is chosen to join the party gets a +1 boost (no change for Red XIII)

KALM

19. After Cloud's flashback when Barret decides to leave the Inn:

Barret: Yo, Cloud! Let's get a move on!

"Right" (+1 Barret)

"Wait a sec" (Barret talks again) -> "Beautiful, just beautiful" (+3 Barret)

"Wait a sec" (Barret talks again) -> "Is that all?" (-1 Barret)

20. [Optional] If talking to the woman on the first floor of the house next to the Inn (the points change only if the characters are in the party. The dialogue can happen at any time before the GS dates):

Thanks to Mako energy, life's pretty darn convenient. Thanks to Shinra. Don't you think?

"Yeah, maybe" (-2 Barret, -1 Aerith, -1 Tifa, +1 Yuffie)

"You're full of it" (+2 Barret, +1 Aerith, +1 Tifa, -1 Yuffie)

21. [Optional] If talking to the woman on the second floor of the house next to the Inn (the points change only if the characters are in the party. The dialogue can happen at any time before the GS dates):

Mako energy's made things a lot more convenient......But seems like a lot of plants and animals have been disappearing at a rapid pace. I think the old life was better. Don't you think so?

"Yeah, maybe" (+2 Barret, +1 Aerith, +1 Tifa, -1 Yuffie)

"No way" (-2 Barret, -1 Aerith, -1 Tifa, +1 Yuffie)

FORT CONDOR

22. [Optional] If Cloud is the party leader and talks to the old guy (the choices affect everyone, even if the party hasn't recruited Yuffie yet):

It appears you have a problem with Shinra, too. After all, you climbed up here. Why not listen to what I have to say for a moment?

"I guess so" (+5 Barret, +3 Aerith, +3 Tifa, +2 Yuffie)

"Not interested" (-5 Barret, -3 Aerith, -3 Tifa, -1 Yuffie)

23. [Optional] After the old guy tells Cloud about his problem (the choices affect everyone, even if the party hasn't recruited Yuffie yet):

What do you think? You want to join us in our fight?

"All right" (+5 Barret, +3 Aerith, +3 Tifa, +2 Yuffie)

"Not interested" (-5 Barret, -3 Aerith, -3 Tifa, -1 Yuffie)

*MEETING YUFFIE

[Optional] The player can repeat the recruiting dialogue as many times as they want. Recruiting Yuffie on the first try will grant her 10 points, failing and repeating it will increase her points up to a max of 30 points (+2 for every correct answer).

CARGO SHIP

24. [Optional] Talking to Yuffie who asks for Tranquillizers for her motion sickness:

"Here, use this" (+4 Yuffie)

"Nope" (-2 Yuffie)

25. Talking to Aerith about the Highwind:

Aerith: That was REALLY something. Hey, do you think I could get on it?

"I'll take you someday" (+2 Aerith)

"I dunno..." (-2 Aerith)

26. Talking to Tifa about the war:

Tifa: ...But, you know what? I really hate this uniform. Uniforms, soldiers, war, I hate 'em all. They take away all the things and people you love... I wish they'd all disappear. Right, Cloud?

"Yeah..." (+2 Tifa)

"I don't know" (-2 Tifa)

GOLD SAUCER

27. After Barret leaves the group, Cloud can choose a partner. The choice will affect the score of the FIRST character he'll interact with. Only if the player declines Red XIII they'll still be able to affect one of the girls' score. If the player doesn't pick anybody, the character with the highest score will join him and the points won't be affected (Red XIII will join instead of Barret):

Go together (+3)

Don't go together (-2)

COREL PRISON

28. The character chosen to accompany Cloud and Barret to fight Dyne:

Cloud: So there it is, Barret. So I guess it'll be Barret, me, and......

(+10 Aerith, +3 Tifa, +2 Yuffie, no change Red XIII)

GONGAGA

29. [Optional] After meeting Zack's parents:

Cloud can talk to Tifa and/or Aerith (if they are in the party).

Ignore them (-3 Aerith / -3 Tifa)

Talk with Tifa (+1 Tifa)

Talk with Aerith -> "Poor guy" (+1 Aerith)

Talk with Aerith -> "(...jealous...envious...)" (+2 Aerith)

COSMO CANYON

30. [Optional] During the first visit the party splits up. If Barret was in the party Cloud can have a conversation with him:

Barret: There was this guy who studied 'Planetary Life' here. He couldn't take things the way they were, so he went to Midgar to form AVALANCHE. Wanna hear more?

Not really (no change)

"Go on" (additional dialogue) -> "And then" (Barret +6)

"Go on" (additional dialogue) -> "Yeah, whatever..." (Barret +3)

WUTAI

31. [Optional] Completing the first quest in Wutai until Yuffie returns the stolen Materia (Yuffie +10)

***

REMAKE AFFECTION POINTS

Even though the Remake covers just the Midgar section, the developers payed homage to the Gold Saucer dates including a beautiful "Resolution scene" at the beginning of Chapter 14, where Aerith, Tifa or Barret will appear and talk to Cloud.

What determines the optional cutscene this time is the number of side quests completed during Chapter 3 and Chapter 8, namely the two chapters spent building up Cloud's merc reputation with Tifa and with Aerith.

The Remake affection mechanics are very simple: 

Aerith and Tifa start as equals. 

The player can complete 6 Odd Jobs and 1 final Discovery Quest, each one granting to the related girl +2 points. 

The girl Cloud will interact first after landing in the sewers will gain an additional +1 point that will eventually serve as tiebreaker. 

As you can guess, the girl with the highest score will lead the optional cutscene but if both girls have less than 5 points then Barret's scene will be unlocked.

PERSONAL THOUGHTS:

The Remake affection mechanics are significantly different from those of the OG. Funnily enough some free-answer dialogues still exist, however not only they don't affect the score but they're also illusory choices as the plot is very linear (see below).

The Remake mechanics are less romance-based. Sure, accomplishing the side quests can be seen as Cloud spending valuable time with the girls, anyway they spend the day doing rough and mundane activities like defeat monsters, rescue kids and search for cats. The focus will always be to improve Cloud's reputation as a reliable merc. Moreover, it doesn’t really make sense to consider Barret as being positively impressed by Cloud refusing to help people in need. 

While in the original Cloud can have just one date and one of the two versions of the Highwind scene, the Resolution scenes are not mutually exclusive and it's perfectly possible that all of them take place during the same night.

***

OG AND REMAKE COMPARISON

Most of the situations linked to the affection points in the OG changed or were left out from the Remake. In general Remake-Cloud tends to be kind with both Aerith and Tifa and by the end of the game his relationship with Barret improves as well. 

This is perhaps a controversial question, but what is your stance on Tetsuya Nomura's writing? There are people who claim he is a bad writer, yet either don't provide concrete evidence or give feedback fueled mostly by ad hominem attacks. All stories need critique, but in terms of a largr audience, people seem to resort to insulting Nomura's work more often than actually provide constructive criticism, going so far as saying he's trying to destroy his own work than save it--a very bold statement. Unfortunately, this stigma's carried over to the Final Fantasy 7 fanbase, and people are blaming Nomura and perpetuating the narrative that he's changing the story. Yet these people seem to ignore not only their interviews, but also who the main writer of the Final Fantasy 7 Compilation actually is. Anyway, sorry if this is a controversial ask, but I'd love to hear your thoughts since you have a sharp perspective on things like this!

Not a problem at all, it’s definitely something that people bring up often in both the FF and Kingdom Hearts circles.

As you said, a story will always have some criticism launched its way, but the commentary here goes beyond that. It’s people trying to assess authorial intent by dismissing the facts. Both FF7 and KH are written by more people than Nomura himself—these are projects that take multiple inputs and creative minds to create when it comes to the more story-beat parts of the game, certain interviews even point out who influenced/created certain decisions. It’s always a group effort, even if the designated people have a final say in approval. It doesn’t detract from the creative endeavors of all other individuals involved.

But, him being the Director, people want to blame someone, if not blaming the entirety of the company. This is what people are doing with their issues founded on localization as well—they’re either venting all their frustrations towards one person (Sabin), or the company as a whole. It never means that actual critique is unfounded, but people need to do it in a way that actually makes sense and is  rational—that’s what makes it “constructive”. The visions for these games go beyond just one person, and if we want to look at them critically, we need to do so that goes beyond that as well.

I wouldn’t classify my issues with the writing of either series as “Nomura’s problem”, I’d just be more specific about what issue it is for me in the series and concentrate on it as itself. Because I know mine don’t come down to be “his issue” so specifically. The only reason I’d ever go beyond that is if there was some evidence that my specific issue DID come from him or a specific person, then I’d talk about it in addition to the problem itself. I know there are people fully blaming Nomura for the changes in FF7R, literally ignoring the interviews that talk about both Nomura and Hamaguchi being limiters to the numerous potential ideas proposed for the game, especially from Kitase who wanted big changes. And even then, Hamaguchi was the one who wanted the players to fight Sephiroth at the end of Midgar, something else fans often complain about.

There’s a reason that in all these interviews they all speak on decisions as “we”. It’s a collective. Whatever is allowed [green-lit] by Directors or Co-Directors shows there’s a common mindset and acceptance amongst a team working together. Though, I don’t feel it ever should be the equivalent of this single person blame game that doesn’t really hit at what the problem actually is.

Beautiful in every universe

Shepherd of Memories (Reaper Aerith concept)