(This should be obvious, but this list contains massive spoilers)
I’m a big “moments” guy. I love to look back on the best moments from a year in video games and rank them, and think about them. It is one of my favorite lists to make each year (you can see my 2023 list here!)
I knew that Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth was going to have tons of great story moments, so I decided before I started it that I would try and rank my ten favorites at the end for a blog post. I played the game with a notepad nearby for whenever I felt like something great was happening.
When I was a little over halfway through the game, I realized that I already had something like fifteen moments written down. And the idea of talking about big moments from the game and not talking about some of these seemed impossible to me. Thus, this became a top 25 list.
I hope you enjoy, and feel free to comment any thoughts in the comment section below!
25. Sephiroth Kills Aerith
This is one of only two moments from Chapter 14 on this list. I’ll use this to also talk about the last few hours as a whole.
While I absolutely love this game (I’m about to talk about 25 freaking moments from one video game!), the ending fell flat for me. Essentially, with all of the realities that seem to be flipping around, and Cloud apparently losing his mind, I felt like I couldn’t trust anything I saw for the entire last two hours of the game. Aerith appears to get saved here, but then she isn’t. Then she comes back later, and then once again, she is gone. Aerith dying should have been a very emotional moment. The game set everything up perfectly in Remake with the team essentially breaking free of fate. Her death might have hit even harder this time since you had this thread of hope that they might spare her.
But in the end, I wasn’t really sure if Aerith was actually dead until the final cutscene of the game. At that point, the moment just lost all of its emotional resonance because it never really happens in a climatic way.
Despite me not loving this, there is still a complete rush that fills your gut when you see Sephiroth descending on Aerith in the same manner as he did in the original Final Fantasy 7. I won’t forget that tension, even if the payoff left me disappointed.
24. The Intro: Injured Cloud and Crew
Near the beginning of the game, you see news footage of the chaos that ensued after the attack on Shinra Headquarters and the battle with the whispers.
The game then cuts to Cloud, and the others all looking incapacitated to some extent. Obviously, we know that the crew got out in the original game. This gets you going “Hmmm” from the very start of the game, and while not as emotional or beautiful as some other moments on the list, definitely created intrigue as to where things were going. It was a strong way to kick things off.
23. Red Enters The Queen’s Blood Tournament
Rebirth loves to find ways to insert its many minigames into the main story. It does this with its card game, Queen’s Blood, by having a tournament for everyone during the cruise ship section of the game. You get to play Queen’s Blood against most of your party members, which is pretty fun. The one man left out of the fray is Red XIII. He is barred from the tournament for being an animal, which leads to a pretty hilarious scene where he essentially demands to speak to a manager, full-blown Karen style.
I thought that was it for the gag, but then, after winning the tournament, Red shows back up dressed as a Shinra trooper and pulls off some sick dance moves before challenging you again. It’s an especially funny moment since Red is generally the most straight-laced of anyone in the group. Despite being a very serious game in so many ways, Rebirth also loves to be ridiculous, and this was one of the most prime examples of that.
Also, this moment was kind of a hint at another big moment to come, which makes it even more fun in retrospect.
22. Playing the Piano Well For the First Time
The first time I tried the piano minigame out in Rebirth, I felt a little overwhelmed. It is very joystick based and quite tricky. It’s not like any rhythm minigame I have ever personally played.
After a few tries, it started clicking. And when you start cooking in this minigame, it really does somehow capture the feeling of playing an instrument. I think using the joysticks instead of just the standard buttons makes it weirdly more immersive in a way I can’t explain.
Also, the music in this game is so good that having the feeling of “playing” pieces that are this beautiful is undeniably satisfying. If you struggled early on with the piano, keep going because once you master it, it is a really special feeling.
21. Entering The Gold Saucer The First Time
I feel like this moment hits hardest if you played the original game. I loved the Gold Saucer in Final Fantasy 7, and finally getting there was incredibly exciting.
The game isn’t too shabby at making it an awesome moment on its own, too. It has a spectacular cutscene as the crew goes in, complete with fireworks and everyone looking on in amazement. You feel the wonder through their own wonder. From there, it quickly transitions into a crazy dance scene, basically establishing how over the top this place is going to be. The Gold Saucer more than lived up to the hype I had for it going in, and this cutscene is part of the reason why.
20. Avalanche Discusses Going to Cosmo Canyon
One of the biggest accomplishments from Remake was truly making you care about Jesse, Biggs, and Wedge. They were complete throw away characters in the original, but this time around, they are fully fleshed out characters.
Remake ends up killing off Jesse and Wedge. When they died in the original game, it wasn’t even a moment. This time around, it was a huge gut punch. After the emotional ride with these characters, it feels nostalgic in a weird way to just see all of them interacting again in a casual, fun way.
To top it off, seeing Tifa and Barrett reminisce, and Britt Baron’s perfectly bittersweet delivery of “Look guys, we made it” sends this moment to another level, and made it one of several involving the old Avalanche crew that I will carry with me.
19. The Festival of Lights
While the star of Cosmo Canyon is Red XIII, it is also a place where Aerith sees significant character development. The Festival of Lights is a small but lovely moment where Aerith reflects on her journey with being a Cetra in a place that can actually understand what that means (without trying to experiment on her). It’s easy to forget that Aerith has never really had an avenue to talk about this in a healthy way.
If you choose to encourage her as Cloud, it just makes this moment even better as you see the connection between them grow.
Then the game treats you to some gorgeous visuals as the ceremony begins. The lamps blend in with the night sky while perfect music plays. It’s a beautiful visual moment, and the character development beforehand makes it even better.
18. Colosseum Rap Song
This moment came out of absolute nowhere and had me and my wife laughing constantly the whole time it was on.
Before a big arena battle in the colosseum, the crew’s ally Dio takes the mic and starts giving a boring, drawn-out speech about his history, when out of nowhere, new music hits. All of a sudden, Don Corneo’s lackeys arrive and start delivering the most random and hilarious troll rap of all time. It’s really the epitome of “it’s so bad, it’s good”. Often, I know a video game moment is something special when my wife starts really paying attention to what is going on, and she was all in on this rap from start to finish. She even wanted to watch it again. Once again, this game really has some incredible moments where it doesn’t take itself seriously at all, which is one of the best things about it. They clearly had a lot of fun with this, and it shows.
17. Barrett Reflects on Marlene Growing Up
This is the rare top-tier moment in the game that doesn’t happen during a cutscene. While you are in the middle of a side quest following a dog, Barrett starts talking about his daughter Marlene and his dreams for letting her shine in this world. He talks about how he doesn’t want to hold her back and wants to truly let her pursue her dreams.
Then, as the quest goes on, Barrett starts to question himself and starts to wonder if he is going to actually hold Marlene back. The delivery by John Eric Bentley is absolutely hilarious here. And as a dad myself, I really enjoyed hearing Barrett struggle thinking about his young daughter’s future. It’s a funny moment, but also wholesome and relatable. This is one of several moments in the game that makes me say “Rebirth is for the dads.”
16. Cloud and His Shinra Soldier Buddies
After sneaking into Junon and comically becoming the leader of a Shinra parade platoon, chaos happens in the city after Yuffie attempts to assassinate Rufus Shinra. Cloud tries to break free of his platoon, but he has won over their hearts, and now a troop of five guys is following him into battle. It’s amazing how attached you end up feeling to this crew, especially considering they are technically your enemies.
This all culminates amazingly at the end, when the group of soldiers asks Cloud why he keeps trying to duck him, and accuses him of being a traitor. Cloud gets ready to sorrowfully strike them down before they reveal they were just joking and that they completely trust Cloud. They also told him they understand that he has to go his own way, so they let him go. As you go on the elevator and part ways, they hold a salute. It’s legitimately emotional as you descend and slowly watch them disappear. These guys are with Shinra, but they somehow were your friends. I’ll always miss them and wonder what happened to them. And I felt so damn happy that I didn’t have to wreck them.
15. Zack and Cloud Team Up As SOLDIERS For the First Time
The only other moment from Chapter 14 that I have on here. While Zack and Cloud have fought together before in theory, it was never like this, with Cloud as a complete badass on Zack’s level. It’s fun in particular to hear Zack’s little comments about Cloud like “whoa, look at you taking charge!”. Zack doesn’t even realize he is being kind of condescending, and it’s hilarious. I think what really topped the moment off for me is when Zack ends up fighting alone, he can still use a synergy attack involving Cloud via the lifestream or alternate realities… or something.
Either way, it’s fun, and I’m looking forward to the third game potentially exploring a new dynamic between these two heroes.
14. Gold Cup/Ending With Chocobo Sam
This is a side quest story that starts building almost from the second you step into the open world. You meet Billy early on at a Chocobo farm, and our old friend Chocobo Sam is brought up right away. Billy hates him for “killing his parents.” If you played Remake, you’d know that would be unlikely.
Finally, it all comes down to facing off with Sam’s rider in the Chocobo Gold Cup in your attempt to get Billy his revenge. This in and of itself is an awesome moment. The Chocobo Racing in Rebirth is shockingly a lot of fun. And the Gold Cup Courses are just the perfect difficulty. I struggled at first, but when I finally won, it felt amazing.
And then, finally, the payoff to the storyline, where Sam reveals the truth about the death of Billy’s parents. It’s sad stuff, and then you get to see Billy’s resolve to continue his parents’ business. A perfect culmination to a very fun side quest arc.
13. Wutai Declares War
I just love how raw they made this moment. The voice acting delivery is so grim, the thrown together set, the staticy video feed, the music, it all fits this “resistance” movement of sorts so perfectly.
It’s super intense, and it has you quickly wondering how this will affect the world as a whole. I think playing the Intermission DLC also helped enhance this one a lot for me, as it made Wutai feel more like a real place since you get to hear so much about it through Yuffie. This is a moment that will continue to have plot implications in the third game, and this set that up fantastically.
12. Roche Turns Into a Black Robed Man
This moment is so damn eerie. It is absolutely unsettling. This essentially resembles a moment that happens in many zombie movies, but with less flesh eating. The part that really takes it to the next level is the quick realization that this could also become Cloud’s future.
Cloud looks down, trying to cope with this, when his friends come to pull him out of it.
Because all the robed men look so similar, it was tough to even imagine Cloud actually turning into one. Roche’s long blonde hair showing through the robe also just kind of makes this moment hit harder. It humanizes the black robes in a way that they hadn’t been yet. It’s kind of a play off another classic zombie trope when the lead character finally notices someone they actually know as a zombie. Zombie media is big for a reason. That stuff hits hard.
11. Aerith Communicates With The Lifestream
This moment is just absolutely enchanting. This is the kind of moment that would just sort of stop you in your tracks if you were walking by a TV and this was playing. The animation, the choreography, the music, it’s all so alluring. And it’s such an important moment, too, as this is when the crew really started standing a chance against Sephiroth, as Aerith starts to get in touch with her inner Cetra.
If you have played Final Fantasy X, this moment also undeniably has a Yuna style feel to it. That makes it even more intriguing. It kind of feels like the developers having some fun to make a few people on Reddit go absolutely wild with speculation, which is awesome in its own right.
10. Tifa Reflects on Jesse
This moment comes from absolute nowhere to sucker punch you right in the feelings. As I discussed earlier, one of the biggest strengths of Remake is that they made the Avalanche crew a set of real characters. As you walk through a theater area with Tifa (I got her for the chapter 8 date), all of a sudden, she stops and notices one of the posters on the wall. It’s freaking Jessie! As established in the first game, she used to be an actress.
Tifa then reflects on Jesse and how much she helped her in Midgar. Britt Baron’s delivery is so absolutely perfect here. It’s tender and heartbreaking. There are some other Avalanche flashbacks later in this game, but this was the first time they had really talked about Jesse in Rebirth, and it made her loss sting all over again.
This moment also helps set up one of my top three moments in the game, but we will get to that in a bit.
9. Cloud Pushes Tifa into the Mako/Tifa Flashbacks/Cloud and Tifa Have a Moment
Phew, this is a long “moment”, but it’s a tricky one to separate. Part one involves Cloud once again losing his mind a bit, but this time going the furthest he ever has with it and pushing Tifa into some mako in Gongaga. This leads Tifa on a strange and emotional journey, where she sees a giant fight involving Sephiroth and whispers, and then also takes her through some memorable moments from her past.
It finally ends with Cloud and Tifa reunited in a room in Gongaga. Despite being the one who just went through a lot of shit, Tifa immediately has to become the strong one, as Cloud starts opening up about all that he is going through. This seems to be leading into a kiss… when they realize that Yuffie is listening in on them, and they hilarious open the door on them. This was a memorable series of events, and once again established Tifa as a fantastic, multilayered character in ways that the original game never could. If you end up getting Tifa on the Skywheel date later on, it’s a great tease that builds up to that moment as well.
8. Vincent Valentine’s Introduction
We had a moment straight from a zombie movie, so why not one from a vampire movie as well?
This moment is so over the top and tense, and it is such a perfect introduction for Vincent. The eerie music and atmosphere pull you in fast, and, of course, the random coffin quickly catches your attention. Vincent’s entrance from the coffin is cool as hell, and Matthew Mercer absolutely nails the voice.
The intensity goes to another level when things start to go south, and Vincent has a gun pointed at the crew. Vincent makes a cryptic reference to a past with Sephiroth that piques your interest as well. It all builds a lot of anticipation to see more of this guy, and it feels like a moment that surpasses anything from most vampire movies and TV shows. I thought they nailed Vincent in Rebirth, and I’m excited to see more of him in the next game.
7. Nanaki Returns Home
This moment brings such a fun mix of emotions to the table. It’s joyful, it’s wholesome, it’s funny, and it’s completely shocking.
Let’s talk about the big one first, the voice change. We hear Red XIII talk with this more teenage voice a few times through eavesdropping, but it is never explained at all. It is clear that this is building up to something, but I wasn’t sure what.
The second the crew gets to Red’s hometown, he immediately stops using his “wise” voice and switches to his real voice. We also learn his real name, which is Nanaki. I love that they teased this voice change early on in the game, as I think it would be insanely off-putting otherwise. It is still a shocking moment, but it’s not a complete “what the fuck” moment like it would have been without it.
Nanaki’s purity and enthusiasm are so wholesome, as his tail is wagging like crazy because he is so happy to be home. Barrett making fun of his new voice tops the moment off in a great way. Apparently, this voice change dynamic was made pretty clear in the original Japanese version of the game, but either way, having it actually voice acted makes everything here come together so much better.
I also absolutely love that it is Max Mittelman doing both of Nanaki’s voices. This was a great moment, and it is also the start of understanding who Nanaki as a character actually is. To this point, we were fed a lie, and now the true Nanaki arc begins.
6. The Individual Trials
There aren’t tons of Chapter 13 moments on this list, even though it is easily one of my favorite chapters in the game. It is mostly an amazing dungeon filled with perfect music, visuals, and challenging combat encounters. There aren’t tons of “moments,” but the best one is easily when everyone but Cloud is forced to undergo individual trials.
These trials mostly end up being cutscenes with every character reliving the worst moment of their life. There are a lot of individual moments, but it’s all so rapid fire with no build up, that I felt like it all belonged together.
As you can imagine, witnessing multiple deaths relived back to back to back means taking one gut punch after another. Although, I will say, with how quick it all happens, it starts to dampen some of the impact, but certainly not most of it.
They are all hard to watch. I think without the voice change revealing how much of a kid Nanaki still is, his moment of getting dragged onto Hojo’s operating table wouldn’t have been as terrifying. But knowing the truth pushes even the more “tame” moment into something completely devastating.
Seeing Barrett lose Myrna, who we hadn’t seen to that point, and Aerith lose her mother are probably the two “big” moments here, and those losses definitely hung with me long afterward. It would be almost impossible for most video games to have a sadder 30 minutes than this, but this isn’t even the saddest part of the whole game!
5. Tifa and Cloud Kiss On the Skywheel
This Skywheel date can go a lot of ways depending on your ranks with each character. Personally, I view having Tifa and Cloud at max rank to be by far the best way you can go. It makes the most sense narratively and has the best payoff of any date.
This part of the date is absolutely hilarious because it is so damn obvious what Tifa wants, and Cloud can’t seem to take a hint or is too scared to follow up on it. My wife happened to be watching and was absolutely losing her mind at Cloud the entire time. The best part is when he suddenly shifts the conversation to Aerith, unbelievably bad work by Cloud! (And that whole scene also gets you thinking more about the conversations Tifa and Aerith are having, but that is a different topic).
Finally, the payoff happens. You have fireworks in the background, and after all that build up, the right things happens. Cloud did absolutely nothing to earn that kiss, but good for him. It was still a fantastic moment and pay off to something that had a whole lot of build-up.
4. Setting Foot Into The Open World For the First Time
A lot of open world games want that one moment where you enter the world for the first time and are in absolute awe. Leaving the vault in Fallout games for the first time usually hits hard. Riding into the fields of Ghost of Tsushima is another incredible one. I would say entering the open world in Rebirth stands with some of the greatest open world moments of all time.
Of course, the game doesn’t throw you in right away. It probably takes close to 5 hours of gameplay before you can see it. And if you played Remake right before this, that was another 40 hours of being in a very cramped space. So after all that to suddenly be hit with this feeling of freedom was absolutely incredible. The fantastic music, the scope, and the sights have you in awe. And I can say that feeling never fully fades away. Even to the last world, I was struck with that feeling of wonder in spots. The open world was the main thing in this game that made me almost feel disbelief that this game exists and is as good as it is. So, while the intro moment is the one that takes the #4 spot, be aware that this is a moment that you will actually feel dozens of times over this 70+ hour journey.
3. Loveless
Generally, when Final Fantasy forays into the world of theater, musicals, and operas, it absolutely cooks. Loveless might be the greatest all time example of this.
Every element of this is so cool. I didn’t expect to be so into the opening dance number, but the choreography is so great, the music is so good, and of course, Jesse is the star which turns this moment from cool to very special. Tifa saying that she has never seen Jesse look more beautiful was an absolute tearjerker of a moment (this only happens if you are on a date with her. Once again, clearly the best option).
From there, it transitions into a play, and Cloud and crew are actually performing in it. Seeing Cloud, Barrett, and Red in funny costumes delivering serious dialogue in a cheesy way was absolutely hilarious. I hate that the QTEs interrupt so much of the action sequences, but it is still a lot of fun.
Then, the incredible finale, as Aerith comes out and sings “No Promises to Keep” with sensational vocals by Loren Allred. Just like Cloud in this scene, I felt stunned and absolutely transfixed during the entire song. While I don’t think this was quite as powerful as the top two moments, this might actually be the moment I’ve thought the most about since the game ended. The QTEs might be the only thing that kept this from my #1.
I feel like Loveless somehow captures the essence of what Rebirth is more than anything else on this list. It blends both the beautiful and absurd at the same time in an absolutely wonderful way. Loveless is going to be a timeless moment in the Final Fantasy universe.
2. Barrett and Dyne
I’m not sure if this is the saddest moment in all of video games, but it sure is a contender. This is so heartbreaking from start to finish. The games teases very brief moments where maybe things will turn around and end well, but it quickly smashes those thoughts down.
Barrett telling Dyne that he can see his daughter again, and Dyne going from feeling joy and pride to turning to grief and shame when he thinks about all the terrible things he has done, you just can’t come up with a more devastating scenario. Once again, as a dad in particular, it hurts even more.
Seeing Barrett try to come to grips with his past, and his friend changing into something that barely seems human is also just crushing. Then of course, Dyne not only dying, but falling on top of him to die, seemingly on purpose as one last bit of revenge, and Barrett’s heartbreaking scream. God damn. I wonder if they should have given this moment a few more minutes to stew before having an action scene force you to snap out of it, but it still does its job and then some either way.
I’m not sure if any other moment on this list is quite as impactful as this one is. I think the only reason I couldn’t put it at #1 is that this game as a whole is all about being uplifting, even through some truly terrible things. For example, when the world is potentially ending, and Cloud is out becoming a Chocobo racing pro. As crazy as this was, as well as it was built, as well as it was acted, I had a hard time making it #1, because it didn’t fit what I view as the overall spirit of the game. That doesn’t mean that it isn’t incredible and something that I will never forget.
1. Nanaki Returns to Seto
Nanaki is my favorite character, so maybe that is why I lean to this moment as #1, but I just truly, truly love it.
There is so much going on here. Nanaki realizing that Seto was actually a hero after thinking otherwise, and dealing with the guilt over not being strong enough when he died. Bugenhagen realizing the error of his ways, and delivering a hype speech on the level of any football coach to get Nanaki to continue his journey. And then Nanaki’s new resolve as he lets out a sad but powerful howl.
And of course, the peak moment is when tears stream down the face of a stone Seto, filled with pride at his grown son. Max Mittelman is so perfect here, and the music hits in all the right ways, just like it did in the original game.
I also love the touch of cutting to Barrett afterward and seeing him tear up watching the moment. After undergoing the trials with Nanaki, and Barrett obviously being able to relate to Seto as a father, it was so perfect to see his reaction.
It’s so sad, but so beautiful, and weirdly inspirational, and I feel like moments like this are some of the hardest to craft in any storytelling medium. It takes so much patience to build up to a moment like this, and they pulled it off. Unlike the Barrett and Dyne moment, we have a slightly more uplifting payoff, which makes it easier to rewatch on a whim without having to brace yourself. Nanaki has an absolutely perfect arc in Rebirth, and this is the perfect moment that encapsulates it all.
This moment hit hard when I played the original Final Fantasy 7 as a teenager, but it is on another level now. Part of it is because of the new production values, part of it is because of the voice acting, and part of it is because of my own life journey, and the fact that I am a dad now. It really is incredible how many moments in this game make me think about being a father. Like so many moments on this list, I think anyone can enjoy and appreciate this. But you don’t truly understand the weight of some of these moments until you understand what it is to love someone more than life itself. My teenage self never quite understood how much Seto’s stone tears meant, but I certainly do now. Rebirth is for the dads.
If you have any thoughts, comment below! I’d love to hear some opinions. Thank you so much for reading, and feel free to subscribe if you’d like my posts in your inbox. Posts are (almost) every Tuesday and Friday about my various thoughts on the video games I’m playing, and the world of video games as a whole.
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