Final Fantasy VII Beta

Japanese Release - 1997
USA Release - September 1997
Sony Playstation
3 CD- ROMs

PC Release - 1998
System Requirements -  Windows 95 Compatible, DirectX 5.0, Intel Pentium 133 with 3D accelorator (or Intel Pentium 166 without 3D accelorator), 32 MB RAM, 4X CD-ROM, Direct X 5.0 Compatible Sound and Video Cards
4 CD-ROMs (Including installation Disc)

      The New Age of Final Fantasy. 

Square shocked gamers around the world when Final Fantasy VII was originally scrapped as a release for the Nintendo 64... this was the point where all ties were broken between Square and Nintendo. Square gamers were then relieved when FF7 was slated for a release on the Sony Playstation. Gamers were once again shocked when the first previews of the game were released. Complete 3D graphics, astounding full motion videos, unique backgrounds... across 3 CD-ROMs! This was the new age of Final Fantasy, and at this point, the series took a role of being at the peak of technology, depending on its platform.

Although Final Fantasy 7 was impressive as a movie, it was somewhat boring to players as a game. Final Fantasy VII was definitely not one of Square's tougher games. In addition to the decrease in diffuculty, many key things were taken out of this game, namely the equipment. The theme is also very different from all of the other Final Fantasies, since the theme of this game is much more like the present time, and focuses on technology over mystics.

In Final Fantasy VIII, you'll be able to play as 10 characters (9 of them being at your true disposal). Each character has their own type of weapon. Cloud can only use those giant swords, Barret can only use guns, Cid can only use spears, etc... there are no weapons that can be used by more than 1 person. There are also fewer weapons overall. Armor is also an issue. There is only 1 armor piece in this game, which are Armlets in most cases. There are also accessories, and only one may be equipped at a time. In this, characters can only equip 3 items total.

The party setup is also different in FF7. You may only have 3 people in your party at a time. One of the people in your party MUST be Cloud Strife, besides certain circumstances. Besides Aeris, your characters are relatively the same as far as battle performance goes. There is hardly a difference between melee and magic capabilities.

Final Fantasy 7 introduced some new unique properties though. One of them is Materia. Materia is equipped on your weapon and armlet. The amount of Materia that can be equipped depends on the weapon/armlet. Materia is mainly used to enhance your capabilities. You can use new commands, new spells, new summons, and other statistics will be raised/lowered when Materia is used. They're very similar to the class system of FFV, and the spell system of FFVI. Another new attribute of FF7 are minigames. Throughout the game, you can snowboard, ride motorcycles, and even arm wrestle.

Although FF7 may not suit your need for challenge, it's still a very captivating game. The story is extremely interesting, and is comparable to reading a good, short book. The game also dealt a LOT with the characters that you could play. You could take a deep look into their feelings and personalities, even more than that of FFVI. 

It's suggested that you pick up this game sometime. It's still fun  to play :)