FF VII Remake
The Arcanum · Complete Field Guide

Final Fantasy VII Remake

Remake · Intergrade

The first chapter of the remake trilogy — the escape from Midgar, retold in full. Real-time action fused with the ATB bar, the pressure-and-stagger loop, Materia, and a per-weapon upgrade system. This is the foundation that FF VII Rebirth builds on.

Remake trilogy: Remake (this guide) · Rebirth · Revelation (Spring 2027)

Editions

Remake vs Intergrade

Final Fantasy VII Remake (2020, PS4) is the core game — Cloud, AVALANCHE, and the expanded Midgar escape through the plate collapse. Intergrade (2021 on PS5; later PC/Steam) is the definitive package: the full Remake story plus INTERmission (the Yuffie & Sonon episode), Fort Condor, PS5 performance upgrades, and photo mode. INTERmission was also sold separately on some platforms if you already owned base Remake.

This guide covers both. Whether you started on PS4 Remake or bought Intergrade on PS5/PC, every page applies — see Intergrade, Missables & Tips for the Yuffie episode and what’s unique to that release.

Start Here

Core systems at a glance

  • Action + ATB. You move and attack in real time to fill ATB segments, then spend them on abilities, spells and items. Tactical Mode slows time to a crawl while you pick a command — the heart of good play.
  • Pressure → Stagger. Exploit weaknesses and the right tactics to Pressure an enemy, which fills the stagger gauge faster; a full gauge Staggers them for a big damage window. Everything funnels into that window.
  • Materia is the build system. Mako orbs slotted into weapons/armor, with linked slots for Support combos (Elemental, Magnify, Magic Efficiency). Five types: Magic, Support, Command, Complete, Summon.
  • Per-weapon upgrades, not a Folio. Each character has several weapons; each carries a Weapon Ability you learn permanently (via Proficiency) and an SP-based upgrade tree. This is different from Rebirth's shared Folio.
  • Hard Mode is the real endgame — no items, no MP regen on benches. It gates the best manuscripts and the Pride and Joy superboss (for Gotterdammerung). Intergrade adds the Yuffie INTERmission episode.
The Guide

Where do you want to go?

The System

Combat, Materia & Weapons

ATB and Tactical Mode, the stagger loop, the Materia combos, and the weapon/SP upgrade trees.

Open → The Party

Characters & Builds

Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Aerith (and Yuffie) — each one's role, mechanic, and build.

Open → Enemy Intel

Bosses, Hard Mode & Pride and Joy

The major boss fights, the Hard Mode plan, and the VR superboss for Gotterdammerung.

Open → Field Notes

Intergrade, Missables & Tips

The Yuffie episode, manuscripts, music discs, the dress events, and durable advice.

Open →
Go Deeper

Sources & further reading

We distill the essentials in our own words from the game's data. For exhaustive detail and anything that shifts with a patch, these are the references worth a bookmark: