FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE on PC Review

Initial release date: Devember 16, 2021

Developers: Square Enix, Square Enix First Development Division

Publisher: Square Enix,

Series: Final Fantasy

Platform: PlayStation 5, PC (Epic Games Store)

Composers: Nobuo Uematsu, Masashi Hamauzu

Genres: Action role-playing game

"Review Copy Provided by Square Enix"

Releasing in the same year that the PlayStation 5 upgraded edition, Final Fantasy VII Remake looks to take PC players by storm even if it may not be on the primary platform of choice for many gamers which is STEAM. The PC port comes with a few key differences from the PS5 version yet doesn’t give you the robust set of options one would expect of a console title going to PC. I can safely say that it is well optimized for PC and runs often without a hitch or performance issues. You get both the base Final Fantasy Remake game and the Intermission expansion from the PS5 version that are selectable from the main menu.

If you want a full detailed review of the game, then refer to my review of the PS5 Intergrade version HERE.

I ran the game on my Desktop that has an RTX 3070 rocking a i7 10700K with 32GB of DDR4 3200MHz on at 4K 120FPS with HDR settings all maxed out to 10 and on my gaming laptop which is an ASUS ROG M16 with a RTX 3060 rocking an i9 11900H 16GB of DDR4 3200MHz at 1440P 120FPS with both machines having Windows 11. There aren’t any DLSS options if you’re on an Intel rig nor are there any SuperFX options if you’re running an AMD setup. What baffles me is the fact that instead of having a plethora of display options to tweak and tons of accessibility options that you can easily configure to get the best experience for your setup, you’re left with only two options being “Windowed” or Borderless” along with your resolution settings and framerate settings.

There are no options for being able to take advantage of an ultrawide display so if you’re like me and have an ultrawide, then you’ll be left with a central image with black bars on the left and right side s of the screen which is extremely disappointing. The graphics running at 4K look amazing especially with HDR turned on, however, just like the console ports, there are many textures and assets that look rough if not downright terrible and blurry which will make you realize this was a game built for the PS4 in mind and not the current generation.

There is no way for me to test this game on all PC configurations, but again the game is so well optimized that you can expect it to work well on almost any setup running a GTX 1060 and up. I have heard and seen reviews where the game was bashed for its performance and lack of customization and yet I haven’t run into any performance issues whatsoever.

When it comes to controls, you have the options to either play the game with a traditional controller or even a with a Keyboard and Mouse combo. Which is better? Well, that’s truly up to you and how you prefer to game. Personally, I find the standard controller setup to be the most comfortable as I was playing this game with the PowerA FUSION Pro II Controller and utilized the ability to custom map actions to the back paddles of the controller.

So, is this the definitive way to play Final Fantasy VII Remake? If you don’t have access to PS5 or PS4 then yes, it is a great way to experience one of the best games of the previous generation. If you played it on PS4 or PS4 Pro and haven’t experienced the vastly upgraded version on PS5 then this is a must play. If you have this on PS5 already then aside from being able to run it at 4K 120FPS with HDR; there isn’t much incentive to buy this version of the game unless you just prefer to play it on PC. This is a very basic by the books port with no frills or fanfare which is unfortunate when it could’ve been so much more.