Final Fantasy 7 is one of the most ambitious remake projects video games have ever seen, and Square Enix is wholly committed to re-imagining the influential JRPG. The developer has already shown that they’re willing to change elements and characters, or add entirely new ones like the SOLDIER Roche.
There’s still one major character that needs a much bigger role in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Zack Fair. In the original game, Zack had a minor part as the friend who’s memories Cloud stole for his own. In Cloud’s mind, he was a first-class SOLDIER and traveled to Nibelheim with Sephiroth, but in actuality it was Zack.
Years later, Crisis Core gave Zack a starring role in a prequel to the main game. With Final Fantasy 7’s new expanded scope, the beloved character deserves more screentime, no matter what part of the FF7 Remake it’s in.
Zack’s Fair’s Importance to Final Fantasy 7
One of the big twists of Final Fantasy 7 is when the game reveals Zack as the one who accomplished everything Cloud thought he had. In reality, Cloud was nothing more than a simple Shinra foot soldier, but he and Zack had become close friends.
While it was a big twist, Zack’s actual character was portrayed as identical to Cloud, and he only appeared for a few brief flashback scenes. Crisis Core hugely expanded on Zack’s character, giving him an energetic personality that was the polar opposite of Cloud, and instantly made him a fan-favorite character. In 2016 the official Final Fantasy forums in Japan held a character popularity poll, and Zack made number one, even above Cloud, Tidus, and other main characters.
Zack is the connective tissue between the past and the present of Final Fantasy 7. His conviction and friendship are what defines the Cloud Strife players meet at the beginning of the game, and he gives Cloud the iconic Buster Sword.
Crisis Core introduced the characters Genesis and Angeal, the two best friends of Sephiroth and failed SOLDIER experiments. Zack builds a relationship with Sephiroth before he turns evil, which makes the fallen hero angle even more tragic. In the end, Zack even saves Cloud’s life by sacrificing his own. Zack is the domino that started everything with the main characters in Final Fantasy 7, and the Remake can represent his importance much better than the original game ever did.
How the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Can Expand Zack’s Role
There’s one simple answer on how to make Zack more important in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake; make him playable. Crisis Core originally released on the PSP and, sadly, it’s never been released in any other way despite fans wanting a remake, not even digitally on the Vita. Elements of Crisis Core can be integrated into the main game, focusing on Zack through a series of playable flashbacks. Whether or not Square Enix wants to bring Genesis and Angeal into the Remake, the basics of Zacks’s story can still be integrated into the new story.
Zack’s involvement is a huge twist and adds an interesting layer of complexity to Cloud’s character. Yet, the way the original explains all of this feels a bit rushed and muddled. The Final Fantasy 7 Remake can expand upon this section of the story, explain what exactly happened to both Cloud and Zack, and how Cloud stole the memory of his friend. By giving Zack a bigger and better role, Final Fantasy 7 can widen the scope of its narrative and help alleviate some of the plotholes that were present in the original. Flashback scenes would be a nice way to vary the pace of the game and add on a different playable character that shakes things up for players.
Zack likely won’t appear in the first part of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake, as his role is only brought up later in the original game, once the party is well out of Midgar. With the character’s popularity, however, it seems necessary that Square Enix develop Zack well past his original incarnation.
Next: Final Fantasy 7 Remake Cast: Who Voices the Main Characters
