After watching Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade’s gorgeous opening cutscene on Switch 2, I instinctively reached for the PlayStation 5 controller sitting on my coffee table instead of my Switch 2 Pro Controller. That’s not to say VII Remake looks exactly as good on Switch 2 as it does on the beefier PS5, but this is an impressive port that’s easily up there with the best third-party games we’ve seen so far in the Switch 2’s first year, and I’m still not used to games looking this beautiful on my Nintendo console.
That strong first impression held up as I blasted through the familiar first hours of Cloud’s adventure in Midgar – which remains one of my favorite RPGs of the decade – with solid performance both handheld and docked. Digging through the menus also revealed tons of options to streamline progression for newcomers looking to see what all the hype is, or for returning fans who just want to blast through the epic adventure at a quicker pace on the go. No matter your experience with prior editions of VII Remake, the new Switch 2 version checks pretty much every box you could ask for from a portable version. If you’re a Nintendo-only gamer who’s been waiting for this one for a while, you shouldn’t hesitate to dive in.
What we said about Final Fantasy 7 Remake in 2020
The expectations around Final Fantasy 7 Remake are sky high, and it mostly manages to deliver. Its combat is top notch, its enemy variety kept me constantly entertained, and seeing this snippet of story fleshed out with real emotional arcs and the previously hidden humanity behind Midgar filled me with pure joy. The boring RPG filler and Kingdom Hearts-esque convolution that was inserted in between did stop my ear-to-ear grin from being constant, but never long enough to kill the mood completely. That leaves this remake as one that still delivered on letting me relive (part of) a classic in stupendous fashion, while also standing as a great RPG all its own. – Tom Marks, April 6, 2020
Score: 8
Read our full Final Fantasy 7 Remake review.
FFVII Remake on Switch 2 Looks Great When Docked
When playing on my TV, VII Remake on Switch 2 impressed across all aspects: cutscenes, exploration, and most crucially, its fast-paced combat. It’s a small shame that it runs at 30 fps both handheld and docked, but I didn’t notice a single dropped frame during gameplay. It might’ve occasionally hiccupped during cutscenes, but I only noticed while examining it with a hypercritical eye for the purposes of this evaluation. It’s pretty safe to say that when docked, you can expect extremely consistent performance. It may not be 60 fps like on the other consoles, but it felt perfectly playable and responsive at all times.
I’m impressed with the little details I remember loving in VII Remake back in 2020 that have carried over here: the way the light reflects off Cloud’s Buster Sword as you run around still looks really nice. It targets 1080p while docked, missing out on the Switch 2’s highest capabilities but still looking really good nonetheless, with detailed character models and environments. Some NPCs popped in the distance when I was exploring the Sector 7 slums, but to my memory, that’s how it was on PS4 as well. And whether I was fighting a swarm of Shinra security officers or the hulking Scorpion Sentinel within a Mako reactor, VII Remake always kept up with the action, even when swapping between Cloud, Barrett, and Tifa to perform flashy abilities and Limit Breaks. Pro tip for Pro Controller users: I mapped the left and right d-pad to the GL and GR backpaddles on my controller, using them to conveniently swap between characters in combat.
Handheld Is a Totally Reasonable Way to Play
Playing in handheld is similarly impressive, but all of the minor complaints I noted about docked mode are slightly magnified. It’s still a solid 30 fps for the most part, but I noticed more dips during cutscenes specifically. But that doesn’t impact the combat, which always felt really smooth and totally fun. The resolution also takes a hit as you’d expect, and I noticed certain details like Cloud’s hair looked a lot blurrier. But when everything is in motion, VII Remake still looks nice on the Switch 2’s small screen, and it’s a completely viable way to play through it. It’s eye-catching to see modern AAA games run this well on a handheld device, and I think this era of games that originally came out on PS4 are the best fit for really solid ports to Switch 2. Final Fantasy VII Remake, as well as things like Street Fighter 6 that we saw last year, are third-party games that have dedicated versions on both PS4 and PS5, which have generally seemed to scale well to Switch 2.
Intergrade’s DLC Expansion Is Here, Too
Unlike Nintendo, which is still selling Breath of the Wild’s nine-year-old DLC content separately from its new Nintendo Sw itch 2 Edition, Square Enix has included everything in the Intergrade package for $40. That means you also get Episode INTERmission, an additional bite-sized campaign starring Yuffie, an optional party member from the original Final Fantasy VII who is now a central part of the Remake project. It takes about five hours to reach INTERmission’s credits, and it’s a really solid followup to the main campaign.
Streamlined Options for Casual Players or Double Dippers
There’s a lot here that makes a full replay pretty enticing. First, you can fast-forward through cutscenes at either 1.5- or 2-times speed, making it a snappier revisit for those who already know everything that happens but still want to see it play out. And, the brand-new Streamlined Progression menu adds options you’re probably used to seeing in modern remakes and remasters of old-school RPGs, like the HD-2D Dragon Quest games or even the most recent version of the original Final Fantasy VII itself. Having access to things like constant maximum health and magic points, an infinitely full Limit gauge, or the ability to deal 9999 damage on every hit lets you tailor your playthrough however you’d like, and it’s really cool to see those options come to a modern game. There’s also a nifty Head Start mode that hands you high-level characters and plenty of money, equipment, and abilities right from the beginning. I’d never recommend someone plays with these activated for their first playthrough, but it’s definitely fun to revisit old favorites by way of a frictionless power trip that lets you see all the sights again. It’s worth noting these features aren’t exclusive to Switch 2, Square Enix also updated the PS5 and PC versions with the same options, and everything is included in the new Xbox Series X|S release as well.
This Isn’t the Final Final Fantasy
Final Fantasy VII Remake is just part one of Square Enix’s currently unfinished Remake trilogy, with 2024’s Final Fantasy VII Rebirth representing the middle chapter, and a third and final entry yet to be formally revealed. If you’re worried about starting the series with just one entry on the platform so far, Square Enix has already committed to bringing Rebirth to Switch 2 and Xbox Series X|S, as well as the in-development third game. So you can jump in worry-free: the full story will eventually make it to Switch 2, and this first port is a great way to get things started.