Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth showed a moment 26 years in the making

The one factor extra evil than Sephiroth is pitting Tifa Lockhart and Aerith Gainsborough in opposition to one another.

Ever for the reason that authentic Last Fantasy 7 got here out in 1997, followers have debated which character Cloud ought to date. There’s Tifa, the childhood pal with a heat smile, or Aerith, a vivid imaginative and prescient of hope for a dying world. The primary recreation established a basic love triangle, and now — 26 years later — Last Fantasy 7 Rebirth has revived the talk by displaying a never-before-seen romantic aspect to its spiky-haired hero.

The unique Last Fantasy 7 did little to stoke real love between Cloud and his love pursuits. Though he has varied moments the place he can categorical curiosity in both woman, selecting one over the opposite usually resulted in jealousy or harm emotions from the rejected occasion. The unique framing created a little bit of a contest between Tifa and Aerith, and it didn’t precisely age nicely. Happily for these of us who adore each of them, the builders left these elements out of Last Fantasy 7 Remake, and the younger girls get to share a loving and supportive friendship.

Rebirth continues this basic strategy, and additional develops the bonds between Tifa and Aerith. Nonetheless, even these two characters can’t escape the tendencies of the bigger fandom. When Sq. Enix launched Rebirth, followers flooded social media with with posts discussing which pairing they help and why they really feel that approach, given new developments in Rebirth. The sport reignited the basic “Clerith” versus “Cloti” discourse, and it’s all due to one huge scene. When you’re into the characters and the romance within the recreation, it’s a monumental occasion that got here a shock to followers.

[Ed. note: The post contains spoilers for the intimate Gold Saucer date in Chapter 12 of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.]

Graphic: Julia Lee/Polygon | Supply photos: Sq. Enix

Now that we’ve received by means of the non-spoiler part of this submit, I can simply reduce to the massive factor that occurred: Cloud and Tifa kiss… gasp!

To see the kiss, you must get the “intimate” model of the second date with Tifa. In it, Cloud will pull her in for a hug, after which afterwards, the 2 kiss. It’s a shocking second within the recreation. Glittering fireworks mild up the sky by means of the home windows of an adorned Ferris wheel carriage. They each have gone by means of a number of hardship by that time, and seeing them collectively gives a fleeting sense of reduction in a shattered world.

Given how the builders dealt with the romantic components of the sport previous to Rebirth, Cloud’s grand romantic gesture shocked followers. The awkward hero has by no means kissed one other character earlier than, and Tifa’s date in Rebirth is the one one which ends with a kiss from Cloud. To many, the smooch offers a transparent signal that Cloud and Tifa have a particular bond that’s unique to the 2 of them — however even then, there are nonetheless some ambiguities.

This isn’t simply because folks have completely different interpretations of occasions or the characters’ intentions. It’s additionally as a result of folks would possibly play by means of barely completely different tales. In Rebirth, gamers nurture their relationships with particular characters, and finally, Cloud goes on a date with the character who has the closest bond with him. Followers of Aerith would possibly go on a date together with her and would take note of the candy moments that unfold, whereas Tifa stans may go and do the identical. Gamers see completely different cutscenes relying on who has the strongest bond with Cloud, and naturally it might make sense to favor one or the opposite in anyone particular playthrough of the sport.

So whereas we lastly received to see the massive kiss that’s been on followers’ minds for 26 years, not less than followers of Aerith can get their fair proportion of candy moments too. All’s nicely that ends nicely, and both approach, I’m simply fascinated by any alternative to make Tifa smile. So for those who’re like me and need to decide who you date based mostly on this data, Polygon has got you covered with a guide.