The JRPG genre might not be as popular as it used to be, but the era of the PlayStation was dominated by this genre. There are so many quality JRPGs released for the original PlayStation that recounting each and every one of them can be quite a tall order to accomplish. However, if there’s one genre-defining title that dictated the pace at which this particular genre would fly off, then look no further than Final Fantasy VII. The adventures of Cloud and Co. have been imprinted in the minds of gamers who were lucky enough to bear witness to this masterpiece as it came to life on their TV screens.
The game is so immensely popular that fans have played it time and time again to the point where each and every secret present in the game has been uncovered, and then some. In fact, even after uncovering everything the game has to offer, it seems that the fans decided to play this title a few more times just to read between the lines and figure out things that might’ve been implied that would change the course of the game’s story as we know it.
And, you know what? For the most part, these hardcore Final Fantasy VII fans have actually been successful in uncovering certain facts about the game that might not have been all that obvious during a first playthrough. To make these theories more accessible to the masses, we’ve decided to compile 25 of the most convincing fan theories that actually make sense in the grand scheme of things.
25 Aerith Was Not Supposed To Pass Away So Early
The demise of Aerith is one of the most tragic and iconic moments in the history of gaming. Watching one of your beloved party members meet a premature end is a harrowing sight in every sense of the word.
Well, it seems that this scene might’ve been postponed to happen later on in the game.
However, it seems that this plan was ultimately scrapped since a player who mainly used Aerith in their party would’ve been less than pleased about losing an integral part of their party just before the final battle.
24 Aerith Was Supposed To Meet Her End At The Northern Crater
The reason why we’re saying that Aerith was supposed to stay alive for the majority of the game is that there’s one simple thing that the developers left in the game regarding the character.
She has unique dialogue in the game even after her demise.
This was probably because the developers intended to keep her alive for a substantial chunk of the game, before making her meet her end in the Northern Crater. This was probably the intended conclusion to Aerith’s tale, but this idea was scrapped early on.
23 Aerith Was Actually Ended By A Piece Of Jenova
This might seem wrong from the get-go. After all, how is it even remotely possible for Jenova to make an appearance here if we can clearly see Sephiroth jumping from the sky and plunging his blade into Aerith.
Well, there are a lot of theories that contribute to this notion.
Most of these will be discussed in detail later on, but the basic gist is as follows — Sephiroth was never really showing his real self when he performed his sneak attack, and it was actually a morphed piece of Jenova that landed the fatal blow.
22 The Final Fight Is The First Time The Party Sees Sephiroth’s Actual Body
Now, time to delve into the realm of the insane.
You see, Sephiroth had the ability to conjure multiple images of himself with his blade across the planet. This was a direct consequence of him falling into the Lifestream with the Jenova cells, that gave him this power.
So, it’s entirely possible that Sephiroth was never really physically present whenever he decided to mess with the party. The only time that the party ever saw the real version of Sephiroth — barring Cloud’s flashbacks — was at the very end, when they faced off with him in the Northern Crater for the final showdown.
21 Sephiroth Perished At The Hands Of Cloud, But Fusing With Jenova Repaired Him
No matter how powerful Sephiroth might be, no human is strong enough to withstand a fatal piercing blow. By all accounts, the attack that Cloud landed on Sephiroth should’ve been enough to send him to an early grave. However, Sephiroth ended up surviving this attack… or did he?
A plausible theory that makes sense is that Sephiroth’s life ended at Cloud’s hands. However, as he fell, the Jenova cells healed his body as the Lifestream carried him towards the Northern Crater. This saved Sephiroth’s life as his body was restructured in a cocoon of Mako.
20 Barret Would’ve Been The Victim Of Sephiroth’s Blade
Barret is one of the hardest physical hitters in the game, and losing him would’ve been quite demoralizing for the player. However, most of us weren’t really emotionally connected to him as we were to Aerith.
So, it’s understandable why the original plan of making Barret the victim of Sephiroth’s blade was ultimately scrapped. It would’ve done little to nothing in terms of an emotional impact — in fact, all it might’ve done is annoy the player since a great physical behemoth was taken from their party.
19 Sephiroth Ended Aerith’s Life To Silence Her Ability To Summon Holy
There was one particular materia that Aerith kept wrapped around her hair at all times that wasn’t really discussed at length, This materia was the Holy materia, which was meant to put an end to Sephiroth’s transgressions towards the planet.
So, the main reason why Sephiroth targeted Aerith was probably that the latter was praying in a bid to summon Holy — something that she actually managed to accomplish even after this intervention.
However, this plan might’ve backfired.
18 Holy Sees Humans As The Villains, Which Is Why Meteor Wasn’t Affected By It
The whole point of summoning Holy was to stop Meteor from destroying the planet. However, even after Holy was successfully cast, the Meteor spell wasn’t stopped. Most gamers thought that this was a mistake, but there’s a reason why events transpired like so.
You see, the main aim of Holy was the preservation of the Planet — something that humans were actively in the way of since they were literally sucking the life energy of the planet. So, casting Holy didn’t stop Meteor since it would wipe out human and give the Planet a second chance.
17 The Mysterious Yellow Orb Showed Near The End Is Actually Holy
The Holy spell wasn’t actually shown in the game, and most people thought that this was an intentional design choice. For all they knew, Holy was nothing more than an idea that players were supposed to interpret. However, there is one scene in the game that might indicate otherwise.
At the very end of the game, a mysterious yellow orb can be seen. Most players have debated as to what this might be, and the general consensus is that this orb signifies Holy — a symbol of hope shown at the end of the game to indicate that everything’s fine.
16 Aerith Is Able To Project Her Presence Through The Lifestream
We’ve already talked about how Sephiroth had the ability to conjure multiple images of himself, through a combination of the Jenova cells and the time he spent in the Lifestream. However, this power isn’t special to Sephiroth — Aerith is also capable of doing the same.
While her power might not be as tangible as Sephiroth’s, there are times when she can project herself in the real world. She does this once in the Sector 5 church when an image of her creepily tends to flowers after her demise, while her image is seen multiple times in Advent Children.
15 Aerith Protected Tifa’s Mind From Being Corrupted By The Lifestream
It’s understandable if you think that Aerith and Tifa were jealous of each other. After all, both women had mixed feelings about the same man, which would generally lead to some animosity. However, this wasn’t the case — if anything, both women had a sense of mutual respect towards each other.
So, once Aerith passed over to the Lifestream, she was able to do one last favor for her friend by protecting Tifa’s mind as she pieced together Cloud’s mind in the Lifestream.
14 Cloud, Barret, And Tifa Might Have A Tenuous Afterlife
There are various additional mediums that compliment the Final Fantasy VII Universe. The spin-off games are perhaps the most popular ones, but there’s also a book called Hoshi wo Meguru Otome, which translates to “The Girl Who Travels The Planet.”
The book documents Aerith’s journey in the Lifestream, where she meets Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie. All three members of AVALANCHE rue the time they spend bombing factories, and can’t pass into the Lifestream to become one with the Planet.
So, if Tifa, Barret, and Cloud were also part of this squad, is it possible that they also won’t be able to become one with the Planet?
13 Tifa Was Supposed To Have White Hair
Before Tetsuya Nomura took over the reigns as the character designer, Yoshitaka Amano used to be in charge of making these designs. So, as an alternate design of sorts, he made a different look for Tifa that most people aren’t really aware of.
This alternate version of Tifa has white hair instead of the blackish-brown look that we’re used to. Her outfit was also altered slightly — she sported a red miniskirt, a white top, and red gloves. This outfit is actually available as an alternate costume in Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.
12 Vincent And Sephiroth Can Use The Masamune Because Of Similar Experimentations
The Masamune is an iconic weapon that is only available to the party once, when they take control of Cloud and Sephiroth in a flashback. However, through hacks, this weapon can be transported to the player’s inventory. One catch though — only Vincent can use this weapon.
The reason for this dynamic might be that both Vincent and Sephiroth were put through similar experiments by Hojo. Thus, they both gained the ability to wield weapons like the Masamune.
Yeah, it’s a stretch… but hey — that’s what theories are, right?
11 The Three Faces Of Eve Can Be Seen In Final Fantasy VII With Yuffie, Tifa, And Aerith
The Three Faces Of Eve is a common trope in the Final Fantasy series. It refers to a power trio of three women — the Child, the Wife, and the Seductress. Almost every Final Fantasy game from the fourth iteration onwards follows this trope, with a few exceptions.
Final Fantasy VII is no exception to this golden rule. In this case, Aerith is the motherly figure, Yuffie is the most childish, and Tifa is the most attractive. It’s a neat little touch that most people haven’t noticed — up until now, that is.
10 Final Fantasy VII and X Exist In The Same Timeline
This is a theory that has been making the rounds ever since Final Fantasy X-2 was released, and for good reason. There are many things that indicate towards this link, such as the concept of unsent people and Pyreflies. However, the best link to indicate this supposed connection is through one Al Bhed child.
For starters, the name of this kid is Shinra, which should raise enough of a red flag as is. However, if that wasn’t bad enough as is, this child actually mentions something about the life source of the Planet and how extracting it would provide a reliable stream of energy to the planet.
Fishy, isn’t it?
9 All Final Fantasy Worlds Are Interconnected Somehow
The general rule when it comes to the Final Fantasy games is that every individual game exists in a different universe with its self-contained mythos. It’s a hard-and-fast rule that has become the norm in a series that has so many iterations that specifying this beforehand is pretty important.
However, various common elements across the Final Fantasy games indicate towards the fact that there is some form of interconnectivity across these universes. Items, animals, monsters, weapons, spells — these are just a few of the many common elements across the series.
8 Summons Make Their Presence Known Across The Games In Different Forms
Of course, one simply can’t talk about common elements across these multiple Final Fantasy games and not mention the awe-inspiring summons that has become a staple of the genre. These beings have taken on various monikers as the series has progressed — they’ve been called everything from Eidolons to Guardian Forces.
If one looks at these beings as the Gods of their respective universes, then the idea of all Final Fantasy worlds being connected holds more validity. For all we know, these Gods might oversee the events happening in every universe.
7 The English Translation Of The Game Butchered The Plot
The sheer number of Japanese games that were translated to English during the JRPG boom is nothing short of immense. However, before these games generated steam, they were still somewhat niche. Thus, the translation work on these games wasn’t exactly stellar.
Unfortunately, Final Fantasy VII wasn’t able to shake off the problem of lackluster translations. There are numerous translation errors in the final product, and most of the finer details have been completely omitted since the translators felt that the story would be too complicated otherwise.
6 Cloud Might’ve Been ‘Influenced’ In The Honey Bee Inn
The Honey Bee Inn is an optional area in Final Fantasy VII that most people would’ve missed during their first playthrough. The place itself is a cesspool of depravity, but Cloud needs to go here if he wishes to get selected by Don Corneo (don’t ask us why). However, there’s one event in this area that begets a second look.
Basically, while inspecting one particular area, Cloud passes out as he talks to the part of his brain that he’s forgotten. When he comes to, he’s being woken up by a burly man on top of him. For all we know, Cloud might’ve seen these visions and heard voices because he was induced somehow.
