Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission adds a separate but connected story onto the Final Fantasy VII Remake. While focusing on Yuffie, a 16-year-old ninja from Wutai who was an optional character in the original game, it brings in quite a lot more.
Side Story
Yuffie arrives in Midgar on a mission to steal the ultimate materia from Shinra. Meeting with some operatives from Avalanche, she’s ready to sneak in. It would help if she even knew where the Shinra building was though.
With the arrival of Sonon, a fellow ninja, and some help from Avalanche, she prepares for the heist. Of course, there are problems. The man with her fake ID almost gets caught, there are traps to run into and all sorts of things happen along the way.
As anyone familiar with Yuffie’s frequent role of the comic relief may expect, the tone of Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission is light for the most part, with a lot of comedy. Yuffie will take any chance to show off and prove herself. Her fellow ninja Sonon plays the role of an exasperated older figure, trying to keep her focused and safe. This is made even more difficult since Yuffie is technically in charge as the senior operative. These were some of the best moments.
While it was fairly short, I felt like it was a good story that worked well as an introduction to Yuffie and added some backstory. It did have some moments near the end that felt like they weren’t fully explained but may be a hint to what may be included in future installments. Players very familiar with the wider Final Fantasy VII franchise will likely get more from this.
Play the Game
It’s recommended to complete the base game first, but you can start Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission from the menu at any point. The official reason it gives is that the DLC only provides tutorials for features specific to it. It doesn’t explain all the concepts such as upgrading weapons and using materia.
The other reason I’d give for this is that the Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission story takes place while the Final Fantasy VII story is going on. Things are referred to that either you may not understand without playing or will be a spoiler. On top of that, it shows you what happens after the base game when you complete the DLC.
Run Around Midgar
Much like in the main game, you can wander around the Sector 7 slums. Not everything is accessible, but you can visit many of the same locations. Several familiar characters make an appearance too. You won’t have a chance to directly talk to the main party or visit Seventh Heaven, but chances to briefly run into Jessie, Wedge and Marle are there.
It’s a more streamlined experience than the main game. There are a couple of side quests revolving around activities, and a few other things to do but otherwise it’s fairly direct. There are no kill quests here. Even finding your way through levels is straightforward, with only a few puzzles to move climbable grates into place and chances to explore being rewarded but limited. Perhaps as a nod to Yuffie’s character, a lot of those rewards seem to be finding materia.
For those optional activities, they include things like finding flyers around Midgar, playing a minigame based on Fort Condor, a box smashing game, and some extra battles. Mostly just extensions of activities from the main game. I did have fun with the Fort Condor minigame, which is a fairly simple strategy game. There are only six battles included though.
Fight like a Ninja
While both Yuffie and Sonon are in your party, Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission only allows you to control Yuffie. She’s a quick fighter, who focuses on controlling distance on the battlefield. With quite a few options, you can choose to fight close up or to try and stay at a distance.
Despite not being able to control Sonon directly, you can choose his commands. As well as this, you can synchronize so he attacks enemies with Yuffie. One of his abilities is to draw attention, so Yuffie can take the enemy down.
I was quite impressed at just how good it was and how much is included. Yuffie had several options of weapons with different abilities, a wide range of materia, and a lot of different equipment options. It was just outright fun to dodge about as Yuffie too.
A Short Experience
I mentioned that Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission is streamlined. This had me enjoying it the whole time. One of the criticisms I had of the base game was how it drew things out too much, with unnecessary side quests without story content and overly long dungeons.
My first run was completed in five hours. This included running around to find flyers, completing all of Fort Condor, doing most extra battles, and so on. I imagine it could be completed in less than four hours if someone focused only on story content.
Considering that I enjoyed the entire experience, I don’t have any issue with it being so short. It felt like a packed experience, with frequent cutscenes and always moving forward.
Performance and Quality
You can choose to prioritize either performance or graphical quality. Performance is the default and I suggest leaving it there.
It looks amazing graphically even on performance mode. I did notice that on the mode prioritizing graphical quality that it didn’t always feel smooth when turning the camera.
How Do I Get it?
The only way to play Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission is with a PlayStation 5. If you’re lucky enough to have one, there are a few options.
Buying Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade aka the PlayStation 5 version comes with it included. Nothing else is needed.
If you bought the PlayStation 4 digital or physical version, this upgrades to the PlayStation 5 version for free. That doesn’t include this DLC. You can buy it separately on the PlayStation store under the title ‘FF7R EPISODE INTERmission (New Story Content Featuring Yuffie)’. This doesn’t apply if you got it via PS Plus.
Verdict
I enjoyed Final Fantasy VII EPISODE INTERmission, in some ways even more than the base game. While it is a shorter experience and doesn’t include all of the same features, it felt more focused. Yuffie is a great character who brought a lot of humor to this INTERmission and who I look forward to seeing in the main series.
FINAL FANTASY VII EPISODE INTERMISSION IS RECOMMENDED
Want to see more JRPGs? How about checking out our review of Persona 5 Royal?
Many thanks go to Square Enix for a PlayStation 5 review code for this title.
A gamer since the days of Amstrad and DOS and someone who has dabbled in a variety of professions. He enjoys a wide variety of genres, but has been focusing on visual novels and virtual reality in recent years. Head Editor of NookGaming. Follow him and the website on @NookSite.