https://gamerant.com/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-starfield-trendy-multiverse-canon/Starfield and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth are both technically science-fiction games, and the two titles seem to be sharing a key detail between them.
Science-fiction is a broad genre that covers many different topics. When people usually think science-fiction, they think of futuristic technology and landscapes rather than anything on the typically fantastical side. Yet, despite this, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's setting and story fit what's necessary to be considered science-fiction along with fantasy. It features out-of-this-world technologies, astrological elements, cloning and research experiments, and more. Just because it may be part of the Final Fantasy franchise doesn't directly make it a fantastical story in the regular sense of the genre.
In fact, FF7 Rebirth appears to have something in common with a recently released RPG that proudly considers itself more sci-fi-based than anything else. Starfield, developed by Bethesda Game Studios, gives fans multiple open-ended planets to explore in their own time, where they'll discover special Artifacts and powerful temples, and eventually stumble upon the multiverse. In the recent Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth trailer, Sephiroth seems to insinuate that what the Remake project is diving into isn't alternate timelines, but parallel universes.
What Sephiroth's Words Mean in the New FF7 Rebirth Trailer
https://static0.gamerantimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-sephiroth-mako-reactor-mt-nibel.jpg?q=50&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=1.5There was quite a lot to take in with the latest FF7 Rebirth trailer. From showing off playable Red XIII to plenty of cutscene previews starring Zack Fair, fans will likely be busy trying to understand what the trailer showed for the next while. Some mysteries in the trailer likely won't be answered until the release date, which has been revealed to be February 29, 2024. However, the ending showed yet another climactic fight with Sephiroth, similar to the battle that happened at the end of Final Fantasy 7 Remake. In this battle, Sephiroth states "It's upon us, the reunion. When worlds merge". This appears to be showing Sephiroth's greater goals.
At the end of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Cloud and company are shown visions of things yet to come as they fight the Arbiters of Fate. However, it's possible that these visions were not of their future, but of alternate worlds that may be farther than they are in the timeline, or perhaps Sephiroth's previous world as it's been heavily implied that this version of him comes from after Final Fantasy 7 Advent Children. Regardless, with such a heavy emphasis on the still-alive Zack and Sephiroth, it appears the one-winged angel's end goal is to combine the multiverse into one.
What This Means for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Beyond
While it's fair to say that beyond certain elements, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a wild card and it's clear to see where the later half of the game may go with this sort of story lurking behind it. As it seems that Zack has his own story and role to play, as evident by what's seen in the trailer and how heavily he's emphasized as a character, at some point these two universes will converge due to Sephiroth's will.
In that sense, it's likely that the Remake trilogy will follow a sort of formulaic format that the end of the game is where most of the story differs. Depending on how this "reunion" of universes pans out, though, the third game may differ the most as Zack Fair and possibly a few other unexpected guests might show up and stick around to help defeat Sephiroth once and for all and save all their worlds at once.
Even though this sort of twist in the overall story of the Remake project was teased since the first game came out in 2020, it's rather interesting to see FF7 Rebirth go all-in on it in a time when multiverses are almost a trend in popular media right now. Starfield uses it as part of it's New Game Plus mechanic and Sony's Across the Spider-Verse deals with common similarities, for example. It'll be intriguing to see where Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth takes the concept next year.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth launches on February 29, 2024, for PS5.
