Summary
- Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s director has weighed in on the series’ relationship, clearing things up once and for all.
- Naoki Hamaguchi explained that the love between Cloud and Aerith is “sisterly”, not romantic.
- Despite the official word, I can’t imagine this will stop Aerith shippers from making their cases for years to come.
Final Fantasy 7 fans have butted heads over who Cloud’s love interest is for decades. Even the additional scenes, story, and context in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth have only muddied the waters further for many. Perhaps the series’ director confirming one of the two female characters who could feasibly be Cloud’s other half most assuredly is not will settle this debate for good, though I get the feeling even that won’t be good enough for some.
Rebirth’s director Naoki Hamaguchi and producer Yoshinori Kitase spoke with Inverse about all things Rebirth, as well as touching on plans for the final part of the trilogy. During the interview, the additional scenes between Aerith and Cloud were discussed at length, giving Hamaguchi the chance to confirm the relationship between the characters has always been more akin to one siblings would share rather than one with romantic connotations.
There can be many different interpretations of what this scene truly means for each player. But Aerith has always been this sort of sisterly character pulling Cloud along and encouraging him.
The long-standing argument between FF7 fans has one side claiming Cloud only has eyes for Aerith, while the other half believes he should be with Tifa. The game, both the original and the remake series, intentionally leaves that open to interpretation, not only encouraging a healthy debate but also allowing players to project their own wants for Cloud onto their playthroughs.
The Love Cloud And Aerith Share Is More Sibling Than Romantic
It’s Official, The Director Said So
Even though Hamaguchi confirming the love Cloud and Aeirth share is sisterly, that won’t stop Claerith shippers from doing their thing, Kitase did add a footnote right after Hamaguchi was done just to make sure the eternal debate keeps burning. “Cloud’s thought of deeply by two different women. What a lucky guy,” the producer added. He knows exactly what he’s doing.
As for what’s to come, Hamaguchi admitted to Inverse that he wanted to add more to Rebirth via something similar to the Intergrade content Square Enix released for Final Fantasy 7 Remake. However, the desire to get the third and final part of the trilogy out there trumped that want and after Rebirth comes to PC next month, it will presumably be all systems go on getting part three finished.
Those who believe Aerith is the one Cloud should be with have had a rough time of it these last few weeks. Mild spoilers for Rebirth, but if you go with Tifa for the Gold Saucer date, she and Cloud kiss. Tifa is the only party member who kisses Cloud on the date, and the devs behind the game confirmed it was included to one-up the hug from Remake.
Final Fantasy Rebirth is the second part of the FF7 Remake project. It continues the story of Cloud Strife, a former SOLDIER turned mercenary who joins Avalanche, a group of eco-terrorists seeking to save the planet from the malevolent Sephiroth. As the party pushes out of Midgar, leaving the Shinra Corporation devastated, where will their paths take them?
- Released
- February 29, 2024
- OpenCritic Rating
- Mighty