Red XIII will not be a playable character in Final Fantasy VII Remake. However, he will still join your party as a guest character during certain segments of the game. Utilizing classic skills and attacks, players of the original title will still get that feeling of nostalgia while playing alongside this AI-controlled companion. [Thanks, VG24/7!]
In an interview with Final Fantasy VII Remake co-director Naoki Hamaguchi said the reason for Red XIII appearing as a guest character and not a playable character was this:
“We felt the point at which Red XIII joins the party in the story is very late on so we thought okay, if we’re gonna have him as a full character and try and get the player to enjoy his character development arc and growth as a character through that, it’s not really enough time to do that,”
Again, this doesn’t mean that Red XIII won’t be joining you in combat. This companion will assist players as an AI-controlled guest character instead. While this may come as a disappointment to some, Cloud, Aerith, Tifa and Barret will still be available as player-controlled party members.
Fans were first given a better look at Red XIII in February via the official Final Fantasy VII Remake Twitter. This included character art and a short synopsis. In the original title, Red XIII is one of the fastest party members. His Limit Breaks would also allow him to increase his stats or cast Haste and Berserk on himself.
A demo for the highly anticipated remake has also just hit the PlayStation Store. You can download the Final Fantasy VII Remake demo right now and give the game a spin. This demo includes new cinematic, difficulty selections, and two combat modes for Cloud.
Final Fantasy VII Remake will come to the PlayStation 4 on April 10, 2020.
