Final Fantasy 7 Remake was shown off during an extended stage presentation at last week’s Tokyo Game Show, and one of the features shown was Classic Mode.
Square Enix later summarized the mode’s key features on Twitter, and that it lets players experience FF7R in a way that feels most comfortable to them. Square Enix said of the mode:
…anyone playing #FinalFantasy VII Remake in Classic Mode does not have to worry about the action side of the combat system, and can instead focus on selecting commands, making it possible to play #FF7R as if it were a classic menu-based RPG!
In regular mode, the Active Time Battle (ATB) gauge fills when players land basic attacks; once full, players can then unleash special skills or use magic.
However, in Classic Mode, the game handles basic attacks on its own, so the ATB gauge fills automatically, sort of like it did in the original Final Fantasy VII. The player’s main focus is then choosing commands from the menu.
The new FF7 Remake TGS trailer showed movement on the battlefield as an important part of the game’s combat. Whether Classic Mode would also handle that movement and keep party members from hurting each other isn’t certain, though.
This new mode was actually hinted at during E3 2019, when Square Enix said players could treat the game like a menu-based JRPG by pausing the action to choose their next move from a menu. While the game’s first episode will only focus on Midgar, it certainly seems like it’ll be packed full of features and gameplay variety to keep things interesting.
