Final Fantasy 7 Remake Intergrade was announced at today’s State of Play, which will enhance an already amazing game. Not only does it include graphical and quality of life improvements, but we get new story content. The Final Fantasy 7 Remake Yuffie chapter will give her an entirely new introduction from that seen in the original game. Considering how small of a role she played in the 1997 release, it’s great to see her getting a bigger part in FF7 Remake.
Why the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Yuffie DLC is a better intro for the character
Out of the nine available party members, Yuffie got the least amount of character development. Instead of getting a proper introduction, the play can find her as an optional character in a random encounter in any forest after leaving the Mythril Cave. Defeat her, answer her questions, and boom, another party member.
The problem with Yuffie is that she’s entirely optional. That means that any content involving her must not affect the main plot in any real way. However, unlike the other optional character, Vincent Valentine, whose story is woven around Sephiroth and Shinra’s past, Yuffie just gets Wutai.
Yuffie’s previous backstory is that she’s a thief from Wutai that is trying to restore the nation to glory after their defeat by Shinra. After obtaining the Tiny Bronco, the team heads there (optionally). Upon arriving, she steals their materia, and hijinks ensue as the party encounters Don Corneo and the Turks. After that, the party never acknowledges these events, and no one mentions them again.
In Final Fantasy 7 Remake: Intergrade’s Yuffie chapter, she has roughly the same objective as she did in the original game, which is to steal a powerful materia from Shinra to help restore Wutai’s glory. This time around, she seems more focused and readily identifies herself as an “elite special forces operative for the New Wutai Government.” This is already way more character development than “random girl trying to steal material.”
Joining her in the DLC is a new character, Sonon Kusakabe, who appears to be a part of one of the Avalanche cells operating in Midgar. So, she’ll get to have her own party as part of her story, which looks like it’ll interweave with Cloud and company.
I’m excited to see what’s in store for Yuffie and see her new backstory. Fortunately, it’s not a long wait. Final Fantasy 7 Remake Interchange releases on PS5 on June 10, 2021.
