Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is a well-made modern version of a classic game, featuring stunning visuals and a rich, emotional story. However, its huge open zones can sometimes feel overwhelming due to excessive side quests and padding, which might tire players out. On the other hand, Avowed offers a more focused and personal experience. It seems like it does incredibly well in ways that Rebirth can’t.

While Avowed doesn’t have the same iconic reputation as Rebirth, it shines in areas where Rebirth struggles, showcasing different ways to be great in the RPG genre. Each game has its own style – one emphasizes a grand story with visual flair, while the other focuses on character development, player choice, and smart writing. This is evident even from the start, when Avowed‘s early hours are a masterclass in design, and FF7 Rebirth front-loads its story.

Avowed Hits FF7 Rebirth’s Weakest Points

A Game World That’s Interesting To Explore

Avowed avoids many of the main criticisms aimed at Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, giving a strong alternative to how it handles world design, quests, and storytelling. Rebirth has too much tedious content and an absurd number of minigames that distract from the main story. In contrast, Avowed focuses on well-crafted content in its open areas. While Rebirth gives players a long list of tasks like activating towers, playing minigames, and collecting resources, Avowed fills its world with interesting encounters and meaningful side quests that fit well into the story.

Players can come across unexpected events in Avowed, like catching a graverobber in action or seeing guards respond to what the player does. These experiences make the gameplay feel alive and give players real choices, unlike the repetitive tasks found in Rebirth.

Although Rebirth’s combat has its positives, it can often feel dull. In Avowed, the combat combines spell casting, parkour, and flexible character development, providing a refreshing variety and a satisfying gameplay experience. Players can mix abilities from different skill trees, and the satisfying physics when enemies are defeated encourages experimentation rather than the repetitive button pressing that gives some experience in Rebirth.

Despite Rebirth being one part of a trilogy, its main story is where it excels, even if it doesn’t allow for much player agency. Avowed takes the opposite approach, giving players branching paths to select from, giving them a large measure of influence over the game’s side characters. Rebirth has great character work, and some endearing moments, but they’re overshadowed by the grandeur of the main story. In contrast, Avowed does a great job integrating detailed and impactful companions into the main story, where their insights and specialties are indispensable.

FF7 Rebirth Still Has Incredible Strengths

Characters & Combat Stand Out

Even though it’s easy to criticize Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth for its world design and too many minigames, it still has many strengths that make it fun for many players. The graphics – character models, especially – are often stunning, and the game has beautifully reimagined the original’s world. The vast landscapes and detailed environments are amazing. It is hard not to be in awe of the open areas, like the Grasslands, Junon, and Costa del Sol.

Character development also stands out in Rebirth. The emotional depth and authenticity of the characters is a major highlight throughout, especially Barret, who gets a richer backstory and some wonderful voice acting. The relationships between characters, like the bond between Aerith and Tifa, feel stronger and more believable than before. The game tackles themes like hope, despair, grief, and letting go through giving each character their time in the limelight.

While some people don’t like the combat, I thought it was great. It’s a mix of action and turn-based mechanics, which feels fast-paced and strategic at the same time. There is also more to it than taking turns, like the Pressure and Stagger mechanics that encourage players to figure out enemy weaknesses and plan their moves.

The addition of Synergy Abilities, which are powerful team attacks between specific characters, adds to both the strategy and fun of combat. Although the system might seem complicated at first, it rewards players who take the time to understand and master it. Even tough fights feel over-the-top and a thrill to get through.

Avowed & FF7 Rebirth Prove How Different Great RPGs Can Be

An Exceptionally Varied Genre

Avowed and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth are both rightfully praised as great RPGs, but they take very different approaches to the genre. The differences in how well these two play shows how vast the genre can be. There’s no better proof that there’s more than one way to make an RPG than these two games.

Rebirth is a remake of a beloved classic that focuses on an expansive, cinematic story. It tries to deliver a deep and emotional narrative filled with memorable moments and characters. However, this ambition sometimes makes the pacing feel slow and bloated. It combines action-RPG combat with an open-world structure, making it a dense experience that can demand a lot of time from players. This design choice is perfect for those who enjoy lengthy narratives and detailed world-building.

On the other hand, Avowed offers a more direct and player-focused experience. It concentrates on immersive gameplay and spontaneous storytelling within a smaller world. The game has a fun, lighthearted tone, which is quite different from the often serious themes of Rebirth. Its pacing is quicker, letting players jump into the core gameplay and connect with the mechanics readily. While it still has a rich setting, its scope is more manageable, emphasizing enjoyable gameplay over grand scale.

The success of both games shows there isn’t just one right way to design an RPG. Rebirth shines in a way that Avowed doesn’t, and vice versa. While I love a great story and tend not to like games that are just action-packed, it’s hard to say that Avowed is worse because it doesn’t focus as much on its story as Rebirth does. In fact, it proves that there’s no one correct way to make a game.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and Avowed prove that a great RPG experience can come from completely different design choices, catering to different player preferences and expectations. At the end of the day, they’re both great, and it’s easy to delve into their worlds and forget about everything else. That’s the kind of thing an RPG is great at, and both of these games succeed in big ways.