🌟 FF7 Rebirth’s Biggest Mystery Still Haunts Fans! 🌟

27 years later, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth drops jaw-dropping moments, but one question still divides us all. 💔

Will Cloud choose Aerith or Tifa? The Gold Saucer date scene teases both, with new twists in alternate timelines, yet Square Enix refuses to pick a side! 😱

This endless debate fuels our love for FF7, but what’s your take?

👉 Dive into the drama and share your thoughts:

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth offers up plenty of new details in its take on the classic FF7 story, but there’s one huge debate surrounding the original game that Rebirth draws back from answering. Anything laid out in the new games doesn’t necessarily override the classic canon, as it can more or less be viewed as an interpretation of a different timeline. It’s still intended to be canon in its own right, however, and everything is supposedly going to link back up with the sequel film FF7: Advent Children when the trilogy concludes.

[This article contains spoilers for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.]One aspect of the canon that’s always been the subject of debate is the nature of Cloud’s romantic potential with Aerith and Tifa, both of whom have feelings for the standoffish mercenary. Both also have plenty of lovable qualities that have endeared them to fans over the years, resulting in a lot of emotional investment over who earns the title of Cloud’s true soulmate. There’s an argument to be made for either side and battle lines have long since been drawn and stationed by those with strong beliefs one way or the other.

FF7 Rebirth Doesn’t Canonize Cloud’s True Romance

Rebirth Takes The Safe Road

Although FF7 Rebirth has the opportunity to settle the romance debate once and for all, it opts for the safest road by refusing to take a clear side. Like in the original game, a big moment of romantic fulfillment comes with Cloud’s date at the gold saucer. This scene is open to multiple possibilities depending on who Cloud bonds the most with across the course of the adventure, which makes it possible to experience the romance in several different ways.

The system for raising affection is somewhat less cryptic in FF7 Rebirth than it was in the original game, with indicators that relationships have changed occasionally popping up after dialogue choices, side quests, and more, but it’s still hard to have much certainty about who Cloud will end up on the date with. If anything’s changed, it’s that the playing field seems more even this time. While Aerith and Tifa started with major point leads in the original game that made them the most common options, getting a date with Barret or Red XIII is surprisingly easy in FF7 Rebirth.

FF7 Rebirth‘s relationship system can be viewed in full after completing the game, which clarifies a lot of what seems ambiguous while playing.

How FF7 Rebirth Threads The Needle With Aerith And Tifa

Signs Of A Canon Romance

From a mechanical standpoint, the biggest indicator of Cloud and Aerith being canon is the fact that the original game gave Aerith both the highest point lead and a default win in the case of ties, pointing toward an idea that she’s the primary choice. It’s easy to rack up some points with Tifa before Aerith even joins the party, however, so the situation isn’t that cut and dry. The removal of any apparent lead for characters in FF7 Rebirth fails to offer any more clarity on this point, although anyone strenuously trying to argue that Cloud and Barret getting together is canon might appreciate it.

In terms of the actual narrative and characterization, there’s once again enough to support either viewpoint. The big win for Tifa fans lies in the most intimate version of their date at the Gold Saucer, where the two characters actually kiss, a moment that Aerith never quite gets. On the other hand, the date shown in the credits for the game is always the one with Aerith, which is a pretty strong argument that it’s intended to be the main canon choice.

The tricky balance that FF7 Rebirth achieves can best be appreciated by reading any thread discussing Cloud’s relationships. It usually doesn’t take long to come across promoters of both viewpoints asserting that FF7 Rebirth has clearly settled the canon, but when two opposing conclusions are both presented as obvious, there’s definitely a little more to unpack. Holding either perspective is completely valid, especially when backed up by various pieces of often impressive evidence, but understanding why not everyone agrees tends to make for better discussions.

How FF7 Remake Part 3 Fits Into The Picture

Comes Down To Personal Perspective

Where things might get really interesting is with FF7 Remake Part 3, as the resolution of Cloud’s romantic arc can be seen in very different lights depending on which perspective is employed. Although there’s always a level of tragedy to the story, one reading invokes a deeper sadness than the other. Cloud’s ultimate relationship with Tifa certainly canonizes their love in one aspect, but whether it retroactively proves that she was always his number one is a messier question, and the loss of Aerith stings even more for those who believe she was Cloud’s true soulmate.

Thanks to the parallel world that FF7 Rebirth presents alongside the main story, there’s the possibility to show one narrative where Cloud ends up with Tifa and one where he ends up with Aerith, which would certainly ignite some additional fervor in the discussion. FF7 Rebirth already plays around with this concept a little in Cloud and Aerith’s alternate timeline date on the town. The ending of FF7 Rebirth attempts to thread a needle of not completely tossing Aerith out of the story despite her death, so it may be a balancing act that’s continued.

The whole debate over Aerith and Tifa is an argument that ultimately doesn’t matter that much, as the story’s meaning really just comes down to personal perspective. Cloud clearly cares for both characters, and it’s just as easy to make a claim that there’s no true answer. Even if Square Enix ever did provide indisputable confirmation of the canon, it wouldn’t change how people feel about the characters, and there wouldn’t be any real need to throw out old beliefs.

The original FF7 was a game that left a lot to interpretation, thanks to both a succinct telling of its story and some intentionally cryptic elements (along with an English translation that fell short in some regards). This isn’t a bad thing, as the room to take different ideas away from it is part of what has given FF7 such extraordinary staying power. Despite introducing some new elements, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth remains uncommitted to any hard proof of whether Aerith or Tifa can be considered Cloud’s true love, and that might be one of the best decisions it makes.