The game publisher Square Enix has informed about the upcoming update ‘Streamlined Progression’ for the remake of Final Fantasy VII Intergrade which will be releasing next Thursday on both PlayStation 5 and PC. The patch that also coincides with the game being launched on Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox One features new cheats such as auto-heal and dealing maximum damage of 9,999. This has already sparked a heated debate on the matter of whether the game is still worth playing, and if yes, then for what reason.
First of all, let’s clarify this, since the official Final Fantasy VII Remake account has just tweeted about this and the reactions are… a lot. They have called it “Streamlined Progression” which is a nice-sounding name, but what it actually means is you almost get a god mode. Your health and magic are restored and you deal the maximum amount of damage with every hit. The new features offered as a free update to the PS5 and PC versions of the game next week are supposedly to celebrate the game’s arrival on Nintendo Switch 2 and Xbox after a long wait. But wow! Did this just open a can of worms!
Many gamers reacted with a very basic…the question…why? The user @CrossOutBryce very openly conveyed his viewpoint: “Why…would anybody want to play like this? That’s almost like an invincibility mode, isn’t it?” And he is not wrong by any means. The user @redhatter192 simply stated, “Why would one even play the game?” It is a valid inquiry. What are you doing if you do not participate in the combat, which is the main aspect of the game? Are you just witnessing the cutscenes? That is fine since the story is fantastic but still.
But, on the other hand, there are some who argue and this is the point where it gets toasty. Some gamers say they will not mind it being an option at all. @MasterJ360 had the usual reply: “If you are against it, then just don’t use it… Or even better don’t patch your game.” Isn’t it easy enough? It’s just a switch. It does not affect anyone else’s game. For gamers who might find the action combat difficult but love the universe and characters, this could be their way of going through the whole story without being pissed off. @strafeapp joked, “haha easy mode going crazy, hitting 9,999 every hit? might just watch instead of playing lol” which exactly conveys that viewpoint.
However, hold on a moment, then we get to the hottest topic of the issue: TROPHIES. The trophy matter is where the craziness really lives. A lot of players who had already achieved the Platinum trophy through the old method are now having mixed feelings. One of them, @FirebirdSixty8, says that the patch should “disable trophy achievements if you use it. So, the platinum players who achieved it the legit way earned it the right way.” Another user, @JimRyansThumbs, called it “Baby mode for Xbox and Switch players. Should disable achievements/trophies playing like this.”
This led to a lengthy debate. The user @adelinekindpunk dove into it arguing that if trophies have no value or challenge, there is no need to have them at all. They said that it devalued the hard work they put in. But then @flashy_roz came back with “Dude, if you do it for yourself there is no need to comment as if you are trying to stop others from getting trophies.” It is this classic conflict that sometimes arises between the “elitist” and “accessibility” crowds when the super-easy modes are introduced to the games.
And honestly, some of the responses are just laughable in their meanness. Players started to look at each other’s profiles just to argue trophy counts. @Icewallowcumin told @RavenCyarm “Your profile says it all lmao,” and Raven reacted with a sarcastic mimicry. It’s such typical gamer drama that makes you shake your head and laugh.
Amidst this, some players still called for the opposite. @LeStJi_luiz said, “It would also be nice to have a hard mode for the first playthrough.” And there were others who wanted only technical fixes like @cunha_ip who pointed out, “You guys needed to fix the textures in the base PS5 version, 60fps at 480p.” And @A7madRyan asked to “fix the graphic pop ins.” So there are gamers who are not affected by the god mode issue at all; in fact, they just want the game to be better in terms of visuals and performance.
Thus, I ask, was it the patch? A single optional feature could cause a deep split in the gaming community.
