At Tokyo Game Show 2019, Final Fantasy VII Remake was up on stage and gave a new presentation on how the combat system works. During the presentation, it was revealed that the game will have another gameplay mode called Classic Mode.
At E3 2019, Final Fantasy VII Remake was re-revealed and everyone got the chance to see how the new combat system works, as it blends real-time action with the ability to pause the game mid-combat and issue commands. The way that the system works is that executing attacks generates the ATB gauge which allows you to pause the game and issue special attacks, cast spells, and use items. You can also skip pausing the game and put commands on shortcuts if you want to play the game fully in real-time.
Classic Mode harkens back to how the original game played. Instead of having to attack to fill up the ATB gauge, it will fill up on its own. This is an option that players can choose if they want to make the combat feel like how it originally played. The presentation also provided a look at how Tifa and Aerith play in the game as they and Cloud take on Aps. During this battle, we also got the chance to see how Summons will look in the game as Ifrit was summoned. The Summons will be controlled by the AI but you can issue commands to use their special abilities by spending some of the ATB charges.
A new Final Fantasy VII Remake trailer was also released in addition to this gameplay presentation. the trailer was full of new footage including a first look at Shinra’s agents, powerful summons and more. The trailer goes through various moments throughout the game such as the opening bombing mission, Cloud’s first encounter with Reno, and meeting Aerith for the first time.
Also at Tokyo Game Show 2019, 49 minutes of Death Stranding gameplay, and new trailers for the New Guilty Gear and Yakuza: Like Dragon. Final Fantasy VII Remake releases on March 3, 2020 exclusively for the PlayStation 4.