Final Fantasy VII spawned an entire generation of PlayStation-educated RPG gamers. Where the genre had, before, been an extremely niche phenomenon, particularly in the West, it suddenly exploded; both the PlayStation and PlayStation 2 were there to entertain the sudden explosion of interest in these often story-centric, number-heavy games. It wasn’t just JRPGs either; particularly in the last five or six years, Western RPGs have seen a renaissance as well, particularly as developers have realized that the progression elements that make them so appealing need not be limited to only one method of play.
The recent Final Fantasy VII rerelease on the PC, with its cloud saving and achievement system, stood a chance at being something truly special, a means by which almost anyone could experience one of the most popular (and most polarizing) entries in the genre on the single most prolific electronic device in the country. But excessive DRM woes have kept many a gamer at bay, with always-online requirements (in addition to a one-time activation) hamstringing the proceedings for gamers who just want to play what is, at this point, a title that is fifteen years old.
Luckily, it appears as though Square Enix is listening. Though there have been no promises regarding action, the complaints have apparently been escalated all the way to the publisher’s HQ. Will anything come of it? Will the DRM be excised? It’s unlikely, but certainly not impossible.