Eleven months after releasing on PlayStation 5, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is finally coming to PC! In recent reports, Square Enix have outlined their new focus on targeting the PC platform, leading to faster ports of titles such as Rebirth and Final Fantasy XVI. PC gamers could maybe see a simultaneous release on the final part of the Final Fantasy VII trilogy! If we’re lucky.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the second instalment in the trilogy of remakes based on the original legendary title. Unlike the original, the remakes opt for fast-paced combat instead and expand the story greatly. I highly recommend playing the first remake before Rebirth, both titles are on sale together at a discount on Steam.
New Features for PC
PC Ports can always be a cause for concern, but I’m happy to report that Rebirth runs very well. Square Enix has done a lovely job optimising Rebirth’s launch for PC, as well as some new features. Rebirth now supports 120 fps, for a smoother experience on more powerful machines. There are also improvements to visuals and lighting, showcased in the trailer below.
Rebirth supports three default presets for graphics; low, medium and high. There are also several detail options to adjust, such as shadows and water quality, or limiting the amount of characters on screen at once. This is a huge improvement on Remake’s lacklustre settings on PC, however it’s not quite the breadth of options offered in Final Fantasy XVI’s PC port.
The PC options are great, but I expect more from a publisher as large as Square Enix. There are no benchmarking tools or performance trackers, so gamers with less powerful machines may need to do a lot of tinkering. The complete lack of even basic accessibility options like colour blindness settings or high-contrast subtitles is a big disappointment.
One feature I’m very happy about is the ability to rebind controller buttons, a feature that’s neglected in many releases. Players can also create multiple control schemes on the keyboard, for use in and out of combat. Rebirth also supports DualSense controllers. The subtle vibrations when bumping into characters are a great little touch, and one party member can utilise the touchpad in a special way.
I ran Rebirth on high graphics with a GTX 4070, which sits just below the recommended specs for maximum settings. Even during the game’s most chaotic battles, I was able to maintain a steady 120fps. The only time I saw a drop in frames was in the very populated cities, but this was only down to 90 fps, which still looks fantastic.
Performance on Steam Deck isn’t stellar, but it’s possible this could change with future optimisation patches. Rebirth is playable at a consistent 60 fps outside of cities, although the dynamic resolution has to decrease the quality frequently. Running on medium, I couldn’t even get a consistent 20fps, and sometimes crashed when attempting to open menus.
On a more powerful machine, Rebirth runs excellently. I experienced no crashes or significant glitches when playing on my PC. There has been some texture pop-in during exploration, however this has been infrequent.
First Impressions, Minor Shortcomings
Our full review of Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth was very positive, and my impressions are also very pleasant. I’m currently 15 hours and four chapters deep, and so far, it’s a very hearty improvement on the strengths of Final Fantasy VII Remake. The main cast has incredible chemistry. Having everyone finally together in a lower-stakes environment allows for more calm and charming interactions between party members.
The combat is significantly expanded in Rebirth, with a new focus on cooperative synergy attacks. These abilities add more depth and variety to battles, and are very useful when you’re on the ropes. Watching your party members cooperate also feels very rewarding. The upgrades system is completely reworked to focus on synergy attacks, which are always very exciting to unlock. Rebirth also allows for switching party members, (finally!). Players are heavily encouraged to switch their team up often, due to the wealth of new abilities, and game-changing party members you’ll acquire.
New to Rebirth are the open-world sections which feature a plethora of side activities. The side quests found here are very charming and I love the exciting new minigames. However, some of these activities are quite bland, and are far too common in other open-world games already. There was inevitably going to be lots of filler content when splitting one story into three titles, Remake had some very criticised pacing issues. Rebirth’s story moves much faster, and even when they need to slow things down, you at least get to do something new and exciting such as learn a card game or participate in a parade.
There are some small technical hiccups in Rebirth. Some audio noises sound compressed at times, such as Cloud’s sword swings (which you hear a lot). Much like Remake, Rebirth restricts the options menu when in combat, a mild yet very aggravating issue. Combined with the aforementioned texture pop-in, there are still some mild issues that are hopefully addressed in future patches.
Overall, this is a very strong PC port. It’s just lacking a little extra to make it one of the greats. Rebirth is a very enjoyable experience and I’m very glad it’s finally arriving on PC.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth releases 24th January 2025 on Steam and Epic, and is currently 30% off if purchased before release.
About the Author
Wil Bain
he/him
Wil plays every type of game (because he cannot sit still), but tends to favour frantic action and epic RPG's. Outside of gaming, you can find him at the local swimming pool, or visiting the exciting sights of suburban Melbourne.
