Cloud Strife is the main protagonist of Final Fantasy 7, and is probably one of the most iconic characters of the series. He’s appeared in other Square Enix games like Kingdom Hearts and has become the face of the Final Fantasy franchise. Recently, it’s been revealed that Final Fantasy 7 Remake director Naoki Hamaguchi once considered changing Cloud Strife’s iconic weapon: the Buster Sword, a massive, oversized greatsword. Here’s what Hamaguchi had to say about the matter and their decision to go against the idea.
Cloud Strife’s Famous Weapon: The Buster Sword
When you think about Cloud Strife, the Buster Sword is an accessory that has become a part of Cloud’s identity as a Final Fantasy character. His weapon is just as iconic as Cloud himself, so when Hamaguchi explains the idea of potentially changing out this weapon for something “more realistic” and reasonable, of course, fans would worry about this change.
Final Fantasy Director Once Considered Changing the Iconic Weapon
Thinking things over, the devs ultimately decided against it, explaining how fans wouldn’t accept such a change, especially within a community as vocal and involved as the Final Fantasy community. I think we’re all in agreement over the matter; Cloud needs the Buster Sword just as it’s always been, and any change to its design, or even forgoing the weapon altogether, would be a huge mistake.
Here are a few excerpts from the interview with YouTube content creator Julien Chièze, where Hamaguchi explains the thought process behind this idea and the decision to stick with the weapon’s original design when making the remake:
“While making Remake, there was this aspect of the weight,”
“How Cloud swings it around with one hand that sort of felt like it would weaken the sense of realism, you know?”
“So at the time, when we were making Remake, there was some discussion about whether we should give Cloud a more realistic version of the Buster Sword,”
“But it was just too iconic, and if we’d made it just a regular old sword, players wouldn’t accept it.”
“In the end we stayed faithful to the OG,”
“A whole new generation of people fell in love with it, so I think it was the right call.”
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