For longti fans of the Final Fantasy series, the sudden appearance of an Easter egg on the forums felt like a small bomb dropping.
Of course, many people remained skeptical—most assud it was probably just a teaser for so kind of spin-off content.
To date, Final Fantasy VII had never received a proper sequel.
Crisis Core had rely served as a prequel that filled in so backstory, and no one really considered it part of the mainline plot.
In fact, the Final Fantasy series had never officially continued the story of any individual title. At most, there had been ani films like Advent Children.
But... maybe that was okay.
Maybe all they wanted was a perfect ending.
Just like NieR: Automata.
At the end of NieR: Automata, the story had closed on a bittersweet, open-ended note that left players aching for closure.
Eventually, during a special event celebrating five million copies sold, Gastar Electronic Entertainnt hosted a live stage performance. There, the voice actors for 2B and 9S narrated an epilogue in which the androids and AI characters finally found happiness and peace together.
The stage show alone boosted NieR: Automata's sales by over a million copies, making it one of the most cost-effective PR moves in the company's history.
So many fans figured this FF7 Easter egg might just be another stage show—and that would be totally fine.
Because just the idea of a possible altered ending was enough. That alone would be satisfying.
anwhile, at Gastar Electronic Entertainnt, the PR departnt's phones were ringing off the hook.
Every dia outlet wanted a scoop.
The PR team was completely blindsided—they hadn't been inford of any such project.
In truth, the Easter egg hadn't been officially announced at all. It had simply been posted by a forum user. They hadn't expected such an intense response—and were reminded, yet again, of Final Fantasy's incredible pull on fans.
"President! Have you seen what's happening on the forums?"
Yuki Uesugi, the head of Developnt Division Five, burst into Takayuki's office in a hurry. Clearly, he was talking about that forum post.
Takayuki looked up calmly, already expecting this. "You an the Easter egg posted by a certain user, right?"
"Yes, sir! Is it true? Is there really a new story? One that might... end happily?" Uesugi asked, barely containing his excitent.
He had been with Takayuki since the early days of Final Fantasy—a veteran ga developer, and one of the creators most closely tied to Final Fantasy VII.
He was proudest of that installnt.
First, it was the first ga in the series to surpass 10 million units sold. Second, he had personally been deeply affected by the tragedy of its story.
He'd even asked Takayuki, more than once during developnt, to consider writing a happier ending.
But Takayuki had stood firm.
"It's true. I didn't expect soone to find the Easter egg so soon, to be honest. I'd hoped to wait a bit longer before announcing the ga—we've got enough on our plate right now."
"Wait—President, are you saying Final Fantasy VII is getting a new ga? A continuation?"
Even Uesugi had assud the post hinted at a novel or a film, sothing smaller in scope.
But Takayuki just smiled.
Off to the side, Ayaka was quietly rolling her eyes.
Didn't expect soone to find it, huh? That Easter egg was buried so deep, no sane person could've found it without divine intervention.
Still, she held her tongue in front of Uesugi and let Takayuki work his magic.
Takayuki said, "Yes. There's a new story planned. And since the Easter egg's been discovered, maybe it's ti we act. That is, if your team has ti. I heard you were planning a new IP?"
Uesugi didn't hesitate. "President! Please let handle the new Final Fantasy VII project! I'll do everything you ask—my only wish is that this story can finally have a happy ending."
"And your other project?"
"No problem! We'll handle it. Just give us this new ga—we'll manage both!"
In fact, Uesugi was already thinking about expanding his team. If it weren't for the company's strict anti-overti policy, he'd have everyone pulling all-nighters already.
He wanted just one thing: to craft a proper continuation to Final Fantasy VII. And to do it right.
Takayuki, seeing Uesugi's determination, had no reason to refuse. He handed over a docunt he'd been saving—his proposal for the Final Fantasy VII Remake project.
"Have your team put together a blockbuster CG teaser before the Gastar Carnival. Show the world that Final Fantasy VII is far from over."
"Yes, sir!"
Uesugi stood tall, fully committed.
Then he rushed back to the fifth developnt floor.
There, over a hundred employees were already waiting near the elevators. As soon as they saw Uesugi, they sward him.
"Boss! What did the president say? What's going on with FF7?"
"Do we need to start working now? Will this new story really have a happy ending?"
"What kind of CG film are we doing?"
"Boss, I've got writing skills! If it's a continuation of FF7, I'm confident I can help!"
"Get real! This isn't going to be so fanfic—it's going to be a big CG production like Advent Children!"
Seeing everyone buzzing with speculation, Uesugi finally raised his voice.
"Everyone, the president has just assigned us a new task. It's going to be a huge challenge."
He took a deep breath.
"We're going to make a Final Fantasy VII Remake. Not just a graphical update, but a full remake—including a brand-new storyline. The story is going in a new direction."
"A... new ga?" soone asked cautiously.
Uesugi nodded.
A cheer erupted.
"Yes! We finally get to make a new Final Fantasy VII ga!"
"I joined Division Five because of FF7! I can't believe I'll get to help write a better ending myself!"
Every person there had once been a loyal FF7 player.
Even those who weren't hardcore fans still held deep respect for the ga.
And now, knowing they would be remaking such an iconic title, no one felt burdened. They only felt excited.
"Boss! Let's start now! No ti to rest!"
"Yeah! Let's wrap up the other ga quick and jump into this!"
Uesugi reminded them, "No, we still have to give our current project the attention it deserves. The president wouldn't want us to cut corners. But I believe we can handle two big projects at once. Right?"
"Right!" they shouted back in unison—so loudly the whole floor trembled.
Even nearby teams started feeling the energy in the air. Excitent spread like wildfire.
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