Normally, you can’t walk into a piece of pop culture in the middle of it and get enjoyment out of it. Nobody is starting their Star Wars adventure with The Empire Strikes Back, methinks. Are you going to read The Two Towers without first picking up The Fellowship of the Ring? Not recommended. And as a massive fan of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, please don’t start at The Waste Lands, no matter how great that book is (and it is). These aren’t rules, mind you. Start what you want and start where you want. I’m not the boss of you. This is definitely how I consume my pop culture, that’s all.
At least, it’s mostly how I consume it. There are exceptions, such as right now, as I’ve been playing through Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth on my OLED Steam Deck.
Let me get a few things out of the way first. While I’ve played Final Fantasy VII on many consoles over the years, including the original PlayStation and the PS4/5 remake, I have yet to finish the game. I know, it’s one of the greatest games of all time. What’s wrong with me? I blame my attention span back in the day for not finishing the original in 1997 and time and commitments in my 40s for my lack of time with the remake these days. So, with the chance to review Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth one I couldn’t pass up, I’m entering midway into the overall, as Square Enix is remaking the original as a trilogy of titles.
I’m guessing I may not be the only one, as the title starts with a recap of what went down in Final Fantasy VII: Remake, getting me up to speed pretty quickly. Luckily, the quality of Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth is so solid right away that you’re immediately engaged in the game, regardless of your background with the overall series or story. As mentioned, I’m playing on my OLED Steam Deck and Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth looks gorgeous on that console. I traded in my LCD Deck a few months ago for the upgraded OLED and for these eyes, the visual change is just fantastic. Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth pops off the screen and demonstrates to me again the difference between LCD and OLED in the most eye-catching way.
I’m a massive fan of the Steam Deck overall, and it’s a great console on which to play Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth. Is it as powerful as a PS5? No, but you’re not playing AAA titles on the Deck for the best visuals; you’re using it for comfort and portability, and that’s what it delivers. That being said, from a graphics perspective, Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth looks excellent; not next-gen great, but PS4 great, which is more than acceptable on the device.
Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth is verified for Steam Deck, which means it is optimized and completely playable on the console. I can confirm this. The only “issue” I have when playing the game on the Deck is remembering which button does what, and that’s my problem. I have the same trouble playing FF VII: Remake on my PS5. It’s the casual gamer in me.
So yes, while I’ve come in midway through the ambitious Final Fantasy remake experience Square Enix is making, I can say without hesitation that Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth is a great game and wonderfully playable in its portable iteration of the Steam Deck. It’s so fun and engaging that it’s even got me going back to Final Fantasy VII: Remake to play catch-up and experience the world of Midgard, Cloud, and Sephiroth from the very beginning.
I just need more time. And the biggest sword.