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Final Fantasy VII Remake Game Reveals Abzu Battle Trailer, Box Art

The official YouTube channel for the Final Fantasy franchise began streaming on Tuesday a Tokyo Game Show trailer for Square Enix's Final Fantasy VII Remake game. The gameplay video shows a boss battle against the Abzu and previews the game's Classic Mode and summoning mechanics.

Square Enix also revealed the official box art for North America and Europe. The artwork pays homage to the North American cover used in the original Final Fantasy VII game.

In the game, every character can equip a Summon materia, an orb that gives them the ability to call a creature into battle. If a Summon materia is equipped, a special gauge will fill up gradually over time. Once full, the player can summon the creature to fight alongside the character for a limited time. The summoned creature battles independently but the player can also command it to perform special abilities. Once the timer drops to zero, the summon unleashes its ultimate attack. In the video, the summoned Ifrit uses Hellfire.

The game will feature an alternative "Classic Mode" that switches the combat from its default real-time action RPG style to a menu-based combat system similar to the original game and older Final Fantasy titles.

While players can still move characters, an ATB (active-time battle) gauge fills up over time. When filled, players can use the menu to select an action, and the character will automatically perform the action, making any necessary movements as they do so. In addition, using the game's command menu will bring the game to a near halt, allowing players time to select commands.

The game will launch worldwide on PlayStation 4 on March 3, 2020. Square Enix has not confirmed if the release is for the entire game or for the first part.

The game will have Deluxe, Digital Deluxe, and 1st Class Editions. The Deluxe Edition contains an art book, a mini-soundtrack CD, and a DLC Materia for Cactuar. The Digital Deluxe Edition contains a digital art book, a digital mini-soundtrack CD, and a DLC Materia for Carbuncle and Cactuar. The 1st Class Edition includes all the content from the Deluxe Edition, a DLC Materia for Carbuncle, as well as a Play Arts Kai figure named "Cloud Strife and Hardy Daytona." People who pre-order the game will receive a DLC Materia for Chocobo Chick. Digital pre-orders will also include a theme for the PS4 menu.

Tetsuya Nomura confirmed in an interview last November that the remake was the next PR priority for Square Enix after the release of Kingdom Hearts III this past January. Nomura is returning to the remake game as its director after serving as the character designer for the original game, and Kazushige Nojima is also returning to write the scenario.

Square Enix stated in a Japanese news post for the game in May, "production is underway on the work as multiple parts."

Square Enix announced the Final Fantasy VII remake in 2015. Square's original Final Fantasy VII game debuted for PlayStation in 1997.

Sources: Final Fantasy franchise's YouTube channel, Official U.S. PlayStation Blog (Neal Pabon), Final Fantasy VII Remake game's Twitter account