Summary
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthreintroduces the Fort Condor mini-game in earnest following its brief appearance in theIntermissionDLC forFinal Fantasy 7 Remake. Players have the opportunity to engage withFinal Fantasy 7Rebirth’s tactical battle simulator as part of the Protorelic quest in the Junon region, and afterward, it becomes an optional dalliance for players to engage with as one of the title’s many mini-games. What’s perhaps most interesting about the Fort Condor mini-game is the way that it updates the mechanics while retaining a presentation that clearly pays homage to the low-poly aesthetic of the 1997 original.
The Fort Condor side quest in the originalFinal Fantasy 7was an important optional section that rewarded players with thePhoenix summon Materia. to get that valuable reward, though, players would need to first play through a brief tower defense mini-game that saw them defend the fort from encroaching Shinra troops. InFinal Fantasy 7’s remake trilogy, it’s established that Fort Condor is a popular board game rather than an actual location on the world map, but the premise is essentially the same.Final Fantasy 7 Rebirthswaps tower defense for a turn-based auto-battler, but the Fort Condor mini-game is still a compelling (if not occasionally frustrating) distraction from the main adventure.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s Fort Condor Mini-Game Replicates the Original’s Presentation
Though it was groundbreaking at the time, it’s hard not to look back onFinal Fantasy 7and think that its polygonal graphics look practically primitive, especially in comparison to the stunning graphical fidelity ofFinal Fantasy 7 RemakeandRebirth. The original Fort Condor section fromFinal Fantasy 7would go even more low-poly, representing different unit types and defendable strongholds as little more than colored shapes, ultimately using rudimentary 3D graphics to present its tower defense gameplay.
As an homage to both the originalFinal Fantasy 7and its Fort Condor section,Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth’s Fort Condor mini-gamereplicates the low-poly look of the PS1 classic.
Once Cloud and his teammates approach the Fort Condor game board as part ofthe Junon region’s Protorelic quest, they’re magically transported within its world akin toJumanji, complete with a low-poly look heavily reminiscent of each character’s PS1 renders. The same applies to the game board and all of its unit types as well, with each of them replicating the look and animations of the originalFinal Fantasy 7’s character models. As a result, the inclusion of the Fort Condor mini-game inFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthis a tip of the hat to both the notorious side quest from the original and the series' 3D debut as a whole.
How the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Trilogy Updates the Fort Condor Mini-Game
The original Fort Condor section fromFinal Fantasy 7would see players positioning various unit types on a map to protect the titular fort at the summit of a mountain. As Shinra forces make their way up the mountain, various unit types are either more or less effective depending on their interactions with the different enemy types, and the battle plays out like a carefully crafted game of tower defense-meets-rock, paper, scissors. In updating the game for the modernFinal Fantasy 7remake trilogy, Fort Condor swaps tower defense for a blend of turn-based tactics and auto-battling, but the rock, paper, scissors approach to unit strengths and weaknesses is still at play.
And, unlike the original Fort Condor game, simply surviving isn’t enough. InFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirth, players must consider both offense and defense, seizing openings to advance on the enemy’s stronghold when possible in order to do enough damage before the timer runs out. The inclusion of a Hard mode, where players get fewer unit types and have to challenge Chadley for Fort Condor supremacy, might just present themost difficult mini-game thatFinal Fantasy 7 Rebirthhas to offer.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
WHERE TO PLAY
Discover a vibrant and vast world in this standalone entry in the Final Fantasy VII remake project. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the second entry in the Final Fantasy VII remake project, which retells the story of the genre-redefining RPG across three distinct games. Iconic heroes Cloud, Barret, Tifa, Aerith and Red XIII have escaped from the dystopian city Midgar and are now in pursuit of Sephiroth, the vengeful swordsman from Cloud’s past who was thought to be dead. This new adventure can be enjoyed by all players, even those who have yet to play Final Fantasy VII Remake or the PlayStation original. Expect a new standard of cinematic storytelling, fast-paced combat and rich exploration across a vast world.
