Here’s What Final Fantasy VII Rebirth’s Stunning World Looked Like During Early Development

Video game studios can often be so secretive that it’s easy to forget the games are made by people. A gorgeous vista in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth was once just a basic surface on which Square Enix’s developers would eventually build entire worlds. That’s why it’s always fun to look at behind-the-scenes footage of early development builds and see just how far a game came from conception to completion. Square has put out a video that shows some of those early concept phases for Rebirth, and it definitely gives you an appreciation for just how much work goes into creating such a stunning world.

The hour-and-a-half long video about the development of Rebirth delves into how Square went about recreating the iconic world, enemies, and characters of the original Final Fantasy VII. Much attention has been given to how Remake and Rebirth expand environments that were one screen in the source material into something much larger. But even those expanded areas had to be rebuilt from the ground up, and before they were part of a beautiful open world, they looked more like something out of an old Sonic the Hedgehog game from the ‘90s. They’re missing textures and shape, and so a lot of them are made up of placeholders like checkered patterns or flat surfaces. But it gives the team a baseline to build on, and the before and after is pretty striking.

That’s only one of the many things Square Enix’s team touches on in the video. If you’ve finished Rebirth and want a deep dive into all the minutiae involved in remaking the game, check out the full video below:

For more on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, check out Kotaku’s review. If you’re struggling with the game, we’ve got plenty of tips and guides to help you through Cloud’s journey. Here’s a big ol’ roundup of our coverage.