The trailers for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth want to make you believe that Zack lives in a parallel universe that merges with the original one.

Here again we continue to analyze everything related to the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy. In the first article, we left it when it was time to talk about Zach and why he seems to be alive now.

To better explain what happens to this character (according to my perspective), we need to go back to the section where I mentioned the world that is used to guide spirits. As such, I’ll include some interviews with the developers of the new Final Fantasy VII trilogy, which I’m confident will be possible, assuming Zack doesn’t exist in a parallel universe.

What will happen to Zack at the end of Final Fantasy VII Remake?

The first scene we see of Zack in Final Fantasy VII Remake is when we meet on the highway, this is his ability to see or remember what happened to him. Surprisingly, when Shinra’s guards corner him, he is surrounded by Echoes, which means that Sephiroth has been watching all the events for a long time.

Now let’s move on to the next scene, which happens after you “defeat” Echo and Sephiroth. After the game comes out in 2020, it is speculated that Zack will survive and go to Midgar after defeating Fate. The problem with this kind of concept is that the narrative can be confusing.

We know that a sack of potatoes will appear in this episode along with the Stamp mascot, the detail being that the dog is a terrier and not a hound, given throughout the Final Fantasy VII Remake adventure. Then, to our surprise, Zack is seen alive and winning the battle. Many wonder what the problem is, and the answer is simple, the explosion of Echoes occurs after the switch.

It can be said that time works in a different way than we are used to, but I repeat in the narrative it is confusing. Another point worth commenting on is how far the explosion affects Zack, how Midgar was able to get out unscathed. If it’s really an alternate timeline, that effect must have done a lot of unseen damage. Also, if that world is a different line, I was wondering how the changes presented there would work, because everything seems random.

For example, while the battle between Zack and his guards is well underway, everything starts to get cloudy until it rains when our hero is about to die. However, in that world everything is very clear. We also have to consider that we now have new information about Echoes that could undermine the alternative reality theory.

Echoes, the developers of the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy, have confirmed Rebirth. They also said that their role in the second part will be a little different, I personally interpret this as maybe they will look smaller and not try to stop every action of the characters (repeat). So Echoes didn’t leave him, this is very important information, because the theory that is being spread everywhere is based on Zack surviving because of Echoes’ defeat.

If these creatures did not disappear, how did Zach survive? Some fans of Final Fantasy VII think that the developers lie in every interview, and it’s okay if you don’t believe it, but I don’t think they always and clearly do, which brings down the name of each one (not counting the image damage to Square Enix). However, if you still have doubts, check out the latest trailer for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, where Echoes appears behind Aeris as she prays in the Forgotten Capital.

After presenting why I don’t believe Zack exists in an alternate reality, I’ll go on to explain what the ending of Final Fantasy VII Remake means. The new design of the stamp can be interpreted in two ways. The first Sephiroth is being in the Lifestream and using Genovan’s powers to alter some memories. On the Path of Smile, the villain travels through the Lifestream, leaving his mark and filling the planet’s essence with darkness.

Another option is that when a person dies, they leave some memories to the Lifestream, losing their authenticity along the way. In fact, @SEPH7ROTH explains it well in his theory about the Final Fantasy VII Remake. He was Zack’s ghost misconstructing one of his memories, that of a puppy in a potato sack. The hero’s soul has been robbed of his memories of Stamp’s pet appearance, and as he tries to rebuild it, he takes the nickname Angel gave him as a reference.

As for Ekos’ explosion, Zack only touches it because he’s a ghost who doesn’t know he’s dead yet. Now, we have to talk about the Midgar that Final Fantasy VII Remake offers after all the echoes around it are gone.

What world is zack in?

As I told you in Part 1 of the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy analysis, Aeris could have stopped Sephiroth’s plans if something happened to him by remaking Midgar to have a place in the White Lifestream. This place later leads her to help them purify the souls and stop the Meteorite at the end of the story. I must clarify that this concept world is not an alternative reality, it will not be a physical plane.

On the other hand, after the Ekos explosion, it starts to fall like golden flakes (representing light). None of them appear in the scenes where Marlin and our heroes appear. However, that light is visible from the moment Zack survives until Biggs wakes up. It seems highly doubtful to me that the Avalanche member, in addition to being alive, will be in a special place for him with his teammate’s gloves and bandana by his side.

In the year In 2021, Motomu Toriyama commented on Biggs’ case in the Final Fantasy VII Remake Ultimania Plus book.

“Well, since Big showed up in person, we’ll see him alive in the finale. On the other hand, Jessie won’t be in the finale because we couldn’t save her… or that’s what they think. If Biggs life can be saved by some miracle, that means the other members can too. Maybe. Jessie may or may not be saved. However, the main theme of this story is “loss.” If all the characters you see could survive in the future, that might be another world.

When Toriyama’s words came to light, many fans started to say that different timelines were confirmed, but I personally think that revealing the mystery in a big way would be a great follow-up for the creator. In fact, characters can die in a parallel universe too, if Toriyama says that maybe everyone can survive in that world, I wonder more about where ghosts live.

By the way, I’d also bet that Biggs is dead (you can see how one of the lights I mentioned falls on him). What I don’t fully understand is why Marley is looking at those lights. Is this the memories that the world shows to the living?

Now that it’s clear that I’m one of those people who thinks Zack is dead, let’s move on to the final scene of Final Fantasy VII Remake. After the group decides to chase after Sephiroth, it starts to rain and Zack appears carrying Cloud in the opposite direction from Eris, who says she hates the sky. First of all, because this crossing starts raining (like when Zack dies) and because it’s where our hero’s first love is killed by three Shinra foot soldiers.

Tetsuya Nomura, character designer and creative director of the Remake project, commented on the Final Fantasy VII Remake Ultimania guide in this episode, which reveals what it means.

“For Eris, the sky symbolizes sadness. People he loves have returned to the sky, like Zack or his mother Ifalna. And the sky she saw in the ruins is covered by Shinra. The destruction that destroyed the elders; Jenova fell from the sky. She associates all these events with the sky. That’s why she says she hates him.

It’s clear that Aerys realizes that’s where Zack died, and what we see is a flashback to what really happened. Plus, we’ve seen that all-white background before, like when Zack and Eris appeared in Advent Children. I bet you’re wondering if Zack isn’t alive then what does the church scene in the Final Fantasy VII Remake DLC mean? This may have an explanation based on how the universe works.

Zack’s scene in Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade explained.

Before we talk about the situation, we have already seen our heroes heading towards Qal while it is raining. It’s like the developers wanted to give a relationship between Rain and Zack, but that would only happen if he was dead, because it wouldn’t make sense with an alternate universe Zack.

Now in this episode, we see Zack entering the Sector 5 Church looking for Aeris. Unfortunately, he does not find her; What he sees is a lot of sad people. In this ending, Eris of that universe is supposed to be dead and there are people who mourn because of it. The problem is that in the final trailer for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, you see the Eris of that world alive. Therefore, I will try to give another explanation that has nothing to do with alternative lines.

The people seen in the church are the ghosts of those who died in the explosions of Reactors 1 and 5, as well as the falling plaque in Sector 7. It takes place in Midgar during the Final Fantasy VII Remake. The interesting thing is that many of them appear in the opening points of the game.

Thanks to @SEPH7ROTH for providing me with the data and images, the next part of the analysis was made possible. First, I’ll share some photos from the final scene of Intergrade so you can see the characters that appear there.

Next, I’ll show some parts of the Final Fantasy VII Remake intro that shows people living on a Sector 5 plate, which means they’re near Reactor 5.

If we compare the original image of the church scene with the one at the beginning of Final Fantasy VII Remake, we can clearly see that it is the same as the sad boy playing. On the other hand, we see the same girl in the church in the second shot of the intro. As for the woman with the children, behind the boy on the bicycle (top left), it can be seen in the third image at the entrance in the background.

You can see the man next to the blonde woman in screenshot two from the end of Intergrade. Finally, in the church scene in Figure 3, when the game starts, there is a worker at the construction site and one of those distributing Mako cylinders.

If you’ve seen the Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade for yourself, if you’re still not convinced, you might get some better shots to compare. Perhaps many think that this has nothing to do with the story, they are just reusing patterns. The detail is that there are many coincidences, not to mention that the girl is clearly seen in the opening credits, and it is strange that they decided to use her design again.

Likewise, if we think this scene represents an alternate timeline, something doesn’t add up. At first it was said that Eris had died in that world and the people there might have been sad. We know that this theory has lost its strength because in the most recent Final Fantasy VII Rebirth trailer, she was seen alive in that world. However, even if we do not take into account the latest development, I think, the concept has no meaning because many of these people do not seem to live in the area, and there are two workers who have uniforms and everything.

On the other hand, you could say that they are sheltering there because of some attack, like a reactor explosion. The problem with this idea is that we don’t see an atmosphere of danger outside the church, and we don’t see those people hurting or cooperating after such an event. Also, I wonder why they take that place as a refuge. Another thing that is interesting and I don’t see this world being an alternate reality is that Zack doesn’t pay attention to the people there. We also have the white light behind it, reminiscent of the end of Advent Children.

After this explanation, it will only be necessary to clarify why the spirits of these people are represented in this way, that is, with a sense of sadness. One possibility is that Sephiroth has corrupted a portion of the Lifestream so that the souls of those living there are diseased so they cannot yet join Gaia. Another possibility is that these people are still confused and that’s why they haven’t returned to the planet. Sector 5 church is known to be a special place, so it becomes the path of the soul before merging with the planet.

We’ve already covered all of the Final Fantasy VII Remake, so it’s time to talk about the clues the developers left us with in the movie for Rebirth, although I’ll leave that part of the analysis for the upcoming finale. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth: Why the Remake Trilogy Isn’t a Sequel to Advent Children and Not About Alternative Realities [Parte 3]