Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Continues Deep Storytelling Despite Marketing Claims of Newcomer Accessibility
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Don't believe claims that Final Fantasy VII Rebirth can be played without knowing the story from Remake. Rebirth is clearly a direct sequel and middle part of an ongoing narrative.
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Video game developers often falsely claim sequels are entry points to try to attract new players and increase sales. But most sequels build directly off previous games.
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The Mass Effect trilogy tried to appeal to new players with Mass Effect 3, but it limited the storytelling and character arcs that relied on imported save data.
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Assassin's Creed and Dragon Age protagonists frequently change to provide entry points for newcomers, but it can undermine ongoing narrative threads.
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Continuity should not be seen as an obstacle. Not all sequels need extensive continuity, but tightly-connected stories like Rebirth shouldn't have to pretend they can be played in isolation.