Can't wait for the FFVII remake? Well, this might help stave off the hunger (…or just whet your appetite for more).
Developer PD Design Studio in Singapore has recreated the opening level of FFVII into a sword-slashing, fist-cracking side-scrolling beat-'em-up aptly named FFVII: Re-Imagined. It's a fan project that won't be seeking profit in any way, which will hopefully prevent Square Enix from sending those cease-and-desist letters.
After viewing the quick YouTube trailer for the project (embedded above), you can head to the game's main page to play the demo as either Cloud or Tifa. You will need an updated Unity web player plug-in, and while the game does have few bugs here and there, it's actually fairly smooth. Just stick to attacks in the air, and you'll keep those soldiers and robots down.
The demo reveals that the game might be expanded quite extensively with various difficulty levels and plenty more levels, though it may just remain a demo. You can summon Ifrit to cleanse the area with fire, call out Barret for some cover fire (useful against the Guard Scorpion at the end of the level), and switch between different elemental materia (the lightning materia stuns foes and deals extra damage to robots).
The Final Fantasy VII Remake from Square Enix proper has a Q4 2016 release date and will have "dramatic changes" according to game director Tetsuya Nomura.
