After the way the developers depicted Midgar in the Final Fantasy VII Remake, it has solidified my opinion that it is my favorite location in the original game, and quite possibly my favorite location in the entire Final Fantasy series. There are so many great locations within Midgar, from 7th Heaven in the Sector 7 Slums, to Elmyra’s House and the Sector 5 church, to Wall Market and Don’s Corneo’s Mansion, as well as the intimidating Shinra Building. So let’s start by talking about The Origins of Midgar, and go from there.
Please beware of spoilers, if you haven’t yet played the original game or you are unfamiliar with the story, this is your spoiler alert. Let’s get odd.
In early drafts of the script from Final Fantasy creator, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Final Fantasy VII took place in a bleak New York. There was an organization whose goal was to destroy Mako Reactors and blow up the city, and there was a character named Detective Joe that was chasing after them. One such member of that organization eventually became the character we all know and love today known as Cloud Strife.
In early stages of development, the city was known as “Zamal” or “Zamar,” which I believe roughly translates to "The Circle" or "The Round." Please correct me if I’m wrong about that. After Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura began to work on the project, the game and the story evolved. The New York setting was abandoned; it would later become the setting for Parasite Eve, another game produced by Sakaguchi-san, and developed by Square.
Art Director for Final Fantasy VII, Yusuka Naora, had the image of a pizza in mind when he designed the city. He designed many locations in the game, but he is most proud of his work in Midgar. In May 2020, shortly after Final Fantasy VII Remake was released, Domino’s Pizza Malaysia released a new ad promoting its pizza, which was a picture re-imagining Midgar as a pizza. There are quite a bit of pizza references in the game. Barret refers to the upper plate.
The mayor of Midgar is named Domino, and his deputy is named Hart, or Hut. According to Ultimania Omega, an early draft of the script described Midgar as “a misshapen city built in the sky, covered in iron plates and the stench of sewage,” and the city was built by “cultured” people who wanted to escape the world below.
The city is located to the northwest on Gaia’s eastern continent. Midgar’s large, circular structure is supported above the ground by nine mako reactors and a central pillar. On top of the plate are people who are typically seen as well-to-do, wealthy, or cultured. Underneath the plate lie the dark and derelict slums for the impoverished. Whilst doing research for this video, I came across the book, “Norse Myths that inspired Final Fantasy VII” by M. J. Gallagher. I’ve recently just begun reading it, and I urge you to check it out if you are interested in this stuff. The author goes deep into speculative connections between Norse Mythology and Final Fantasy VII.
The city of Midgar comes from the name Midgard. In the book, Gallagher states that Midgard can translate to “Middle Enclosure,” or “civilization.” Many consider Midgar to be one of the most iconic locations in the Final Fantasy series; I actually think it’s the most iconic location in the game. Construction of the city began in 1976. The city’s purpose was to provide residence for employees of the Shinra Electric Power Company. In the game, Midgar is the most technologically advanced city on the planet, and because of this, the city requires a lot of power through the use of its nine mako reactors. The Shinra Electric Power Company saps the planet of its life energy, turning the surrounding area into a barren wasteland. This is the impetus of the story of Final Fantasy VII, and sets into motion the story of Cloud Strife joining the eco-terrorist group Avalanche, led by Barret Wallace, to try and save the planet.
Many of the major themes of Final Fantasy VII can be found in Midgar, Themes of environmental disasters that face the planet and how we should do any and everything in our power to help save the planet. The greediness and selfishness of President Shinra and the Shinra Electric Power Company, and how they would do everything in their power to serve themselves and help make the rich get richer. The themes of class distinction and economic inequality between the upper plate areas and the slums below.
Going back to the book, Norse Myths that Inspired Final Fantasy VII, the author states that according to prophecies, Midgard will become consumed by greed, sexual promiscuity, war, and depravity, ultimately galvanizing the forces of chaos to initiate Ragnarok. Nope, not that Ragnarok. This Ragnarok. And similar calamities occurred in other games in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII including Before Crisis and Dirge of Cerberus. And during the world-ending event of Ragnarok, Midgard, or Midgar, will be destroyed and a new world will emerge.
Midgar is my favorite location in the game. I think a lot of that is because 7th Heaven is the home base of Avalanche, but I also kind of consider Seventh Heaven, and Midgar overall, to be kind of home of the game. It’s like Link’s house in the Legend of Zelda games. Sometimes I just like to go back home and chill. And that makes it all the more devastating and heart-wrenching when Shinra drops the Sector 7 Plate and destroys Seventh Heaven along with the Sector 7 Slums. I made a video a while back going through the top 7 tracks of Final Fantasy VII Remake, and Tifa’s Theme made it to the top. A lot of that is nostalgia, for sure. After the tense and exciting sequence of the Opening Bombing mission, walking back into the Sector 7 Slums of Midgar, hearing Tifa’s theme, and seeing the people dance, as cheesy as this sounds, it felt like coming back home after 23 years.
So here's my question for you: What is your favorite location in Final Fantasy VII and why? Let me know down in the comments. Thanks for watching, and be sure to subscribe if you liked this video and want to see more content like his. Stay odd, and keep on playing.
Please beware of spoilers, if you haven’t yet played the original game or you are unfamiliar with the story, this is your spoiler alert. Let’s get odd.
In early drafts of the script from Final Fantasy creator, Hironobu Sakaguchi, Final Fantasy VII took place in a bleak New York. There was an organization whose goal was to destroy Mako Reactors and blow up the city, and there was a character named Detective Joe that was chasing after them. One such member of that organization eventually became the character we all know and love today known as Cloud Strife.
In early stages of development, the city was known as “Zamal” or “Zamar,” which I believe roughly translates to "The Circle" or "The Round." Please correct me if I’m wrong about that. After Yoshinori Kitase and Tetsuya Nomura began to work on the project, the game and the story evolved. The New York setting was abandoned; it would later become the setting for Parasite Eve, another game produced by Sakaguchi-san, and developed by Square.
Art Director for Final Fantasy VII, Yusuka Naora, had the image of a pizza in mind when he designed the city. He designed many locations in the game, but he is most proud of his work in Midgar. In May 2020, shortly after Final Fantasy VII Remake was released, Domino’s Pizza Malaysia released a new ad promoting its pizza, which was a picture re-imagining Midgar as a pizza. There are quite a bit of pizza references in the game. Barret refers to the upper plate.
The mayor of Midgar is named Domino, and his deputy is named Hart, or Hut. According to Ultimania Omega, an early draft of the script described Midgar as “a misshapen city built in the sky, covered in iron plates and the stench of sewage,” and the city was built by “cultured” people who wanted to escape the world below.
The city is located to the northwest on Gaia’s eastern continent. Midgar’s large, circular structure is supported above the ground by nine mako reactors and a central pillar. On top of the plate are people who are typically seen as well-to-do, wealthy, or cultured. Underneath the plate lie the dark and derelict slums for the impoverished. Whilst doing research for this video, I came across the book, “Norse Myths that inspired Final Fantasy VII” by M. J. Gallagher. I’ve recently just begun reading it, and I urge you to check it out if you are interested in this stuff. The author goes deep into speculative connections between Norse Mythology and Final Fantasy VII.
The city of Midgar comes from the name Midgard. In the book, Gallagher states that Midgard can translate to “Middle Enclosure,” or “civilization.” Many consider Midgar to be one of the most iconic locations in the Final Fantasy series; I actually think it’s the most iconic location in the game. Construction of the city began in 1976. The city’s purpose was to provide residence for employees of the Shinra Electric Power Company. In the game, Midgar is the most technologically advanced city on the planet, and because of this, the city requires a lot of power through the use of its nine mako reactors. The Shinra Electric Power Company saps the planet of its life energy, turning the surrounding area into a barren wasteland. This is the impetus of the story of Final Fantasy VII, and sets into motion the story of Cloud Strife joining the eco-terrorist group Avalanche, led by Barret Wallace, to try and save the planet.
Many of the major themes of Final Fantasy VII can be found in Midgar, Themes of environmental disasters that face the planet and how we should do any and everything in our power to help save the planet. The greediness and selfishness of President Shinra and the Shinra Electric Power Company, and how they would do everything in their power to serve themselves and help make the rich get richer. The themes of class distinction and economic inequality between the upper plate areas and the slums below.
Going back to the book, Norse Myths that Inspired Final Fantasy VII, the author states that according to prophecies, Midgard will become consumed by greed, sexual promiscuity, war, and depravity, ultimately galvanizing the forces of chaos to initiate Ragnarok. Nope, not that Ragnarok. This Ragnarok. And similar calamities occurred in other games in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII including Before Crisis and Dirge of Cerberus. And during the world-ending event of Ragnarok, Midgard, or Midgar, will be destroyed and a new world will emerge.
Midgar is my favorite location in the game. I think a lot of that is because 7th Heaven is the home base of Avalanche, but I also kind of consider Seventh Heaven, and Midgar overall, to be kind of home of the game. It’s like Link’s house in the Legend of Zelda games. Sometimes I just like to go back home and chill. And that makes it all the more devastating and heart-wrenching when Shinra drops the Sector 7 Plate and destroys Seventh Heaven along with the Sector 7 Slums. I made a video a while back going through the top 7 tracks of Final Fantasy VII Remake, and Tifa’s Theme made it to the top. A lot of that is nostalgia, for sure. After the tense and exciting sequence of the Opening Bombing mission, walking back into the Sector 7 Slums of Midgar, hearing Tifa’s theme, and seeing the people dance, as cheesy as this sounds, it felt like coming back home after 23 years.
So here's my question for you: What is your favorite location in Final Fantasy VII and why? Let me know down in the comments. Thanks for watching, and be sure to subscribe if you liked this video and want to see more content like his. Stay odd, and keep on playing.
The Origins of Midgar - Midgar is my favorite location in Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy 7 Remake, it's quite possibly my favorite location in the entire Final Fantasy series. In this video, let's start by talking about the origins of Midgar, and go from there. SPOILER ALERT. I hope you enjoy this video.
WATCH NEXT:
○ Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 2 PREDICTIONS - https://youtu.be/m_BWaPg-ak4
○ Final Fantasy Product Reviews - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK...
○ Final Fantasy VII Remake World Preview - https://youtu.be/QnBOtzzTwgY
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Note this description contains affiliate links that allow you to support the channel at no further cost to you. This helps support the channel and allows us to continue to create free content like this. Thank you for your support!
#FF7R #Midgar #OddDrummerGaming
The Origins of Midgar
https://youtu.be/-WHYjWuPo0w
WATCH NEXT:
○ Final Fantasy VII Remake Part 2 PREDICTIONS - https://youtu.be/m_BWaPg-ak4
○ Final Fantasy Product Reviews - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLK...
○ Final Fantasy VII Remake World Preview - https://youtu.be/QnBOtzzTwgY
Check out Norse Myths That Inspired Final Fantasy VII:
https://amzn.to/3ryiMQh (Affiliate Link)
Animated subscribe button by Monzon Media - https://www.youtube.com/c/MonzonMedia
Connect with Odd Drummer Gaming
https://instagram.com/odd_drummer
https://twitter.com/odd_drummer
https://twitch.tv/odd_drummer
Note this description contains affiliate links that allow you to support the channel at no further cost to you. This helps support the channel and allows us to continue to create free content like this. Thank you for your support!
#FF7R #Midgar #OddDrummerGaming
The Origins of Midgar
https://youtu.be/-WHYjWuPo0w
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