Chapter 823 - 823: They're Arguing!

It's safe to say that Final Fantasy left a really deep impression on Ben.

Especially the protagonist, Cloud.

Once he understood the game's story, he could feel Cloud's appeal even more clearly.

Even though he deeply loved Zack after seeing his heroic sacrifice in the DLC, it reached its peak.

But after the game ended and he looked back at the long adventure, from Midgar to the Gold Saucer, the Cosmo Canyon, and the final Mako Reactor.

It was still Cloud's image that stuck with him the most.

At first, Cloud always seemed cold and unapproachable, often saying things like "not interested" or "what's the payment."

But that was just a facade.

The real Cloud was passive, filled with loneliness, and quite vulnerable.

As a child, he also wanted to play with his friends like Tifa, but he could never bring himself to say it.

On the day Tifa's mother died, Tifa naively went searching for her mom with her friends along a mountain path near their village.

When Cloud found out, he, this shy and reclusive kid, quietly followed Tifa. When he saw Tifa stumble and get hurt, Cloud wanted to save her, but he ended up falling himself and passed out.

Thankfully, Tifa and Cloud were found by others and brought back to the village.

This made Cloud feel deeply guilty, and he longed for strength so he could protect Tifa.

So, after learning about Sephiroth's deeds, Cloud developed a sense of admiration and decided to leave his village to join Shinra, where he met Zack, the most important friend in Cloud's life.

When he returned to his hometown, Cloud remembered his promise to Tifa.

But because he was just a nobody grunt, his intense insecurity made Cloud hide his true self. He wore a helmet to cover his face and watched Tifa silently.

Reserved, to the point of insecurity, that was Cloud.

But Cloud also had another side. When he saw the "great hero" he admired, Sephiroth, destroy his hometown.

When he saw Sephiroth hurt Tifa and defeat Zack.

Even though he was just a grunt, Cloud managed to gather the courage to fight, stopping Sephiroth with a righteous backstab.

From that moment on, Cloud had already become a hero, just not fully mature yet.

Later, due to Mako exposure, he suffered memory loss, coupled with witnessing Zack's sacrifice, which caused him great mental distress.

Then, he later witnessed Aerith die right in front of him again.

It's safe to say Cloud wasn't a perfect hero.

You could even say Cloud was a pretty weak man. Knowing Cloud's true personality, sometimes even players would think, "Why is Cloud so useless?"

But it's precisely because of this that Cloud's character feels more like a real person, and his charm is more relatable.

Besides him, every other character in the game left an extremely deep impression.

Jessie, who died early in Midgar, the first girl to boldly flirt with Cloud.

She wanted to be an actress, but because her father became a vegetable due to Mako, she decided to join AVALANCHE to destroy the Mako reactors.

Driven by the death of his close friend caused by Shinra, he wanted revenge, but in the end, he admitted that his excuse of protecting the planet was just to make himself feel better. He grumbled and was even a bit unfriendly, but he never once retreated in battle, that's Barret.

Red XIII, who, as a child, thought his father abandoned his tribe and mother in battle, finally understood the truth and let out a roar at the sky in the Cosmo Canyon.

Yuffie, who was determined to collect Mako Crystals and save her hometown.

Cait Sith, one of Shinra's high-ranking officials, who became a double agent.

Cid, who wanted to become a great pilot.

Vincent Valentine, who was persecuted by Professor Hojo.

Tifa, who lost her parents because of Sephiroth.

Zack, who heroically sacrificed himself to protect Cloud.

And Aerith, who carried a heavy fate as an Ancient.

The main boss, Sephiroth.

Even the source of all evil, Hojo, was incredibly memorable.

"This game's content is just too damn heartbreaking!"

Ben sighed as he looked at the game's end credits.

If only there had been a happy, complete ending.

Actually, it wasn't just Ben who felt this way. Most players who finished the game were already discussing it on various community forums. Of course, as they discussed, they started arguing.

"Seriously, can't Boss Lucas just make some happy endings? This makes me so hurt!"

"Right, right! Jessie, Zack, Aerith, not a single one of them is alive!"

"But then again, even though it's sad, isn't the final ending a perfect one? After all, they successfully stopped Sephiroth, and if you think about it, Zack and Aerith reunited in the Lifestream!"

"Exactly, and if Zack didn't die, what about Aerith?"

"What about her? Isn't there still Tseng?"

"Why Tseng? Aerith forever!"

"For Zack! For Zack! Have you guys even paid attention to the story? When Aerith and Cloud were walking in the Gold Saucer, it was subtly implied that Cloud initially approached her because she reminded him of Zack, his way of walking, his gestures. But later, Aerith realized Cloud was just Cloud."

"Yeah, Aerith did like Zack at first. When she saw the shadow of Zack on Cloud, she was instinctively drawn to him, but clearly, she ended up liking Cloud later!"

"Don't jump to conclusions so fast! It just said Aerith understood Cloud wasn't Zack. Was there a confession in the game? Were there more intimate actions? If you think that proves Aerith liked Cloud, then I guess if a girl borrows your pen, you'll start naming your future children."

"Exactly, exactly! I like Cloud too, but can you guys tone down the drama? Anyway, weren't we discussing if Zack and Aerith hadn't died? If they hadn't, wouldn't Zack have reunited with Aerith directly?"

"I think this ending is really good. Aerith with Zack, Cloud with Tifa, how perfect is that!"

"Jessie, Tseng: Did you guys forget something?"

What on earth?

Are they starting to argue about shipping?

Still feeling a bit heartbroken and unsatisfied, Ben logged onto the Tieba forums, hoping to find like-minded players.

But when he saw the content on the forums and communities, he was completely speechless.

To be honest, he did have a bit of a lecherous side initially and was interested in that aspect.

But as the game's story unfolded, he was more drawn to the ensemble cast and focused on the stories of each character.

He completely stopped caring about shipping.

And whether it was Ben's imagination or not, the game's portrayal was quite ambiguous.

Aside from Zack and Aerith having a relationship, which was officially confirmed.

In fact, other characters' relationships were not explored in depth at all.

Even Cloud and Tifa were not officially confirmed.

......

Nebula Games office

"It's not an illusion, it's deliberate. You guys are still too young!" Lucas said with a laugh.

"Look at these shipping fans online, arguing about whether Aerith liked Zack or Cloud! It's normal, everyone has their preferences, rooting for Tifa, rooting for Aerith, or rooting for both."

"But we as developers can't do that." Lucas stretched.

Cloud, Tifa, Aerith, and Zack?

These are all pure relationships of brothers, sisters, and comrades in arms! Where's the shipping?

Official shipping?

Official shipping is impossible.

If there were official shipping, how would we maintain the hype?

In their past lives, SE was deeply skilled in this, including various spin-off novels, artbooks, and public video interviews, they basically maintained a strategy of confusing the audience.

Sometimes, if they accidentally let slip a personal opinion, it was fine, they'd just retcon it later.

Never mind the relationship between Cloud and Aerith, even between Tifa and Cloud, even though countless players assumed it, it was never truly confirmed in the game or CG movies.

"Only by doing this can we give players an open-ended feeling and guide them to imagine their own desired endings," Lucas said profoundly.

"So, Boss Lucas, that's why the B version only goes up to Midgar!?" Anna asked with a speechless expression.

"It's mainly to see the players' reactions later, and releasing them continuously would also deplete the IP. Don't you think this will make Final Fantasy's topic and popularity burn again?" Lucas coughed lightly.

"I don't know about burning popularity, but Boss Lucas, you definitely won't be able to leave Nebula Games' doors after this," Rachel said thoughtfully.