Square Enix recently filed trademarks for three terms related to Final Fantasy VII: “Ever Crisis,” “The First Soldier,” and the Shinra logo.
While trademarks aren’t necessarily confirmation that something is in the works, the title “Ever Crisis” should be interesting for long-time Final Fantasy VII fans. It would complement the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII project, which featured the sequel movie Advent Children, the mobile game Before Crisis, the PSP prequel Crisis Core, and the PS2 sequel/spinoff Dirge of Cerberus.
The timing of this move is odd on Square Enix’s part, however, as the Compilation was last updated in 2009 with the Complete Blu-ray cut of Advent Children. Since then the Final Fantasy VII Remake was announced, and its status as part of the Compilation has been ambiguous ever since. When asked when the remake project began, director Tetsuya Nomura claimed “we knew that we wanted to make a fifth installment” when the other projects were in development, but the team was “a bit short on resources.”
Until the game’s release last April, Nomura had claimed that there was “no more continuity” between the Compilation and Remake. If the Remake is truly separate, releasing new games in the Compilation will only muddy the waters further, crossing the narrative streams.
However, if the Final Fantasy VII Remake is truly connected to the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, there is another elephant in the room: availability of three-quarters of the Compilation is currently limited. Crisis Core and Dirge of Cerberus have not been ported beyond their original releases, while Before Crisis was an exclusive for Japanese mobile phones and never made its way to English audiences. If Square Enix is truly developing a “Ever Crisis,” perhaps it could be a collection of these nigh-forgotten stories, as a service to new fans who may need to be familiar with their events.
As for the other trademarks, “The First Soldier” has a prequel ring to it. It’s an easy bet to guess at a connection to Sephiroth, the infamous villain who turned against Shinra and its SOLDIER forces. The Shinra Company logo, meanwhile, is a no-brainer; Square Enix has been featured the logo on merchandise for years.
Coupled with news on the next installment of the Final Fantasy VII Remake—a runner-up for our Game of the Year award—there’s a lot for Final Fantasy VII fans to look forward to, if these trademarks are more than just formalities and placeholders.