It's true, it's true. Ever since I saw the intro movie and sold my N64 asap for a Playstation back in 1997, I've been enamored with Final Fantasy 7. I realize it's a fairly shallow experience, and that it's ugly, and the music is MIDI, and there's awful translation bits, but I just can't get these damned rose tinted glasses off.

I'm on probably my 6th playthrough in 10 years through the magic of popstation on my PSP, and it's as good as I remember it. I like the simple one color shading polygon style, I LOVE the early CGI backgrounds and movies (This obsession isn't limited to FFVII, all early CGI fascinates me) and the game will always have a certain charm to it.

But charm is where it ends, because even a fanboi of the game like me can realize that if I sat down a non gamer to play this game in 2008, I don't know if they'd get bored or start to hate it first. This is absolutely one of those cases of "You had to be there" that happens so often in retro gaming, first gen 3D in particular.

It's for that reason that I think SquareEnix is absolutely foolish if they're not working on a modern day HD version of this game. With some polishing and extending of the story and some smoothing over of the gameplay, it would fit right in, and indeed exceed most any modern game in the genre.

The materia system is easily exploitable but deeply customizable. Trace elements of the FFXII gambit system are in place, allowing for skills and reactions that pile on top of each other to create snowballing effects that leave the player giddy with power. Watching 8 instances of knights of the round cascade upon a lowly random encounter simply for beginning gives one a thrill similar to stepping on an anthill as a cruel child. (Surely, I'd never partake in such puerile activities..)

Anyway Square, I know you're busy getting everybody mad by placing long desired sequels to revered series ON TELEPHONES and forcing Mickey Mouse to be a badass, but if you've got time, one of your best selling and most loved games is just begging for some polish.