Final Fantasy VII Official Strategy Guide [Paperback]

David Cassady (Author)

Book Description

Series: Official Strategy Guides | Publication Date: June 12, 1998

BradyGAMES Final Fantasy VII Official Strategy Guide Features: Over 350 full-color maps, a complete walkthrough of the game, complete bestiary, powerful materia combinations, all hidden areas revealed, complete list enemy skills, plus much more! The most anticipated sequel ever, sets standards for the RPG genre with its intense gameplay and fantastic graphics. The game's plot is deep and typical of Square's prior efforts. The game uses a number of flashback sequences, lots of rendered sequences which add greatly to the mood and emotion of the story.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Final Fantasy VII, one of the most impressive and popular video games in recent memory, has finally made its way to the PC, care of Eidos. The game is not like your average PC role-playing game, however, and BradyGames's book, Final Fantasy VII Official Strategy Guide can help you master Final Fantasy VII's complex style and story line.

The book starts off with a three-page bulleted list of general tips on weapons, Materia, battles, and other basic gameplay elements. A thorough description of each character follows, complete with a list of special attacks for each. Before moving on to the specific level walk-throughs, the book also provides an explanation of Materia and how to use it effectively, along with a discussion of Chocobos--what they are, where to find them, how to catch them, and where you can race them.

The walk-throughs themselves are very detailed, with step-by-step instructions for each encounter. These include strategies for tackling the game's many boss enemies. The latter half of the book consists mostly of graphical appendices. These list and describe every type of weapon, armor, enemy skill, and Materia available in the game. A complete bestiary follows, along with a series of full-color level maps, which are made up of screen shots from the game.

Basically, this book is your sure-fire survival guide to the world of Final Fantasy VII. If you're planning to lead Cloud Strife and his pals through to the final conflict, you'll want to have this guide handy. --Michael Ryan

From the Back Cover

BradyGAMES Final Fantasy VII Official Strategy Guide Features: Over 350 full-color maps, a

complete walkthrough of the game, complete bestiary, powerful materia combinations, all hidden areas revealed, complete list enemy skills, plus much more! The most anticipated sequel ever, sets standards for the RPG genre with its

intense gameplay and fantastic graphics. The game's plot is deep and typical of Square's

prior efforts. The game uses a number of

flashback sequences, lots of rendered sequences which add greatly to the mood and emotion of the story.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: BRADY GAMES; PC Only edition (June 12, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1566867827
• ISBN-13: 978-1566867825
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.4 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (310 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #190,897 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm nothing more than a guy that loves video games.

I managed a software store in Indianapolis when I encountered Brady's publisher. The company hired me to assist in developing their new line of video game strategy guides, which was a very limited assortment at the time. They had published on a few Electronic Arts sports titles for the Sega Genesis, Mortal Kombat, and Sonic the Hedgehog.

It was a very interesting time for our business. Strategy guides were transitioning from tiny booklets into full-size, full-color, magazine-like books. We had the opportunity to make a huge impact and try something very new and unique. I'm very thankful for the experience. It was simply an amazing opportunity.

"Virtua Racing" for the Sega Genesis was my first project as an author. It took a week to write and some of that time was spent sleeping on an office floor. It was not a book I wanted to write. Our publisher made it clear I didn't have a choice. As painful as that first project was, it shot my career down a completely unexpected path. It led to projects like Turok: Dinosaur Hunter and eventually, my favorite, Final Fantasy VII.

Final Fantasy had always been a favorite series since it released for the NES. VII proved to be a monstrous task. We had no idea what we were getting into at the time. Final Fantasy projects now require a team of authors, but I'm proud of what we accomplished given the resources available. It was a learning experience for everyone involved.

I continued to write for several years with Conan being my final project. It has been a wonderful ride and I met some amazing people along the way. The people at BradyGames really care about the products they produce. That is not something you find with every publisher.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent, as good as it gets, December 23, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Official Final Fantasy VII Strategy Guide, Playstation Version (v. 1) (Paperback)

I haven't seen the "Perfect Guide" by Versus, but I REALLY doubt it could be better than this one. I can't think of 1 thing this guide doesn't have except a list of Enemy Skills, which enemy you get them from, and what they do. However, they do list them in the Enemy List in the back. Other than that, this guide has everything, including all the Ultimate Weapons and Limit Breaks, every kind of Materia and useful combinations, a list of all the enemies, weapons, armors, and accessories, complete strategies to beating enemies, bosses, and mini-games, and anything else I might have missed...oh, yeah, and don't forget how to raise Chocobos and how to get the 4 special kinds. It really couldn't get better than this, and as far as the Enemy Skills go, if you don't like to keep looking in the back of the book, just go online and print a nice list out from a site. Even those skilled and experienced in the "Final Fantasy" series NEED to get a guide, preferably this one or the one by Versus (they make excellent guides, especially for the "Zelda" series), otherwise they'll miss all the secrets and things you would not be able to figure out by yourself. Trust me, GET THIS GUIDE and you'll be able to fully experience the fun of "Final Fantasy VII."

38 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars THE definitive guide on Final Fantasy VII., August 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Final Fantasy VII Official Strategy Guide (Paperback)

One of the most anticipated RPGs ever, Final Fantasy VII is a classic game. A classic game deserves a classic strategy guide, and Brady Games' FF7 guide is nearly unbeatable. Whatever you're looking for or need help on, this book has it.

This version of the guide is especially for the PC version of FF7, but I have the PlayStation version and it works just fine with that too. The tips and tactics are solid, the screenshots crisp and clear, and the information on Materia and Chocobos contained in this book is invaluable for gamers ready to master Final Fantasy VII.

One complaint that gamers may have with the guide is that in some areas of the game, there isn't really much detail or tips to get you through. Overall, this may be a good thing, because it doesn't give away too much of the story, but for certain areas the guide may just say something along the lines of, "Find the exit, making sure to pick up the items along the way". However, this is the only real situation where this happens.

A consise, thick, and well-worth-your-money book, Brady Games' official Final Fantasy VII strategy guide (boy, that's a mouthful) is a must-have for fans of the game, and gamers who want to get the most bang for their buck.

--Darryl Da Silva

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not for the perfectionist, November 22, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Official Final Fantasy VII Strategy Guide, Playstation Version (v. 1) (Paperback)

I'll say that there are parts of the game that would be very difficult to clear without the book. I'll even say that it helps you play an *almost* perfect game. But it misses out on several points. First, the monster guide is in places incomplete or misprinted. My wife and I, through our own work, found out many things that the book just missed. Master Tonberry morphs into a ribbon. A very helpful fact that completely missed the editors. When I finally turn to the book, I'm looking for completeness, and this just fell short.