Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Final Fantasy VII is a timeless classic. A game that, even for today's standards, is a masterpiece in terms of turn combat mechanics, storytelling, and character design. Damned if it wasn’t my first FF game, and certainly one of my favorites of the series (IX is my #1 and VI is my #2).

I didn't like the direction they chose to go with the remake, like drastically altering the original story and tilting the combat into more action-focused game play I do think that it’s still a pretty good game in its own right, just not a good remake.

But while that’s a whole different discussion, Here I need to talk about the unfortunate DEI treatment that Square Enix (stupidly) decided to give to this remake.

Alright, first things first: Square Enix is a client of Sweet Baby Inc., as you can verify in the screenshot below:

For FF7 Rebirth, they partnered with Hit Detection, quoting them:

"Sensitive Issues Assessment: Our team assesses the risk factors for depictions of character from underrepresented groups, themes, and potential community reactions. [...]

Our commitment to building a team from a variety of backgrounds—including underrepresented groups—is a superpower that allows us to provide unique and varied perspectives, setting us apart from other firms. This diversity is a strength that fortifies our insights and gives us a natural advantage within the consulting landscape."

Source: Hit Detection's official website.

And here's a screenshot of the ending credits of FFVII Rebirth where Hit Detection is mentioned.

Until recently, Square Enix even had a page on their official website highlighting their commitment to DEI, but probably due to the public backlash, they altered the language to better hide what they’re doing, just like SHRM (Society for Human Resources Management) tried recently.

But hey Square, let me make it very clear here: you guys cannot hide from me or the gaming community!

Before:

Title: "Diversity, equity & inclusion

The Square Enix Group believes in the importance of fostering diverse and inclusive workplaces - across the many rich facets of the human experience, including nationality, race, religion, thought and creed, age, gender, sexual orientation, and physical condition.

All of our locations work to increase representation, and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion across such areas as recruiting, training, team building, and employee activities. We are encouraged by the progress we've seen through the years in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and continue to prioritize our work in this area." [...]

Our initiatives include multi platform campaigns, cultural spotlights (including for African American History Month, Women's History Month, Pride Month, and AAPI Heritage Month), and the work of our Pride and Women in Gaming employee resource groups.

After (now):

Title: "Contribution to communities

The Square Enix Group has a longstanding tradition of community programs to make our world a better place, aid those in need, and support the local communities we call home.

We provide assistance to, and engage in fundraising efforts for, local, regional and national charities. Examples include donations to organizations:

・Organizations supporting humanitarian aid and disaster relief efforts in times of crisis.
・Organizations fighting for social equality.
・Organizations addressing children's health, cancer, and food insecurity.

Together with our employees, we also give back to the local communities where we live and work, donating toys and games to pediatric care facilities; co-sponsoring local sports leagues; and volunteering in beach clean-up and meal-packing efforts.

We also create opportunities for education, inspiration, and awareness of the rich backgrounds, cultures and contributions that make up our diverse world including our workforce. Our initiatives include multi platform campaigns, cultural spotlights (including for African American History Month, Women's History Month, Pride Month, and AAPI Heritage Month), and the work of our Pride and Women in Gaming employee resource groups.

Source. (community tab)

Square Enix also used to have an Ethics Department, which was responsible for, among other things, the censorship on Tifa's breasts, as Tetsuya Nomura mentioned himself:

"First of all, since we wanted Tifa to have defined abs, we made her more athletic looking. And then, there were also directions from our internal ethics committee that as not to make even the most intense action look unnatural it was necessary to bind [Tifa’s] chest. And thus, for her single upper body clothing, we put a black undergarment with a fitting tank top for a fitness-conscious, sporty design."

Source.

I don't know about you guys, but for me the "realistic argument" here is pure bullshit, especially when it comes from an "Ethics Department", rather than anyone in a creative capacity.

And of course, Square Enix has shut down this Ethics Department hiring webpage, probably to hide themselves again. The craziest part about this page was the bragging about censorship.

Okay, now back to FFVII Rebirth.

The co-director of FFVII Remake, Motomu Toriyama, gave an interview back in 2021 and said this:

“I think that expressing diversity with LGBTQ inclusion is an important issue for everyone involved in making content, not just people making games. In Final Fantasy 7 Remake, we rebuilt the original game using the latest technology, but we felt that it should not stop at the technical side and we needed to update the story content being shown in line with modern sensibilities.”

... yeah, the same "muh modern sensibilities" bullshit talk, the most famous DEI-excuse ever.

This warped mentality led to a (very) forced diversity in FF7 Rebirth, as we can see in the screenshots below (read the captions):

And last but not least: they had the audacity of censoring TIFA'S PANTII! IT'S NOT IN THE GAME ANYMORE!

Sad to see the remake of one of the biggest classics in gaming history going down the DEI woke hole. I'm honestly glad that this game tanked.