Final Fantasy VII, Recap Part 9 | The Gold Chocobo (and Other Sidequests)

Josh Wigler (@roundhoward) and his “Mole Patrol” co-host Brooklyn Zed (@hardrockhope), aka Zed XIII, get together to talk about the seminal video game “Final Fantasy VII.” There’s just one catch: Josh has played “Final Fantasy VII” dozens of times; this is Zed’s first trip to Midgar.

It’s a podcast designed for longtime “Final Fantasy” fans and newcomers alike — in fact, it’s for people who have always wanted to know the story of “Final Fantasy VII,” but have no interest or ability to play the game itself. If that describes you, you’re in luck. As Zed makes their way through their first playthrough of “Final Fantasy VII,” they will be stopping by this very podcast spot with Wigler to talk through the storyline, the game mechanics, and much more as tremendous shenanigans ensue.

For the uninitiated: “Final Fantasy VII” was a groundbreaking 1997 Japanese role-playing game that defined the video game medium, let alone the RPG genre and the “Final Fantasy” franchise writ large. It centers on Cloud Strife, a sword-wielding mercenary with a troubled past, as he joins up with members of a resistance group called AVALANCHE set on toppling a nefarious power-hungry corporation called Shinra. Many friends and enemies are made in the process, as Cloud and his allies uncover the truth about Shinra’s intentions and even more chilling details about old magic permeating the planet.

In this week’s podcast, Josh and Zed embark on all the game’s additional bells and whistles. It’s the sidequests podcast! Zed takes on more sidequests than you can shake an Ultima Weapon at all, and walks both Josh and the listener through their experience. This is all in service of what’s coming next week: the final push through “Final Fantasy VII.”

If you want to play along while you listen to the podcast journey, “Final Fantasy VII” is available on various platforms: Nintendo Switch, PS4, Steam and even the original PSX version, assuming you, like Zed, still have an old-school system.

Of course, there’s also “Final Fantasy VII Remake,” the next gen spin on the classic game which was released in 2020. Wigler and Ken Hoang hosted podcasts about that game; find them here.