With Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth officially out in the wild, there is just one game remaining in Square Enix's planned trilogy reimagining and remaking the seminal Final Fantasy 7 from 1997. Naturally, of course, there are dozens of fan theories about where the story may go and how things will end.

As it turns out, the team behind Final Fantasy 7 is keenly aware of these fan theories. Director Naoki Hamaguchi, producer Yoshinori Kitase and battle director Teruki Endo know what's being said online, and while they can't confirm or deny any of these theories, there is one theory that is giving them a good laugh.

In an interview with Anime News Network, the team behind Rebirth revealed that they are aware of the "Evil Chadley" memes that have been circulating online. The topic came up when ANN asked what is the wildest fan theory they've heard of. Hamaguchi's response is perfect:

"After the panel yesterday, we were chatting with the voice actors over dinner, and this exact topic came up, funnily enough. We were talking about Chadley, [who is the] character who supports Cloud in Rebirth. And we were talking about how, like, some people think that he's actually evil and will turn out to be the last boss in the final title. We were cracking up about that."

Jokes aside, Kitase was quick to affirm that the final game would not betray fans of the original.

"We've always kept the original in mind, and I don't think it's going to be a storyline that will betray the fans of the original [game]," Kitase said. "But also, at the same time, [it's] been 27 years since the release of the original Final Fantasy VII.

"There are these things that we feel we can only do now in the remake project that can bring a new happiness, a new sort of feeling of satisfaction to the players playing this game now 27 years later. What this will entail exactly is something we hope players will experience soon."

There's no word on how close "soon" may be, but in April, it was revealed that Square Enix is "hard at work" on the final title. Then, in August, it was shared that the team wants the game to be one of the best in the "history of video games." In other words, there are some lofty goals in mind, and it won't be long before we see the culmination of it all. And perhaps "Evil Chadley" could make an appearance, too.

Posted: 5 hours, 3 minutes ago
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Source: https://www.thegamer.com/final-fantasy-7-rebirth-developers-love-the-evil-chadley-fan-theories-square-enix-jrpg/