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Last month, I had the privilege of being able to play Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth several weeks before it was released to the world. A few days before I was given the game, I joined the Square Enix team in Los Angeles to preview the game alongside other creators and writers. While I was there, I vividly remember calling my grandfather, who had been worried about my financial and living situation since I had just moved to the northeast after living my whole life in Florida. There was nothing to worry about, of course, but that didn’t stop him from asking if I had everything I needed. We talked about how cold it was where I was living and how my job had given me this great opportunity. I didn’t realize it then, but about two weeks later, I would be attending his funeral.
What Does Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Mean To Me?
My grandfather’s name is Alfredo, and my grandmother’s name is Carmen. My whole life, I’ve referred to them as Abelo and Ayeya, as I will here. Between the two of them, my life was filled with wonder, excitement, and video games. My immediate family and I never lived further than a few minutes away from them, meaning most of my childhood was spent in their garage-turned-living room playing whatever game was popular five years prior. It wasn’t that we couldn’t afford newer things; I just didn’t have a concept of when things were released, and they did their best to accommodate my interests.
Ayeya and Abelo have been very actively involved in my life. They consistently took me to and from school, attended assemblies, and even took me to and from my first job at a Play N’ Trade. They filled my life with many video games and memories, and I have years of consoles and backlogs to prove it. Things came a full circle when they drove me to my first GameStop store interview at the specific location they had been taking me to since childhood. I worked at that location for eight years.
What does any of this have to do with Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth? I was playing through it for my review when my mom called me on Saturday, February 3. She had explained that Abelo was in the hospital, which was nothing new. Abelo had always been a very resilient man with a history of debilitating medical issues that he always seemed to bounce back from. Just a few years before, he underwent extensive brain surgery after winning a battle with cancer and having a valve placed in his heart. I knew he wasn’t invincible, but he was a fighter.
A few days after that initial call, my mom called again to let me know that it was time; I needed to visit to say my goodbyes. On the morning of February 8, my mom called one last time to tell me that he had passed earlier that morning.
“Only Death Awaits You All. But Do Not Fear.”
That weekend and the first half of the following week were spent in Florida. The funeral was held on Monday night, which would have been his 82nd birthday. As one of eight siblings, several hundred people showed up to share their condolences; he’d been in their lives one way or another as a friend, brother, uncle, and father-in-law. I’ll admit that it was cathartic to feel like we were all celebrating one last birthday with him.
It was when we returned and I sat back at my desk, that I realized that during the first half of the game, I had a grandfather, and during the second half of the game, I did not.
The grief of not being able to make it to Florida in time was immense; he passed two days before I was set to leave. For those two days, I had done nothing but play FF7 Rebirth and cry. I didn’t realize it then, but the game was helping me from falling into an unknowable depression. Even though I was worried about seeing Aerith’s fate, I was playing through the grief and agony that other characters were going through for their own reasons. I watched the legacy between Dyne and Barret, the love between Tifa and her father, the sacrifice that Cloud’s mother made, the loneliness Cait felt, and so much more. It made me realize that I would be okay as long as I took the time to ensure that my friends and family were alright, just as the party did every so often.
In Death, There is Rebirth
It took a few days after we returned before I was okay enough to finish the entirety of FF7 Rebirth. I knew that Abelo would have wanted me to keep enjoying myself, regardless of what happened. He might have had no idea what I was ever talking about with respect to games, but he did understand that I had a passion. Besides it being my job, I made it my mission to finish Rebirth on as high a note as I could fathom.
When I witnessed the final scene involving Aerith, I told myself that all of my tears had already been used up; there was nothing worth crying over anymore. The moment it happened, I took back what I had said. I realized that it’s okay to be sad, and even then, death doesn’t always mean the end of something. Sometimes, it’s the birth of something new. For me, that birth was in understanding the love of family and holding those near you closer, regardless of what has or hasn’t happened.
The love each character has for one another made me realize that I was never sad about Abelo’s passing; I had just loved him a lot and wanted to make sure he was safe wherever he was. Zack, Cloud, Aerith, Tifa, Barret, Red, Yuffie, Cait, and even Vincent and Cid realized that things would be okay as long as their friends were safe and sound, especially since those friends had become their family.
Abelo was, and always will be, my friend. He is what Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth means to me.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is available on the PS5.
