Final Fantasy 7 has long been considered one of the greatest games in its franchise, and by many as one of the all-time best games period. A big part of its success came not just from its technical achievements but its narrative. Naturally, a good story comes with great characters that fans have come to love over the years. Final Fantasy 7 features a cast of iconic heroes, villains, and everything in between, including main character Cloud Strife. Among one of the fan-favorite members of AVALANCE is the group's premier pugilist Tifa Lockhart.
Tifa has been one of the most enduring characters from the Final Fantasy series. FF7's Tifa Lockhart inspires much cosplay and fan art, and she often appears in spin-off projects like Kingdom Hearts. One thing that newer fans that may be meeting the character the first time with FF7 Remake might not know is just how critical Tifa's arc is to the overall story. A female character in an RPG can often be sidelined or used mainly to help progress the main hero's plot. While FF7 isn't perfect in that regard, Tifa Lockhart still plays an integral role, and achieves many important milestones throughout the series.
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Even in the events that precede FF7's main story, Tifa was well-established as a martial artist and local figure in her hometown of Nibelheim. Many of the abilities Tifa employs throughout FF7 were honed in her youth. She trained under the enigmatic Master Zangan, who boasted he had more than a hundred students around the world. By the time of the Nibelheim flashback, Tifa was already working as a guide through its treacherous mountains. The region was home to many monsters even before Shinra's experiments began to spawn even more, so the young martial artist had already cemented her reputation as a capable adventurer.
During Sephiroth's attack on Nibelheim, Tifa displayed incredible bravery. Driven by the loss of her family and hometown, Tifa charges Sephiroth headfirst after helping to save as many townsfolk as she could. While Tifa will likely receive more changes in FF7 Remake going forward, this important part of her origin story is unlikely to change. Unfortunately, Sephiroth is incredibly powerful and survives Tifa's attack before injuring the young fighter. Her master Zangan was able to find her thanks to Zack and Cloud distracting Sephiroth, and he ends up bringing her to Midgar for medical attention.
Harboring an intense hatred for Shinra after the events at Nibelheim, it was natural for the strong-willed Tifa to end up joining AVALANCHE. The earliest exploits of Tifa with AVALANCHE haven't been explored in much depth, but she was able to quickly secure Barret's trust. This is also around the time of her founding the 7th Heaven Barin the Sector 7 Slums. This was one element that stayed the same between the original and FF7 Remake, and served as the secret base for AVALANCHE's operations in Midgar.
From the onset of the original game, Tifa's exploits follow right alongside those of Cloud and the other members of AVALANCHE. While childhood friends with Cloud, this is also the point where Tifa is pulled into the romantic mess between herself, Cloud, Jessie, Aerith, and Zack Fair in FF7. Most of those elements sit on the sidelines other than brief moments between the various female leads in Wall Market, and Tifa joins the others in the escape from Shinra and Midgar. Notably different in FF7 Remake is the addition of the defeat of the Whispers as part of this series of events.
Tifa's journey largely mirrors those of the other characters from that point until much later in the game. One thing that will be interesting is whether or not major changes are made to the Nibelheim flashback scene and Tifa addressing Cloud's version of Sephiroth's backstory in FF7 Remake. She was present at Nibelheim, and as such saw the events as what they truly were instead of Cloud's fusion of his and Zack's story due to a psychological break.
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Cloud's psychological state shatters much later in the original FF7, and this is an area where Tifa is thrust into the spotlight. Interestingly, a chapter in FF7 Remake where Tifa took center stage was apparently cut from FF7 Remake. This mirrors both Tifa's role late-game in FF7 and Yuffie's lead role in the Intermission DLC that recently released for PS5. After Cloud suffers Mako poisoning, there's a short section of gameplay where she stays behind to care for the comatose Cloud. She sits with him and attempts to help decipher the babbling that the formerly-stoic hero is spewing.
Tifa is quickly brought to lead the group, with eldest party members Cid and Barret deciding that she is the only one fit to lead the group in Cloud's absence. Players take control of Tifa as the main character for a time before eventually returning to help Cloud. Tifa's support is the only thing that's able to help Cloud recover from the mix of brainwashing by the Jenova cells in his body and Sephiroth's manipulation. The childhood friends are able to reestablish a bond that proves strong enough to pull Cloud from the brink.
After this point, Tifa again stays with the rest of the group as they continue onward to the final confrontation against Sephiroth in the Northern Crater. After the ending of FF7 and the destruction of Midgar, Tifa joins some of the others in their efforts to rebuild the city without the plague of Shinra. Leading up to the events of Advent Children and subsequently Dirge of Cerberus, Tifa is crucial to the reconstruction efforts. She fights alongside her friends against Sephiroth's clones and Sin Bahamut in Advent Children and against Deepground in Dirge of Cerberus. Tifa often serves as a moral compass for the other members, especially Cloud, inspiring them when things are darkest.
Overall, Tifa's impact on the overall narrative of FF7 is hard to overstate. In her own right she is powerful, motivated, and compassionate in a way that few other members can claim. While FF7 Remake still has a long road ahead of it and many changes likely to come, it seems likely the importance of Tifa Lockhart will only increase as the new future of FF7 is charted.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 2 is in development.
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