Final Fantasy VII, X and X-2 connected?

[Tifa-chan]

Well I found this artical the otherday and I was quite surprised at first. It would seem that Events in Final Fantasy X and X-2 are what lead up to events in Final Fantasy VII. Now I have been doing so research into this after reading this and it would seem this artical could be right. Final Fantasy X and X-2 takes place before Final Fantasy VII. I know right now it is very confusing, but I am working at linking things together, for a report on this for others. So read the artical and let me know that you think.

~Tifa~
"****Translations concerning the plot-related connection between FFVII and
FFX/X-2**** (007)
As some fans of Final Fantasy VII, X and X-2 may or may not know, the worlds
of the two games share a plot-related connection. The connection's existance
was established during an interview with Yoshinori Kitase (lead developer of
the Final Fantasy series) and Kazushige Nojima (the scenario writer of Final
Fantasy VII, Before Crisis, Advent Children, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy
X, Final Fantasy X-2 and the Kingdom Hearts series) in 2002, as featured in
the Final Fantasy X Ultimania Omega guidebook, an official Square-Enix
publication.

This interview established that there would be a connection between the two
worlds, though it didn't detail it. However, based on what was later revealed
to be the connection, it's clear that it had already been conceived, as
Kitase hints at it with his final word on the subject. In 2003, the exact
nature of the concept was finally revealed in the Final Fantasy X-2 Ultimania,
having been hinted toward by a few elements of the game.

Nojima revealed that Shinra of the Gullwings, an Al Bhed child prodigy and
inventor of various machinery, would attempt using the remains of Vegnagun --
the behemoth machina Shuyin tried to destroy Spira with -- to extract life
energy from the Farplane and use it to power machines. Shinra would attempt
doing this as a result of his analysis of the Farplane late in the game.
During this diagnostic, Shinra concluded that there was a great deal of energy
floating around inside the Farplane, and that it was most likely the life
force of Spira, which could be extracted and used as a power source; however,
he concluded that it would take generations to properly implement the idea.

Further of note is that Nojima explained that the Al Bhed entrepeneur Rin also
was interested in extracting mako from the Farplane, and that he provided
Shinra with the funding to make the attempt. For his part, Rin's desire to do
this is revealed during the game should he be uncovered as the culprit behind
covering up the malfunctioning machina disaster on the Mi'hen Highroad.

Nojima went on to say that Shinra's attempts to use Vegnagun's remains failed
and that he was unable to complete the concept of mako-extraction, just as
Shinra had predicted. However, some 1000 years later, once space travel became
possible, Shinra's descendants would go on a voyage to the world of Final
Fantasy VII. There, at some point in the future, they would be successful in
utilizing the concept, and would provide electricity from the Planet for a
price; these descendants would found the Shin-Ra Company of Final Fantasy VII.

The connection would again be hinted toward in the Final Fantasy X-2:
International+Last Mission (released in 2004) game's Last Mission scenario, in
which Rikku revealed that Rin and Shinra had begun working together. Next,
the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega guidebook (released in September, 2005)
also brings forth mention of the concept, and, finally, the connection may
have received further indication through Dirge of Cerberus (released in
January, 2006) and the Advent Children Reunion Files book (released in May,
2006), in which it is established that the Shera airship seen in Advent
Children and Dirge of Cerberus runs on ancient, lost non-mako technology that
Cid discovered. This technology very well may have originally belonged to
Shinra's descendants, as they are the only previous inhabitants of VII's world
indicated to have been in possession of advanced technology, and because the
interior of the Shera bears some aesthetic resemblances to those of the
Fahrenheit and Celsius airships that figure prominently into FFX and FFX-2
(though the Shera's interior bears more of a resemblance to the Celsius').

I will here present the dialogue from Final Fantasy X-2 that hints at the
connection, as well as the interviews and other translations that establish
its existance as part of official Final Fantasy continuity.

***Dialogue from Final Fantasy X-2***

Rin: "You are suggesting that my decision to upgrade the machina resulted in a
number of casualties... ... and that I tried to cover it up?"

Yuna: "You put the investigation in our hands because we were amateurs. You hoped we
would botch the case."

Yuna: "And then, I kept calling you even though I didn't have any leads. You would have objected to the meaningless interruptions, if you really
wanted to solve the case."

Rin: "I see. It appears that I have underestimated you, Yuna."

Rikku: "Why, Rin?"

Rin: "If word got out that machina pose a danger, people would fear them and stop
using them."

Paine: "So Yevon's not alone in sweeping things under the rug."

Rin: "I firmly believe that machina are an indispensable part of Spira's
development."

Rin: "Even if there is another incident, I intend to conceal the evidence."

Yuna: "You really think people will follow you that way?"

Rin: "I am not alone in my thinking."

Rin: "We are researching ways to extract the vast energy that sleeps in Spira, and
use it to power machina."

Paine: "You're a jackass."

Rin: "I will take that as a compliment."
~ ~ ~
Shinra: "Aha..."

Yuna: "What are you looking at?"

Shinra: "Farplane data."

Shinra: "The more I study it, the more fascinating it gets. There's limitless energy
swirling around in there."

Yuna: "Limitless energy?"

Shinra: "The life force that flows through our planet...I think."

Shinra: "With a little work, we could probably extract the energy in a useable form."

Brother: "Sweet!"

Shinra: "Of course, that'd take generations."

Brother: "That's no fun!"

Buddy: "Well, still, it is something worth shooting for."

Yuna: "Think how much Spira would change if we ever got it to work! Maybe one day we could build a city full of light, one that never sleeps!"

Shinra: "No doubt about it."
~ ~ ~
Paine: "These days, people are always looking for sunken machina."

Rikku: "Yup-yup!"

Yuna: "Oh? Has Shinra been helping you with that?"

Rikku: "Ahh, now that you bring it up..."

Rikku: "Well, he left the ship and got together with Rin, and what do you think all
that research they've been doing is about?""
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[Yggdrasill]

The producers/creators of the Final Fantasy series also said they were connected in an Interview, so it's definitely official.

[white mage]

Did they? I must have missed that.

[Hydra]

I never thought the FFVII bit was true when I first read it. Well, thanks for that. Now it's offical. XD

[Tifa-chan]

XD well some are trying to tell me it's not. But doing the research and while I am currently playing VII again, things are adding up and do tend to make scene.

[Yggdrasill]

Square announced FFX and FFVII don't take place on the same planet though, the planets are just in the same Galaxy/Universe. They also said the Lifestream and the Pyreflies are made of the same substance.

[Tifa-chan]

*nods* Yes but did you read the part were Shinra talks about space travel? Leads me to believe that like Kaa-san *Jenova. Yes I call her Kaa-san!* they came to the planet that VII takes place on. Perhaps something happened to Spira.

[Doctor]

This is quite fascinating--and it makes sense. From the start of FFX-2 I speculated the Shinra the kid and "Shin-Ra" the mako weilding corporation had something to do with each other. So I believe everything that's been said in the article is true.

[Phoenix Flame]

I'm still skeptical when it comes to this...

[dappa]

same here

[Tifa-chan]

*nods* I can understant that. But I think for the most part after doing the research things do tend to add up.

[Zeromus_X]

Yes, this is canon. The creators of the game said so, so you can take their word for it. I'm not very happy with what Nojima decided to make up, but he's the scenario writer for both of those games, and what he says goes involving the stories.

It's still not that big a deal, anyway. All this means is that Spira and Gaia from FFVII exist in the same universe. None of the stories are interconnected in any way, other than both planets having a "Lifestream" type of soul-cycle system, which exists in more FF games than just those two.

[Phoenix Flame]

But what about Jenova?!?! O_o

As Kefka put it... "Where did we come from... and where are we going?"

Makes you kinda wonder where she/it came from and if it could have anything to do with Spira...doesn't it?

[Tifa-chan]

It could be, were Spira and the planet of VII are not the same planet. Shinra in X and X-2 did talk about travel to other planets

[Zeromus_X]

Jenova is just Jenova. That is, an alien being from outer space (a "Calamity from the skies"). There's nothing in either of the games that alludes to anything else.