Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth Chapter 1 Walkthrough
In Chapter One of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Cloud narrates the events that took place in Nibelheim five years ago.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Hero’s Fall Walkthrough (Chapter 1)
The remake of Final Fantasy 7 was an ambitious project, and now with the release of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth, players can finally continue the journey with Cloud and his friends. While the story takes a new turn, there are some familiar elements that players will recognize, such as the flashback to what happened in Nibelheim five years prior. So, let’s dive into the first chapter of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth and guide you through the adventure!
Quick Links
- Reach the Crash Site
- Explore Nibelheim
- Follow Tifa
- Go Through the Facility
- Find Another Way to the Reactor
- How to Beat Materia Guardian
- Investigate the Reactor
- Find Sephiroth
- Follow Tifa
- Materia Locations
Note: This walkthrough contains spoilers, so proceed with caution if you haven’t played Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth yet.
🚁 Reach the Crash Site
Once you’ve selected your preferred difficulty, get ready to enjoy the opening of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth. Even if you played the demo, don’t skip any cutscenes, as there are several new ones added that weren’t in the demo.
After the cutscenes, head towards the stairs directly ahead of you. Don’t bother trying to explore too much, as the path is pretty linear. Once you are outside of Midgar, jump over the blockage and move towards the Shinra soldiers.
Now, it’s time for combat. In the prologue, you will only have two actions: Attack and Combo Charge. Take down the soldiers using these actions, and remember to use Combo Charge whenever it’s off cooldown. After beating the reinforcements, another cutscene will trigger, and the prologue will end.
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🌄 Explore Nibelheim
The first chapter begins with a series of cutscenes. After the cutscenes, you will briefly control Sephiroth in a one-sided fight against a monster. Once the next batch of cutscenes is over, you will control Cloud as he explores Nibelheim.
As you explore, you’ll come across Cloud’s old house. You have the option to go inside or leave. Make sure to visit Cloud’s mom in the house. Head towards the ladder that leads to the top of the iconic windmill in the middle of the village to trigger another cutscene.
Across from the windmill is Tifa’s house. You can go inside to get some commentary from Cloud’s companions as he tells the story. If you approach the piano in Tifa’s room, you’ll have the option to play the piano mini-game. Don’t miss the chest containing an Ether in Tifa’s parent’s bedroom. Approach the Nidhogg Hotel and go inside, triggering another cutscene.
👣 Follow Tifa
Once you regain control of Cloud, it’s time to follow Tifa. Along the way, make sure to destroy any boxes you come across, as they may contain useful items like mega-potions. Enjoy the scenic hike, but be prepared for an abrupt end as you encounter monsters on the road.
Unlike the previous battle, you will have access to the full combat system of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth. Use your actions, items, and magic to take down the enemies. The enemies you encounter aren’t particularly tough, so take this time to learn the ropes of using abilities and moving around.
If you’ve played the demo, you have the option to skip ahead to where the demo left off. But whether you skip or proceed as normal, continue following Tifa and fighting any enemies along the way. You will receive tutorials for combat mechanics like guarding and locking onto enemies. Don’t forget to grab the potions from the chest along the path.
After going up a set of stairs, you’ll see some green materia up on a ledge to the left. Approach the rock wall and climb up to claim the wind materia. Then, go back down to Tifa and follow her through the narrow crevice to an old Shinra facility. Wait for Sephiroth to open the door and enter.
👷♀️ Go Through the Facility
Head up the stairs and use the elevator. On the next floor, you’ll encounter a large monster called Screamer. It has a hammer affixed to its arm, making it difficult to attack without getting hit. Wait for an opening and then attack it to fill the ATB bar. A perfectly timed block will cause Screamer to fall over, giving you time to land some hits and potentially stagger it.
Once the boss is staggered, unleash your abilities and deal as much damage as possible. If you have enough of the ATB gauge filled, it is possible to take out the majority of Screamer’s health while it is staggered. After defeating Screamer, proceed onward. Don’t forget to grab the Ether from the chest before proceeding to the next area.
Go up the stairs toward another elevator. When you interact with the terminal, it will inform you that the elevator cannot be used until you clear out the Mako gas. Go past the fence on the right and use the vacuum to clear out the Mako gas clouds. Once you’ve cleared all three clouds, the elevator door will open. Take the elevator outside and cross the bridge until a cutscene starts.
🚧 Find Another Way to the Reactor
One poorly timed lightning strike later, you’ll need to find another way to reach the reactor. After the cutscene, Sephiroth will join the party and participate in battles. Climb up the painted rock walls and grab the purple materia next to the rest stop. You’ll receive a tutorial on switching between characters in battle. Enter the cave and head towards the large open space below.
Follow the path north towards the other side of the cave. If you are running low on MP, destroy the small Mako shards along the walls to regain MP. Once you’re outside the cave, climb up the ledges and the rock wall beyond that. The path ahead is mostly linear and easy to follow.
When you come across a spot on the left that lets you go down to a small ledge, go down there and grab the blue materia. Head back up the rock wall to continue onward to the reactor. As you enter an open area, you’ll be attacked by Zu, which serves as a tutorial for Synergy Skills. Use Synergy Skills repeatedly to stagger the boss and make it easier to damage.
Go up the stairs and to the left to find a metal structure with a purple materia on top. Then, head right and up several ladders. Before proceeding further, go to the left and up the stairs to find another blue materia. Don’t forget to destroy all the boxes on the left side before crossing the platform.
At the top of the ladder, you’ll encounter another locked elevator. Just like before, use the vacuum to clear out the Mako gas. Approach the gate and open it to give the vacuum enough range to reach the gas clouds. Once you’ve cleared out all the gas clouds, use the elevator.
After leaving the elevator, go through the open gate directly in front of you and take a right. There will be a chest on the other side of the fence that contains an elixir. Next to the rest station is another ladder that leads to a chest with another elixir. Use the rest station to heal up your party and save your game, as a boss fight awaits on the other side of the gate.
🛡 How to Beat Materia Guardian
While this is the first boss fight of the game, it also serves as a tutorial. You will learn about unblockable attacks and attacking specific parts of the enemy.
Pay attention to the red triangle with an exclamation point, which indicates unblockable attacks. Move away from the enemy when you see this symbol. You’ll also learn to attack specific parts of the boss to either pressure it or shut down its abilities.
For example, if a party member gets grabbed by Materia Guardian, target the arm and attack it to free them and pressure the boss. As you gradually bring down the boss’s health, an in-combat cutscene will play as it jumps onto the wall. Use magic and target one of the legs to pressure Materia Guardian and bring it back down into melee range. Stagger the boss by dealing enough damage, and then continue to attack until it’s defeated.
🕵️♂️ Investigate the Reactor
After the cutscene ends, go up the stairs to enter the reactor. Head to the right and find an elevator that leads deeper into the reactor. Follow the path forward until you reach a broken-open door. Enter the room to trigger a cutscene, and then go back out to find the pressure valve. Turn the wheel by holding down L2 and R2, and repeat until the main objective updates.
🔎 Find Sephiroth
Go back into the room to trigger several cutscenes. Once you regain control of Cloud, head down the stairs and leave the inn. Follow the group of three villagers as they go toward Shinra Manor. Inside the mansion, go left and take the elevator to the basement. After crossing the next room, find Sephiroth in the library to trigger another cutscene.
Once the cutscenes end, head back to the village. You won’t be able to run due to an injury. Keep following the path until it gets blocked by flaming rubble. Turn around and go left to find another way to Cloud’s house. Go through the nearby burning building and crawl through the crawl space. Follow the path to reach the house and trigger a cutscene. Hold down either L2 or R2 when prompted on the screen until you trigger another cutscene.
👫 Follow Tifa
Once a series of lengthy cutscenes play out, you’ll take control of Cloud in the present day. Approach the door, open it, and talk to Tifa. Follow her up the stairs to find her on the balcony. After the cutscene, head back to the room to get some rest.
✨ Materia Locations
If you’re looking for specific materia from this chapter, here are the ones we found:
- Green Materia: Up on the ledge near the dead end that Tifa warns you about.
- Purple Materia: Next to the first rest station.
- Blue Materia: Just before fighting the Zu, on a ledge.
- Purple Materia: On a metal platform shortly after the Zu fight.
That’s it for chapter 1 of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth! We hope this walkthrough has helped you navigate through the game. Stay tuned for more exciting chapters to come!
📚 Reference List:
- Meet the newest chapter of FF7: Rebirth
- Learn more about Sephiroth’s exploration in FF7: Rebirth
- Get insights into the recreation of the Nibelheim flashback
- Find out about Elena’s accusations in FF7: Rebirth
- Discover the Materia locations in FF7: Rebirth
That’s the walkthrough for chapter 1 of Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth! We hope you enjoyed it. If you found this helpful, don’t forget to share it with your friends on social media. Stay tuned for more exciting gaming content and happy gaming! 🎮😄
