Square Enix debuted a four-minute trailer and gameplay demo of Final Fantasy VII Remake during its E3 2019 press conference.

“Remaking Final Fantasy VII has allowed us to dive much deeper into the world and its characters than ever before,” Final Fantasy VII Remake producer Yoshinori Kitase said on stage. “The game design was optimized for this title as well, and we anticipate two blu-ray discs worth of gameplay content. The first game in this project expands on the story of Midgar, and is such an elaborate retelling that it has become a solid standalone game in its own right.”

Square Enix product marketing senior manager Neal Pabon explained the battle system:

Final Fantasy VII Remake features a hybrid gameplay system that merges real-time action with strategic command-based combat. For starters, each press of the Square button is a swing of Cloud’s Buster Sword. Cloud attacks, dodges, and blocks all in real-time. His standard attacks do some damage, but they barely scratch the surface of Cloud’s true potential.

Succeeding on the battlefield requires more than just hacking and slashing. Cloud needs to be tactical. He needs ATB. Two ATB bars are displayed in the lower right. These fill up slowly over time, but fill much faster as Cloud lands standard attacks. Once an ATB bar is full, you can enter Tactical Mode, where time slows to a crawl and you have the opportunity to choose actions from the command menu. Once in Tactical Mode, you can choose to perform various abilities, such as Cloud’s Braver attack. Using an item in battle will deplete an ATB charge, and if Cloud has the right Materia equipped and enough MP, he can use ATB charges to cast spells.

[As for Barrett,] with the use of his iconic gun arm, Barrett is able to target enemies at a distance. Barrett’s standard attacks generate ATB charges similar to Cloud, but his abilities are entirely different. Switching between characters in combat is done with a single button press, which makes rotating through characters in combat a snap. Characters will continue to fight even when you’re not controlling them directly, but it’s up to you to control when and how ATB charges are used. You can maximize your effectiveness by switching between characters or issuing commands to characters with full ATB bars. Every enemy has a focus gauge that fills up as you deal damage. When the gauge is full, the enemy becomes staggered and you’ll deal bonus damage.

Tactical Mode evokes the command selections from the original Final Fantasy VII, and allows players to enjoy battle while taking the time to think strategically. For players who prefer fast-paced actions, abilities and spells can be bound to shortcuts for immediate execution. Shortcuts make combat extremely dynamic, but the choice of using them is entirely up to you.