The original Final Fantasy 7 Remake offered one of the most ambitious packages of minigames that the series had ever seen at the time, and with the second installment of the FF7 Remake saga, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth goes even further. Featuring an even wider selection of minigames, many of the game’s side-activities reimagine much of the original minigames while also adding entirely new ones that flesh out the characters and world in some surprising ways.
After playing the entirety of what FF7 Rebirth has to offer, we’ve got a thorough ranking of the massive sequel’s selection of minigames based on how enjoyable they are to dive into. For this ranking of Rebirth’s many minigames, we’re focusing on activities and sequences that take players outside the usual encounter and into something more unique. So, while battle arenas and open-world activities are enjoyable, we’ve decided to focus on the unique events that put you in more unusual situations.
So, with that, here’s our definitive ranking of FF7’s best minigames.
Spoilers for the various mini-games that appear in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth
19. Chocobo Capture
Chocobos are the party’s greatest asset in the open world, and Rebirth makes you work for your brightly colored companion. As one of the earliest minigames you’ll encounter, Cloud has to sneak up and tame a wild Chocobo hiding out in each region. This activity involves a stealth puzzle sequence where you create distractions in order sneak up on the roaming big bird to tame them. While it’s a quirky sequence, it often feels more like a hurdle to overcome for each region, and you’ll likely have forgotten about it as you move on with your Chocobo and explore.
18. Pirate’s Rampage
One neat distraction to find in the seaside resort of Costa Del Sol is Pirate’s Rampage, a carnival shooter where you fire an airgun at moving targets to rack up a high score. It’s a charming activity with many cute references to pirates and other Final Fantasy monsters, and the two levels offer some solid challenges. While it is a bit of a one-note activity, it’s a decent distraction for those looking to sharpen their reflexes and earn some unlockable items.
17. Galactic Saviors
As one of Rebirth’s brand new Gold Saucer minigames, Galactic Saviors is a Star Fox-style space shooter where you and the captain of the Space Rangers (the Final Fantasy VII universe’s take on Buzz Lightyear) fight against alien invaders in deep space. Playing Galactic Saviors is a snappy and fun time with solid shooter and flight controls — and it even lets you barrel roll to evade enemy fire. But much like a Disneyland attraction, it reaches its conclusion fairly quickly. This is a minigame that I wish had more depth to it, and it is quite forgiving with its difficulty, but it’s a solid addition to the Gold Saucer’s plethora of activities — and you also get a neat accessory for going for the high score.
16. Run Wild
This minigame puts Red XIII as the key player of an activity that’s essentially a more over-the-top take on soccer. Found in Costa Del Sol, Run Wild features two game types – one focusing on four teams vying for the top spot and another that tasks Red XIII with getting balls into goals while avoiding obstacles. Run Wild can often feel exciting, and cutting loose with Red XIII is quite fun. However, it can also be challenging to keep up with the action as the minigame throws a lot of obstacles and adversaries at you, which makes it somewhat of a drag to get through on multiple attempts.
15. Jump Toad
The Toad status ailment has been the bane of many Final Fantasy players, but Rebirth has some fun with the Toad form by turning it into one of its most bizarre minigames. Found in Junon, this minigame sees Cloud and the party willingly turn themselves into toads to compete in Fall Guys-style obstacle courses, where the toad that lasts the longest wins. Though it is a fairly limited activity, it’s a clever attempt at turning an always annoying status effect into a humorous activity, and it’s pretty fun to see an up-close look at each party member in toad form.
14. 3D Brawler
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth revitalizes the original game’s most notorious Gold Saucer minigame, and it’s now in a more exciting state that you can finally see its conclusion. 3D Brawler has you engage in a Punch Out-style fighting game where you must read an opponent’s combat style to dodge their attacks and strike back to come out on top.
Unlike the original minigame, which was primarily based on luck and featured an invisible final opponent that was quite actually unbeatable no matter how hard you tried, the remade 3D Brawler is a more robust activity that gives you the means to beat down every opponent you face. At its best, it’s a fun, bite-sized fighting game, but it can sometimes feel a bit unforgiving due to the more elaborate control scheme and some difficulty in reading an opponent’s tells. Still, this minigame is a neat tribute to classic FFVII that redeems its most unfair minigame.
13. Moogle Mischief
The Moogles are a mainstay of the Final Fantasy series, and Rebirth tasks you with ensuring that the few cutesy Moogles out in the world stay together. In the Moogle Mischief minigame, Cloud has to round up mischievous Mooglets and bring them back to the safety of the Mog house in each region. It’s like herding sheep back to a safe spot, except the sheep will cast magic spells, toss bombs at you, and taunt you at every misstep along the way.
It’s an incredibly quirky minigame that can be equally hilarious and frustrating with how fast the Moogles can get the best of you. The final stages of these minigames are chaotic as you scramble to round up every Mooglet you can before time runs out, and you may end up viewing the Moogles very differently by game’s end. All in all, it’s an amusing minigame that shows off the more devious side of the Moogles.
12. Fort Condor
The original Fort Condor minigame from 1997 was an odd but sophisticated tactics game well-loved by fans. It saw an upgraded take in the INTERmission DLC for Remake, and Rebirth continues with INTERmission’s revitalized Fort Condor but adds more of a Hero spin on the tower-defense style action.
It remains an enjoyable bite-sized strategy game, and getting the best of enemy units with careful planning is satisfying to see play out. It’s also a lot of fun to see Cloud and crew as Hero units, which adds some spice to the flow of each match. However, Fort Condor has sudden and frustrating difficulty spikes that often encourage brute force tactics instead of carefully planning to win. Still, there’s much fun with seeing Cloud, Barrett, and Tifa beat up units in their early 3D styles once again.
11. Dolphin Escape
In keeping with the Remake saga’s focus on spectacle, the original Dolphin riding minigame from FFVII is now an extended activity focusing on sneaking past Shinra security and entertaining the children of Junon’s undercity. The revised gameplay of the Dolphin Show minigame is akin to the classic Wave Race 64, where you must maneuver past specific directional buoys, make sweet jumps, and reach the finish line as fast as possible. While it doesn’t change much on extended play, it offers a surprisingly refreshing and more dynamic take on the original’s one-note minigame – and adds a lot of charm in the process.
10. Cactuar Crush
The Cactuars are back in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and they now have an entire sidequest and minigame that showcases them as the series’ most bizarre foes. Cactuar Crush focuses on Yuffie and Aerith using their combat skills to take down as many Cactuars as possible, and you’ll need to use careful timing of moves and specific elemental strikes to overcome the prickly baddies. Trying to complete this minigame at first felt like a major hassle, especially with how many Cactuars are thrown at you. But once I found a flow and learned each character’s best skills, I found great fun with dishing out pain to the Cactuars – including the rare Giant variants. It can be a good time for players looking to take out the Cactuars en masse, but it’ll require some patience to succeed.
9. G-Bike
The famous motorcycle minigame where Cloud battles Shinra forces make a return in Rebirth, and it’s now a more gamified experience that feels in keeping with the Gold Saucer. In G-Bike, Cloud has to maintain momentum and speed as he builds up energy to take down Shinra goons while speeding across Midgar’s highway. G-Bike is faster and, honestly, more exciting than Remake’s take on the minigame. While it doesn’t have additional tracks and sequences to try out, the base game is still a good time to cut loose on the highway with Cloud once again.
8. Crunch-Off!
The Gym Workout minigames in Remake were playful send-ups to gym culture, and they’re back in Rebirth. While 2020’s Remake focused on squats and pull-ups, Rebirth sees Tifa again face off against arrogant gym rats in a “Crunch-Off!” Like in Remake, you have to land timed button presses and outpace your opponent, and the longer the match goes, the harder it gets to keep your flow in performing crunches. It can be easy to lose momentum, which can quickly ruin a run, but finding a flow is easy, and you’ll rise up the ranks rapidly. It’s also got some truly A+ commentary from gym patrons who are very invested in their workouts.
7. Desert Rush
The Desert Rush minigame sees Cloud again in a solo brawl against a plethora of durable boxes. Like Remake’s box-breaking activity and Kingdom Hearts’ barrel-busting minigames, you’ll need to bust open large boxes within a time limit. The real twist with Desert Rush is that Cloud must maneuver through an obstacle course as he breaks each box, some of which require additional energy to destroy. It was a surprisingly thrilling minigame that prioritized which boxes to break into to cut a path forward to the finish. I wish there were more courses, but Desert Rush and the additional hard mode are a good time, and seeing Cloud engage in a Kingdom Hearts-style minigame was amusing on its own.
6. Gears and Gambits
Another minigame focusing on strategy is Gears and Gambits, the most sophisticated tactics minigame in Rebirth. Paying homage to Final Fantasy XII’s gambit system, you can program tactical commands and prompts for your robot units to overcome various foes and bosses. What makes Gears and Gambits such a neat twist on the tactics is the range of customization you have for your units, and once you acquire new gambits and learn the best strategies, you can unleash some clever load-outs that will cut down the opposition.
5. Junon Shinra March
The infamous Shinra Parade from FFVII is back, and it’s now an even more ambitious sequence with significant stakes. Like the Honeybee Inn dance sequence from FFVII Remake, you’ll need to correctly time button prompts to maintain poise in a competition against other Shinra Infantry to earn positive approval. The focus on keeping a flow is the key to this minigame, and seeing it play out as such a spectacle was a real highlight of the opening chapters of Rebirth. It’s an exciting and memorable sequence, and seeing Cloud and the others play their parts and stick with the routine made for a slick event.
4. Loveless – The Interactive Play
As one of the late-game minigames, Loveless sees the party join an interactive play where they perform the roles of heroes and villains in a musical experience. As something of an extended quick-time-event sequence in the vein of Shenmue and even Dragon’s Lair, Loveless is essentially an interactive cutscene inspired by the tone of a classic swords and sorcery adventure. While this may seem like an unusual minigame, Loveless works well because it showcases the party in a different light – making them appear as more classic-style Final Fantasy characters.
With some options for choice-driven sequences where you choose some alternate outcomes, you get to see an entertaining, emotionally charged sequence that culminates in a heartfelt musical number showcasing the bond the party has. Even as a standalone minigame, it is one of the highlights of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth and a cathartic moment for Cloud and friends.
3. Chocobo Racing
As one of the most memorable minigames of classic FFVII, Rebirth brings back Chocobo Racing in top form, and it’s one of the game’s best side activities. Though it’s unlocked relatively late into the game, the wait is worth it. Chocobo Racing is a payoff for all the time invested in acquiring mounts in different regions and helping out a young Chocobo trainer. Chocobo Racing features racing gameplay similar to Mario Kart, focusing on mastering your track, learning the turns, and taking advantage of powerups and boosts to come out on top.
Moreover, all the Chocobo cosmetic items purchased previously now function as selectable perks, letting you customize and tune your mount’s performance. It’s such a laid-back yet still thrilling racing mode. With the number of variations of each track increasing as you move up the ranks, it’s a satisfying and fleshed-out side activity that showcases the fun of Chocobo Racing — and it’s easily the best iteration that Final Fantasy has seen yet.
2. Play it again, Cloud: Piano minigame
Minigames focusing on playing instruments have been more common in games these days, and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth now has its own musical minigame that lets Cloud and Tifa unwind with some time on the piano. Featuring a robust set of options for how you want to play, such as letting you adjust to minor and monotone keys, it’s a well-crafted take minigame that showcases some of the game’s tender moments. This minigame truly shines with the free play option, letting you practice and test your skills. So far, players are already taking to it well with some covers of classic songs like Dr. Dre’s Still D.R.E. and the Metal Gear Solid theme.
1. Queen’s Blood
As it turns out, the minigame you’ll experience first in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is the absolute best. Compared to FFVIII’s Triple Triad and FFIX’s Tetra Master, Queen’s Blood is the most approachable card game to ever grace a Final Fantasy game and the most rewarding one to invest time in. Battling other Queen’s Blood players throughout each region will see Cloud move up the ranks and become an elite card player, with some critical battles giving strong Yu-Gi-Oh energy for its reverence of the cards battles.
It’s a charming activity, bolstered by a bumping jazz-inspired soundtrack that keeps the energy up in every game. You’ll constantly find characters in towns up for a game, many of whom can easily beat you down with a superior deck. I never found much long-term enjoyment from other FF card games, but what makes Queen’s Blood so engaging and endearing is that it’s a minigame about the joys of playing a trading card game, and the community that invests their time in making the game into something more.
And that’s our complete ranking of the many minigames in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Which one stood out for you? Let us know in the comments about your favorites, and for more on Square-Enix’s massive RPG, check out our guides on Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
Alessandro Fillari is a freelance writer for IGN.
