Final Fantasy 7 Remake will have a turn-based ‘Classic Mode’ that plays like the original

Final Fantasy 7 Remake will have a “classic” gameplay option for players who prefer their role-playing games turn-based, just as the original Final Fantasy 7 was back in 1997. At Tokyo Game Show on Saturday, producer Yoshinori Kitase confirmed that the remake of the classic JRPG — which updates the game to be an action-RPG — will offer an optional turn-based battle mode where players can select attacks and other moves from a menu interface.

According to a translated recap of the Final Fantasy 7 Remake TGS stage show from the game’s official Twitter account, Classic Mode will recreate the same style of turn-based gameplay from the original. While the standard mode of play will automatically fill the player’s ATB Gauge as they attack enemies, “in Classic Mode this aspect of gameplay is handled automatically. The player does not need to do anything and the character fights automatically, charging up their ATB Gauge.”

Players who opt for Classic Mode won’t have to “worry about the action side of the combat system,” Square Enix said, “and can instead focus on selecting commands, making it possible to play [Final Fantasy 7 Remake] as if it were a classic menu-based RPG.”

Final Fantasy 7 Remake is coming to PlayStation 4 on March 3, 2020.