Final Fantasy VII and Bay of Pigs Invasion: Difference between pages

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{{Infobox CVG|Military title = Final Fantasy VIIConflict
|conflict=Bay of Pigs Invasion
| image = [[Image:ffviibox.jpg|256px|North American PlayStation cover]]
|partof=[[Cold War]]
| caption=The North American cover portrays the protagonist, [[Cloud Strife|Cloud]], wielding his [[Final Fantasy weapons#Buster Sword|Buster Sword]]
|image=
| developer = [[Square Co.]]
|caption
| publisher = '''[[PlayStation]]'''<br />{{vgrelease|Japan|JP|[[Square Co.]]}}<br />
|date=[[April 15]] - [[April 19]], [[1961]]
{{vgrelease|North America|NA|[[Sony Computer Entertainment|SCE America]]}}<br />
|place=[[Bay of Pigs]], Southern [[Cuba]]
{{vgrelease|International version|INT|[[Square Co.]]}}<br />
|casus=[[Cuban Revolution|The Cuban Revolution]]
{{vgrelease|PAL region|PAL|[[Sony Computer Entertainment|SCE Europe]]}}<br /> '''[[Microsoft Windows]]'''<br />
|territory=
[[Eidos Interactive]]
|result=Victory for the Republic of Cuba
| designer = [[Hironobu Sakaguchi]] <small>([[game producer]], original [[scenario]] concept)</small><br />[[Yoshinori Kitase]] <small>([[game director]], [[scenario]] writer)</small><br />[[Tetsuya Nomura]] <small>([[character design]]er, original [[scenario]] concept)</small><br />[[Kazushige Nojima]] <small>([[scenario]] writer)</small><br />[[Yoshitaka Amano]] <small>(image illustrator, title logo designer)</small><br />[[Nobuo Uematsu]] <small>([[composer]])</small>
|combatant1=[[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]] [[Cuba]]ns trained by [[Image:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg|22px]] Soviet advisers
| released = '''PlayStation''' <br/> {{vgrelease|Japan|JP|[[January 31]], [[1997]]}}<br />{{vgrelease|North America|NA|[[September 7]], [[1997]]}}<br />{{vgrelease|International version|INT|[[October 2]], [[1997]]}}<br />{{vgrelease|Europe|EU|[[November 17]], [[1997]]}}<ref>{{cite web | author=SCEE | year=1997 | title=SCEE 1997 - Key facts and figures | url=http://www.scee.presscentre.com/Content/Detail.asp?ReleaseID=95&NewsAreaID=22 | work=[http://www.scee.presscentre.com SCEE Press Room] | accessmonthday=November 25 |accessyear=2006}}</ref><br />{{vgrelease|Australasia|AUS|[[November]], [[1997]]}}<br />'''Microsoft Windows'''<br />{{vgrelease|North America|NA|[[June 24]], [[1998]]}}<br />{{vgrelease|Europe|EU|[[1998]]}}<br />{{vgrelease|Australasia|AUS|[[1998]]}}
|combatant2=[[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]][[Cuban exile]]s trained by the [[Image:Flag of the United States.svg|22px]] [[United States]]
| modes = [[Single player]]
|commander1=[[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]] [[Fidel Castro]]<BR>[[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]] [[José Ramón Fernández]]<BR> [[Image:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg|25px]] [[Image:Flag of Spain.svg|22px]] [[Francisco Ciutat de Miguel]]
| genre = [[Console role-playing game]]
|commander2=[[Image:Flag of the United States.svg|20px]] [[Grayston Lynch]]<BR> [[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]] [[Pepe San Roman]]<BR>[[Image:Flag of Cuba.svg|22px]] [[Erneido Oliva]]
| series= ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' series
|strength1=51,000
| ratings = [[Entertainment Software Rating Board|ESRB]]: T (Teen) (13+)<br />[[Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle|USK]]: 12+<br />[[Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association|ELSPA]]: 11+<br />[[Pan European Game Information|PEGI]]: 16+<br />[[Office of Film and Literature Classification (Australia)|OFLC]]: G8+
|strength2=1,500
| platforms = [[PlayStation|Sony PlayStation]], [[Microsoft Windows]]
|casualties1=various estimates; over 1,600 dead (Triay p. 81) to 5,000 total estimated (Lynch)
| media = 3 [[CD-ROM]]s <small>([[PlayStation|PS1]])</small><br>4 [[CD-ROM]]s <small>([[Microsoft Windows|WIN]])</small>
|casualties2=115 dead<br>1,189 captured
| requirements= 133 [[Hertz|MHz]] [[Intel]] [[Pentium]] [[Central processing unit|CPU]], 32 [[Megabyte|MB]] [[Random access memory|RAM]], 2 MB [[video card]] RAM, 4X CD-ROM drive, [[DirectX]] 5.0, 260 MB available [[hard disk]] space, [[Windows 95]] or [[Windows 98]] <small>([[Microsoft Windows|WIN]])</small>
|input=[[Computer keyboard|Keyboard]], [[mouse (computing)|mouse]], or [[joystick]] <small>([[Microsoft Windows|WIN]])</small><br/>PlayStation controller<small> ([[PlayStation|PS1]])</small>
}}
{{nihongo|'''''Final Fantasy VII'''''|ファイナルファンタジーVII|Fainaru Fantajī Sebun}} is a [[console role-playing game|console and computer role-playing game]] (RPG) developed and published by [[Square Co.]] (now [[Square Enix]]), and the seventh installment in the ''[[Final Fantasy]]'' video game series. It was released in [[1997 in video gaming|1997]] and is the first numbered ''Final Fantasy'' game for the [[Sony Computer Entertainment|Sony]] [[PlayStation]] [[video game console]] and [[Microsoft Windows]]-based [[personal computer]]s; it is also the first to use [[3D computer graphics]]<ref name="development5">{{cite book | year=2005 | editor=Editors of Electronic Gaming Monthly | title=Electronic Gaming Monthly October 2005; issue 196 | pages=104|language=English|publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref> featuring fully rendered characters on [[pre-rendered]] backgrounds.<ref name="ignreview">{{cite web | author=IGN staff | year=1997 | title=Final Fantasy VII Review | url=http://psx.ign.com/articles/150/150494p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="gamespotreview">{{cite web | author=Kasavin, Greg | year=1997 | title=Final Fantasy VII for PlayStation Review | url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps/rpg/finalfantasy7/review.html | work=[http://www.gamespot.com/ GameSpot] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="egmreview">{{cite web | author=Editors of Electronic Gaming Monthly | year=2004 | url=http://egm.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=2016960&did=2 | title=Final Fantasy VII PS Review | work=[http://1up.com/ 1UP.com] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
[[Image:Alerta.jpg|thumb|230px|Cuban poster warning before invasion showing a soldier armed with an [[RPD]] [[machine gun]].]]
The game's story centers on a group of adventurers as they battle a powerful [[Megacorp|mega corporation]] called "[[Shinra Electric Power Company|Shinra]]", which is draining the life of the planet to use as an energy source. As the story progresses, conflicts escalate and the world's safety becomes a major concern.
The 1961 '''Bay of Pigs Invasion''' (also known in Cuba as the '''Playa Girón''' after the beach in the [[Bay of Pigs]] where the landing took place) was an unsuccessful [[United States]]-planned and funded attempted invasion by armed [[Cuban exile]]s in southwest [[Cuba]]. An attempt to overthrow the government of [[Fidel Castro]], this action accelerated a rapid deterioration in [[Cuban-American relations]], which was further worsened by the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]] the following year. The name Bay of Pigs comes from Bahía de Cochinos, where in all probability "Cochino" refers to a species of [[Triggerfish]] (Balistes vetula) [http://www.invemar.org.co/redcostera1/invemar/docs/Vol33/BIMC_33_03_Claro.pdf], rather than pigs ([[Boar|Sus scrofa]]).
 
The pigs at the island
A major critical and commercial success, the game remains arguably the most popular title in the series,<ref name="mainstream">{{cite web | date=October , 2003 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_zd1up/is_200310/ai_ziff109006 | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://1up.com/ 1UP] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="mainstream2">{{cite web | year=2006 | url=http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-08-29-dirge-of-cerberus_x.htm | title='Dirge of Cerberus' defies expectations, for better and worse | work=[http://www.usatoday.com/ USA TODAY] | accessmonthday=30 August | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and is often credited with allowing console-style RPGs to achieve mainstream success outside [[Japan]].<ref name="mainstream" /> The ongoing popularity of the title led Square Enix to produce a series of [[sequel]]s and [[prequel]]s in the early-to-mid-2000s under the collective title "''[[#Compilation of Final Fantasy VII|Compilation of Final Fantasy VII]]''". <!--As of March 2006, ''Final Fantasy VII'' has sold more than 9.72 million copies worldwide, earning it the position of the best-selling ''Final Fantasy'' title. (readd when a proper source is found)-->
Tensions between [[The United States]] and [[Cuba]] had increased steadily since the [[Cuban Revolution]] of 1959. The [[Dwight Eisenhower|Eisenhower]] and [[John F. Kennedy|Kennedy]] administrations had judged that Castro's policies, including the [[expropriation]] of American-owned assets on the island and Cuba's increasing ties with the [[Soviet Union]], could not be tolerated.
On March 17, 1960, the [[Dwight D. Eisenhower|Eisenhower]] administration agreed to a recommendation from the CIA to equip and drill Cuban exiles for action against the new Castro government.<ref name="thousand"> ''A Thousand days:John F Kennedy in the White House'' [[Arthur Schlesinger Jr]] 1965 </ref> Eisenhower stated that it was the policy of the U.S. government to aid anti-Castro guerilla forces. The [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] began to recruit and train anti-Castro forces in the [[Sierra Madre de Chiapas|Sierra Madre]] mountains on the Pacific coast of [[Guatemala]].<ref name="thousand"/>
 
The CIA was initially confident that it was capable of overthrowing Castro, having experience assisting in the overthrow of other foreign governments such as the government of [[Iran]]ian prime minister [[Mohammed Mossadegh]] in 1953 and [[Guatemala]]n president [[Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán]] in 1954. [[Richard Mervin Bissell Jr.]], one of [[Allen Dulles]]'s three aides, was made director of "Operation Zapata."
==Gameplay==
[[Image:FFVIIfieldmapexample.JPG|thumb|left|200px|Navigation on a town's field map]]
 
The original plan called for landing the [[Brigade 2506|exile brigade]] (Brigade 2506) in the vicinity of the old colonial city of [[Trinidad, Cuba]], in the central province of [[Sancti Spiritus]] approximately 400 km southeast of Havana at the foothills of the [[Escambray Mountains|Escambray mountains]]. The selection of the Trinidad site provided a number of options that the exile brigade could exploit during the invasion. The population of Trinidad was generally opposed to Castro and the rugged mountains outside the city provided an area into which the invasion force could retreat and establish a [[guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] campaign were the landing to falter. Throughout 1960, the growing ranks of Brigade 2506 trained at locations throughout southern [[Florida]] and in [[Guatemala]] for the beach landing and possible mountain retreat.
Like previous installments of the ''Final Fantasy'' series, ''Final Fantasy VII'' consists of three basic gameplay modes: an [[overworld]] map, town and [[Dungeon (games)|dungeon]] field maps, and a battle screen. The overworld map is a 3D display, featuring a scaled-down simplified version of the game's [[fictional universe|fictional world]],<ref name="ignreview" /><ref name="travel">{{cite book | year=1997 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Final Fantasy VII North American instruction manual | pages=15, 44-46 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts|language=English|id=SCUS-94163}}</ref> which the player navigates to travel between the game's locations. As with the preceding games in the series, the world map can be traversed by foot, by [[chocobo]], by [[Final Fantasy airships#Final Fantasy VII|airship]], or by other means of transportation.<ref name="travel" /> On field maps, the game's 3D [[player character|playable characters]] are directed across realistically scaled environments, consisting of [[2D computer graphics|2D]] pre-rendered backgrounds that represent locations such as towns or forests.<ref name="ignreview" /> The battle screen is a 3D representation of an area such as a building interior or grassland, in which the player commands the game's characters in battles against [[central processing unit|CPU]]-controlled enemies through a menu-driven interface.<ref name="ignreview" /><ref name="menuinterface">{{cite book | year=1997 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Final Fantasy VII North American instruction manual | pages=20-25 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts | language=English | id=SCUS-94163}}</ref>
 
On [[February 17]] [[1961]], [[John F. Kennedy]], the new U.S. president, asked his advisors whether the toppling of Castro might be related to weapon shipments and if it was possible to claim the real targets were modern fighter aircraft and rockets which endangered America's security. At the time, Cuba's army possessed Soviet tanks, artillery and small arms, and its air force consisted of [[A-26 Invader|B-26]] medium bombers, [[Hawker Sea Fury|Hawker Sea Furies]] (a fast and effective, though obsolete, propeller driven [[fighter-bomber]]) and [[T-33]] jets left over from the Batista Air Force.<ref>http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/baypigs-airforce.htm</ref>
Initially, the player is restricted to travel within a single city, but as the game continues, more areas become accessible, and the scripted adventure sequences gradually yield more freedom to explore.<ref name="travel" /> Progression through the game's storyline is largely developed by way of scripted sequences, which cannot be skipped, and require frequent player interaction to proceed. At other times, pre-rendered cinematic [[cut scene]]s advance the story.
 
As Kennedy's plans evolved, critical details were changed that were to hamper chances of a successful mission without direct U.S. help. These revised details included changing the landing area for Brigade 2506 to two points in [[Matanzas Province]], 202 km southeast of [[Havana]] on the eastern edge of the Zapata peninsula at the [[Bay of Pigs|Bahía de Cochinos]] (Bay of Pigs). The landings would now take place on the Girón and Playa de zapatos Larga beaches. This change effectively cut off contact with the rebels in the Escambray "[[War Against the Bandits]]". The Castro government also had been warned by senior [[KGB]] agents [[Osvaldo Sánchez Cabrera]] and [["Aragon",]] who respectively died violently before and after the invasion. <!--(Welch and Blight, p. 113)-->The U.S. government was aware that a high casualty rate was possible. {{Fact|date=February 2007}}.
===Combat===
During its turn-based battle sequences, the game uses the same [[Square Enix battle systems#Active Time Battle|Active Time Battle]] (ATB) system designed by [[Hiroyuki Ito]], which began with ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]''. Unlike previous games in the series, which allow 4-5 playable characters to participate in battle, ''Final Fantasy VII'' allows for only three characters to be present in the party at any one time.<ref name="ignreview" />[[Image:FFVIIbattlexample.jpg|thumb|left|250px|A battle in ''Final Fantasy VII'']]
 
==Soviet Advisers to Cuban government forces==
''Final Fantasy VII''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s [[Statistic (role-playing games)#Skills|skill system]] is built around the use of [[materia]], magical orbs that are placed in special slots on weapons and armor, allowing characters access to [[Final Fantasy magic|magic spells]], summons, and special abilities. In addition to their individual traits, materia can be used together in a fixed number of ways to enhance their effects or produce other abilities.<ref name="materiause">{{cite book | year=1997 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Final Fantasy VII North American instruction manual | pages=35 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts | language=English | id=SCUS-94163}}</ref><ref name="materiause2">{{cite book | author=Cassady, David | year=1997 | title=Official Final Fantasy VII Strategy Guide | pages=5-7 | publisher=Brady Publishing | language=English | id=ISBN 1-56686-714-2}}</ref>
 
A militia, artillery, and intelligence are necessary to field a regular army. Foreign advisors were brought from [[Eastern Bloc]] countries; the most senior of these were [[Francisco Ciutat de Miguel]], [[Enrique Lister]], and [[Alberto Bayo]].<ref>(Paz-Sanchez, 2001, pp 189-199) </ref> Ciutat de Miguel (Masonic name: Algazel; Russian name: Pavel Pablovich Stepanov; Cuban alias: Ángel Martínez Riosola, commonly referred to as Angelito) is said to have arrived the same day as [[La Coubre explosion]]; he was wounded in the foot during the [[War Against the Bandits]], the type of wound that is common to senior officers observing combat at the edge of effective rifle range. Date of wound is not given in references cited [http://www.sbhac.net/Republica/Personajes/Militares/Militares1.htm]
A modified form of ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'''s [[Limit Breaks#Final Fantasy VI|Desperation Attack]]s appears here as the [[Limit Break#Final Fantasy VII|Limit Break]].<ref name="Khosla">{{cite web | author=Khosla, Sheila | year=2003 | title=Tetsuya Nomura 20s | url=http://flaregamer.com/b2article.php?p=81&more=1 | work=[http://flaregamer.com FLAREgamer]|accessmonthday=April 13 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> Every playable character has a bar that gradually fills up when they suffer damage in battle. When the bar is completely filled, the character is able to access his or her Limit Break, a special attack which generally inflicts significantly more damage on an enemy than normal attacks, or otherwise aids the party in battle.<ref name="ignreview" /><ref name="menuinterface" /> Character designer and battle director [[Tetsuya Nomura]] implemented this advanced form of Desperation Attacks in response to the low probability of their occurrence in ''Final Fantasy VI'', where they would randomly become available as an attack substitution only when a character's [[hit point]]s (a numerically based [[life bar]]) were low.<ref name="Khosla" />
 
==Invasion==
Nomura decided to incorporate elaborate [[Final Fantasy magic#Summon Magic|summon spells]] in the game, one of which lasts more than a minute.<ref name="Khosla" /> This idea became popular with ''Final Fantasy'' fans, and they were incorporated into the development of future games in the series.<ref name="Khosla" /> However, critics have described these animations as tedious.<ref name="summons">{{Cite book | year=2001 | editor=Kennedy, Sam & Steinman, Gary | title=Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine August 2001; issue 47 | pages=98 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref>
On the morning of [[April 15]], [[1961]], three flights of [[Douglas Aircraft Company|Douglas]] [[A-26 Invader|B-26B Invader]] light bomber aircraft displaying Cuban Fuerza Aerea Revolucionaria (FAR - Revolutionary Air Force) markings bombed and strafed the Cuban airfields of [[San Antonio de Los Baños]], Antonio Maceo International Airport, and the airfield at Ciudad Libertad. Operation Puma, the code name given to the [[offensive counter air attack]]s against the [[Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces]], called for 48 hours of air strikes across the island to effectively eliminate the Cuban air force, ensuring Brigade 2506 complete air superiority over the island prior to the actual landing at the Bay of Pigs. This failed because the airstrikes were not continued, as was originally planned - limited by decisions at the highest level of US government. The second wave of airstrikes, designed to wipe out the remainder of Castro's airforce was stopped due to a communication breakdown rather than a lack of political will{{Fact|date=February 2007}}. [[Adlai Stevenson]], the US ambassador to the United Nations had been embarrassed by revelations that the first wave of airstrikes had been carried out by US planes despite his repeated denials that this was so. He contacted [[McGeorge Bundy]] who, unaware of the critical importance to the mission of the second wave, cancelled the airstrike despite Kennedy's earlier approval for it. Castro also had prior knowledge of the invasion and had moved the airplanes out of harm's way.
[[Image:BayofPigs.jpg|350px|right|thumb|Map showing the ___location of the Bay of Pigs.]]
Of the Brigade 2506 aircraft that sortied on the morning of [[April 15]], one was tasked with establishing the CIA cover story for the invasion. The slightly modified two-seat B-26B used for this mission was piloted by [[Captain]] Mario Zuniga. Prior to departure, the engine cowling from one of the aircraft's two engines was removed by maintenance personnel, fired upon, then re-installed to give the appearance that the aircraft had taken ground fire at some point during its flight. Captain Zuniga departed from the exile base in [[Nicaragua]] on a solo, low-flying mission that would take him over the westernmost province of [[Pinar del Río|Pinar del Rio]], Cuba, and then northeast toward [[Key West, Florida]]. Once across the island, Captain Zuniga climbed steeply away from the waves of the [[Florida Straits]] to an altitude where he would be detected by US radar installations to the north of Cuba. At altitude and a safe distance north of the island, Captain Zuniga feathered the engine with the pre-installed bullet holes in the engine cowling, radioed a mayday call, and requested immediate permission to land at Boca Chica Naval Air Station a few kilometers northeast of [[Key West, Florida]]. This account is at apparent variance with Cuban government reports that [[Sea Fury]], [[B-26]] fighter bombers and [[T-33]] trainers flown by the few Cuban (notable Rafael del Pino, (Lagas, 1964)) and some left-wing Chilean and Nicaraguan pilots (Lagas, 1964; Somoza-Debayle and Jack Cox, 1980), loyal to Castro attacked the older slower B-26s flown by the invading force.<ref>http://www.urrib2000.narod.ru/ArticGiron1-e.html</ref>
 
By the time of Captain Zuniga's announcement to the world mid-morning on the 15th, all but one of the Brigade's Douglas bombers were back over the Caribbean on the three and a half hour return leg to their base in Nicaragua to re-arm and refuel. Upon landing, however, the flight crews were met with a cable from Washington ordering the indefinite stand-down of all further combat operations over Cuba.
==Plot==
<!--
 
On [[April 17]], four 2,400-ton chartered transports (named the ''Houston'', ''Río Escondido'', ''Caribe'', and ''Atlántico'') transported 1,511 Cuban exiles to the Bay of Pigs on the Southern coast of Cuba. They were accompanied by two CIA-owned infantry landing crafts (LCI's), called the ''Blagar'' and ''Barbara J'', containing supplies, ordnance, and equipment. The small army hoped to find support from the local population, intending to cross the island to [[Havana]]. The CIA assumed that the invasion would spark a popular uprising against Castro. However, the
If the first thing that went through your mind when you saw the word "Plot" was to add a spoiler tag, then you have proven to yourself that other people will also realize that "Plot" is synonymous with "spoiler" and thus a spoiler tag is unnecessary.
Escambray rebels had been contained by Cuban militia directed by [[Francisco Ciutat de Miguel]] (see Soviet Advisers to Cuban government forces above). By the time the Invasion began, Castro had already executed some who were suspected of colluding with the American campaign (notably two former "Comandantes" Humberto Sorí Marin and [[William Alexander Morgan]]<ref>http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/morgan/Morgan-03-13-6]</ref><ref>http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/bayofpigs/chron.html</ref> Others executed included Alberto Tapia Ruano, a catholic youth leader. April was a bloody month for the resistance. Several hundreds of thousands were imprisoned before, during and after the invasion (Priestland, 2003).
 
After landing, it soon became evident that the exiles were not going to receive effective support at the site of the invasion and were likely to lose. Reports from both sides describe tank battles (see much detail in printed references section below) involving heavy USSR equipment.<ref name="SPlister.htm">http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/SPlister.htm</ref> Kennedy decided against giving the faltering invasion US air support (though four US pilots were killed in Cuba during the invasion) because of his opposition to overt intervention. Kennedy also canceled several sorties of bombings (only two took place) on the grounded Cuban Airforce, which might have crippled the Cuban Airforce and given air superiority to the invaders. [[U.S. Marines]] were not sent in.
-->
===Setting===
{{main|List of Final Fantasy VII locations}}
The game's setting follows in the footsteps of ''Final Fantasy VI'' by presenting a world with considerably more advanced technology than the first five games in the series. Overall, the game's technology and society approximates that of modern or near-future [[science fiction]].<ref name="scifisetting">{{cite web | author=Square Enix North America site staff | year=2001 | title=Behind The Game The Creators | url=http://www.square-enix-usa.com/games/FFX/btg/creators.html#1 | work=[http://www.square-enix.com/na/ Square Enix North America] | accessmonthday=April 12 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="scifi">{{Cite book | year=2001 | editor=Editors of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine | title=Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine August 2001; issue 47 | pages=16 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref> The world of ''Final Fantasy VII'', named "Gaia",<ref name="gaia">{{cite web | author=Choudhury, Rahul | year=2004 | title=E3: Final Fantasy VII Advent Children handout scan | url=http://square-haven.com/news/?id=0752&addcomment=1 | work=[http://square-haven.com/ SquareHaven.com]|accessmonthday=August 11 |accessyear=2006}} See scan of the pamphlet mentioned [[:Image:ACE3pamphlet.JPG|here]].</ref> is comprised of three land masses. The [[List of Final Fantasy VII locations#Eastern continent|eastern continent]] features the city of [[Midgar]], an industrial [[metropolis]] that serves as the headquarters of the [[Shinra|Shinra Electric Power Company]], a ruthless mega corporation that operates as the [[de facto]] [[world government]]. Shinra's major military base, Junon, is also located on the continent, along with a chocobo ranch and several small towns.
 
==Air action==
The [[List of Final Fantasy VII locations#Western continent|western continent]] features most of the playable areas, which include an amusement park, a seaside resort, and a settlement constructed on a plateau called "Cosmo Canyon". The tribe inhabiting the canyon places a strong emphasis on living in harmony with nature and dedicate great consideration to its well-being.<ref name="cosmo">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=217 | language=Japanese|publisher=Square Enix|id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> Their settlement features an [[observatory]] and serves as a research facility for those who wish to participate in a philosophy known as "the Study of Planet Life", an environmentally conscious way of life that encourages utmost deference for nature, and teaches that the planet has a life of its own.<ref name="cosmo" /> The [[List of Final Fantasy VII locations#Northern continent|northernmost continent]] is a heavily [[glacier|glaciated]] wasteland covered in snow and ice, with its few settlements largely concerned with excavation or research. It does, however, feature a ski resort. There are also underwater locations accessible via submarine.
 
Aviation is commonly considered the deciding factor during the Bay of Pigs Invasion. The first airplane of the Cuban Armed forces was obtained in 1913; Cuban pilots, such as Francisco Terry Sánchez and Santiago Campuzano fought combat missions as early as WW I [http://www.nocastro.com/documents/aviacion/aviacion1.htm]. The 1931 Gibara landing against Machado was defeated in great part by Cuban Aviation [http://www.nocastro.com/documents/aviacion/aviacion2.htm]. However, by the end of January 1959 most Cuban pilots and support technicians from the Batista era were in jail [http://www.cidh.oas.org/annualrep/80.81sp/Cuba4677.htm] or in exile.
The Shinra Company began as a small weapons research and development corporation, but within one generation achieved global political dominance due to their discovery of [[Materia#Mako|mako energy]],<ref name="mako">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=56, 216-217 | language=Japanese|publisher=Square Enix|id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> a power source derived from a green ethereal substance that forms within the planet's [[Structure of the Earth#Core|core]]. Siphoning this substance from the planet via facilities called "mako reactors", the company soon discovered that it could be used both to provide [[Electric power|electricity]] and create small orbs called "materia" that would grant humans magical powers.<ref name="mako" /> Moreover, they learned that if infused directly into the bodies of strong and healthy individuals, the energy would provide permanent [[superhuman]] abilities. Quickly establishing a monopoly on the development of mako energy and the production of materia, Shinra manufactured a line of superhuman warriors called "SOLDIER". Dispatching this army, the company brought a rapid end to a worldwide conflict that had lasted several years. In the postwar society that followed, daily dependence on mako and materia allowed Shinra to quickly establish worldwide rule.<ref name="mako" />
 
During the Bay of Pigs invasion, the first Cuban exile attack with B-26 left Cuban forces with "two [[B-26]]s, two [[Sea Fury|Sea Furies]], and two [[T-33]]As at San Antonio de los Baños Airbase, and only one Sea Fury at the [[Antonio Maceo Airport]]" and two of the attacking bombers were damaged [http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/americas/cuba/Cuba-af-history.htm] April 17 Cuban exile pilots and copilots/navigators: Matias Farias, Eddy Gonzalez, Osvaldo Piedra, Jose Fernandez, Raul Vianello, Jose, A. Crespo, Lorenzo Perez Lorenzo, Crispin Garcia, and Juan Mata Gonzalez are killed. April 19 US aviators Riley Shamburger, Wade Gray, Thomas W. Ray and Leo Baker, replacing exhausted Cuban exile fliers, die in action.
[[Image:Midgartechdemoshot.JPG|right|250px|thumb|left|Overhead shot of the city of Midgar]]
 
Cuban pilots Alvaro Galo and Willy Figueroa were jailed for cowardice, for not flying B-26; Captain Evans was accused of poisoning crews and also jailed.
Following the establishment of Shinra's control, eight towns in the corporation's vicinity were united as a single city, becoming Midgar.<ref name="towns">'''Jessie:''' The 8 Reactors provide Midgar with electricity. Each town used to have a name, but no one in Midgar remembers them. Instead of names, we refer to them by numbered sectors. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Catering to the upper class, Shinra expressed little concern for the welfare of Midgar's poorer citizens, constructing a seventy-story skyscraper to serve as their headquarters while erecting a massive metal plate over the city for upper class citizens to live and work upon. In the meantime, the lower half of the city became known as the "slums", its view of the sky obstructed and its air polluted. Many citizens living in these conditions became malnourished or otherwise unhealthy, but Shinra did little to assist them.<ref name="plate">'''Barret:''' Look... you can see the surface now. This city don't have no day or night. If that plate weren't there... we could see the sky. ... / '''Barret:''' The upper world... a city on a plate... It's 'cuz of that &^#$# 'pizza', that people underneath are sufferin'! And the city below is full of polluted air. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref>
 
Cuban Air Force pilots included Carlos Ulloa Rauz who was Nicaraguan; Jaques Lagas who flew a B-26 and survived is from Chile' Alfredo Noa died in battle in a plane piloted by Luis A. Silva Tablada also killed. Rafael del Pino. de Varens died in a B-26 accident in Camaguey. Laga lists dead Castro fliers as: Noa, Silva, Ulloa, Martin Torres, Reinaldo Gonzalez Calainada, and Orestes Acosta. On page 81 Lagas mentions Enrique Carrera Rola and Gustavo Borzac.
Shinra's operations began to face opposition, however, from those who believed that the use of mako energy was depleting the spiritual essence of the planet, a massive swell of ethereal matter the Study of Planet Life referred to as the "[[Materia#Lifestream|Lifestream]]". The philosophy explained that this energy wave was not only the life force of the planet, but the source of life for all lifeforms living upon it. Those who followed the lifestyle referred to mako energy as "spirit energy" instead, a term that would fall into disfavor as the populace became increasingly dependent on mako. The Study of Planet Life held that when an organism was conceived, it was given a small amount of the planet's own spirit to live. As the lifeform grew, its accumulated life experiences would allow its spirit energy to grow as well, such that when the organism died, its spiritual energy would return to the planet's core, enriched by its experiences in life, allowing the Lifestream as a whole to grow.<ref name="lifestream">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=216-217 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref><ref name="lifestream2">'''Bugenhagen:''' Eventually... all humans die. What happens to them after they die? The body decomposes, and returns to the Planet. That much everyone knows. What about their consciousness, their hearts and their souls? The soul too returns to the Planet. And not only those of humans, but everything on this Planet. In fact, all living things in the universe, are the same. The spirits that return to the Planet, merge with one another and roam the Planet. They roam, converge, and divide, becoming a swell, called the 'Lifestream'. Lifestream.... In other words, a path of energy of the souls roaming the Planet. 'Spirit Energy' is a word that you should never forget. A new life... children are blessed with Spirit energy and are brought into the world. Then, the time comes when they die and once again return to the Planet... {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Those who followed the philosophy argued that Shinra's activities were sucking up the life force of the planet and slowly weakening it, with the inevitable result being the death of the entire world and all creatures living upon it.<ref name="lifestream" /><ref name="lifestream3">'''Bugenhagen:''' Spirit energy makes all things possible, trees, birds, and humans. Not just living things. But Spirit energy makes it possible for Planets to be Planets. What happens if that Spirit energy were to disappear? ... / '''Cloud:''' If the Spirit energy is lost, our Planet is destroyed... Everyday Mako reactors suck up Spirit energy, diminishing it. Spirit energy gets compressed in the reactors and processed into Mako energy. All living things are being used up and thrown away. In other words, Mako energy will only destroy the Planet... {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref>
 
On page 82 Lagas mentions 16 exile planes in first attack, presumable B-26 bombers. Kraus mentions eight B-26 piloted by Cuban exiles [http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/americas/cuba/Cuba-af-history.htm]. Lagas mentions Cuban pilot Alberto Fernandez. Juan Suarez Plaza Ernesto Carrera is mentioned as flying a Seafury, and another Nicaraguan; Seafuries were also flown by Cuban pilots including Douglas Rood and Sanchez de Mola. Lagas states he was the only B-26 pilot left on the 19th of April. By April 21 ten of twelve exile B-26B had been destroyed [http://www.aeroflight.co.uk/waf/americas/cuba/Cuba-af-history.htm]. Eight Cuban pilots survived, only one from the B-26.
One devoted follower to the Study of Planet Life decided that the only way to prevent the world's destruction was to oppose Shinra by violent means, forming an [[eco-terrorism|eco-terrorist]] organization called "[[AVALANCHE]]".<ref name="lifestream" /> The organization began a long [[guerrilla warfare|guerrilla war]] with Shinra, focusing on attacking mako reactors and performing repeated assassination attempts upon the company's president.<ref name="6years">{{Cite book | year=2006 | editor=Watanabe, Yukari | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - Reunion Files - | pages=96-97 | language=Japanese|publisher=SoftBank|id=ISBN 4-7973-3498-3}}</ref> Though the original incarnation of AVALANCHE was eventually defeated due to the efforts of Shinra's elite [[espionage]] and [[assassination]] division, the [[Turks (Final Fantasy VII)|Turks]], a smaller unit bearing the same name and objective was later established by [[Barret Wallace]], one of the game's main characters.<ref name="lifestream" /><ref name="6years" />
 
===Characters=Land action==
{{main|List of Final Fantasy VII characters}}
[[Image:FFVIInomuracastdesigns.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Tetsuya Nomura's designs of the main characters in ''Final Fantasy VII'']]
 
In the beginning the [[militia]] on the beach surrendered, and the invaders moved to control the [[causeway]]s. There the fighting became intense, and Cuban forces casualities were very high, both as a result of fire power from the invading ground forces and the [[strafing]] [[B-26]]. However, once their air-support was eliminated and after expending all ammunition the invaders were forced back to the beach (summarized from Lynch, Grayston L. 2000, and others in bibliography below). The land action was very bloody. Carlos Franqui wrote:<ref>Data sources include: de Paz-Sánchez, 2001; Lynch, 2000 D; Johnson, 1964; Franqui, 1984; Vivés, 1984. Complete citations in Bibliography section.</ref>
The nine main playable characters in ''Final Fantasy VII'' are [[Cloud Strife]], an unsociable [[mercenary]] who serves as the game's protagonist and claims to be a former 1<sup>st</sup> Class member of Shinra's SOLDIER unit;<ref name="1stclass">'''Aeris:''' What rank were you? / '''Cloud:''' Rank? / '''Aeris:''' You know, in SOLDIER. / '''Cloud:''' Oh, I was... First Class. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> [[Aerith Gainsborough|Aeris Gainsborough]] (named "Aerith" in later ''Final Fantasy VII'' titles and the ''[[Kingdom Hearts series|Kingdom Hearts]]'' series), a flower merchant living in the slums of Midgar who has been pursued by Shinra operatives since she was a child;<ref name="aeris">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=30 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref><ref name="aeris2">'''Cloud:''' It's amazing how she's avoided the Shinra for all these years... / '''Elmyra:''' The Shinra needed her. So I guess they wouldn't harm her. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co. |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> [[Tifa Lockhart]], a martial artist and childhood friend of Cloud's with romantic feelings toward him; [[Barret Wallace]], the impatient leader of the second incarnation of the anti-Shinra organization AVALANCHE, who bears a grudge against the corporation for razing his hometown, and causing the deaths of his friends and family;<ref name="barret">'''Barret:''' It happened when Dyne and I were out of town for a few days. Corel was burned down by the Shinra troops. All the townspeople........ All my relatives......... Everyone...... Everything...... {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> [[Red XIII]], a wise lion-like creature capable of speech who was experimented on by Shinra scientists; [[Yuffie Kisaragi]], the young, bitter princess of Wutai, a nation descended from [[ninja]]s that was defeated by Shinra in a war several years before the events of ''Final Fantasy VII'' began;<ref name="war">'''Elmyra:''' Oh... it must have been 15 years ago... ...during the war. My husband was sent to the front. Some far away place called Wutai. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref><ref name="war2">'''Yuffie:''' You scared of the Shinra? Then why don't you fall into line and obey them, just like all of the other towns! Those guys are the ones who are really fighting the Shinra! / '''Godo:''' Shut up! What would you know about this? / '''Yuffie:''' You get beaten once, and then that's it? What happened to the mighty Wutai I used to know? {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> [[Cid Highwind]], a pilot whose dreams of being the first man in [[outer space]] were crushed when he canceled his rocket's launch to save the life of one of his assistants, leading to the withdrawing of the Shinra Company's funding of a space program;<ref name="cid">'''Cid:''' Well, they came up with a Rocket Engine. There was so much excitement about the thought of going into outer space. Our dreams got bigger and bigger. They put a major budget into it and made prototype after prototype! Finally, they completed Shinra No. 26. They chose the best pilot in Shinra-- no, in the world-- me. I mean, come on. And finally we get to the day of the launch. Everything was goin' well... But, because of that dumb-ass Shera, the launch got messed up. That's why they became so anal! And so, Shinra nixed their outer space exploration plans. After they told me how the future was Space Exploration and got my damn hopes up... DAMN THEM! Then, it was all over once they found out Mako energy was profitable. They didn't even so much as look at space exploration. Money, moola, dinero! My dream was just a financial number for them! {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref><ref name="cid2">'''Shera:''' He pushed the Emergency Engine Shut Down switch, aborting the mission, to save my life. After that, the Space Program was cut back and the launch was canceled. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> [[Cait Sith (Final Fantasy VII)|Cait Sith]], a [[fortune-telling]] cat who rides a magically animated stuffed [[moogle]] doll;<ref name="caitsith&vincent">{{cite book | year=1997 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Final Fantasy VII North American instruction manual | pages=11 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts|language=English|id=SCUS-94163}}</ref> and [[Vincent Valentine]], a former member of Shinra's Turks unit who was killed and brought back to life as an [[Immortality|immortal]] through experimental anatomic reconstruction.<ref name="vincent">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=46 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref><ref name="vincent2">{{cite book | year=1999 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Ehrgeiz instruction manual | pages=20 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts | language=English | id=SLUS-00809}}</ref><ref name="vincent3">{{cite web | author=Final Fantasy Insider site staff | year=2005 | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Interview - Conducted by GanGan | url=http://www.ffinsider.net/ff7ac/interview3.php | work=[http://www.ffinsider.net/ Final Fantasy Insider] | accessmonthday=10 August | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
{{Quotation| “We lost a lot of men. This frontal attack of men against machines (the enemy tanks) had nothing to do with guerrilla war; in fact it was a Russian tactic, probably the idea of the two Soviet generals, both of Spanish origin (they fought for the Republic in the Spanish Civil War and fled to the Soviet Union to later fight in World War II. One of them was a veteran, a fox (sic) named Ciutah. He (Ciutah) was sent by the Red Army and the Party as an advisor and was the father of the new Cuban army. He was the only person who could have taken charge of the Girón campaign. The other Hispano-Russian general was an expert in antiguerrilla war who ran the Escambray cleanup. But the real factor in our favor at Girón was the militias: Almejeira’s column embarked on a suicide mission, they were massacred but they reached the beach.”}}
All of the game's main characters have had significant ties to the Shinra Company in their past, and all harbor disapproval or outright hatred for the corporation and its activities. Although the antagonists for the first portion of the game are the [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#Executives|Shinra executives]], a mysterious man named "[[Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII)|Sephiroth]]" — once hailed as the greatest SOLDIER — reappears several years after disappearing in a battle in which he was concluded to have died.<ref name="sephiroth">{{cite book | year=1997 | editor=Square Electronic Arts | title=Final Fantasy VII North American instruction manual | pages=10 | publisher=Square Electronic Arts | language=English | id=SCUS-94163}}</ref><ref name="sephiroth2">'''Aeris:''' What happened to Sephiroth? / '''Cloud:''' In terms of skill, I couldn't have killed him. / '''Tifa:''' Official records state Sephiroth is dead. I read it in the newspaper. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> He is soon revealed to be the most immediate threat to the planet, prompting both AVALANCHE and the Shinra Company to take up the position of defending it, though their methods differ significantly.<ref name="defendingtheplanet">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=58 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref>
 
==Casualties==
The game's character designer, Tetsuya Nomura, has expressed feeling that ''Final Fantasy VII'' was hindered by graphical limitations, and that his designs were, consequently, very plain in comparison to his "true" style.<ref name="Khosla" /> However, he was able to find other means of expressing some of his ideas. Cloud's original character design called for slicked back black hair with no spikes, intended to serve as a contrast to Sephiroth's long, flowing silver hair. To give Cloud a unique feature that would emphasize his role in the game as the main character, Nomura changed the design to feature Cloud's now trademark shock of spiky, bright blond hair.<ref name="Khosla" /> For Tifa's design, Nomura has admitted to facing a difficult decision in choosing to give her a miniskirt or pants. With input from other members of the game's development staff, he eventually selected a dark miniskirt, contrasted by Aeris' long, pink dress.<ref name="Khosla" />
By the time fighting ended on [[April 21]], 68 exiles were dead and the rest were captured. Estimates of Cuban forces killed vary with the source, but were generally far higher.
 
The 1,209 captured exiles were quickly put on trial. A few were executed and the rest sentenced to thirty years in prison for [[treason]]. After 20 months of negotiation with the United States, Cuba released the exiles in exchange for $53 million in food and medicine.
Vincent Valentine's character developed from horror researcher to detective, then to chemist, and finally to the figure of a former Turk with a tragic past. It has been explained that his crimson mantle was added to symbolize the idea of carrying a heavy weight on his shoulders associated with death. Nomura has indicated that Cid Highwind's fighting style resembles that of a [[Dragon Knight (character class)|Dragon Knight]], a [[character class]] so chosen because his last name is the same as that of two previous Dragon Knights featured in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, [[List of Final Fantasy II characters#Ricard Highwind|Ricard Highwind]] of ''[[Final Fantasy II]]'' and [[Kain Highwind]] of ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]''.<ref name="Khosla" />
 
It is generally assumed by some that during the Bay of Pigs Invasion Cuba's losses were high. Triay (2001 p. 110) mentions 4,000 casualties; Lynch (p. 148) 50X or about 5,000. Other sources indicate over 2,200 casualties. Unofficial reports list that seven Cuban army infantry battalions suffered significant losses during the fighting.
Due to their popularity, several characters from the game have made [[cameo appearance]]s in other Square Enix titles, most notably the [[Versus fighting game|fighting game]] ''[[Ehrgeiz]]'' and the popular ''Final Fantasy''-[[The Walt Disney Company|Disney]] crossover series ''Kingdom Hearts''. Sephiroth remains one of the most popular villains in video game history, [[Unanimity|unanimously]] voted #1 by the staff of [[video game magazine|gaming publication]] ''[[Electronic Gaming Monthly]]'' in their "Top 10 [[boss (video games)|Video Game Bosses]]" list in October 2005.<ref name="sephboss1">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Editors of EGM magazine | title=Electronic Gaming Monthly October, 2005 | pages=72-73 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media}}</ref> During spring of the same year, the character won [[GameFAQs]]' best villain contest.<ref name="gamefaqs">{{cite web | author=GameFAQs Site Staff | year=2005 | title=GameFAQs - Spring 2005: Got Villains? | url=http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/contest/spr05 | work=[http://www.gamefaqs.com/ GameFAQs] | accessmonthday=January 3 | accessyear=2007}}</ref>
 
In one air attack alone, Cuban forces suffered an estimated 1,800 casualties when a mixture of army troops, militia, and civilians were caught on an open causeway riding in civilian buses towards the battle scene in which several buses were hit by [[napalm]].<ref>http://www.serendipity.li/cia/bay-of-pigs.htm</ref><ref>http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1984/EJR.htm</ref><ref>http://www.latinamericanstudies.org/articles/bayofpigs.htm</ref>
===Story===
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The government initially reported their army losses as 87 dead with many more wounded. The number of those killed in action in Cuba's army during the battle eventually ran to 140, and then finally to 161. Thus in the most accepted calculations, a total of around 2,000 (perhaps as many as 5,000, see above) Cuban militia fighting for the Republic of Cuba may have been killed, wounded or missing in action.
If the first thing that went through your mind when you saw the word "Story" was to add a spoiler tag, then you have proven to yourself that other people will also realize that "Story" is synonymous with "spoiler" and thus a spoiler tag is unnecessary.
 
The total casualties for the brigade were 104 members killed, and a few hundred more were wounded. Of those killed, ten died trying to escape Cuba in a boat (Celia), nine asphyxiated in a sealed truck on the way to Havana,<ref>http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/15933592.htm</ref> five were executed after the invasion, five were executed after being captured infiltrating Cuba, five died in training at their base and two died in a Cuban prison camp.
-->
The story of ''Final Fantasy VII'' begins as the protagonist, Cloud Strife, joins the anti-Shinra organization [[AVALANCHE]] in a bombing raid on one of eight mako reactors that surround the city of Midgar. The mako reactor is destroyed and the group makes their way back to their base.<ref name="lifestream" /> En route, Cloud encounters Aeris Gainsborough, a flower merchant. During their next mission, AVALANCHE is trapped by [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#President Shinra|President Shinra]] and a robotic guard before they can escape the mako reactor that they have rigged to explode. Although they defeat the guard, the reactor's explosion sends Cloud hurtling from the upper levels of Midgar into the slums below. Falling through the roof of a derelict church in Sector 5, he lands on a flower bed unharmed, where he is formally introduced to Aeris.<ref name="secondmeetingwithaeris">'''Aeris:''' You okay? This is a church in the Sector 5 slums. You suddenly fell on top of me. You really gave me quite a scare. / '''Cloud:''' ......I came crashing down? / '''Aeris:''' The roof and the flower bed must have broken your fall. You're lucky. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Cloud agrees to work for Aeris as her bodyguard, an agreement prompted by the arrival of operatives of the Shinra Company's Turks organization, who have been ordered to capture Aeris.<ref name="secondmeetingwithaerith">'''Aeris:''' Say, Cloud. Have you ever been a bodyguard? You DO do everything, right? / '''Cloud:''' Yeah, that's right. / '''Aeris:''' Then, get me out of here. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref>
 
In 1979 the body of Alabama National Guard Captain {Pilot} Thomas Willard Ray who was executed after capture was returned
After the player defends Aeris from her would-be kidnappers, Cloud accepts her offer to show him the way back to Sector 7. Along the way, she reveals that her first boyfriend had been a 1<sup>st</sup> Class SOLDIER, as Cloud claims to have been. The two spot Tifa entering Wall Market, an area of Sector 6 infamous for criminal activity, to which they follow her. After infiltrating the mansion of crime boss [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#Don Corneo|Don Corneo]], the three learn that Shinra has discovered the ___location of AVALANCHE's hideout and plan to collapse the upper level of Sector 7 onto the slums below.<ref name="platecrush">'''Don Corneo:''' Shinra's trying to crush a small rebel group called AVALANCHE, and want to infiltrate their hideout. And they're really going to crush them... literally. By breaking the support holding up the plate above them. / '''Tifa:''' Break the support!? / '''Don Corneo:''' You know what's going to happen? The plate'll go PING and everything's gonna go BAMMM!! I heard their hideout's in the Sector 7 Slums... {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Despite AVALANCHE's efforts to prevent it, Shinra successfully destroys Sector 7, killing its population and three members of AVALANCHE. The Turks finally capture Aeris, who the player learns is the last living member of an ancient race called the "[[Races of Final Fantasy#Ancients|Cetra]]".<ref name="cetra">'''Cloud:''' Why is Shinra after Aeris? / '''Elmyra:''' Aeris is an Ancient. The sole survivor. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> The Cetra, it is explained, are closely attuned with the planet. Therefore, President Shinra believes that Aeris can lead him to a mythical land of fertility known as the "Promised Land", which Shinra expects to be ripe with mako energy that can be easily harvested.<ref name="cetra2">'''President Shinra:''' She's the last surviving Ancient... Don't you know? They called themselves the Cetra, and lived thousands of years ago. Now they are just a forgotten page in history. / '''Red XIII:''' Cetra... That girl, is she a survivor of the Cetra? / '''President Shinra:''' Cetra, or the Ancients will show us the way to the 'Promised Land.' I'm expecting a lot out of her. / '''Red XIII:''' The Promised Land? Isn't that just a legend? / '''President Shinra:''' Even so, it's just too appealing to not to pursue. It's been said the Promised Land is very fertile. ...If the land is fertile... / '''Barret:''' Then there's gotta be Mako! / '''President Shinra:''' Exactly. That is why our money sucking Mako Reactor is a necessity. The abundant Mako will just come out on its own. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref>
to his family from Cuba; the CIA eventually ("in the late 90's") admitted to his links to the agency and awarded him their highest award the [[Intelligence Star]].<ref>Thomas, Eric 2007 (accessed 2-22-07) Local Man Forever Tied To Cuban Leader Father Frozen, Displayed By Fidel Castro KGO ABC7/KGO-TV/DT. ABC San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=assignment_7&id=5056129</ref>
 
==Release of most captive prisoners==
As the only remaining members of AVALANCHE, Tifa, Barret and Cloud infiltrate Shinra's headquarters to rescue Aeris. After freeing her and the lion-like Red XIII, who joins the party, they escape when most of the personnel in the building — including President Shinra — are slaughtered. Finding the body of President Shinra skewered by a long sword, Cloud suspects the acclaimed [[SOLDIER]] Sephiroth has returned from his presumed death. These suspicions are confirmed by an executive spared during the massacre, who claims to have witnessed Sephiroth murder the president and state that he would never allow Shinra to claim the Promised Land.<ref name="sephirothreturns">'''Cloud:''' Did you see him? Did you see Sephiroth? / '''Palmer:''' Yeah, I saw him!! I saw him with my own eyes! / '''Cloud:''' You really saw him? / '''Palmer:''' Uh! Would I lie to you at a time like this!? And I heard his voice too! Um, he was saying something about not letting us have the Promised Land. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> The party also learns that during Sephiroth's attack on Shinra, the headless body of a creature named "[[Jenova]]" disappeared from the building's research facility.<ref name="jenovagone">'''Cloud:''' ...Did it get away? Jenova...? / '''Red XIII:''' Jenova Specimen... Looks like it went to the upper floor using that elevator for the specimens. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref>
In May 1961 Castro proposed an exchange of the surviving members of the assault for five hundred bulldozers. The trade soon rose to $28 million [[United States dollars]].<ref name="thousand"/> Negotiations were non-productive until after the [[Cuban missile crisis]]. On December 21, 1962 Castro and James B. Donovan, a U.S. lawyer signed an agreement to exchange the 1,113 prisoners for $53 million U.S. dollars in food and medicine, the money being raised by private donations.<ref>http://onwar.com/aced/chrono/c1900s/yr60/fcuba1961.htm</ref> On December 29, 1962 Kennedy met with the returning brigade at [[Palm Beach]], [[Florida]].<ref name="thousand"/>
 
==Aftermath, reactions and re-evaluations==
While President Shinra's son, [[Rufus Shinra|Rufus]], assumes control of the Shinra Company, AVALANCHE pursues Sephiroth across the planet, fearing his intentions for the Promised Land may be more destructive than Shinra's. During this pursuit, the group gains several new members: Yuffie Kisaragi, Cait Sith, Vincent Valentine, and Cid Highwind. As the journey progresses, each member of the group must come to terms with personal conflicts from their past, and the full scope of Sephiroth's plan is eventually revealed to the player: if the planet is significantly damaged, the Lifestream within will gather at the point of injury, attempting to heal the wound. Sephiroth explains that he intends to use a powerful spell known as "[[Materia#Meteor|Meteor]]" to fatally injure the planet, inciting a reaction in the Lifestream to heal the wound before it can cause the planet's destruction. Entering the fissure created by the meteor's impact, Sephiroth would merge with all the energy of the planet, granting him god-like power over it.<ref name="agodtorule">'''Aeris:''' How do you intend to become one with the Planet? / '''Sephiroth:''' It's simple. Once the Planet is hurt, it gathers Spirit Energy to heal the injury. The amount of energy gathered depends on the size of the injury. ...What would happen if there was an injury that threatened the very life of the Planet? Think how much energy would be gathered! Ha ha ha. And at the center of that injury, will be me. All that boundless energy will be mine. By merging with all the energy of the Planet, I will become a new life form, a new existence. Melding with the Planet... I will cease to exist as I am now. Only to be reborn as a 'God' to rule over every soul. / '''Aeris:''' An injury powerful enough to destroy the Planet? Injure... the Planet? / '''Sephiroth:''' Behold that mural. The Ultimate Destructive Magic... Meteor. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> At an ancient temple erected by the Cetra, AVALANCHE attempts to undermine Sephiroth's plot by claiming the [[Materia#Black materia|Black Materia]] needed to activate Meteor, but Sephiroth displays a mysterious power over Cloud, forcing him to relinquish it.
[[Image:JFK.jpg|thumb|right|250px|[[Robert F. Kennedy]]'s Statement on Cuba and Neutrality Laws, April 20, 1961]]
The failed Bay of Pigs invasion severely embarrassed the Kennedy administration, and made Castro wary of future US intervention in Cuba. As a result of the failure, [[Director of Central Intelligence|CIA director]] [[Allen Dulles]], [[Deputy Director of Central Intelligence|deputy CIA director]] [[Charles Cabell]], and Deputy Director of Operations [[Richard Mervin Bissell Jr.|Richard Bissell]] were all forced to resign. All three were held responsible for the planning of the operation at the CIA. Responsibility of the Kennedy Administration and the US State Department for modifications of the plans were not apparent until later.
 
The Kennedy administration continued covert operations against Castro, later launching [[the Cuban Project]] to "help Cuba overthrow the Communist regime". Tensions would again peak in the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]] of 1962.
[[Image:FFVIIsephirothkillsaeris.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Sephiroth kills Aeris in an iconic scene from ''Final Fantasy VII'']]
Fearing that Sephiroth may cast Meteor, and having gained a greater understanding of her heritage from scholars in Cosmo Canyon and the memories of her ancestors in the Cetra's temple, Aeris sets off to stop him on her own. Concerned for her safety, AVALANCHE follows her to the northern continent, where the player must enter an ancient Cetra city. After finding Aeris praying to the planet for aid, Sephiroth, unseen, begins affecting Cloud's behavior once again, and attempts to force him to kill her. Though Cloud resists Sephiroth's command, Sephiroth himself appears and impales Aeris, killing her.<ref name="sephboss1" /><ref name="development3">{{Cite book | year=2003 | editor=Editors of Edge magazine | title=Edge May 2003; issue 123 | pages=108-113 | language=English | publisher=Future Publishing}}</ref> After laying her body to rest, the surviving characters resolve to defeat Sephiroth and avenge her.
 
The CIA wrote a detailed internal report that laid blame for the failure squarely on internal incompetence. A number of grave errors by the CIA and other American analysts contributed to the debacle:
Later, Sephiroth begins causing Cloud to doubt his memories and insists that he is not a real human, but rather a specimen created from Jenova's genetic material by [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#Professor Hojo|Professor Hojo]] of the Shinra Company. Jenova, the player learns, was an interstellar creature who crashlanded on the planet approximately 2000 years earlier, arriving via travel on a meteor. This collision formed a large [[impact crater]], grievously harming the planet.<ref name="meteor">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=214, 587 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref><ref name="meteor2">'''Ifalna:''' 2000 years ago, our ancestors, the Cetra, heard the cries of the Planet. The first ones to discover the Planet's wound were the Cetra at the Knowlespole. ... / '''Ifalna:''' The Cetra then began a Planet-reading. ... / '''Ifalna:''' ...I can't explain it very well, but it's like having a conversation with the Planet... It said something fell from the sky making a large wound. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Jenova soon emerged from the crater, intending to infect all living organisms on the planet with a virus that would induce insanity and incite monstrous transformations.<ref name="jenova">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=210-215 | language=Japanese|publisher=Square-Enix|id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> Among its victims were most of the Cetra, who were approached when Jenova used its [[mimic]] abilities to appear as their relatives. Attempting to defend itself, the planet created giant monsters called "[[WEAPON (Final Fantasy)#Final Fantasy VII|WEAPON]]s", while the majority of humans fled rather than fight Jenova. However, a small group of Cetra survivors fought to defend the planet and managed to defeat Jenova, confining it within the fissure created by its landing.<ref name="defense">'''Ifalna:''' A small number of the surviving Cetra defeated Jenova, and confined it. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> Afterward, the WEAPONs entered hibernation to await any future threat that could harm the planet. Eventually, the mummified remains of Jenova would be unearthed by [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#Professor Gast|Professor Gast]], a researcher for the Shinra Company. Mistaking the creature for a Cetra, Gast was given authorization to conduct an experiment to artificially produce a Cetra by combining cells from Jenova with the fetus of an unborn child.<ref name="jenova" />
 
*The administration believed that the troops could retreat to the mountains to lead a guerrilla war if they lost in open battle. The mountains were too far to reach on foot, and the troops were deployed in swamp land, where they were easily surrounded.
Five years before the present-day events seen by the player, Sephiroth learned that he was the product of this experiment while on a Shinra mission in Nibelheim, the hometown of Cloud and Tifa. However, unaware of all details involved, he concluded that he was a Cetra who had been produced solely from Jenova's genetic material. Enraged, he burned down the town, intending to kill all descendants of those he believed had abandoned his ancestors in the defense of the planet. According to Cloud, he confronted Sephiroth during this massacre, after which Sephiroth vanished under unknown circumstances and was presumed dead until his reappearance in the Shinra building. When AVALANCHE reaches the Northern Crater, Sephiroth tells Cloud that he was not in Nibelheim, showing him images of a 1<sup>st</sup> Class SOLDIER with dark hair who occupies Cloud's place in his memories.<ref name="puppet">'''Cloud:''' Sephiroth! I know you're listening! I know what you want to say! That I wasn't in Nibelheim five years ago. That's it, isn't it? / '''Sephiroth:''' I see you finally understand. / '''Cloud:''' But, I want to ask you one thing. Why... why are you doing this? / '''Sephiroth:''' Ha, ha, ha...... I want to take you back to your real self. The one who gave me the Black Materia that day... Who would have ever thought a failed experiment would prove so useful? Hojo would die if he knew. / '''Cloud:''' Hojo!? What does he have to do with me!? / '''Sephiroth:''' Five years ago you were... ...constructed by Hojo, piece by piece, right after Nibelheim was burnt. A puppet made up of vibrant Jenova cells, her knowledge, and the power of Mako. {{cite video game|title=Final Fantasy VII |developer=Square Co |publisher=SCE America |date=1997-09-07 |platform=PlayStation |language=English}}</ref> With Tifa unable to refute Sephiroth's claims, Cloud breaks down and allows him to cast Meteor, resulting in the WEAPONs' awakening. During the earthquake that follows, Cloud is separated from his companions and falls into the Lifestream.
*They believed that the involvement of the US in the incident could be denied.
*They believed that Cubans would be grateful to be liberated from Fidel Castro and would quickly join the battle. This support failed to materialize; many hundreds of thousands of others were arrested, and some executed, prior to the landings. (see also Priestland 2003; Lynch, 2000).
 
The CIA's near certainty that the Cuban people would rise up and join them was based on the agency's extremely weak presence on the ground in Cuba. Castro's counterintelligence, trained by Soviet Bloc specialists including [[Enrique Lister]],<ref name="SPlister.htm"/> had infiltrated most resistance groups. Because of this, almost all the information that came from exiles and defectors was "contaminated." CIA operative [[E. Howard Hunt]] had interviewed Cubans in Havana prior to the invasion; in a future interview with [[CNN]], he said, "...all I could find was a lot of enthusiasm for Fidel Castro."<ref>http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/episodes/18/interviews/hunt/</ref> [[Grayston Lynch]] among others, also points to Castro's rounding up of hundreds of thousands of anti-Castro and potentially anti-Castro Cubans across the island prior and during the invasion (e.g. Priestland, 2003) to destroying any chances for a general uprising against the Castro regime. Thus the million voices that had cried "Cuba si, comunismo NO!" on November 28 1959,[http://aguadadepasajeros.bravepages.com/cubahistoria/congreso_catolico_cuba_1959.htm] were gone or silent.
As the meteor summoned by Sephiroth slowly approaches the planet, the Shinra Company focuses its efforts on protecting humanity from the WEAPONs,<ref name="defendingtheplanet" /> who have begun to perceive everything as a threat to the planet. Meanwhile, AVALANCHE searches for Cloud, eventually locating him on a tropical resort island where he washed up following the casting of Meteor, they learn that he is in a [[catatonia|catatonic]] state. The WEAPONs' destructive activity quickly causes the island to split open, depositing Cloud and Tifa into the Lifestream below. There, she reconstructs Cloud's memories and learn the truth about his past. Although the player learns that he is a real human being and had actually been in Nibelheim during Sephiroth's attack, he never actually succeeded in joining SOLDIER and only managed to attain the rank of [[Private (rank)|private]] in Shinra's military. The player learns that the previously-seen dark-haired SOLDIER is named "[[Zack Fair|Zack]]", and was Aeris' first boyfriend. During Sephiroth's destruction of Nibelheim, Zack, Tifa and Cloud fought Sephiroth in Nibelheim's mako reactor. Although Tifa and Zack were defeated, Cloud and Sephiroth severely wounded one another. After decapitating the body of Jenova, which had been stored in the mako reactor, Sephiroth fell into the Lifestream, taking the creature's head with him. Rather than dying, however, his body and consciousness were preserved in mako inside Jenova's crater.
 
Many military leaders almost certainly expected the invasion to fail but thought that Kennedy would send in [[United States Marine Corps|Marines]] to save the exiles. Kennedy, however, did not want a full scale war and abandoned the exiles.
While Tifa was taken to safety in Midgar, where she joined AVALANCHE, Cloud and Zack were among the wounded survivors who were apprehended by Shinra as part an elaborate [[cover-up]] of Sephiroth's massacre. Professor Hojo subjected these survivors to an experiment, in which he performed the same enhancements given to members of SOLDIER. However, because Hojo conducted the experiment without any concern for the subjects' mental capacities to handle the procedure, all but Zack entered a [[coma]]tose state. Nearly five years later, Zack broke free from his confinement and took Cloud with him. The player learns that the procedure used to enhance members of SOLDIER involved both mako showers and the injection of cells from Jenova. The alien cells inhabiting Cloud's body allowed his mind to construct a false persona, built around Zack's behavior, fighting style, and description of Sephiroth's destruction in Nibelheim, but they also allowed Sephiroth to modulate his behavior. The cells' inherent ability to duplicate information led Cloud to believe that he had been the 1<sup>st</sup> Class SOLDIER in Nibelheim, as Zack was shot and killed outside Midgar by pursuing Shinra soldiers, shortly before the beginning of the game. Afterward, Tifa discovered Cloud, who was wearing Zack's spare uniform, and offered him a job with AVALANCHE.<ref name="jenova" />
 
An [[April 29]] [[2000]] ''[[Washington Post]]'' article, "Soviets Knew Date of Cuba Attack", reported that the CIA had information indicating that the [[Soviet Union]] knew the invasion was going to take place and did not inform Kennedy. [[Radio Moscow]] actually broadcast an English-language newscast on [[April 13]], [[1961]] predicting the invasion "in a plot hatched by the CIA" using paid "criminals" within a week. The invasion took place four days later. According to British minister [[David Ormsby-Gore]], British intelligence estimates, which had been made available to the CIA, indicated that the Cuban people were predominantly behind Castro and that there was no likelihood of mass defections or insurrections following the invasion.<ref name="thousand"/> More recent analysis suggest that, probably because of the Castro government's almost complete blackout of actions outside of Havana, the sources such as those used in the Ormsby-Gore intelligence estimate were not aware of the following related material: On April 14, 1961, the guerrillas of Agapito Rivera fought Cuban government forces near Las Cruces, Montembo, Las Villas, several government forces were killed and others wounded.<ref>Corzo, 2003 p. 83</ref> On April 16, Merardo and Jose Leon plus 14 others staged armed rising at Las Delicias Estate in Las Villas, only four survived<ref>Corzo, 2003 p. 85</ref> Leonel Martinez and 12 others took to the country side (ibid). On the 17th of April 1961 Osvaldo Ramírez then chief of the rural resistance to Castro (see [[War Against the Bandits]]) was captured in Aromas de Velázquez and immediately executed. [http://www.nuevoaccion.com/] The ruthlessness with which this resistance was suppressed is well described in Franqui.<ref>Franqui 1984, pp. 111-115 </ref> On April 3, 1961, a bomb attack on militia barracks in Bayamo killed four militia and eight more are wounded; on April 6, the Hershey Sugar factory in Matanzas is destroyed by sabotage; on April 18, Directorio guerrilla Marcelino Magaňaz died in action in Sierra Maestra.<ref>Corzo, 2003 p. 79-89</ref> On April 19 at least seven Cubans plus two US citizens Angus K. McNair and Howard F. Anderson are executed in Pinar del Rio Province.<ref>Corzo, 2003 p. 90</ref>. However, the general Cuban population was not well informed, except for CIA funded Radio Swan [http://www.firmaspress.com/viaje-al-corazon-de-cuba.pdf] [[Pirate radio in Central America and Caribbean Sea]], since May of 1960 almost all means of public communication were in the government’s hands.<ref>. NYT May 26, 1960 p. 5; [http://www.cidh.oas.org/countryrep/Cuba83eng/chap.5.htm]</ref>
With the truth revealed, Cloud awakens and rejoins AVALANCHE. The player learns that, in her final moments, Aeris was casting a spell known as "[[Materia#Holy|Holy]]", the only means of opposing Meteor. Though she succeeds, Sephiroth's focused will prevents the spell from taking effect and has been restraining it since. Deciding that humanity must be protected from the WEAPONs before Sephiroth can be approached, Shinra and AVALANCHE destroy the WEAPONs, but nearly all of Shinra's executives are killed in the process. Among the few survivors are [[List of Final Fantasy VII characters#Reeve Tuesti|Reeve Tuesti]], revealed to be the repentant controller of Cait Sith,<ref name="reeve">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=57 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> and Professor Hojo, who is revealed to be Sephiroth's father. He explains that he and his wife were assistants to Professor Gast, and offered up their unborn child as a test subject to research involving Jenova.<ref name="jenova" /><ref name="wife">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=198 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> When Hojo attempts to help Sephiroth to gain mastery over the Lifestream afterward, AVALANCHE is given no choice but to fight and kill him.
 
The invasion is often criticized as making Castro even more popular, adding nationalistic sentiments to the support for his economic policies. Following the initial B-26 bombings, he declared the revolution "[[Marxism-Leninism|Marxist-Leninist]]". After the invasion, he pursued closer relations with the Soviet Union, partly for protection, which helped pave the way for the [[Cuban Missile Crisis]] a year and a half later.
With each member of AVALANCHE at peace with their past and all other opponents defeated, the group travels through the [[Mantle (geology)|mantle]] of the planet to its core, where they defeat Sephiroth and free Holy. However, due to Meteor's already close proximity to the planet's surface, Holy is unable to destroy it alone. Selected as Meteor's target, Midgar is almost completely destroyed by the storms that spawn from its presence. However, sent by Aeris' spirit, the Lifestream itself rises from the planet to aid Holy by pushing Meteor away, allowing Holy to destroy it.<ref name="aerithsavestheday">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=591 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> During the epilogue that follows, the ruins of Midgar are shown five hundred years later. While the landscape had once been desolate due to Shinra's operations, it is now a land of lush greenery.
 
There are still yearly nation-wide drills in Cuba during the 'Dia de la Defensa' (defense day) to prepare the entire population for an invasion.
==Development==
Development of ''Final Fantasy VII'' began in late [[1995 in video gaming|1995]],<ref name="development3" /><ref name="development">{{cite web | author=The Final Fantasy VII Citadel site staff | year=2005 | title=Hironobu Sakaguchi Interview | url=http://www.ff7citadel.com/press/int_sakaguchi.shtml | work=[http://www.ff7citadel.com/ The Final Fantasy VII Citadel] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and required the efforts of more than one hundred artists and programmers<ref name="development" /><ref name="development2">{{cite web | author=Vestal, Andrew | year=1998 | title=The History of Final Fantasy | url=http://www.gamespot.com/features/vgs/universal/finalfantasy_hs/sec1_7_2.html | work=[http://www.gamespot.com/ GameSpot] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> using such software as [[PowerAnimator]] and [[Softimage XSI]],<ref name="development3" /> and a budget of approximately [[United States dollar|US$]]45 million.<ref name="development4">{{cite web | author=Low, Gek Siong | year=2001 | title=Coming to America: The making of Final Fantasy VII and how Squaresoft conquered the RPG market | url=http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~geksiong/papers/sts145/Squaresoft%20and%20FF7.htm | work=[http://stanford.edu/ Stanford University] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s co-director and scenario writer, Yoshinori Kitase, returned to direct and co-write this installment of the series and expressed a concern that the franchise might be left behind if it did not catch up to the [[3D computer graphics]] used in other games at the time.<ref name="development5" /> Development then began after the development of a short, experimental [[technology demo]] for [[Silicon Graphics]] Onyx workstations.<ref name="development" /> Called "[[Final Fantasy VI: The Interactive CG Game|Final Fantasy SGI]]", the demo featured [[polygon (computer graphics)|polygon]]-based 3D renderings of characters from ''Final Fantasy VI'' in a [[real-time (media)|real-time]] battle and incorporated interactive elements.<ref name="development" /><ref name="development6">{{cite web | author=Sutherland, Kenny | year=2003 | title=Elusions: Final Fantasy 64 | url=http://www.lostlevels.org/200510/ | work=[http://www.lostlevels.org/ LostLevels] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="development7">{{cite web | author=RPGamer site staff | title=Final Fantasy SGI Demo | url=http://www.rpgamer.com/games/ff/affw/ffsgi.html | work=[http://www.rpgamer.com/ RPGamer]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> This experiment led the development team to decide to integrate these design mechanics into ''Final Fantasy VII''.<ref name="development" /> However, as a result of the high quantity of memory storage required to implement the motion data, 3D models and [[computer graphics]] effects involved, it was decided that only the [[CD-ROM]] format would be able to suit the project's needs.<ref name="development3" /><ref name="development" /><ref name="development4" /><ref name="development6" /> [[Nintendo Co.]], for whom Square had developed all previous titles in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, had decided to continue to use [[cartridge (electronics)|cartridge]]s for their upcoming [[Nintendo 64]] console. This eventually led to a dispute and as a result, Square decided to end their long, often tumultuous, relationship with Nintendo and announced on [[January 12]], [[1996 in video gaming|1996]] that they would be developing ''Final Fantasy VII'' for [[Sony Computer Entertainment|Sony]]'s [[PlayStation]] system.<ref name="development3" /><ref name="development4" /><ref name="development6" />
 
An appendix to the Enrique Ros book pp. 287-298 gives the names of Bay of Pigs veterans who became officers in the US Army in Vietnam, these names include 6 Colonels, 19 Lt Colonels, 9 Majors, and 29 Captains. As of March 2007, the Communist Party is now the only political party in Cuba, and about 50% of the Brigade have passed on<ref>. Iuspa-Abbott. Paola, 2007 (accessed 3-27-07) Palm Beach County Bay of Pigs veterans remember invasion of Cuba. South Florida Sun-Sentinel Posted March 26 2007 [http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/cuba/sfl-pbrigademar26,0,6683790.story?coll=sfla-news-cuba]</ref>
The transition from [[2D computer graphics]] to 3D environments overlaid on [[pre-rendered]] backgrounds<ref name="ignreview" /><ref name="gamespotreview" /><ref name="egmreview" /> was accompanied by a focus on a more realistic presentation, which challenged the development team. According to Kitase, "Right from the time the decision to go with CD was made he <nowiki>[</nowiki>[[Game producer|producer]] [[Hironobu Sakaguchi]]] set down a ground rule for the team saying, 'If the player becomes aware of the access times, we have failed'", demanding that an immersive atmosphere be upheld, which led to the programming of various animations to activate while the game loaded data.<ref name="development3" /> While the extra storage capacity and computer graphics to which the team now had access gave them the means to implement more than 40 minutes of [[full motion video]] movies<ref name="development3" /> — an unprecedented undertaking in the genre at the time<ref name="development3" /><ref name="development4" /> — this innovation brought with it the added difficulty of ensuring that the inferiority of the in-game graphics in comparison to the FMV sequences was not too obvious. Kitase has described the process of making the in-game environments as detailed as possible to be "a daunting task".<ref name="development3" /> Among the difficulties faced was the potential inability to render 3D polygon models based on the designs of [[Yoshitaka Amano]], the series' long-time character designer. As his style was considered too exquisite to be compatible with the visual format of the project, this issue was addressed by bringing Tetsuya Nomura onboard as the project's main artist, while Amano aided in the design of the game's world map.<ref name="development4" /> Previously a monster designer for ''[[Final Fantasy V]]'',<ref name="nomurain">{{cite web | date=September , 2005 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_zdoup/is_200509/ai_n14800453 | title=Nomura | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://opm.1up.com/ Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> Nomura's style was more reminiscent of [[manga]], and considered easier to adapt.<ref name="development4" /> Another problem faced during development was a rushed production schedule. Veteran series [[composer]] [[Nobuo Uematsu]] commented in the liner notes of [[Final Fantasy VII Original Sound Track|the game's soundtrack]]: "There is one thing common in all the ''Final Fantasy'' games. None of them are complete". Despite delaying the game's release from December 1996 to January 1997, several additions to gameplay and story needed to be made for the game's North American release,<ref name="gamespotreview" /><ref name="development4" /> prompting a rerelease in Japan under the title "''Final Fantasy VII International''".<ref name="development4" />
 
==Notes==
Art director [[Yusuke Naora]] refers to the game's atmosphere as "strong [and] dark",<ref name="development8">{{cite web | author=Coxon, Sachi | year=1998 | title=Interview with Yoshinori Kitase, Tetsuya Nomura and Yusuke Naora | url=http://members.tripod.com/PlayStationJapan/main.html | work=[http://members.tripod.com/PlayStationJapan/main.html PlayStation Japan] | accessmonthday=July 15 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> achieved through lighting effects that he considers "the darkest of darkest",<ref name="development9">{{cite web | author=Final Fantasy Shrine site staff | title=Final Fantasy VIII Kitase, Nojima, Naora and Nomura Interview | url=http://www.ffshrine.org/ff8/ff8_interview.php | work=[http://www.ffshrine.org/ Final Fantasy Shrine] | accessmonthday=July 15 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and a story that emphasised realism while drawing on a variety of myths, legends, and religious and philosophical systems to "[use] as a framework for loftier ethical aspirations and ecologically conscious evangelism".<ref name="development5" /><ref name="development3" /> These concepts were reflected in names, such as "Sephiroth",<ref name="sephname">{{Cite book | year=1997 | editor=Famitsu | title=Final Fantasy VII Kaitai Shinsho | pages=26 | language=Japanese | publisher=Famitsu | id=ISBN 4-7577-0098-9}}</ref> Cloud's personal conflicts, the permanence of Aeris' death and the plot element of the Lifestream.<ref name="development3" /><ref name="development5" /> Tetsuya Nomura has explained that, during the early stages of development, the game was to have featured only Cloud, Barret and Aeris, with the intention that one of the three would die.<ref name="development5" /> Feeling that Cloud could not die due to his leading role and that the death of characters such as Barret was already too great a cliché in the ''Final Fantasy'' series and fiction in general, he expressed frustration with the frequent presentation of death in fiction as an awe-inspiring, often romantic idea centered around sacrifice and resurrection. As a result, he suggested that Aeris die and not return, believing the audience would not expect such a development and that it would emphasise the sudden, harsh, and irreversible nature of death.<ref name="development5" /><ref name="development3" /><ref name="development4" /> Alternatively, Sakaguchi based the philosophy of the Lifestream on ideas from cultures who believe in an invisible, inextinguishable energy that permeates planets and all life upon them, and was given its in-game representation by Kitase.<ref name="development3" />
<div class="references-small">
<references/>
</div>
 
==Bibliography==
Members of the development team have revealed that they intended some aspects of the game's story to be left open to the interpretation of individual players.<ref name="Khosla" /><ref name="opentointerpretation">{{cite web | author=Final Fantasy Insider site staff | year=2005 | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Interview - Conducted by GanGan | url=http://www.ffinsider.net/ff7ac/interview3.php | work=[http://www.ffinsider.net/ Final Fantasy Insider] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="sheila2">{{cite web | author=Khosla, Sheila | year=2005 | title=The Second Coming | url=http://flaregamer.com/b2article.php?p=109&more=1 | work=[http://flaregamer.com/ FLAREgamer] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Scenario writer [[Kazushige Nojima]] has explained that he intended players to feel encouraged to speculate about what Cloud might be thinking in certain situations rather than be provided with actual insight into what he felt.<ref name="scifisetting" /><ref name="development3" /> The game's ending left the fate of the characters ambiguous until the release of ''[[Final Fantasy VII Advent Children]]'' in 2005,<ref name="development12">{{Cite book | year=2001 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy X Ultimania Ω | pages=191 | language=Japanese | publisher=DigiCube/Square Enix | id=ISBN 4-88787-021-3}}</ref><ref name="rpgamer">{{cite web | author=Alley, Jake | title=Final Fantasy VII - Review | url=http://www.rpgamer.com/games/ff/ff7/reviews/ff7strev1.html | work=[http://www.rpgamer.com/ RPGamer] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> but the ultimate fate of humanity remained unclear nonetheless. At the time of ''Advent Children''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s release, Kitase suggested that the game's epilogue may signify the extinction of human beings.<ref name="development5" /> However, Nomura has since stated that the game's final scene symbolizes humans living in harmony with nature,<ref name="development13">{{Cite book | year=2006 | editor=Watanabe, Yukari | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - Reunion Files - | pages=105 | language=Japanese|publisher=SoftBank|id=ISBN 4-7973-3498-3}}</ref> and Square has provided explanations for other details of the game's plot with the publication of the ''Final Fantasy VII [[Ultimania]] Ω'' guidebook.
*Anderson, Jon L. 1998 Che Guevara: A Revolutionary Life. Grove/Atlantic ISBN 0-8021-3558-7
*Corzo, Pedro 2003 Cuba Cronología de la lucha contra el totalitarismo. Ediciones Memorias, Miami. ISBN 1890829242
*Franqui, Carlos 1984 (foreword by G. Cabrera Infante and translated by Alfred MacAdam from Spanish 1981 version) Family portrait with Fidel. 1985 edition Random House First Vintage Books, New York. ISBN 0394726200 pp. 111-128
*Lynch, Grayston L. 2000 Decision for Disaster: Betrayal at the Bay of Pigs. Potomac Books Dulles Virginia ISBN 1-57488-237-6
*Hunt, E. Howard 1973 Give us this day. Arlington House, New Rochelle, N.Y. ISBN-10 0870002287 ISBN-13: 978-0870002281
*Johnson, Haynes 1964 The Bay of Pigs: The Leaders' Story of Brigade 2506. W. W. Norton & Co Inc. New York. 1974 edition ISBN 0-393-04263-4
*Lagas, Jacques 1964 Memorias de un capitán rebelde. Editorial del Pácifico. Santiago, Chile.
*Lazo, Mario 1968, 1970 Dagger in the heart: American policy failures in Cuba. Twin Circle. New York. I968 edition Library of Congress number 6831632, 1970 edition, ASIN B0007DPNJS
*Grayston L. Lynch (see Lynch, Grayston L.)
*de Paz-Sánchez, Manuel 2001 Zona de Guerra, España y la revolución Cubana (1960-1962), Taller de Historia, Tenerife Gran Canaria ISBN 8479263644
*Priestland, Jane (editor) 2003 British Archives on Cuba: Cuba under Castro 1959-1962. Archival Publications International Limited, 2003, London ISBN 1-903008-20-4
*[[Jean Edward Smith]], "Bay of Pigs: The Unanswered Questions," ''The Nation'', (Apr. 13, 1964), p. 360-363.
*Somoza-Debayle, Anastasio and Jack Cox 1980 Nicaragua Betrayed Western Islands Publishers, pp. 169-180 ISBN 088279235
*Ros, Enrique 1994 (1998) Giron la verdadera historia. Ediciones Universales (Colección Cuba y sus jueces) third edition Miami ISBN 0-89729-738-5
*Thomas, Hugh 1998 Cuba or The Pursuit of Freedom. Da Capo Press, New York Updated Ed. ISBN 0-306-80827-7
*Triay, Victor 2001 Andres Bay of Pigs. University Press of Florida, Gainesville ISBN 0-8130-2090-5
*Welch, David A and James G Blight (editors) 1998 Intelligence and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Frank Cass Publishers, London and Portland Oregon ISBN 0-7146-4883-3 ISBN 0-7146-4435-8
*Vivés, Juan (Pseudonym, of a former veteran and Castro Intelligence Official; Translated to Spanish from 1981 Les Maîtres de Cuba. Opera Mundi, Paris by Zoraida Valcarcel) 1982 Los Amos de Cuba. EMCÉ Editores, Buenos Aires. ISBN 9500400758
*Wyden, Peter 1979 Bay of Pigs Simon. and Schuster New York ISBN 0-671-24006-40
 
==See also==
The game's release in North America was preceded by a massive three month marketing campaign for which Sony allocated a US$100 million budget. The high-profile campaign consisted of three 30-second television commercials on major networks, a holiday promotion with [[Pepsi]], and printed ads in publications such as ''[[Rolling Stone]]'', ''[[Details (magazine)|Details]]'', ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'', ''[[Playboy]]'' and [[comic book]]s published by [[Marvel Comics|Marvel]] and [[DC Comics|DC]].<ref name="development4" /><ref name="development14">{{cite web | date=August , 1997 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_August_27/ai_19701566 | title=PlayStation's Final Fantasy VII Marketing Blitz Continues | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business wire] | accessmonthday=10 August | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="development15">{{cite web | author=Final Fantasy Shrine site staff | title=Final Fantasy 7 Commercial Screenshots | url=http://www.ffshrine.org/ff7/ff7_commercial1_page1.php | work=[http://www.ffshrine.org/ Final Fantasy Shrine]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> In 1998, ''Final Fantasy VII'' was [[porting|ported]] to [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]]-based [[personal computer|PC]]s. This re-release featured smoother graphics and fixed certain translation and spelling errors, as well as various gameplay-related glitches. However, the PC version also suffered from its own bugs, including errors in the display of some full motion videos.<ref name="development4" /><ref name="development16">{{cite web | date=June , 1998 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1998_June_25/ai_50113699 | title=Eidos and SquareSoft Announce the Release of Final Fantasy VII for the PC | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business wire] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="development17">{{cite web | author=Olafson, Peter | year=2000 | title=Review: Final Fantasy VII for PC | url=http://www.gamepro.com/computer/pc/games/reviews/824.shtml | work=[http://www.gamepro.com/ GamePro] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
{{portalpar|Cuba|Flag of Cuba.svg}}
 
*[[Cuba-United States relations]]
==Audio==
*[[Guantánamo Bay (Cuba)]]
{{main|Final Fantasy VII: Original Sound Track}}
*[[Swan Islands, Honduras|Swan Islands]]
The soundtrack for ''Final Fantasy VII'' was composed by [[Nobuo Uematsu]]. Instead of recorded music and sound effects for the game, Uematsu opted for [[Musical Instrument Digital Interface|MIDI]]s, using the PlayStation's own internal [[sound chip]]. He has explained that he chose this method because it allowed the console's CPU to process audio data more quickly, which in turn allowed it to focus more on processing the game's 3D engine and to prevent noticeable load times. The game was originally intended to feature a [[vocal music|vocal piece]], but this was cut due to the limitations imposed by recorded audio. However, a song with full choral backing is heard in "[[One-Winged Angel]]".<ref name="development4" />
*''[[Red Zone Cuba]]'' ([[1966]])
 
The game's soundtrack was commercially released on four [[compact disc]]s;<ref name="soundtrack">{{cite web | author=Square Enix North America site staff | title=SQUARE ENIX MUSIC | url=http://na.square-enix.com/music/tunes/ff7.html | work=[http://na.square-enix.com/ Square Enix North America] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="soundtrack2">{{cite web | author=Schweitzer, Ben & Gann, Patrick | title=Final Fantasy VII OST | url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff7ost/index.html | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> a single-disc album of selected [[arrangement|arranged]] tracks, entitled "''[[Final Fantasy VII: Reunion Tracks]]''", was released separately.<ref name="reuniontracks">{{cite web | author=Square Enix North America site staff | title=SQUARE ENIX MUSIC | url=http://na.square-enix.com/music/tunes/reunion.html | work=[http://na.square-enix.com/ Square Enix North America] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="reuniontracks2">{{cite web | author=Gann, Patrick | title=Final Fantasy VII Reunion Tracks | url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff7reunion/index.html | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> A piano-only arrangement of selected tracks has also been produced,<ref name="pianotracks">{{cite web | author=Gann, Patrick | title=Piano Collections Final Fantasy VII | url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff7piano/index.html | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and several [[remix]]ed versions of tracks from the game have surfaced in subsequent Square productions, including ''Final Fantasy VII Advent Children''<ref name="actracks">{{cite web | author=Castro Juan | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children | url=http://psp.ign.com/articles/656/656519p2.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="actracks2">{{cite web | author=Gann, Patrick | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children OST | url=http://www.rpgfan.com/soundtracks/ff7ac/index.html | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and ''Kingdom Hearts''.<ref name="khtracks">{{cite web | author=Gann, Patrick | title=Kingdom Hearts -Final Mix- Additional Tracks | url=http://rpgfan.com/soundtracks/khfm/index.html | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
==Reception==
''Final Fantasy VII'' was both a critical and commercial success, and set several sales records. Within three days of its January 1997 release in Japan, the game had sold 2.3 million copies.<ref name="development4" /> This popularity inspired thousands of retailers in North America to break [[street date]]s in September to meet public demand for the title.<ref name="streetdates">{{cite web | date=September , 1997 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_Sept_4/ai_19720780 | title=Retailers Nationwide Break Official Release Date of PlayStation's "Final Fantasy VII" Videogame | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business Wire] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> In the game's debut weekend in North America, it sold 330,000 copies,<ref name="330k">{{cite web | date=September , 1997 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_Sept_9/ai_19749216 | title=PlayStation's "Final Fantasy VII" Breaks Industry Records in Debut Weekend | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business Wire] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and had reached sales of 500,000 units in less than three weeks.<ref name="500k">{{cite web | date=September , 1997 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_Sept_25/ai_19781799 | title=PlayStation's Final Fantasy VII Has Sold More Than Half a Million Copies to Date | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business Wire] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> The momentum built in the game's opening weeks continued for several months; Sony announced that the game had sold one million copies on the continent by early December,<ref name="1mil">{{cite web | date=December , 1997 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_1997_Dec_4/ai_20033866 | title=Final Fantasy VII For PlayStation Hits Million-Unit Mark | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.businesswire.com/ Business Wire] | accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> prompting one business analyst to comment that "Sony redefined the role-playing game (RPG) category and expanded the conventional audience with the launch of ''Final Fantasy VII''".<ref name="1mil" /> <!--As of March [[2006 in video gaming|2006]], the game has sold more than 9.72 million copies worldwide, earning it the position of the best-selling ''Final Fantasy'' title. (readd when actual number and source have been found)-->
 
Although Square's announcement that ''Final Fantasy VII'' would be produced for Sony rather than Nintendo and that it would not be based on the ''Final Fantasy SGI'' demo was initially met with discontent among gamers,<ref name="development6" /><ref name="development7" /> the game continues to maintain a strong following. It placed second in the "Top 100 Favorite Games of All Time" poll by Japanese magazine ''[[Famitsu]]'' during March 2006,<ref name="famitsu">{{cite web | author=Campbell, Colin | year=2006 | title=Japan Votes on All Time Top 100 | url=http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2401&Itemid=2 | work=[http://www.next-gen.biz Next Generation] | accessmonthday=March 12 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> while users of the video game website [[GameFAQs]] voted ''Final Fantasy VII'' as the "Best Game Ever"<ref name="gamefaqs2">{{cite web | author=GameFAQs Site Staff | year=2005 | title=Fall 2005: 10-Year Anniversary Contest - The 10 Best Games Ever | url=http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/contest/top10 | work=[http://www.gamefaqs.com/ GameFAQs] | accessmonthday=September 29 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> in November 2005, a little more than one year after it won the site's "Best. Game. Ever." tournament in 2004.<ref name="gamefaqs3">{{cite web | author=GameFAQs Site Staff | year=2004 | title=Spring 2004: Best. Game. Ever. | url=http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/contest/c04spr | work=[http://www.gamefaqs.com/ GameFAQs] | accessmonthday=September 29 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
===Critical response===
The game received extremely favorable reviews from many well-known gaming publications. [[GameFan magazine|GameFan]] called it "quite possibly the greatest game ever made",<ref name="development4" /> while [[GameSpot]] commented that "never before have technology, playability, and narrative combined as well as in ''Final Fantasy VII''", expressing particular favor toward the game's graphics, audio and story. The UK-based publication ''[[Edge (magazine)|Edge]]'' gave the game a 9/10,<ref name="edge">{{cite web | author=Edge Online site staff | title=Edge Online: Search Results | url=http://www.edge-online.co.uk/edgedb/search.php?gamename=Final+Fantasy+VII&x=0&y=0 | work=[http://www.edge-online.co.uk/ Edge Online]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> and ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' granted a 9.5/10, claiming that "No other RPG can pull off a cinematic experience like Final Fantasy VII".<ref name="egmreview" /> At the time of release, multimedia website [[IGN]] insisted that "''FF7''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s graphics are light years beyond anything ever seen on the PlayStation", held that its plot "is deep ... and epic", and regarded its battle system as its strongest point.<ref name="ignreview" /> One [[RPGamer]] staff reviewer praised the game's soundtrack "both in variety and sheer volume", suggesting that "Uematsu has done his work exceptionally well" and "is perhaps at his best here".<ref name="rpgamer2">{{cite web | author=Castomel | title=Final Fantasy VII - Review | url=http://www.rpgamer.com/games/ff/ff7/reviews/ff7strev3.html | work=[http://www.rpgamer.com/ RPGamer] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
''Final Fantasy VII'' has received negative criticism as well. [[GameSpy]] rated it 7<sup>th</sup> on their "25 Most Overrated Games" list in September 2003, saying, "Most ''FF'' aficionados will tell you that ''VII'', while very good, is hardly the best game in the series", two of the reviewers placing both ''[[Final Fantasy VIII]]'' and ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'' above it.<ref name="GameSpy">{{cite web | author=Gamespy site staff | title=Top 25 Most Overrated Games | url=http://archive.gamespy.com/articles/september03/25overrated/index20.shtml | work=[http://www.gamespy.com/ GameSpy] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> While giving the game an overall 5/5, ''[[Official PlayStation Magazine|Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine]]'' questioned the game's highly linear progression,<ref name="opmreview">{{cite web | author=Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine staff | title=Final Fantasy VII PS Review | url=http://egm.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3111181&did=3 | work=[http://1up.com/ 1UP.com]|accessmonthday=August 10 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> as did GameSpot.<ref name="gamespotreview" /> ''OPM'' considered the game's translation "a bit muddy, causing unnecessary confusion and clouding the fine story", sentiments echoed by one member of RPGamer's staff who suggested that "[the game] is far from perfect", citing its translation as "packed with typos and other errors which further obscure what is already a very confusing plot".<ref name="rpgamer" /> [[GamePro]] also considered the [[Japanese language|Japanese]]-to-[[English language|English]] translation a significant weakness in the game,<ref name="development17" /> and IGN regarded the option to use only three characters at a time as "the game's only shortcoming".<ref name="ignreview" /> Overall, the game has earned a 92% universal approval rating from critics on [[Metacritic]] and [[Game Rankings]].<ref name="metacritic">{{cite web | editor=Metacritic site staff | title=Final Fantasy VII Reviews | url=http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/psx/finalfantasy7?q=Final%20Fantasy%20VII | work=[http://www.metacritic.com/ Metacritic] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="gamerankings">{{cite web | title=Final Fantasy VII Reviews | editor=Game Ratings site staff | url=http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/197341.asp?q=Final%20Fantasy%20VII | work=[http://www.gamerankings.com/ Game Rankings] | accessmonthday=July 23 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
The game has also been the subject of criticism from parental groups concerned with violence in video games, particularly in the wake of the [[Columbine High School massacre]] in 1999. Following the event, several parents of children murdered in the massacre filed a US$5 billion lawsuit against companies that published and developed video and computer games. Among the co-defendants were [[Eidos Interactive]], publisher of the PC version of the game, with ''Final Fantasy VII'' cited as their offending contribution.<ref name="lawsuit">{{cite web | date=June , 2001 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4153/is_20010605/ai_n11965987 | title=Massacre parents sue London Lara firm | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.associatednewspapers.com/es.htm Evening Standard] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="lawsuit2">{{cite web | date=June , 2001 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20010607/ai_n14390475 | title=School massacre families to sue creators of violent games | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://www.independent.co.uk/ The Independent] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
===Legacy===
''Final Fantasy VII'' is regarded as one of the [[Video games that have been considered the greatest ever|most influential titles]] in the history of video games. It is credited with allowing console RPGs to find a place in markets outside Japan, and remains arguably the most popular title in the ''Final Fantasy'' series.<ref name="mainstream" /><ref name="mainstream2" /> In January 2005, it was selected by ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' as 6<sup>th</sup> on their list of "the 10 most important games ... that helped redefine the industry since ... 1989". Citing its "beautiful cut-scenes and a deep, introspective narrative", they claimed that "Square’s game was ... the first RPG to surpass, instead of copy, movie like storytelling", and that, without it, "Aeris wouldn’t have died, and gamers wouldn’t have learned how to cry".<ref name="egmclaim">{{cite web | date=January , 2005 | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_zdegm/is_200501/ai_n7182265 | title=10 the 10 Most Important Games | work=[http://www.findarticles.com/ Find Articles]; originally published in [http://egm.1up.com/ Electronic Gaming Monthly] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> The game's popularity and open-ended nature also led the director and writer to establish a plot-related connection between ''Final Fantasy VII'' and ''[[Final Fantasy X]]'', another popular ''Final Fantasy'' title.<ref name="development12" />
 
The game's legacy includes the acceptance and standard inclusion of FMV sequences in RPGs,<ref name="development4" /> as well as significant advancement in computer graphics. These developments would allow series creator Hironobu Sakaguchi to begin production of the first ''Final Fantasy'' film, ''[[Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within]]''.<ref name="spiritswithin">{{Cite book | year=2001 | editor=Kennedy, Sam & Steinman, Gary | title=Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine August 2001; issue 47 | pages=90 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref> The game also introduced settings dominantly suffused with modern-to-advanced technology into the ''Final Fantasy'' series, a theme continued by ''Final Fantasy VIII'' and ''The Spirits Within''.<ref name="scifisetting" /><ref name="scifi" /><ref name="scifi2">{{cite web | author=Oliver, Glen | year=2001 | url=http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/301/301291p1.html | title=Review of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Rereleases of Square games in Japan with bonus features would occur frequently after ''Final Fantasy VII International''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s release. Later titles that would receive this treatment include ''Final Fantasy X'',<ref name="xinternational">{{cite web | author=Witham, Joseph | year=2002 | title=Final Fantasy X International Europe Bound | url=http://rpgamer.com/news/Q1-2002/031602a.html | work=[http://rpgamer.com/ RPGamer] | accessmonthday=10 August | accessyear=2006}}</ref> ''[[Final Fantasy X-2]]'',<ref name="igndeveloperinterview">{{cite web | author=Dunham, Jeremy | year=2003 | title=Final Fantasy X-2 Developer Interview | url=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/442/442025p5.html | work=[http://www.ign.com IGN] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> ''Kingdom Hearts'' (as Final Mix),<ref name="khfinalmix">{{cite web | author=IGN site staff | year=2002 | title=Kingdom Hearts Final Mix Images | url=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/378/378221p1.html | work=[http://www.ign.com IGN] | accessmonthday=July 16 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and future ''Kingdom Hearts II'' (as Final Mix+).
 
==Related media==
===''Compilation of Final Fantasy VII''===
[[Image:Compilation_of_FF7_logo.jpg|thumb|right|256px|Official ''Compilation'' series logo, based on the logo of the original ''Final Fantasy VII'']]
'''''Compilation of Final Fantasy VII''''' is the formal title for a series of games and animated features developed by Square Enix based in the world and continuity of ''Final Fantasy VII''. Spearheaded by Tetsuya Nomura and Yoshinori Kitase,<ref name="polymorphiccontent">{{cite web | author=Kohler, Chris | year=2004 | url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/dirgeofcerberusfinalfantasyvii/news.html?sid=6108651 | title=More Compilation of Final Fantasy VII details | work=[http://www.gamespot.com/ GameSpot] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="nom&kit">{{cite web | author=GameSpot site staff | year=2003 | url=http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/rpg/kingdomhearts2/news.html?sid=6076646 | title=Kingdom Hearts II's Tetsuya Nomura Q & As | work=[http://www.gamespot.com/ GameSpot] | accessmonthday=August 10 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="nom">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=V-Jump | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Prologue | pages=50 | language=Japanese | publisher=Shueisha | id=ISBN 4-08-779339-7}}</ref> the series consists of several titles across various platforms, all of which are extensions of the ''Final Fantasy VII'' story.
 
<div class="toccolours" style="width:254px; float:left; margin-right: 1em;">
<p align="center">'''Media related to ''Final Fantasy VII'''''<br />(''Compilation'' titles listed in bold)</p>
----
*'''Games'''
**'''''[[Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-]]'''''
**'''''[[Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-]]'''''
**''[[Final Fantasy VII Snowboarding]]''
**'''''[[Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-]]'''''
**'''''[[Dirge of Cerberus Lost Episode -Final Fantasy VII-]]'''''
*'''Films'''
**'''''[[Last Order -Final Fantasy VII-]]'''''
**'''''[[Final Fantasy VII Advent Children]]'''''
*'''Novellas'''
**''[[Aerith Gainsborough#Maiden Who Travels the Planet|Maiden Who Travels the Planet]]''
**''[[Final Fantasy VII Advent Children#On the Way to a Smile|On the Way to a Smile]]''
</div>
 
Square has labeled this project "the company's first steps toward ... 'polymorphic content'", a marketing strategy designed to "[provide] well-known properties on several platforms, allowing exposure of the products to as wide an audience as possible".<ref name="polymorphiccontent" /> ''Compilation'' producer Yoshinori Kitase has said that when given the opportunity to expand any previous ''Final Fantasy'' title for the company's experiment in polymorphic content, he "immediately chose Final Fantasy VII for the project", explaining that "The ending of FFVII seemed to ... open up so many possibilities with its characters, more so than other games".<ref name="development5" /> Nomura has revealed that when he was brought onto the project, he only expected for ''[[Final Fantasy VII Advent Children]]'' and ''[[Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-]]'' to be developed, whereas Kitase envisioned a production of greater scope, leading to the introduction of several other titles.<ref name="kitaseidea">{{cite web | author=Young, Billy | year=2004 | url=http://www.rpgamer.com/news/Q4-2004/120104g.html | title=Details Arise From Tetsuya Nomura Interview | work=[http://www.rpgamer.com/ RPGamer] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="kitaseidea2">{{cite web | author=Choudhury, Rahul | year=2004 | url=http://square-haven.com/news/?id=0889 | title=Nomura: "Don't look at me, Kitase did it!" | work=[http://square-haven.com/ SquareHaven.com] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Square Enix president [[Yōichi Wada]] has announced that the ''Compilation'' will remain an active franchise until the twentieth anniversary of ''Final Fantasy VII''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s release.<ref name="compilationlifespan">{{cite web | author=RPGFan site staff | year=2006 | url=http://www.rpgfan.com/news/2006/1287.html | title=Square Enix Conference Report | work=[http://www.rpgfan.com/ RPGFan] | accessmonthday=August 26 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
The first title announced in the ''Compilation'' was ''Advent Children'', unveiled in [[2003 in video gaming|September 2003]] at the Tokyo Game Show,<ref name="acunveiledandscreened">{{Cite book | year=2006 | editor=Watanabe, Yukari | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - Reunion Files - | pages=74 | language=Japanese | publisher=SoftBank | id=ISBN 4-7973-3498-3}}</ref><ref name="acunveiled2">{{cite web | author=IGNPS2 | year=2003 | url=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/451/451541p1.html | title=TGS 2003: Final Fantasy VII: The Movie? | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and screened in its completion for the first time on [[September 2]], [[2005]] at the 62<sup>nd</sup> Venice Film Festival.<ref name="acunveiledandscreened" /><ref name="acscreened2">{{cite web | author=Hernandez, Eugene | year=2005 | url=http://www.indiewire.com/ots/onthescene_050729vff.html | title=With A Record Eleven U.S. Titles, Venice Fest Sets 2005 Lineup | work=[http://www.indiewire.com/ indieWIRE] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> It is a CGI film sequel to the original ''Final Fantasy VII'', set two years after the conclusion of the game. Produced for DVD and [[Universal Media Disc]] (UMD) for Sony's [[PlayStation Portable]] (PSP), it was released in Japan on [[September 14]], [[2005]],<ref name="acjapanrls">{{cite web | author=Gantayat, Anoop | year=2005 | url=http://psp.ign.com/articles/652/652310p1.html | title=FFVII Tops Charts | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> and in European and North American markets on [[April 25]], [[2006]].<ref name="acnapalrls">{{cite web | author=IGN DVD | year=2005 | url=http://psp.ign.com/articles/688/688275p1.html | title=Official Final Fantasy VII Release Date News | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="acnapalrls2">{{cite web | year=2005 | url=http://www.gamespot.com/news/6144171.html | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Comes to DVD and PSP April 25 | work=[http://www.gamespot.com/ GameSpot] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="acnapalrls3">{{cite web | author=Square Enix North America site staff | year=2005 | url=http://www.square-enix.com/na/company/press/2006/0420/ | title=SQUARE ENIX ANNOUNCES SETTLEMENT IN MOVIE PIRACY CASE | work=[http://www.square-enix.com/na/ Square Enix North America] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> The sequels also include ''[[Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-]]'' and its midquel ''[[Dirge of Cerberus Lost Episode -Final Fantasy VII-]]'', both of them first-person/third-person shooter hybrids.<ref name="release&hybrid">{{cite web | author=Dunham, Jeremy | year=2006 | url=http://ps2.ign.com/articles/724/724990p2.html | title=Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- Review | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 13 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="lostepisode">{{cite web | author=Vasconcellos, Eduardo | year=2006 | url=http://wireless.ign.com/articles/720/720691p1.html | title=Comic-Con 2006: Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-: Lost Episode | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 13 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Developed for the PlayStation 2 and set three years after the events of the original ''Final Fantasy VII'',<ref name="3years">{{Cite book | year=2006 | editor=Watanabe, Yukari | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - Reunion Files - | pages=98 | language=Japanese | publisher=SoftBank | id=ISBN 4-7973-3498-3}}</ref><ref name="3years2">{{cite web | author=IGN site staff | year=2006 | url=http://ps2.ign.com/objects/693/693672.html | title=Dirge of Cerberus: FFVII | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN]|accessmonthday=August 13 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> ''Dirge'' was released in Japan on [[January 26]], [[2006]],<ref name="release&hybrid" /> and in North America on [[August 15]], [[2006]].<ref name="release&hybrid" /> ''Lost Episode'' was released for Amp'd Mobile phones three days later on [[August 18]], [[2006]].<ref name="lostepisode2">{{cite web | author=Square Enix North America site staff | year=2006 | url=http://www.square-enix.com/na/company/press/2006/0815/ | title=DIRGE of CERBERUS - FINAL FANTASY VII - EXPLODES ONTO RETAIL SHELVES | work=[http://www.square-enix.com/na/ Square Enix North America] | accessmonthday=August 26 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
Another mobile title in the ''Compilation'' is ''Before Crisis'', a prequel starring the Turks that focuses on the six years preceding the original game.<ref name="6years" /><ref name="6years2">{{cite web | author=Gantayat, Anoop | year=2004 | title=Before Crisis FF7 Details | url=http://wireless.ign.com/articles/519/519385p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Released by subscription in twenty-four chapters,<ref name="sub">{{cite web | author=Buchanan, Levi | year=2006 | title=Interview with Square Enix Mobile: Kosei Ito | url=http://wireless.ign.com/articles/711/711470p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> full service began in Japan on [[September 24]], [[2004 in video gaming|2004]]<ref name="servicejapan">{{cite web | author=Gantayat, Anoop | year=2004 | title=Final Fantasy Destroys Square Enix | url=http://wireless.ign.com/articles/544/544743p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 |accessyear=2006}}</ref> for the NTT DoCoMo FOMA 900i series of mobile phones.<ref name="6years2" /> Other prequels include ''[[Last Order -Final Fantasy VII-]]'', an [[original video animation]] produced by [[Madhouse (company)|Madhouse]] that recounts the destruction of Nibelheim,<ref name="lastorder">{{Cite book | year=2006 | editor=Watanabe, Yukari | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children - Reunion Files - | pages=95 | language=Japanese | publisher=SoftBank | id=ISBN 4-7973-3498-3}}</ref> and ''[[Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-]]'', an action RPG for the PSP that will revolve around Zack.<ref name="crisiscore">{{cite book | year=2005 | editor=Editors of Electronic Gaming Monthly | title=Electronic Gaming Monthly October 2005; issue 196 | pages=101 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref><ref name="crisiscore2">{{cite web | author=IGN site staff | year=2006 | title=Crisis Core FFVII Update | url=http://psp.ign.com/articles/709/709034p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
Some speculate that this anthology will include an [[enhanced remake]] of the original ''Final Fantasy VII'' for the PlayStation 3. This speculation was sparked at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo by the release of a ''Final Fantasy VII'' [[technology demo]] featuring the opening sequence of ''Final Fantasy VII'' recreated using the PlayStation 3's graphical capabilities.<ref name="demo">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=571 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref><ref name="demo2">{{cite book | year=2005 | editor=Editors of Electronic Gaming Monthly | title=Electronic Gaming Monthly October 2005; issue 196 | pages=106 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref><ref name="demo3">{{cite web | author=Allen, Jason | year=2005 | title=E3 2005: Eyes-on the Final Fantasy VII Tech Demo | url=http://ps3.ign.com/articles/614/614859p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref> Though Yōichi Wada explained that the presentation was intended only for technological demonstration purposes<ref name="demo3" /> — claims echoed by Yoshinori Kitase in an interview in ''Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω''<ref name="demo" /> — the June 2006 issue of ''Electronic Gaming Monthly'' stated that the video was actually a "sneak peak at a next-gen revival" of ''Final Fantasy VII''.<ref name="demo4">{{cite book | year=2006 | editor=Editors of Electronic Gaming Monthly | title=Electronic Gaming Monthly June 2006; issue 204 | pages=76 | language=English | publisher=Ziff Davis Media Inc.}}</ref> An official statement from Square Enix later debunked this claim, reiterating that the company had not announced such a project.<ref name="remakerefuted">{{cite web | author=Dunham, Jeremy | year=2006 | title=Square Enix Responds to PS3 FF7 Rumors | url=http://ps3.ign.com/articles/709/709775p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref><ref name="remakerefuted2">{{cite web | author=Sloderbeck, Matt | year=2006 | title=Square Enix Denies Remake Rumors | url=http://www.rpgamer.com/news/Q2-2006/052706a.html | work=[http://www.rpgamer.com/ RPGamer] | accessmonthday=June 9 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
===Other===
Though not under the ''Compilation'' label, two novellas set within ''Final Fantasy VII''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s continuity have been produced, while a third ''Final Fantasy VII'' mobile game has also been developed. The first of the two novellas is ''[[Aerith Gainsborough#Maiden who Travels the Planet|Maiden who Travels the Planet]]''. It follows Aeris' journey in the Lifestream following her death at the hands of Sephiroth, taking place concurrently with the second half of ''Final Fantasy VII''.<ref name="maiden">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=Studio BentStuff | title=Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω | pages=572 | language=Japanese | publisher=Square-Enix | id=ISBN 4-7575-1520-0}}</ref> The second novella, ''[[Final Fantasy VII Advent Children#On the Way to a Smile|On the Way to a Smile]]'', is a 3 part story based on the events that immediately followed the end of the game, with one part narrated from Tifa's perspective, one narrated from Barret's perspective, and the other narrated from that of a boy named "Denzel", orphaned after Shinra crushed Sector 7.<ref name="otwtas">{{Cite book | year=2005 | editor=V-Jump | title=Final Fantasy VII Advent Children Prologue | pages=3 | language=Japanese | publisher=Shueisha | id=ISBN 4-08-779339-7}}</ref> Finally, ''[[Final Fantasy VII Snowboarding]]'' is a mobile [[porting|port]] of the snowboarding [[minigame]] featured in the original game.<ref name="snowboard">{{cite web | author=Buchanan, Levi | year=2005 | title=Final Fantasy VII Snowboarding | url=http://wireless.ign.com/articles/594/594902p1.html | work=[http://ign.com/ IGN] | accessmonthday=August 11 | accessyear=2006}}</ref>
 
==References==
<div class="references-2column">
<references/>
</div>
 
==External links==
*[http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/0417.html#article NY Times headline, April 18, 1961, ''Anti-Castro Units Land in Cuba; Report Fighting at Beachhead; Rusk Says U.S. Won't Intervene'']
{{wikiquote}}
*[http://www.parascope.com/articles/1296/bayofpigs.htm Detail Information on the Bay of Pigs Invasion] &mdash; Includes maps of the Invasion and Documents.
*[http://na.square-enix.com/games/ff7/ Square Enix's official ''Final Fantasy VII'' website]
*[http://www.historyofcuba.com/history/baypigs/pigs.htm History of Cuba] &mdash; Bay of Pigs Invasion.
*{{FFwiki|Final_Fantasy_VII|''Final Fantasy VII''}}
*[http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/bayofpigs/chron.html National Security Archive chronology]
*{{GameFAQs|type=/console/psx|num=197341|name=''Final Fantasy VII''}}
*[http://www.urrib2000.narod.ru/ArticGiron1-e.html The Sea Fury aircraft at Bay of Pigs]
*{{moby game|id=/final-fantasy-vii|name=''Final Fantasy VII''}}
*[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-BayPigsI.html Reference on Bay of Pigs Invasion at Encylopedia.com]
*[http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-150695778.html?refid=hbw_rd Bay of Pigs betrayal the betrayal of the Cuban people by the CIA, State Department, and staff members of the New York Times ranks as one of America's darkest foreign-policy moments]
{{Cuba-United States relations}}
{{Cold War}}
 
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