List of Final Fantasy VII locations
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Square Co., Ltd.'s Final Fantasy VII, like many RPGs, features a large world map with numerous locations to explore over the course of play. Listed below are the major destinations encountered by the player.
Contents |
[edit] Eastern continent
 Sector 7 Slums |
 Kalm |
 Chocobo Farm |
 Mythril Mine |
 Fort Condor |
 Lower Junon |
Midgar (ミッドガル Middogaru?): The largest and most industrialized city in the world, where both Shin-Ra and the second incarnation of AVALANCHE are based. It sits in the middle of a large plain on the eastern continent. The area around the city has become distorted and polluted as a result of the use of mako reactors. The city is divided into eight numbered sectors. Each sector has two areas: one at ground level and one elevated section on a plate fifty meters above the ground. The upper plate is supported by a main column in the center of the city and an additional support column located in each sector.[1] The upper city is primarily home to upper class citizens, while the lower portions consist of slums and lower class settlements. The lower class part of the city is also home to seedier establishments such as a brothel. The city is powered by eight mako reactors, one in each sector. There is also Reactor 0, which the other eight reactors get their energy from. There also appears to be a built-up ring outside the main perimeter of the city. The city's name is likely an allusion to the Midgard of Norse mythology. This hypothesis is supported by the name of the town of Nibelheim, which would correspond to the Norse Niflheim.
After the Meteor incident, Midgar was in ruins and it served as both the site of Cloud's final battle with Sephiroth, on the remains of the Shin-Ra headquarters, and the site of Omega's awakening before Vincent destroyed it.
Edge (エッジ Ejji?): This city appears in Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus, which are set two and three years after the events of Final Fantasy VII. It is a city built north of the remains of Midgar and is where most people who used to live in Midgar now live, including Cloud and Tifa. It is not mentioned in the movie itself but one of the developers says it in an interview that can be found in the extras on the bonus disc that comes with the movie.
Kalm (カーム Kāmu?): A town northeast of Midgar, outside the wasteland surrounding it. It is primarily populated by former workers of the nearby Mythril Mine, which is no longer in service due to the appearance of monsters in the area. The town's residents are divided on the subject of Shin-Ra and the use of mako. Kalm had its own small mako reactor.
Chocobo Farm (チョコボファーム Chokobo Fāmu?): A rural farm that sells Chocobo equipment, such as Chocobo Lure Materia and greens, both of which are necessary to catch a Chocobo. Later, the farm can be used to breed Chocobos.
Mythril Mine (ミスリルマイン Misuriru Main?): A mine to the south of Kalm. It was once the location of Kalm's main industry, but has since been abandoned due to the appearance of monsters within and around the mine. The Midgar Zoloms in the swamp outside the mines are an example of the creatures that have taken up residence. The only way to cross these swamps quickly enough to avoid being attacked is by chocobo.
Fort Condor (コンドルフォート Kondoru Fōto?): A mountain-based fortress belonging to a rebel faction located on the lower east side of the eastern continent. The fort is named for the massive breed of condor that resides there. The mountain and the surrounding area have become polluted due to the use of a now-derelict mako reactor above the fortress. On top of the reactor sits a condor nest. At the time of Final Fantasy VII, Shin-Ra is attempting to eliminate the rebels, remove the condor and seize the Huge Materia from within the reactor. While Shin-Ra is attempting to remove the condor, the player can take part in a strategic mini-game where they hire and command troops to combat the Shin-Ra forces from reaching the nest.
Junon (ジュノン Junon?): The second-largest city in the game, Junon sits along the west coast of the eastern continent. The surrounding terrain and ocean have become polluted due to continued operation of the city's undersea mako reactor. As a result, the fish in the adjacent sea have died out and the original village of Junon (located under the upper city's airport) is inhabited mostly by impoverished citizens. The upper city is the location of Shin-Ra's military headquarters, featuring an airport, submarine docks, and a powerful artillery cannon known as the Junon Cannon.
Healin Lodge: Appears only in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, it is located adjacent to Midgar, Kalm, and Chocobo Farm and serves as a refuge for Rufus Shinra early on in the movie.
[edit] Western continent
 Costa del Sol |
 Corel Prison |
 North Corel |
 Gold Saucer |
 Gongaga |
 Cosmo Canyon |
 Ancient Forest |
Costa del Sol (コスタ・デル・ソル Kosuta deru Soru?): A coastal resort town that also serves as the main port on the western continent. The player can purchase President Shinra's summer cottage here, though for a hefty sum. The first time the team travels through Costa del Sol, they encounter Hojo. Cloud can also kick a soccer ball at a sleeping Red XIII on the first visit. Spanish translation: Sun Coast.
Corel (コレル Koreru?): Barret's hometown. Barret feels responsible for its destruction since he strongly supported building a mako reactor for the town. Shin-Ra troops led by one of the company's executives, Scarlet, razed the village after an alleged terrorist attack on the reactor facility.[2] Subsequently, Corel became the Desert Prison, and the Gold Saucer was built above it.
North Corel (北コレル Kita Koreru?): The shanty town settled by the survivors of Shin-Ra's assault on Corel. In the latter half of the game, if the player fails to stop a speeding train carrying a Huge Materia, the town will be destroyed.
Gold Saucer (ゴールドソーサー Gōrudo Sōsā?): A towering amusement park built on Corel's ruins, financed and operated by Shin-Ra. Cait Sith joins the party here. All of the mini-games that are in Final Fantasy VII (except the strategic one at Fort Condor) can be played here if the player has completed them in the storyline. This is also where the date between Cloud and either Aeris, Tifa, Yuffie or Barret takes place (though who it is depends on the actions of the player), and includes several well-known scenes such as the medieval play and the fireworks scene.
Gongaga (ゴンガガ Gongaga?): A small, desolate village ravaged by a mako reactor explosion.[3][4] Aerith Gainsborough's first love, the SOLDIER Zack, grew up here, and his parents still await his return, unaware of his fate. The name "Gongaga" bears a strong resemblance to Ginnungagap, a place in Norse Mythology between Niflheim and Muspelheim.
Cosmo Canyon (コスモキャニオン Kosumo Kyanion?): Red XIII's birth place. It is a pilgrimage site for those who have an interest in the Study of Planet Life. Bugenhagen's observatory is here. The settlement on the canyon powers itself without mako reactors through the use of windmills. Upon entering the surrounding area on the World Map, the horizon will become a dusky red. The red canyon walls also hide the now vacant "Cave of the Gi".
Ancient Forest (古えの森 Inishie no Mori?): An ancient forest near Cosmo Canyon. It is only accessible by a Green, Black, or Gold chocobo, or after destroying Ultimate WEAPON.
 Nibelheim |
 Mount Nibel |
 Rocket Town |
 Wutai |
Nibelheim (ニブルヘイム Niburuheimu?): Cloud Strife and Tifa Lockhart's hometown. The Shin-Ra Mansion located here was the research site for the Jenova Project, and, although since abandoned, still contains much of Professor Gast and Hojo's research. Its basement, accessible by a secret passageway, contains the laboratory and research library. Presumably after Gast left the Jenova Project, it was used by Hojo to conduct many of his immoral experiments. Vincent Valentine is also discovered here by the party, slumbering in a coffin hidden in a locked room within the basement. The town was burned down and its residents slaughtered by Sephiroth after he discovered his origins and went insane, although the Shin-Ra Mansion was spared by the fire. The destroyed town was subsequently rebuilt and staffed by Shin-Ra to cover up the incident. The town's name, is likely an allusion to the Niflheim of Norse mythology, referencing the massacre that occurred at the game's town. Alternatively, it may also refer to the German words 'nebel' (mist or fog) and 'heim' (home). This can be taken a step further, going from 'mist home' or 'fog home' to 'Cloud's home'.
Mount Nibel (ニブル山 Niburu-San?): The mountain overlooking Nibelheim, and the site of a mako reactor where Jenova was once housed along with several of Hojo's experiments.
Rocket Town (ロケット村 Roketto Mura?): Cid Highwind's town of residence. This is the site of the first successful rocket launch into space.
Wutai (ウータイ Ūtai?): A country occupying a large island off the western-most continent, although the name is primarily used to refer to the only known settlement on the island. Yuffie Kisaragi is the princess of Wutai. Yuffie's father, Godo, led the city in a struggle for dominance against Shin-Ra but lost.[5][6] When the party first reaches the mountains that must be crossed to reach Wutai, Yuffie steals the party's collection of materia and retreats to her hometown, where both she and Elena of the Turks are kidnapped by crime boss Don Corneo. Wutai is apparently based upon pre-modern Japan and China, utilizing familiar motifs such as a pagoda (where Godo resides), and a large statue called "Da Chao," bearing the appearance of what appears to be Buddha and other related figures. Wutai is also the name of a sacred mountain in China, thereby adding to the oriental feel of the region.
[edit] Northern continent
 Bone Village |
 Forgotten City |
 Icicle Lodge |
 Northern Cave |
Bone Village (ボーンビレッジ Bōn Birejji?): An excavation site where lost items such as the Lunar Harp are found. One of the items being excavated is an aircraft that bears a striking resemblence to an F-14 Tomcat, the exact meaning of which continues to be a subject of debate.
Sleeping Forest (眠りの森 Nemuri no Mori?): A forest next to the Bone Village. Without the Lunar Harp, the party will wander in the forest aimlessly. In Advent Children, Cloud is ambushed by Kadaj's group and the children, who have been completely taken over by the stigma, in the Sleeping Forest while on his way to the Forgotten Capital to rescue Denzel, Marlene, and the others. A fight ensues between Cloud and Kadaj, Yazoo, and Loz in which Cloud is nearly defeated but is rescued by Vincent in the nick of time.
Forgotten City (忘られる都 Wasurareru Miyako?): Sometimes referred to as "the Ancient City," "the Forgotten Capital" or "the City of the Ancients." The city was the capital of the Cetra civilization, exhibiting such unusual structures as homes made from giant helical shells. A shrine exists hidden beneath the city, surrounded by water like a small isle. Aerith went to this shrine and attempted to call the spell known as "Holy" using the White Materia. Although successful, she was only barely so. Immediately after, she was killed upon the altar by Sephiroth. Cloud took Aerith to the nearby spring and released her into the water. Later in the game, a projection device located on the surface that uses a screen of water shows the events of Aerith's death and reveals that the White Materia was activated before she died, meaning that Holy should have been moving to destroy Meteor. It was this revelation that brought about the discovery that Sephiroth was holding Holy back.[7] Two years later, the city would be used as the base of operations for Kadaj's group. It is here that they bring Denzel and other children afflicted with Geostigma who came under the impression that they would be cured. But instead, Kadaj tells the children that Geostigma is a gift and that it is the planet that is responsible for making them suffer as they do. He then has them drink water from the spring after turning black using his will (the will of Sephiroth); making them into JENOVA's puppets so they could lead him to JENOVA's head. Cloud arrived too late and struggled fighting until Vincent saved him. Cloud's cell phone falls into the spring during the fight.
Icicle Lodge (アイシクルロッジ Aishikuru Rojji?): Aerith's birthplace. For a time, Professor Gast and Ifalna, an Ancient, lived in the town before being hunted down and killed by Hojo and his men. The town functions as a resort because it snows year-round. The constant cold temperatures are not due to the location of the town, despite its polar position, but are actually because of the town's proximity to the Northern Crater, where the Planet channels a large amount of Spirit Energy in an effort to heal itself.[8] The town is called "Icicle Inn" in the original English localization of the game. It is also where the famous snowboarding mini-game can be played for the first time.
Great Glacier (大氷河 Daihyōga?): A large glacier to the south of Gaea's Cliff. Few people venture that far north, and those who do get lost and pass out in the snow.
Gaea's Cliff (ガイアの絶壁 Gaia no Zeppeki?): A huge cliff that leads to the Whirlwind Maze. The explorer Holzoff makes his home at its base and regularly patrols the Great Glacier for travelers who might need aid.
Whirlwind Maze (竜巻の迷宮 Tatsumaki no Meikyū?): A maze of small winding ledges of similar design that lead to the heart of the Northern Crater.
Northern Cave (北の大空洞 Kita no Daikūdō?): Also called "the Northern Crater." The original impact site of Jenova. The WEAPONs slept under the ice, encased in frozen mako here for thousands of years following their creation. The remaining portion of Sephiroth's body emerged here after traveling through the Lifestream and became encased in a mako crystal. The crater is also the site of the Jenova Reunion and, later, the final battles of the game. It also is where the events of Advent Children begin, as the Turks were sent by Rufus to carry out an investigation in Sephiroth's wake. However, they not only found what little remained of Jenova's head, but unexpectedly Sephiroth's Remnants as well.
[edit] Other
 Mideel |
 Temple of The Ancients |
Materia Caves (マテリア洞窟 Materia Dōkutsu?): Caves scattered around the world where the player can find very rare and valuable materia; Each require a different chocobo to reach them (Green, Blue, Black and Gold). The Caves are found in Wutai, Mideel, Corel and Round Island.
Mideel (ミディール Midīru?): A hot springs town attacked by Ultimate WEAPON and destroyed by a Lifestream eruption. Cloud appears here in a near-catatonic state, confined to a wheel chair after falling into the Lifestream at the Northern Crater.
Temple of the Ancients (古代種の神殿 Kodaishu no Shinden?): A large structure into which the Ancients transformed the Black Materia to prevent its use. Whoever wishes to turn the building back into the Black Materia must sacrifice his or her life by solving a series of puzzles that shrinks the temple back to its original size, crushing whoever is inside.[9]
Goblin Island (ゴブリンアイランド Goburin Airando?): An island northeast of Midgar. This is the only place where Goblins appear.
Promised Land (約束の地 Yakusoku no Chi?): A place sought after by the nomadic Cetra — a legacy briefly taken up by Sephiroth, who mistakenly believed himself to be an Ancient. Aerith tells Cloud that the Promised Land may not be a specific place, but the Shin-Ra believe otherwise and are intent on using Aerith to find it. Upon reaching the Northern Crater, Rufus Shinra comes to the conclusion that it is the Promised Land due to its vast quantity of natural mako. In actuality, both the game and the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω guidebook (an official Square-Enix publication) suggest that the Promised Land is no one specific place or thing, but rather something unique to each individual which brings that person supreme happiness.[10][11][12]
Cactuar Island (サボテンアイランド Saboten Airando?): A tiny desert island southwest of Mideel. This island does not appear on the radar and is one of only two places in which Cactuar can be encountered in random battles, the other being the Corel desert (but the Cactuars encountered in the desert are a much weaker version giving more gold but Morphing into a much more common Hi-Potion).
Sunken Gelnika: A Shin-Ra transport plane that was shot down by Emerald WEAPON and is currently at the bottom of the ocean between the Eastern and Western continents. It can only be explored by using the Shin-Ra submarine. Here you will encounter Turk members Reno and Rude no matter how far you have progressed in the story line. According to them, the Gelnika was transporting Huge Materia. While it is never explained as to why it was being transported, it was probably going to be loaded into Cid's old rocket and used to destroy Meteor. The area itself is perfect for leveling up high-powered characters as the monsters offer up large amounts of AP. Its also presents a hazard as Emerald WEAPON tends to hover directly above the Sunken Gelnika, a major problem to those who aren't prepared to fight it. The plane's name is most likely a reference to the Spanish town of Guernica (Gernika in Basque), which was destroyed by a German aerial bombing during the Spanish civil war.
[edit] References
- ^ Jessie: "The top plate is about 50 meters above ground. A main support structure holds the plate up in the center, and there are other support structures built in each section... Each town used to have a name, but no one in Midgar remembers them. Instead of names, we refer to them by numbered sectors.(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ Barret: "That's how the Corel Reactor was built.... and completed. We all thought it would bring us an easier life. 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......" / Cloud: "Shinra troops? What for?!" / Barret: "There was an explosion at a reactor. Shin-Ra blamed the accident on the people. Said it was done by a rebel faction."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ (2005) Studio BentStuff: Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Ω (in Japanese). Square-Enix, 216. ISBN 4-7575-1520-0.
- ^ Gongaga resident: "It's been a while since the explosion, but you can still find pieces of it left all over town. Shin-Ra built the reactor, without even thinking about the town's safety. And, this is the result. One day, there was a huge explosion. Many townspeople died in it..."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ 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."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ 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?"(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ Cloud: "...Aerith. Aerith has already prayed for Holy. ... / Cloud: "But...... how about Holy? How come Holy isn't moving?" ... / Bugenhagen: "Something's getting in its way." / Cloud: "......Him...... He's the only one that could do it. ...Sephiroth."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ Gast: "Hmm, even here so close to the North Cave, the snow never melts. Is that because the planet's energy is gathered here to heal its injury?" / Ifalna: "Yes, the energy that was needed to heal the Planet withered away the land... then the Planet..."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ Cloud: "This huge Temple? This is the Black Materia!? Then no one could take it." / Aerith: "Hmm, it's pretty hard. You see this is a model of the Temple. And inside it is a device, which gets smaller each time you solve a puzzle. As the model becomes smaller, you become smaller too. Until it's small enough to fit in the palm of your hand." / Cloud: "So, if we solve the puzzles, the Black Materia will get smaller and smaller and we can take it out?" / Aerith: "Yes, but there's one thing... You can only answer puzzles inside the Temple. So, anyone who solves the puzzle will be crushed by the Temple."(Final Fantasy VII)
- ^ (2005) Studio BentStuff: {{{title}}} (in Japanese). Square-Enix, 214, 580, 586. ISBN 4-7575-1520-0.
- ^ Aerith: "Someday I'll get out of Midgar... Speak with the Planet and find my Promised Land. ...That's what mom said."(Final Fantasy VII)
- '^ Elder Hargo: "There is no one place called the Promised Land. That is what I believe. No no, it does exist'''''''''''''''. Hmmm…… You can say that too. In other words, it doesn't exist for us, but it did for the Ancients. The Promised Land is the resting place of the Ancients. The life of the Ancients is one continuous journey. A journey to grow trees and plants, produce animals, and raise mako energy. Their harsh journeys continued throughout their lives… The place they return to after their long journey… Their burial land is the Promised Land. Huh? Supreme happiness? I believe that, for the Ancients, it was the moment that they were able to return to their planet. At that moment they were released from their fate, and gained their supreme happiness..."(Final Fantasy VII)
