Summary

• Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth expands on the original game by adding numerous mini-games, including a brand-new collectible card game called Queen's Blood.
• Queen's Blood is a strategic card game where players collect cards and compete against opponents throughout the entirety of FF7 Rebirth.
• Queen's Blood is just one of many mini-games in Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, with mini-games spread across the world map and some unique to specific locations.

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is set to bring back numerous mini-games from the original, all enhanced for the remake trilogy's more modern spin, but one entirely new mini-game is certain to keep players occupied when they should instead be hunting down Sephiroth. FF7 Rebirth follows its predecessor, Remake, in re-imagining the iconic Final Fantasy 7, and this second installment looks to be setting players free in an open-world environment now that Cloud and his companions have escaped Midgar. Alongside the expected open-world fare of side quests and treasure hunting is a brand-new collectible card game, Queen's Blood, playable all across Gaia.

In much the same way FF7 Remake greatly expanded the original game's Midgar section, Rebirth appears to be adding significantly to its middle portion. This includes building on a number of mini-games, especially those in Gold Saucer, like making Chocobo Racing almost "a full-fledged racing game," according to director Naoki Hamaguchi. The most exciting mini-game, however, is a novel invention for FF7 Rebirth – Queen's Blood. The collectible card game will have players searching high and low for new strategies, and opponents throughout the entire game will seemingly keep it consistently engaging.

Queen's Blood Is A New, Addictive Card Game In FF7 Rebirth

Queen's Blood's emphasis is rightfully on collecting the many cards that can be played, and if Screen Rant's hands-on preview of FF7 Rebirth is any indication, there will be plenty to find for those looking to create robust decks. Even in Kalm, where the party starts the game's second chapter – essentially a tutorial section for Queen's Blood and a number of other systems like merchants and the new Folio level-up mechanic – there are many cards to collect and opponents to challenge. Much like The Witcher 3's Gwent, Queen's Blood will be pervasive in FF7 Rebirth, with Cloud able to challenge opponents throughout the game.

The strategy in Queen's Blood seems to be largely territorial. Players win by amassing power between cards in each of the board's three rows, but that row's score only contributes to the final tally if it is higher than the opponent's score for that same row. With cards contributing their own power, boosting the power of adjacent allied cards, and bolstering open spaces so stronger cards can be played there, decks can conceivably be optimized in a number of ways. Decks focusing on dominating one row or spreading out across all three seem equally viable, as do those looking to quickly dominate real estate or do the inverse by building toward playing especially powerful cards.

Queen's Blood Is One Of Many Mini-Games In FF7 Rebirth

Becoming a champion Queen's Blood player is likely to be a side activity underpinning the whole game, but it's far from the only mini-game in FF7 Rebirth. In fact, mini-games appear to be so prevalent throughout, PlayStation's Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth State of Play had a section entirely dedicated to them, both new and returning. Those returning have in some cases been significantly expanded, like the aforementioned Chocobo Racing, but according to Hamaguchi-san, "the mini-games are really spread across the world map, and some are very unique to their location."

The original Final Fantasy 7 was filled with mini-games as well, so it's not necessarily surprising to see so many in the remake trilogy. However, it's nice to know that even those pertaining to main story moments have survived the transition, meaning they're not all effectively distractions. With its prevalence and depth, though, Queen's Blood is almost assured to waylay players throughout the game. Such games have become common in open-world RPGs, but Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's Queen's Blood feels especially ripe to become a hit side activity.

Source: PlayStation/YouTube