Final Fantasy 7 Remake Hard Mode: 10 ESSENTIAL Secrets, Tips & Tricks

2. One VR Secret, And Why The Gotterdammerung Matters

It might be super tempting to do a Hard playthrough right after first finishing, but the Gotterdammerung - an item that gives you an instant limit break and charges another quickly while fighting - helps tenfold.

Getting it is the hard part, as you need to defeat the "Pride & Joy prototype" - a huge mech weapon tucked away at the end of the VR challenges.

First up, know that the quickest route to the VR machine is diving into Chapter 17, NOT Chapter 16.

In 17 you go up the stairs after the first fight and into the VR room, rather than completing all of Ch.16's Shinra tower. If you want to grind out some materia AP levels, use the very beginning of Chapter 17, and head straight past Chadley, rather than turning left.

Second, you want the Gotterdammerung asap, but that depends on your party's strength; how levelled your HP/MP Up materia is, and how many manuscripts you have. Try the VR challenges (each solo character one is a cinch using immunity from Elemental materia), and see how you perform.

If you need more weapon levels, venture back into story mode and complete chapters based on how many Manuscripts each one has.

It's much easier to slog through late-game Hard mode fights with both Elemental materias and the Gotterdammerung, if you can make it happen.