Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Director Explains How Red XIII Can Ride Chocobos

thegamer.com:

Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's director, Naoki Hamaguchi, has revealed how Red XIII can even ride a Chocobo despite not having opposable thumbs and previously struggling to stand in the original Final Fantasy 7.

As one of the most anticipated games of 2024, Final Fantasy fans have already found a whole lot to love about Rebirth, from its new playable characters to its vast open world that is a far cry from the restricted world of Remake. One of the smaller details that has both won over fans and endlessly confused them is the fact that Red XIII can ride a Chocobo with no trouble, despite being an animal himself.

Red XIII's surprisingly great riding stance was first spotted in the release date trailer for Rebirth and has slowly become a meme for the game. Since then, fans have been waiting for some explanation or acknowledgement of how weird it is that Red XIII can even do this and, just one month before launch, we finally have an answer.

Following its coverage of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth in December, Game Informer recently uploaded a video where they asked the game's director, Naoki Hamagucgi, 129 rapid-fire questions. Although a lot of the questions are just for fun or are ones avoided by Hamaguchi (like when he's asked if the game is a multiverse story), there's one in particular that stands out for anyone else bewildered by Red XIII.

During the interview, Hamaguchi is asked how Red XIII rides a Chocobo. In response, Hamaguchi says, "He uses his paws to grasp tightly onto the ropes". When asked if the rest of the party ever finds it weird that he can do that, Hamaguchi simply says that it's "very natural for him". I guess Cloud and the rest of the gang aren't going to be bringing it up in Rebirth, then.

Hamaguchi also previously explained that the idea for Red XIII riding a Chocobo came from Tetsuya Nomura, who said it was "fine" to let him ride alongside the other characters instead of running next to them.

Although Red XIII being able to ride Chocobos simply by