對于全球數(shù)百萬的任天堂游戲玩家來說，多年幻想終于成真。

風靡全球的冒險類游戲《最終幻想7》（Final Fantasy VII）首次面世于1997年，但并非通過任天堂的游戲平臺。20幾年后的今年，任天堂的Switch上終于推出了這款游戲。

對于游戲愛好者而言，這是一條重磅新聞，因為《最終幻想7》一直是史上公認最受歡迎的游戲之一：2000年，極客網(wǎng)站IGN的讀者調(diào)查顯示，該游戲被認為是20世紀最出色的角色扮演類游戲。《時代》周刊（TIME）還稱其為有史以來最好的視頻游戲之一。

但《最終幻想7》與任天堂的歷史糾葛也很復雜。20世紀90年代中期，游戲開發(fā)商Square（也稱為SquareSoft）開始制作新一集《最終幻想》游戲，并將采用3D游戲設(shè)置。該公司與任天堂長期合作，但任天堂當時即將發(fā)布備受期待的任天堂64平臺。

2017年P(guān)olygon網(wǎng)站上發(fā)布了一篇文章，講述了大量幕后故事，稱任天堂64的存儲媒介難以實現(xiàn)《最終幻想7》期望達成的技術(shù)和創(chuàng)意野心。于是，該公司選擇與索尼合作，索尼一直在開發(fā)PlayStation，嘗試使用光驅(qū)驅(qū)動來和強大的任天堂進行競爭。

當時，“沒有人看好PlayStation。”游戲行業(yè)的一位資深人士向Polygon表示，“沒有人確定它到底會不會成功，大多數(shù)人都認為它不行。早期流出的圖片中，PlayStation看起來像馬桶一樣，更是加深了所有人的懷疑。”

《最終幻想7》會打消每一個人對PlayStation的擔心。該游戲于1997年年底在美國面世，據(jù)報道營銷花了近1億美元，引發(fā)巨大轟動，一些零售商甚至打破索尼的發(fā)售日期限制以滿足市場需求。該游戲全球銷量高達幾百萬套，PlayStation也因此成為有史以來最受歡迎的視頻游戲平臺之一。

22年前，PlayStation因為《最終幻想7》成為任天堂的強勁對手，如今終于登陸Switch平臺，售價15.99美元。這比你在1997年花的錢還要少——而且還不用在CompUSA排隊就能買到。（財富中文網(wǎng)）

譯者：Agatha

A long-time fantasy has just come true for millions of Nintendo video gamers around the world.

Final Fantasy VII, the beloved adventure game that was first released in 1997—but not for Nintendo—was made available on the company’s Switch platform today, more than two decades after its debut.

The move is a major deal for video-game lovers, as Final Fantasy VII has long been considered one of the top titles of all time: In 2000, a readers’ poll on the geek-site IGN named it the best role-playing game of the 20th century. TIME also named it one of the best video games of all time.

But Final Fantasy VII also had a complicated history with Nintendo. In the mid 1990s, game developer Square, also known as SquareSoft, began working on a new Final Fantasy installment, one that would feature 3D gameplay. The company had a long relationship with Nintendo, which at that point was working on the soon-to-be-released, highly anticipated Nintendo 64 platform.

But according to an extensive behind-the-scenes account published in Polygon in 2017, the technological and creative ambitions of Final Fantasy VII would have been hard to pull off on Nintendo 64 cartridges. Instead, the company partnered with Sony, which had been developing PlayStation, its disc-driven attempt to compete to the mighty Nintendo brand.

At the time, “nobody had confidence in PlayStation,” one game-industry veteran told Polygon. “Nobody knew whether it would work, and most people thought that it wouldn’t. And the early pictures that came out, when it looked like a toilet bowl, confirmed everybody’s suspicions.”

Final Fantasy VII would put all fear about PlayStation to rest. The game was launched in the United States in late 1997 with a reported marketing campaign of close to $100 million, creating so much excitement that some retailers broke Sony’s street-date restrictions, just to meet demand. The game went on to sell millions of copies worldwide, and helped make PlayStation one of the most popular video-game platforms of all time.

Now, 22 years after it turned PlayStation into a contender, Final Fantasy VII finally arrives on Switch, where it retails for $15.99. That’s less than you would have paid in 1997—and you don’t even have to wait in line at CompUSA to grab a copy.