Key Takeaway
Over the years, more information about Final Fantasy VII‘s Avalanche has leaked via interviews and spin-off titles.
Did you know:
1. Avalanche were the bad guys in Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
2. The members were originally meant to have a reunion in Cosmo Canyon—but this was cut
3. The devs altered Avalanche’s ethics for the remake
4. Three additional Avalanche members are mentioned in Final Fantasy VII Remake
5. Jessie wanted to be an actress
6. Some members join Reeve’s World Regenesis Organization
7. Mayor Domino supports Avalanche (in the remake, at least)
In Final Fantasy VII, Avalanche is an eco-extremist group trying to save the planet from the evil hands of the Shinra Corporation. As time has passed, interesting pieces of trivia about the ragtag team have come to light via interviews with game staff and from spin-off titles.
Table Of Contents
Avalanche Were the Bad Guys in Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
Avalanche didn’t begin with Barret and the team in the original Final Fantasy VII. The group was founded by an anonymous man in Cosmo Canyon following Shinra’s victory in the Wutai War. Although Avalanche has a positive aim—to save the planet from the misuse of Mako energy—they have sometimes acted ruthlessly to achieve their goals.
In the 2004 Japan-only mobile game Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-, players are on the side of the Turks. This group is a part of Shinra’s Public Security Division and similar to the FBI. In the original title, you face off against the Turks on your quest to halt Shinra from finding the Promised Land. However, in Before Crisis, these Shinra employees are humanized in the face of the terrible acts that Avalanche perpetrates, including bombings and kidnappings.
In actuality, the Avalanche group found in Before Crisis was funded by Rufus Shinra in an attempt to weaken his father’s power. By the end of the game, this cell of the eco-terrorist group is dissolved. That was probably for the best.
The Members Were Originally Meant to Have a Reunion in Cosmo Canyon—but This Was Cut
In the 1997 game, fans fondly remember Cloud and the gang sitting around the campfire in Cosmo Canyon before heading for Nibelheim. During this peaceful scene, Barret mentions that he had promised the other Avalanche members—Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge—that they would visit the canyon someday to celebrate. Sadly, this conversation was cut from the final version of the game.
When looking at unused text for the game, this conversation would have taken place sometime after the Avalanche members jumped out of the Midgar train. Barret tells the others that they did great. Furthermore, he asks if they’d like to go on vacation. He stresses that if the mission goes well, he’ll take them to Cosmo Canyon, the birthplace of the group. In Japanese style, Jessie asks if there would be hot springs involved.
The Devs Altered Avalanche’s Ethics for the Remake
In the decades following the PlayStation title’s original release, the development team has realized the ethical implications of destroying mako reactors to save the planet. As young as they were at the time, the team behind Final Fantasy VII didn’t understand how their lack of nuance may come across to players. Real-world events in the years following the original game’s release would put Avalanche’s actions into question.
Although Avalanche is still meant to read as a group of well-meaning heroes in Final Fantasy VII Remake, they are still known by the masses as a terrorist group. However, the game uses the angle that Shinra was using Barret’s cell to its own ends. As such, the group seems more like unwilling participants in violence rather than instigators.
Three Additional Avalanche Members Are Mentioned in Final Fantasy VII Remake
We know that there are plenty of dedicated Avalanche members active around Midgar, not just the ones we party up with in-game. In the remake, Barret mentions some colleagues who don’t sound familiar, prompting many to speculate that these three unknown characters may appear in future games. Everyone’s favorite gunner also says that Cloud should meet them someday.
The three Avalanche members in question are Finn, the artist behind the Stamp graffiti around Midgar; Nellie, the splinter cell’s quartermaster and close friend of Jessie; and Al, a flirty intel operative.
Jessie Wanted to Be an Actress
Despite being a minor supporting character in the original game, Jessie has become a fan favorite since the release of Final Fantasy VII Remake. The mechanic of Barret’s Avalanche cell, she’s the one you can count on to snag you a fake ID or procure some explosives. Unexpectedly, a bit of her past was uncovered following the release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.
Before choosing the path of an eco-terrorist, Jessie was making her way toward becoming a talented actress. She once landed the starring role in a performance at the Gold Saucer. However, just before opening night, her father collapsed from overwork and fell into mako storage. This inspired Jessie to study planetology and seek out Avalanche, as she believed her father’s soul was stuck between the afterlife and the living world. Shinra’s mako harvesting needed to be stopped.
While working with Barret, Jessie lived with other aspiring actresses in the Sector 7 slums. In the novel Final Fantasy VII Remake Trace of Two Pasts, Jessie even claims that her roles in action scenes boosted her martial arts skills and made her a more competent fighter in real life.
Some Members Join Reeve’s World Regenesis Organization
Unlike other members of Shinra, Reeve Tuesti wants the best for Midgar’s people, shunning profit in favor of charity and honesty (minus the whole ‘stealing-the-keystone-as-Cait-Sith’ fiasco). Soon after the events of Final Fantasy VII, he went on to found the World Regenesis Organization, a volunteer coalition aimed at restoring and protecting the planet. This is seen most prominently in the Vincent-centric spin-off title Dirge of Cerberus. The organization also briefly appears in the movie Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children.
Given the World Regenesis Organization’s role as a more peaceful government entity following the destruction of Shinra, it’s no surprise that Avalanche would be on its side from the get-go. After mako energy is given the boot, Barret leads the search for a new energy source to provide the world. While it’s unknown whether Cloud or Tifa are official members, it’s implied in the short story collection Final Fantasy VII: On the Way to a Smile that they are.
Mayor Domino Supports Avalanche (In the Remake, at Least)
Despite being the mayor of Midgar, Mayor Domino seems to hold no real power behind a simple title, with Shinra holding all governmental power over the city. It’s no surprise that he eventually grows disillusioned with his station (though at least he gets to live in the fancy-schmancy Shinra building!)
Final Fantasy VII Remake, Domino’s character is much more fleshed out than in the original game. In the 1997 release, he assists Cloud in reaching higher floors in the Shinra Building. In FFVII Remake, however, Mayor Domino is an Avalanche insider who helps doctor security camera footage to enable the team’s infiltration. He also helps to secure a rooftop helicopter escape for Cloud’s party along with Wedge.
With the third installment of the remade Final Fantasy VII still on the way, we may learn even more curious trivia about Avalanche in the future. Knowing the many changes that have been added in the newer titles, maybe your favorite Final Fantasy series fan theory will finally be proven true. Or perhaps some deceased characters will come back from the dead…we’ll leave Avalanche’s legacy in Nomura’s capable hands.
