Play arts Kai Remake Tifa Review

Play arts Kai Remake Tifa Review

"One of the most detailed and articulated figures I've seen."

5/5 Reviewed by Adi Mursec

Final Fantasy VII is one of the most memorable and definitive games ever made, from all the Final Fantasy titles VII manages to break off and make a franchise with numerous spin-off titles over the last 20 or so years. The reason it’s so popular is mostly down to the characters, it had an amazing lineup of heroes and villains which returned for a HD remake in 2020 with Final Fantasy VII Remake on the PS4.

The game is the first in a series and covers about the first 1/5 or so of the game. When it came out in 2020 it won numerous awards and was probably the biggest game of the year.

Square produced a lot of merchandise to celebrate its success most of which was only available in Japan but one of figure I wanted to pick up was the new Play Arts Kai Tifa. I preordered the figure from the official Square store online when it was due for release in August 2020 but due to delays in production it didn’t end up shipping until May 2021. Well worth the wait though.

This isn’t the first Tifa we’ve seen in the Play Arts Kai series, there was one earlier version based on the Advent Children movie which has gone up in value over the years to 4-5 times the original price making some of these Play Arts Kai figures a better investment then most crypto currency.

Spoiler:  This figure is near enough perfect, if you’re a fan of Final Fantasy VII this is a great addition to the collection.

The box fits in with all the other Play Arts Kai figures with a magnetic door that opens so you can see the detail on the figures, these really are premium collectors toys. The scale make the figure just over 10 inches tall. It’s a great size as you get so much detail on these modern figures and it’s still functional enough to be able to fit on a shelf.

The figure can stand well on it’s own but it also comes with a very sturdy stand so if you do display it you don’t have to worry about it falling over all the time.

It also comes with a second face, one is a serious look and the other is a slight smile. Personally I’d have liked them to add maybe a one or two more faces but it’s not much to worry about. Each face can interchange with one of three hair styles. Each hair piece is in a different pose so the figure looks good either standing straight or at a side post or looking around. One thing this figure did make me notice is how the redesign of Tifa in the game left out the iconic dolphin tail hair style where it was really long and split in two at the end. It’s not a fault with the figure but just something I missed when playing the game.

On top of that you get eight interchangeable hands too, so between the faces, hair and hands you get dozens of possible customisable looks for the figure.

The detail on the figure is really remarkable but I guess you’d expect it for a toy of this price range. The figure retails at about $150USD or £122.99 which is a steep price for a toy but it will go up in value, especially when the official store stops selling them. But if you were a fan of the original game when it came out and you played the remake it’s a great price for such a detailed figure of one of the most iconic characters in video games.

One rumour about the delay was that the factory had QC issues and the original shipment had to go back, I’m not sure if this was true or which region of the world it effected. The overall paint add texture to the figure is perfect, it’s not super glossy or too mat, they got the tones and blending pretty much perfect, I’m not sure if these. were hand painted a factory or by machine but modern toy making technology is amazing. To think they can produce thousands of these in a factory and keep the QC to such a high level. Since it’s release I’ve not heard of any issues with the figure.

Apart from the detail one thing that really stands out if the movement of joints which mean you can pose it in just about any position for a battle realistic look. She’s pretty flexible in the game with her martial arts and you can recreate just about any move from the game thanks to the joins and the stand.

The arm joins are as well disguised as you can get for a figure like this. Each shoulder looks to have a ball join and a ratchet so you can change the position and even fold her arms which you don’t see often. The legs click and hold position really well which is good for the high kicks. The skirt is in two parts so lets the legs move and you can even sit the figure down. Also with how the feet are designed they have several points of movement which are well hidden.

Overall this is an amazing purchase for a fan of the game like myself. I used to like statues for detail but with these high end figures you can get the movement of a highly articulated toy but the high detail of a hand painted statue.

One thing I would recommend if you are looking to buy any of the Final Fantasy Play Arts Kai toys is to try and buy them direct from Square via the online store. There are a lot of very high end bootlegs going around of these figures and one thing you don’t want is to be disappointed with a lower quality figure. Even before the official release of Tifa and Aerith there were bootlegs on the market. I’m not sure how they managed to copy the designs so quick before the official release but they are being sold all in a lot of places and not often noted to be “Third Party” or “KO” versions. Thankfully the official store still has them in stock and you can be guaranteed a legitimate figure.

Posted by Adi Mursec on September 18, 2021

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