Honestly, if you only played the original 1997 release of Final Fantasy VII, you might barely remember Zack Fair. Back then, he was essentially a plot device with a few minutes of grainy flashback footage. He was the guy who looked like Cloud but wasn't Cloud. A shadow. A ghost. A "that one guy" from Gongaga.
But things changed. Fast forward to 2026, and Zack isn't just a background detail anymore. He is the tectonic plate shifting under the entire Remake trilogy. Between the emotional gut-punch of Crisis Core and the reality-bending shenanigans of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Zack Fair has become the most polarizing, beloved, and confusing hero in Square Enix's roster.
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The Hero Who Never Was (Until He Was)
Zack was born in the backwater village of Gongaga in 1984. He left home at thirteen—without even telling his parents—because he had this burning, naive dream of becoming a "hero." That’s the core of his character. While Cloud Strife is defined by his identity crisis and brooding silence, Zack is defined by his unrelenting, almost exhausting optimism.
In Crisis Core, we see him go from a hyperactive SOLDIER 2nd Class recruit to the man who literally saves the planet's future by dying. He inherits the Buster Sword from his mentor, Angeal Hewley, along with the burden of "protecting his honor." It’s heavy stuff. He’s the one who fought Sephiroth in Nibelheim. He’s the one who dragged a catatonic, mako-poisoned Cloud across the wasteland toward Midgar.
And then he died. Or he was supposed to.
That final stand outside Midgar is legendary. One man against an entire army of Shinra troopers. In the original canon, he dies in the rain, passing the sword to Cloud with the iconic line: "You're my living legacy." It’s one of the most tragic moments in gaming history.
What Really Happened in Rebirth?
The ending of Final Fantasy VII Remake threw a massive wrench into the gears. By defeating the Whispers (the "Arbiters of Fate"), the party essentially broke the script. The most visible consequence? Zack Fair survived.
Sorta.
In Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, things get weird. We see Zack alive, carrying a comatose Cloud into a Midgar that feels... off. The sky has a rift in it. People are mourning. It’s not a simple "he lived" scenario; it’s a multiverse situation. Specifically, Rebirth uses different versions of the Shinra mascot dog, Stamp, to signal which world we're looking at.
- In the main world, Stamp is a Beagle.
- In Zack's world, Stamp is a Terrier (specifically a Bulldog or a Corgi, depending on the choices Zack makes).
Every time Zack makes a choice—like deciding whether to save Biggs, help Aerith, or stay with Cloud—the world fractures again. It’s a mess of timelines, and Zack is the only one consistently trying to make sense of it. He’s basically the "Anchor Being" for the hope of a better ending.
Why Zack Matters More Than Cloud Right Now
There’s a common misconception that Zack is just "Cloud Lite." That’s dead wrong. Zack is actually the antithesis of Cloud. While Cloud struggles to be himself, Zack is the most "himself" person in the world.
Think about the gameplay. In Rebirth, when you finally get to play as Zack, his combat style is aggressive, high-energy, and built around "charging" his abilities. He doesn't have the finesse of Cloud because he doesn't need it. He’s a powerhouse of pure will.
But the real reason he’s critical is the narrative stakes for Part 3. Cloud’s mind is currently a shattered mirror held together by Sephiroth’s lies and Jenova’s cells. In the original game, Tifa was the one who fixed him in the Lifestream. But in this new trilogy? Zack is now a physical (or semi-physical) factor. He has information Cloud doesn't. He knows what happened at the Nibelheim reactor from a first-person perspective without the memory gaps.
The Theory: What Happens in Part 3?
The fandom is currently on fire with theories about Zack’s endgame. Some think he’s going to sacrifice himself again to "fix" the timelines. Others believe he’ll be the one to finally snap Cloud out of his Sephiroth-induced trance.
Here is what we know for sure based on the Rebirth ending:
Zack is currently sitting in Aerith’s church in a world that is "parting" from the main one. He has a glimmer of hope that the worlds can "reunite." Sephiroth’s goal is a "Reunion of Worlds"—essentially mashing all these doomed realities together so he can absorb the massive influx of Lifestream energy. Zack is the wild card Sephiroth didn't account for.
He isn't just a ghost anymore. He’s a bridge.
Actionable Insights for Fans
If you're trying to piece this together before the final game in the trilogy drops, there are a few things you actually need to do to understand the context:
- Play (or Watch) Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- Reunion. You cannot understand Zack’s motivation or his relationship with Aerith without seeing his time with Angeal and Genesis. It establishes why he values "honor" and "dreams" above his own life.
- Pay Attention to the Dogs. When playing Rebirth, watch the Stamp posters. If you see a dog that isn't the Beagle from the opening of Remake, you are in a different reality. This is the key to tracking Zack’s movements.
- The Gongaga Connection. Visit Gongaga in Rebirth. The interaction between the party and Zack’s parents provides a grounded, heartbreaking perspective on the "hero" who never came home.
- Marlene is the Key. In Zack's timeline, Marlene has memories of the "future" (or the main timeline) because of Aerith's touch. Listen to her dialogue—she tells Zack exactly what needs to happen for Cloud to be saved.
Zack Fair started as a footnote in a 90s RPG. Now, he’s the man holding the fate of the multiverse in his hands, still smiling, still trying to be a hero. He’s the reminder that even if fate is written in stone, you can still bring a pickaxe to the party.
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The story isn't over. Keep an eye on the sky in Part 3. The reunion is coming, and Zack won't be watching from the sidelines this time.