Gaming

7 tips when playing Final Fantasy VII Remake

Mostly surrounding combat

Published

April 9, 2020

You’ve preloaded, have snacks on hand, and are now ready to head to Midgar. Before you do, here are some tips that might be helpful in your Final Fantasy VII Remake (FF7R) journey.

Before we jump in, here’s a mandatory spoiler warning. While I won’t discuss anything story-specific here, some things might hint on stuff that maybe you want to find out for yourself.

Feel free to come back here in case you’re feeling a little lost in combat.

1. Mix up blocking, running, and dodging

I’ve been pretty anxious and angry lately which is why my initial approach when I started was to charge in and just unleash a flurry of melee attacks. While this works for some random encounters, you’ll find that it’s not effective at all for half the battles you’ll be in.

Some enemies will deal massive damage if you don’t guard or run and dodge. Yes, you need to run AND dodge. Dodging alone isn’t effective especially against the monster-types with field of area attacks. To minimize the scratches you take, you have to keep moving.

Blocking physical attacks at the last second also helps decrease damage. If you choose to do so, there’s a bit of side quest where the rewards build on blocking abilities. A lot of these really come in handy even during boss battles.

2. Switch characters during battle

I had the tendency to stick with either Cloud and Tifa too much because their attacks are really fun to look at. I especially like Tifa’s speed and combos. But you’ll soon learn that switching characters is a necessary skill.

I didn’t try this as much until I was midway through the game, but I encourage you to get used to it as soon as possible. For one, whichever character you control fills-up their ATB meter faster, so switching up frequently means faster access to abilities, spells, and items.

The enemies will also frequently target whoever you’re controlling. If you’re too bullish about controlling just one character, you might end up having to use a Phoenix Down sooner than you’d hope.

3. Max as many materia as you can

I really like the materia system because it gives you flexibility on the loadouts you have no matter who you have on your party. Which is why you should level up as many of these as you can.

Levelling up a materia doesn’t involve having to use them frequently. Just make sure they are equipped with active party members.

If you want to prioritize, definitely try to max Fire, Ice, and Light materia right away. A lot of the enemies you’ll face will have one of the three as their weakness.

4. Give everyone a healing materia

You’ll pick up at least two of these right away early on in the game. If you have Gil to spare, make sure you get at least one more.

You would want to have the Cure spell on every party member. Some bosses and mini bosses have these absurd attacks that deal heavy damage. If one of your members is low on HP, they could be taken out with one hit.

With cure equipped on every member, you can save yourself a lot of trouble by healing characters right away, especially when their health bar turns yellow.

Bonus: Aerith has a Pray ability that heals all party members. You don’t spend MP but it costs two ATB gauges. You can opt to equip her with ATB boosts materia to speed-up the ATB fill-up.

5. Don’t push the Side Missions aside

Especially the ones that come during the first half of the game. The side missions have a bit of a story in them and fleshes out some characters more. A lot of them also teach you more about the mechanics of the game.

Other than that you’ll also encounter key missions like the one with Materia researcher and developer Chadley. He even has his own Battle Intel option in the menu screen so you can track your progress.

Each task from Chadley corresponds to the development of different materia. Some pretty useful ones are the Dodge Attack, Counter after Blocking, ATB Boosts, and many others.

Some summons are also only attainable through VR Battles via Chadley’s research.

6. Learn new abilities from weapons right away

Every weapon for every character comes with a new ability. To be able to use them even when you switch weapons, you have to reach 100% proficiency. To get there, you have to keep using that particular ability in battle.

The fastest way to do it is by: First, assigning that character as the party leader. This way, you take control of the character as the battle starts. This means your ATB will fill-up faster the more you attack.

Second, equip the character with any ATB boost materia. Even just the first basic ATB boost will do. The faster you fill-up your ATB gauge, the more chances you’ll have to use the ability in battle. The more you use it, the faster your character will learn it and carry it over to the next weapon.

7. Time your ATB-use properly

If you take damage while trying to perform an ability, cast a spell, or use an item, the action will be canceled out but it will still consume ATB. Which is why timing is key.

Certain abilities take time to wind-up so make sure you’re using them when an opponent is in range and is not halfway through launching an attack on you.

Same is true when casting spells and using items. When you’re trying to heal or revive a party member, be sure to create some distance between you and the enemy first so the action isn’t interrupted.

Bonus: Don’t get lost in Tifa’s eyes.

I totally failed here. 😅

There are plenty more I can share, but these are the ones that stuck out to me as I was going through the second half of the game. Most of these I wish I knew right away. Hopefully this helps you have a smoother first playthrough. Enjoy!

Gaming

ASUS brings 2026 ROG Zephyrus Duo, G16, and G14 to the Philippines

New Zephyrus laptops arrive

Published

June 24, 2026

GadgetMatch

ASUS Republic of Gamers has announced the Philippine availability and pricing of its 2026 ROG Zephyrus lineup.

Headlining the range is the new ROG Zephyrus Duo, joined by refreshed versions of the Zephyrus G16 and Zephyrus G14. The latest models feature Intel Core Ultra processors, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 Series Laptop GPUs, upgraded cooling systems, and ROG Nebula HDR OLED displays.

The lineup is available through authorized retailers starting June 24, 2026.

ROG Zephyrus Duo introduces dual-screen gaming

The 2026 ROG Zephyrus Duo (GX651AX) is billed as the world’s first 16-inch dual-screen gaming laptop.

It features two 16-inch 16:10 touch displays with 120Hz refresh rates. Together, they provide up to 32 inches of combined screen space for multitasking, content creation, streaming, and gaming.

The primary display is a 3K ROG Nebula HDR OLED panel with up to 1,100 nits peak brightness, Dolby Vision HDR support, and 100 percent DCI-P3 color coverage.

A new 320-degree kickstand hinge enables multiple usage modes, including Laptop Mode, Dual-Screen Mode, Book Mode, Tent Mode, and Sharing Mode. ASUS ScreenXpert software manages display layouts and transitions between modes.

Powering the device are an Intel Core Ultra 9 386H processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU, 64GB LPDDR5X memory, and 2TB SSD storage.

ROG Zephyrus Duo price in the Philippines

ROG Zephyrus Duo GX651AX-SR071WSM (RTX 5090, 64GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — PhP 559,995

The laptop comes bundled with an ASUS Pen 3.0, ROG Universal Backpack, ROG Gladius III Gaming Mouse, and ASUS warranty package.

ROG Zephyrus G16 gets RTX 5090 option

The refreshed ROG Zephyrus G16 (GU606) retains its slim aluminum chassis, measuring 1.49cm thick and weighing 1.85kg.

Configurations include up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 386H processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5090 Laptop GPU with up to 160W TGP. ASUS says the laptop supports NVIDIA DLSS 4 and Multi-Frame Generation technologies.

The 16-inch display uses a 2.5K ROG Nebula HDR OLED panel with a 240Hz refresh rate, VESA DisplayHDR True Black certification, and NVIDIA G-SYNC support.

Battery life is rated at up to 22 hours of video playback, while ROG Intelligent Cooling combines Tri-Fan Technology, liquid metal, and expanded ventilation for sustained performance.

ROG Zephyrus G16 prices in the Philippines

ROG Zephyrus G16 GU606AR-TB061WSM (RTX 5070 Ti, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — PhP 289,995
ROG Zephyrus G16 GU606AX-TB084WSM (RTX 5090, 32GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — PhP 429,995

Both variants include an ROG Exclusive Sleeve and ROG Strix Impact Gaming Mouse.

ROG Zephyrus G14 focuses on portability

The ROG Zephyrus G14 (GU405) continues to target gamers who want a more compact machine.

It measures 1.59cm thin and weighs 1.5kg. Despite its size, ASUS equips the laptop with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 386H processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop GPU with up to 130W TGP.

The device sports a 14-inch 3K ROG Nebula HDR OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, NVIDIA G-SYNC support, and VESA DisplayHDR True Black 1000 certification.

ASUS also redesigned the thermal system with thicker heat pipes, additional copper fins, and improved ventilation to boost cooling performance.

ROG Zephyrus G14 prices in the Philippines

ROG Zephyrus G14 GU405AP-SY057WSM (RTX 5070, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — PhP 224,995
ROG Zephyrus G14 GU405AW-SY069WSM (RTX 5080, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — PhP 324,995

Each model ships with an ROG Exclusive Sleeve and ROG Strix Impact Gaming Mouse.

Warranty and launch promos

All 2026 ROG Zephyrus laptops sold locally come with ASUS’ No. 1 Quality & Service Program. This includes a three-year international and local warranty, one-year accidental damage protection, and Premium Care support.

Buyers also receive a gaming mouse, three months of PC Game Pass, an Office 2024 lifetime license, one year of Microsoft 365 Basic with 100GB cloud storage, and up to 700GB of ASUS Cloud Storage.

Meanwhile, the new ROG Slash Collection 4.0 accessories, including the Slash Backpack 4.0 and Slash Sling Bag 4.0, will arrive in select ROG stores starting July 2026.

Gaming

Steam Machine was supposed to be much, much cheaper

Was the price increase justified?

Published

June 23, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The Steam Machine is the most anticipated gaming device this year. Valve’s upcoming machine aims to deliver a PC gaming experience in a convenient package. Today, the price of the Steam Machine was finally unveiled, and it’s a doozy. But did you know that it was supposed to be much, much cheaper?

Now, we already know that the Steam Machine was cheaper before, but we didn’t really know how much cheaper. Speaking to IGN, Valve essentially confirmed the Machine followed the same price hikes as the Steam Deck, which experienced an increase of over US$ 200.

After doing a bit of algebra, it can be assumed that the Steam Machine was supposed to start at around US$ 750. That’s a huge jump, considering that the more expensive variant currently costs almost US$ 1,500, almost double the price of the original.

Unfortunately, that’s just how the industry works these days. Because of the ongoing RAM crisis, several manufacturers have already confirmed price hikes happening throughout the year. Apple, most recently, announced that price increases might come soon because of the untenability of shouldering the costs themselves.

It gets worse for the Machine, though. Despite being expensive, the price tag doesn’t really reflect the specs you’re getting. You can certainly grab a gaming laptop with better specs for around the same (or even a smaller) price tag, especially considering that Valve’s console-but-not-really-a-console doesn’t come with peripherals yet.

Gaming

Epic Games Launcher is getting a huge update to make it faster

The update will also add customizable profiles and user reviews.

Published

June 23, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Admit it; you probably have a hoard of free games languishing on the Epic Games Store. Though it’s nice that Epic gives away games every week, the overall inconvenience of using the platform sadly outweighs the freebies. Now, the company is finally redesigning the app from the ground up with a distinct focus on making it much faster.

Earlier this year, Epic admitted that “the launcher sucks.” Though the company cited a number of reasons, the number one culprit is certainly speed. Compared to its contemporaries (especially Steam), the Epic Games Launcher leaves much to be desired. The platform just doesn’t let users into their games as quickly as Steam does.

During the recent Unreal Fest, Epic, via @LuKaOnIndeed on X, confirmed that the entire launcher will be rebuilt to be “5x to 6.5x faster.”

The performance improvements will come with other new features including player profiles and user written reviews. Epic’s vision of the future looks completely different from how the launcher is today.

Though the company doesn’t have a definite timeline right now, Epic promises that the updates will come later this summer.

It does remain to be seen whether these updates will change anything about how users perceive the platform. For the longest time, gamers consider Steam as the platform of choice. Some users even repurchase their Epic games (sometimes obtained for free) on Steam just to have it on the platform they prefer.