Stamp is just a cute little dog in Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Well, that’s what Shinra wants you to think. The adorable little puppy can be found littered across the worlds of both Remake and Rebirth, acting as a source of Shinra propaganda to encourage innocent people to obey, rise up, and fight in wars long past. You can even collect his theme song and play it on many jukeboxes found throughout the open world.

He’s luckily been reclaimed by AVALANCHE in the years since, and graffiti of the canine found in underground tunnels, and now helps guide us past deadly checkpoints and traps. He’s a cute, iconic part of the world, but also a means of spreading lies to the populace, who would rather hear such barbaric things from an adorable dog than an old man sitting in a gaudy boardroom.

Stamp Represents The Different Universes Of Remake And Rebirth

I love how he builds so naturally on the themes of the original game, although it seems his appearance goes deeper than any of us could have expected. According to new details shared from the Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Ultimania book, Stamp and his myriad different appearances represent separate worlds that make up the Remake trilogy’s expanding metaverse.

A popular member of the fandom on Twitter has translated parts of the new tome which say that Stamp and his different permutations, many of which are present in both games, appear to represent what world we are present in at any given time. For example, Zack’s last stand against Shinra which concludes Final Fantasy 7: Crisis Core takes place in one we perhaps aren’t familiar with, which explains why the events don’t match up with either the original nor Remake or Rebirth.

Aerith’s materia, which is seen as either clouded or clear in timelines as you progress through the game, also changes depending on decisions made by Zack, and right now it isn’t clear what universe he ends up in at the end of the game. Possibly a fully new one?

According to the Ultimania, there are six different universes/timelines to be found in the Final Fantasy 7 Remake Trilogy. So far, we’ve only seen two of them.

When we first see Stamp - and the version of him glimpsed through Remake and Episode Intermission - he is a loyal hound wearing an army helmet, often seen around tanks or with various different poses that help emphasise his loyalty to Shinra.

This remains consistent up until the ending of Rebirth, where Stamp is instead depicted as a smaller, fluffier terrier sort of breed. He’s an entirely different design, and only exists within this version of Final Fantasy 7’s world. His presence here provides us a fairly reliable means to cement where we are at any given time. Well, at least until we stumble across some crude graffiti or a torn propaganda poster.

Can Stamp The Dog Even Be Trusted?

I’m not so sure, especially with the Ultimania also specifying that Sephiroth has knowledge of all six different universes, and potentially has a way to travel between them or manipulate everything we come to interact with. Stamp could be presented in a certain way to trick us, or to put us on a specific path to ensure we continue walking the road that results in eventual oblivion. Stamp is also more than an underground piece of graffiti. It can be found across a litany of different products ranging from plushies to crisp packets. He is an institution in this world, and whatever appearance he takes on will likely have some significance.

Regardless of whether Stamp can be trusted or not though, knowing his altered states will come to represent different universes and timelines will make the third entry much easier to understand. I can see it going pretty wild with the timey-wimey nonsense, especially if it is determined to shake up the established canon and bring characters like Zack or Aerith back to life for good. It is definitely a possibility, with dialogue at the end of Rebirth once again all about the fickle nature of fate and how, with the right power, it can easily be reversed.

There is also a quote in the marketing for Final Fantasy 7 which reads “Will you be in the world that I’m trying to save?” Sure sounds like Stamp shenanigans to me.

Alternate universes like this are always a nightmare to understand, with Final Fantasy being no exception. So being able to break down however many worlds it ends up having by swiftly looking at a cartoon dog is a deliberate yet simple way of making a multiverse easier to follow. Nobody could have predicted that a cartoon dog would be the key to all this...

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Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth

RPG Systems 4.5/5 10.0/10 OpenCritic Reviews Top Critic Avg: 92/100 Critics Rec: 97% Released February 29, 2024 ESRB T For Teen Due To Blood, Language, Mild Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol and Tobacco, Violence Developer(s) Square Enix Publisher(s) Square Enix Engine Unreal Engine 4
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Final Fantasy Rebirth is the second part of the FF7 Remake project. It continues the story of Cloud Strife, a former SOLDIER turned mercenary who joins Avalanche, a group of eco-terrorists seeking to save the planet from the malevolent Sephiroth. As the party pushes out of Midgar, leaving the Shinra Corporation devastated, where will their paths take them?

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