The Mako Reactor 5 is a location in the Final Fantasy VII series. It is one of the eight mako reactors built by the Shinra Electric Power Company to power the metropolis of Midgar, and doubles up as an artillery development plant. The reactor uses the same layout as Mako Reactor 1, and is located directly above the Sector 5 slums church.
History[]
Before Final Fantasy VII[]
Mako Reactor 5 begun construction around 1974-75, the third and fourth year of Midgar's construction, and was built around 1976.[1]
Zack in Mako Reactor 5 in Crisis Core Reunion.
In April 0001, depicted in chapter 3 of Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, Zack Fair and Sephiroth entered the reactor in search of the rogues, Genesis Rhapsodos, Angeal Hewley, and Dr. Hollander. They fought Sahagin-like monsters, but with Angeal's face, making them Angeal copies. The two then learned of Project G, Hollander's attempt to make a modern Cetra, which failed and caused Genesis and Angeal to degrade, but gave the ability to make copies of themselves. When Hollander and Genesis arrived, Zack chased after and cornered him until confronted by Angeal; Zack refused to fight Angeal, and was knocked down to the ground below, where he crashed to the Sector 5 slums.[2]
Original continuity[]
Cloud falls from the reactor.
In 0007, "To the No. 5 Reactor" in Final Fantasy VII, after the success of the Mako Reactor 1 bombing mission, Barret Wallace' Avalanche cell attacked Mako Reactor 5 in a group comprising himself, Biggs, Wedge, Jessie Rasberry, Tifa Lockhart, and hired help Cloud Strife.
On their way out after planting the bomb, President Shinra greeted the insurgents, informing them that they knew of the attack beforehand, and had laid a trap for them. The Air Buster was sent in to defeat the terrorists, while President Shinra left, certain of victory; Cloud's party destroyed it, although Cloud was caught in the blast and fell to the slums church below.[3]
Though the reactor had exploded, it sustained less damage than Mako Reactor 1. This is seen during "Mako Cannon Rampage" in which it powered the Sister Ray cannon, indicating Shinra repaired the damage, unlike Mako Reactor 1, which was utterly destroyed and never repaired.
Remake continuity[]
Confronting Airbuster.
In 0007, in Final Fantasy VII Remake, Barret Wallace' Avalanche cell planned to attack Mako Reactor 5, sending Biggs ahead. They put out a message "Shut them all down by today, or we shut another down for you", causing panic among public transport.[4] The cell's original plan involved only using Biggs, Barret, Jessie, and Wedge, due to Tifa's discomfort with the bombings, and Barret not wishing to become dependent on hiring Cloud.[5] However, Barret rehired Cloud and brought Tifa along after the Whispers hurt Jessie's ankle and Wedge had been injured from a mission the night before.[6]
In "A Trap Is Sprung", Cloud, Barret, and Tifa reached the reactor, Shinra filming the entire attack. After planting a bomb to be triggered by a remote detonator, a hologram of Heidegger mocked them and revealed their moves were broadcast around Midgar, and that the Airbuster would secure their public execution.[7] Upon leaving, President Shinra also appeared in a hologram, revealing to them that they were being used as pawns, smeared as Wutai agents trying to spark another Wutai War, and that Shinra controlled the remote detonator for the bomb they planted. Though the trio defeated Airbuster, Cloud fell to the slums below.[8]
Shinra triggered the reactor's explosion, with considerably less damage than was caused with the Mako Reactor 1 bombing. Because their intent was solely to demonize Avalanche, Shinra wanted to avoid unnecessary damage. As such, there were only temporary power outages that were fixed by the time Cloud awoke in the church six hours later. Most of the impact on residents came from secondary effects as security tightened, power outages disrupted the transportation network, and all trains were stopped. The Sector 5 slums sustained minimal damage, although the incident was widely reported as a serious one.[9]
Geography[]
Overview[]
Mako Reactor 5 has an identical layout to the Mako Reactor 1, with a different entrance. It is reached through the lower Sector 4 Plate, which leads directly to a chute that can be slid down to the floor of the utility access room. The reactor doubles as an artillery development plant, and expends an exorbitant amount of power developing new heavy weaponry at an alarming rate.[10]
In Final Fantasy VII, Mako Reactor 5 differs from Mako Reactor 1 in that it has a blue and green tint while using otherwise identical screens. In Final Fantasy VII Remake, the reactor interior appears much more blue, and though the layout is the same, a different route through the reactor is visited that goes through several armories.
Entrance[]
Reached via elevator from the utility access, the entrance is a laboratory of rooms with a gate leading outside. The gate can only be operated by lever machinery, which will only work if those pulling the levers move them in sync with one another. After opening the gate, a passageway leads out into Sector 5.
In Final Fantasy VII Remake, the entrance laboratory also contains waste storage near the security lever, the door to which is opened by the same security mechanism.
Utility access[]
The utility access is the first area the party visits after crawling in through the Sector 4 Lower Plate. It is an expansive room with brick walls and metallic pipes, one of which is located near the top-right of the room by a door leading in from the Lower Sector 4 Plate. This pipe can be slid down directly to the bottom floor of the room.
The room is built around a large central structure, with a staircase connecting the top of the structure. Atop the structure, a door to the elevator is located, along with a smaller round tower at the center that is climbed using ladders. At the room's floor is an armory, which in Final Fantasy VII Remake contains three storage ports for mechs, with the Airbuster located in the middle port. A door from the armory leads to the mako storage upper scaffolding.
Assembly plant[]
Seen only in Final Fantasy VII Remake, the assembly plant comprise a series of laboratories on four different floors, linked to a hallway from the core at the bottom of mako storage. The rooms have terminals operating machinery used in the construction of the Airbuster, as well as other lab equipment. The facilities are separated by stairway ramps with turret defenses and construction sites seen in the rooms between the ramps.
Mako storage[]
The mako storage at the core of the reactor contains several metal pipes, fans regulating temperature on the walls, and large circular vents from the ceiling. Scaffolding and piping is descended to reach the core itself at the bottom.
The core at the bottom of mako storage is reached through a ladder, and is surrounded by mako around two platforms connected by a catwalk. The core is surrounded by heavy machinery. In Final Fantasy VII Remake, after this ladder is withdrawn, a door opens to the facilities and control room.
Gameplay[]
Final Fantasy VII[]
Fighting the Air Buster.
Known as the "No. 5 Reactor", the reactor is a dungeon seen in the chapter "To the No. 5 Reactor," in which the player controls Cloud, Barret, and Tifa.
The reactor is reached from the Sector 4 Plate. The path to the core and from the core seems simple, as the group plant the remotely detonated bomb then leave through the way they entered. At the entrance, a minigame is required to leave, as the three must open the gate at a security terminal by synchronizing their movements at Tifa's command to disable the lock. After leaving, the group are confronted by the Air Buster.
Final Fantasy VII Remake[]
Lever minigame (top) and fighting the Airbuster (bottom).
All quests in the reactor occur in Chapter 7, "A Trap Is Sprung," when a party of Cloud Strife, Barret Wallace, and Tifa Lockhart attack the reactor. After a short path to mako storage to plant the bomb, Shinra set up a trap for Avalanche, in which they will be fought by the Airbuster in a televised battle broadcast around Midgar. However, the group have a chance to weaken Airbuster before it is fully constructed by removing parts
Mako Reactor 5's layout is identical to Mako Reactor 1, and the characters reference this in dialogue. However, different areas of Mako Reactor 5 are explored entirely in the form of the assembly plant facilities, making it play out differently. Additionally, the lever minigame to operate the security room to leave plays out differently as Tifa is controlled instead of Cloud, and an optional quest, "Waste Recovery", is added in which the minigame is completed more times to obtain items and materia.
Musical themes[]
In Final Fantasy VII, throughout the reactor, the background music is "Mako Reactor" (魔晄炉, Makō Ro?). In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- "The Skyscraper of Iron and Steel" plays, and later "Combat" when chasing Hollander.
Other appearances[]
Dissidia Final Fantasy NT[]
Sector 5 in Dissidia NT
The Midgar arena takes place outside Sector 5.
Final Fantasy Record Keeper[]
Cloud collects his reward at AVALANCHE headquarters and turns to leave, but his childhood friend Tifa convinces him to join their raid on Mako Reactor No. 5.
Description
Mako Reactor No. 5 is unlocked by completing Mako Reactor No. 1 in the Final Fantasy VII realm. Completion of this dungeon unlocks Mist Cave in the Final Fantasy IV realm, Zanarkand in the Final Fantasy X realm, and Sastasha Seagrot in the Final Fantasy XIV realm.
Final Fantasy Brave Exvius[]
Sector 5 Reactor appeared during the exploration event "Destroy the Reactor", which featured two versions. The Easy version featured the Guard Scorpion as the final boss, while the Hard version featured the Air Buster as the boss.
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Behind the scenes[]
At the core of the reactor where the bomb is planted, the structure reads "1997", the release date of Final Fantasy VII, and the Greek, "σμκινσ", which roughly translates to "smkin", the name given to the rooms of the Sector 5 Reactor in the data. The Sector 1 Reactor reads "1998", and while there is text next to it it is indecipherable.
Gallery[]
Citations[]
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake Material Ultimania, p. 258
- ↑ Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- script § "Chapter 3"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII script § "To the No. 5 Reactor"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake script § "A New Operation"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake script § "Talking Strategy"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake script § "Sudden Attack"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake script § "Escape from the Reactor"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake script § "Storming the Gates (continued)"
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake Material Ultimania, p. 256
- ↑ Final Fantasy VII Remake loading screen § "Sector 5 Reactor"
References[]
- Square Co., Ltd. (1997). Final Fantasy VII [Game]. Square Co., Ltd.. PlayStation.
- Square Enix (2008). Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- [Game]. Square Enix. PlayStation Portable.
- Square Enix (2020). Final Fantasy VII Remake [Game]. Square Enix. PlayStation 4.
- Studio BentStuff (2020). Final Fantasy VII Remake Material Ultimania [Book]. Square Enix. ISBN 978-4-7575-6869-3.