Chocobo Square (Final Fantasy VII)

Chocobo Square is a location in the Gold Saucer in Final Fantasy VII. It is home to the Chocobo racing minigame, which can reward several unique Materia and boost Chocobo stats, helpful for Chocobo breeding.

There are four ranks: C, B, A, and S, and each rank has stronger opponents. The player will go up a rank each time they win three races in their current rank until reaching S rank. Racing is a vital part of Chocobo breeding; Chocobos who have reached a higher rank in the races have better odds of producing special-colored offspring. While C rank is the easiest to win, it is also the most time consuming, regardless of the status of the player's Chocobo, because to end the race, there must be two Chocobos crossing the finish line. This means even if the player crosses the finish line 30 seconds before the runner-up, they must wait for the second-in-place to finish. As the player advance in rank, the race is less time consuming but gets more difficult.

Story
When leaving Corel Prison, Cloud must win a race on a Chocobo the race manager Ester provides him. Cloud meets the jockey Joe in the backroom, who notes they may race against one another one day. After the party obtains the buggy they bet on Chocobos on the track to win GP and items. When the party returns to Gold Saucer to obtain the Keystone from Dio, the owner of Gold Saucer, they must stay the night when the ropeway breaks down. Cloud goes on a date with a party member but during it discovers a fellow party member Cait Sith has stolen the Keystone. Cloud and his date pursue Cait Sith through the park until they reach the Chobo Square entrance where Cait Sith tosses the Keystone to Tseng of the Turks who flees on a helicopter. Despite being revealed a Shinra spy, he blackmails the others into allowing him to continue traveling with them.

Later, when the party can rent stables at the Chocobo Farm (after acquiring the Highwind) and Cloud has returned to the party, the party can bring their own Chocobos to race. If the party rises in the ranks they can take on Joe, the number one jockey, and his black Chocobo Teioh.

Entrance
The entrance has paths to the other Gold Saucer attractions. When in Gold Saucer the first time, before heading to the Battle Square, entering here has Cloud observe Shinra soldiers. During the date sequence the chase of Cait Sith ends here.

Ticket Office
Reached from the Entrance area, the player can buy tickets to bet on Chocobos at the booth. If they have a Chocobo of their own they can register for a race, Ester is found on the left side of the screen and talking to her allows the player to partake in the races directly. During the date night Cloud also pursues Cait Sith through the ticket office.

Waiting Room
The Waiting Room is visited once: when Cloud must win a race to bail his party from Corel Prison. The waiting area for jockeys is accessed via an elevator from the Corel Prison, and cannot be visited again after winning the race and moving on in the story. If the player loses the race, they end up back in the Waiting Room and must try again with a new Chocobo provided by Ester. The player can meet Joe here for the first time, and find the Ramuh Materia on the floor. If not picked up before winning the race, the Materia is missed. After a time an announcement rings calling for jockeys to head to the track, and talking to Ester who appears soon after lets the player race.

Overview
There are two courses: a short one, and a long one, but they have the same prizes. Both courses take place on the same track, only for the short course a part of the track is blocked off. There are six Chocobos in a race. The player can participate by either betting for the Chocobos who place first and second, or by riding a Chocobo and going for the win.

A programming error reverses the abilities of blue and green colored Chocobos. Green Chocobos are unaffected in the space section of the short course as well as the water section of the long course, while blue Chocobos climb hilly terrain easier. This can be seen easiest in the short course; given the same or comparable top speed, the blue Chocobo will conquer the rising spiral at the beginning far more handily than a green or yellow Chocobo. Black and gold Chocobos are unaffected by both terrains and regular yellow Chocobos, as well as all normal AI-controlled opponents, are slowed in both parts.

Upon winning the race the player wins an item, which they can take or exchange for GP. The items available in higher ranks include Megalixirs, rare Materia, Hero Drinks, and some equipment which can only be acquired via racing, like the Cat's Bell accessory. This is the best place to quickly earn GP—the currency used at Gold Saucer—provided the player's Chocobo is fast enough.

The player might encounter the famous Chocobo jockey Joe and his black Chocobo Teioh, and race against them on the track. Teioh's stats are determined by the player's Chocobo, and are always higher, meaning Teioh can have stats exceeding those capped for the player; his speed will always be the player's speed +10%, and his stamina will always be the player's stamina +25%. Teioh never appears if the player only bets on a race. Because Teioh is a black Chocobo, it is never slowed by the courses' space/water sections. As such, beating Teioh without the use of a green, black, or gold Chocobo is difficult if not impossible. As soon as the race starts Joe will teleport behind the player and will keep tailing the player's Chocobo until sprinting to the finish line.

If the player wins ten times in a row in S Rank they will receive all of the special items (the items symbolized by the circles on the prize menu), excepting the Magic Counter Materia, from the S class races: Sprint Shoes, Precious Watch, Cat's Bell, Chocobracelet and Counter Attack Materia.

If Tifa or Cid are in the party, there is a 50% chance they will ask to race instead of Cloud. This doesn't affect anything apart from the racer's appearance. If both are in the party Tifa will take precedence.

Controls
The Chocobo will run the race on its own even in manual control. The most the player can do is steer and adjust the speed. Chocobos with poor intelligence will be difficult to steer.

Prizes
In every race the player has a chance of winning one of three possible prizes. The common item has 7 out of the 15 tiles (~46.6%), the uncommon item 5 out of 15 tiles (~33.3%), and the rare item only 3 out of 15 (20%).

In the PlayStation version items with a GP value of 200 or more are always rare items. This differs from the PC version, which has a different set of rare items and item appearances by class. The GP value for each individual item is the same in both versions, however.

Musical Themes
"Racing Chocobos - Place Your Bets!" plays in the Chocobo Square of the Gold Saucer. "Fiddle de Chocobo" plays during the racing minigame. "Jackpot!" plays if the player wins a chocobo race. "Tango of Tears" [lays if the player loses a chocobo race.

Final Fantasy XIII-2


Serendipity, the casino that exists outside of time, alludes to the Gold Saucer from Final Fantasy VII. It has a chocobo racing minigame the player can partake in after catching some chocobos from the wild. The player doesn't ride the chocobos, however, it is a betting minigame. A betting version of the chocobo races was also available in Final Fantasy VII.

Final Fantasy XIV


In Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn the Manderville Gold Saucer is an allusion to the Gold Saucer in Final Fantasy VII. A similar version of the chocobo racing minigame exists there, with its own theme.