Only one way to become a Whack-a-Box master: whack, whack, whack!
Sarah
Whack-a-Box is a minigame in Final Fantasy VII Remake and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth that involves playing as Cloud in the kids' hideout in the Sector 5 Slums to accumulate points by destroying boxes.
After defeating the "king toad" during "Budding Bodyguard", talking to Sarah at the playground allows Cloud to partake in Whack-a-Box during the quest "A Verified Hero". The player can return in Chapter 14, "In Search of Hope", to a harder course and new rewards.
In "Episode INTERmission", a new version of this minigame for Yuffie appears as the Shinra Box Buster.
How to play[]
Whack-a-Box Normal Course from FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE
The objective is to destroy several colored boxes to obtain points. Yellow boxes provide 50 points, blue provide 100, large blue boxes provide 1,000, and red boxes add to the timer. These boxes can be destroyed either with normal attacks, or with Cloud's abilities. It is not possible to lock onto the boxes. The abilities available to Cloud are Braver and the ability provided by his currently equipped weapon.
Whack-a-Box Hard Course from FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE
The 
Buster Sword can be an efficient weapon due to its Focused Thrust. An efficient way is to use Focused Thrust often to smash several boxes at once. Equipping Iron Blade lets the player use Triple Slash, two uses of which should destroy the large blue boxes. Equipping Hardedge allows the player to use Infinity's End, Cloud's most powerful ability, which should destroy the large blue boxes in one use. 
Deadly Dodge Materia is useful (best maxed out on Lv.2), as dodging in the direction of clusters of small to medium boxes followed by a basic attack will increase both damage and the area of effect, considerably speeding up the process.
Holding 
has Cloud swing the sword to hit multiple targets at once, great for clearing clusters of boxes. The red boxes should be prioritized, especially on the hard course, and though large blue boxes provide a lot of points, they are time consuming to destroy. Large blue boxes should be destroyed with Braver/Triple Slash/Infinity's End, and if two block a path at once, the player should aim to attack the gap in the middle of them to hopefully destroy both at once. If only one large box is destroyed, however, it is better to move forward and destroy piles of smaller boxes, than to be hung up on a single large box. Cloud should remain in Operator Mode except against the large blue boxes, where attacking in Punisher Mode is faster.
Replaying the mini-game after completing the game makes it significantly easier due to the player's greater access to equipment that can boost Cloud's ATB capabilities. In particular, equipping Cloud with the Götterdämmerung and Refocus Materia lets players begin the challenge by using Refocus, allowing Cloud three ATB gauge segments and letting him use his special abilities much more frequently. With these advantages, achieving a high score and winning all rewards is trivial.
Achieving a perfect score by breaking all the boxes receives no recognition, and the minigame will continue until time runs out.
Boxes[]
| Box | Image | HP | Score | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yellow Box | 
|
35 | 50 | None |
| Blue Box | 
|
105 | 100 | Landing an attack increases ATB gauge by 30 |
| Red Box | 
|
1 | 0 | Breaking inceases time remaining by 10 seconds |
| Large Blue Box | 
|
1000 | 1500 | Landing an attack increases ATB gauge by 30 |
Modes[]
Normal Mode[]
- Initial time
- 30 secs
- Max score
- 48850
Hard Mode[]
- Initial time
- 1 min 30 secs
- Max score
- 48200
Rewards[]
| {{{type}}} data | |
|---|---|
| Crate Annihilator | |
| Complete all Normal difficulty Whack-a-Box challenges. | 
|
| Whack-a-Box Wunderkind | |
| Complete all Hard difficulty Whack-a-Box challenges. | 
|
| Target Score | Prize |
|---|---|
| 10000 | Elixir |
| 20000 | Crescent Moon Charm |
| 30000 | Spectral Cogwheel (Normal) Transference Module (Hard) |
| Participation | Moogle Medal |
Scoring a number of points rewards several items. Obtaining all items on Normal difficulty unlocks the bronze trophy Crate Annihilator, and obtaining all on Hard difficulty unlocks the trophy Whack-a-Box Wunderkind.
Musical themes[]
"Whack-a-Box" is a track on the Final Fantasy VII Remake Original Soundtrack. "Whack-a-Box - Results" is a track on the Final Fantasy VII Remake Original Soundtrack Plus.