Okay, so, I got into this thing, right? I wanted to mess around with the Patek Philippe Calatrava 5227J-001, a really fancy watch, you know? But not the actual watch, just a digital version of it. Kind of like modding a game, but for a watch.
First off, I needed to get my hands on the files. I spent some time digging around and found some update stuff for this “Remake” thing, version 1.0.0.2. Turns out, they only changed one file, this “ff7remake_.exe” thing. This got me thinking, maybe this is where I start.
Then I stumbled upon this mod, that says it was for both “REMAKE” and “INTERMISSION”. It also said something about giving a character a China dress for the entire game, which I guess is cool, and that it works in battles. I grabbed it, thinking maybe it would give me a clue about how these files work.
I also found some notes about a newer update, version 1.03. These notes talked about fixing crashes and improving performance. They mentioned some “framerate drop” and “lag issues”. I figured this meant there was some kind of animation or something going on, which might be useful for what I wanted to do with the watch.
Then there was this “FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE” thing. It’s like a bundle that has both the main game and some extra stuff called “FF7R EPISODE INTERmission DLC”. I didn’t really care about the game, but the fact that it was all bundled together gave me an idea. Maybe I could use these tools to put my watch thing together.
Now, about the watch itself, the Calatrava 5226G-001. People online were saying it’s super fancy, with a “Clous de Paris bezel” and some “three-dimensional hands”. It’s supposed to be really thin, only 3.3 mm thick, and the whole thing is 8.53 mm high. They also mentioned it’s “water-resistant to 30 m”, which is kind of neat, I guess. Apparently, there have been tons of these Calatrava watches over the years, and they’re pretty collectible. Oh, and this 5226G-001, it just came out in 2024, comes in a fancy box with papers, the whole nine yards.
- Started digging: Found update 1.0.0.2 for “Remake.”
- Found a mod: It was for “REMAKE” and “INTERMISSION,” gave a character a different outfit.
- Looked at update 1.03 notes: Mentioned fixing crashes and improving performance.
- Found “INTERGRADE”: A bundle with the main game and extra stuff.
- Read about the watch: Fancy, thin, water-resistant, collectible.
Putting it all together
So, with all these bits and pieces, I started messing around. I used the info from the updates and the mod to figure out how the files worked. I treated the watch like it was a character in the game, using the “three-dimensional hands” as a starting point. I wanted to make it so you could see the watch from different angles, kind of like how you can move the camera around in the game. It was a lot of trial and error, but I eventually got it working. It wasn’t perfect, but you could see the watch, rotate it, and even zoom in to see the details. I even managed to get some basic animations working, like the second hand ticking. Not bad for a digital version of a super expensive watch, right?
Click to consult