On this page I will try and provide information and pictures about fake, bootleg FFVII items. By “fakes” I mean illegal copies of items that have originally been designed and  manufactured by licensed companies such as Bandai or DigiCube.

Although these items are just copies, some of them do have some collectable value. For example the Extra Knights bootleg figures from China are sought after by some collectors, as they are rare and make an interesting comparison to the real figures. Most fake items however have no collectable value, and therefore it is good to be able to tell them from the real ones. Some sellers will without shame call their bootleg figures Bandai products!

The Extra Knights bootleg figures are cheap versions of the popular action figures by Bandai. The fake figures are almost always missing the red Bandai logo, and the green triangle sticker might be on the right side of the plastic bubble instead of the left side like in the real Bandai products. The bubble is typically fragile and glued to the front of the card unlike in the real figures. Often the card features a different character that is actually within the box; if someone tries to sell you a Tifa figure with a Barret card as a "rare factory missprint" the best thing to do is just laugh at his face. Generally speaking the fake figures and their packaging look cheap, fragile and just *wrong*. Note that there are only bootleg version of the 5 first figures of the Extra Knights Japan version.

Ways to tell an Extra Knights figure is a fake:
- The red Bandai logo from the bottom right corner is missing
- The plastic bubble is fragile and glued to the front of the card
- The card features a different character than what is actually within the bubble
- The barcode from the back of the box is missing
- The figure looks ugly and cheap or the coloring is way off
- The green triangle sticker is within the box, not on top of it, or on the right corner of the bubble instead of left
If one or more of these characteristics apply, the figure is most likely a fake

There are also some fake FFVII chrome figures. If you are not familiar with the real thing you might have trouble telling them from the fake ones.

Ways to tell a chrome figure is a fake:
- The Square logo from the back of the stand of the figure is missing
- The front plate says "Final Fantasy" instead of the name of the featured character
- The individual numbering of the front plate is missing
- The box of the figure is of the wrong color (black instead of white)
- The box of the figure is smaller than normal and not symmetrical
- The material of the figure is bendy or fragile or looks cheap
If one or more of these characteristics apply, the figure is most likely a fake.

There is now a substantial amount of fake FFVII plush toys being sold over the net. The fake plush dolls may appear very similar to the real things but always have some differences and are missing the paper tags. These fakes originate from China or Hong Kong, and as for today I have seen fake versions of Cloud vol. 2 and green, blue, black and chubby chocobos. The emergence of these fake plushies is veru unfortunate as the authentic dolls are very rare, valuable and high quality.

The bootleg versions of the model kits by Bandai appear somewhat similar to the real products, but are missing the red  Bandai logo among many other details. The actual model kit parts differ only slightly, but the eye stickers are not included and the instructions are different. There are also other fake model kits that have been copied from the Extra Knights figures. These model kits are of very poor quality.

Also the otherwise so fancy cold cast statues by Kotobukiya have been copied as fake model kits. Do not to confuse them with the actual high quality statues even though the sellers of such fake model kits often use pictures of the original cold casts on the boxes.

Lately some new, cheap imitation of the FFVII cold casts have emerged. These Chinese fake FFVII statues can be told from the real ones most easily by the poor paint jobs on the faces of the statues. These fakes usually come in a box such as the one pictured below or without a box and typically cost about 30$.

There are also fake versions of the FF Trading Arts vol. 1 figures. These fakes can be told from the real ones relatively easily, as the quality is substantially worse. The fakes do not USUALLY come with boxes or assembling instructions.

Unfortunately, there are also fake versions of the Trading Arts vol. 2 figures. Below are a few examples. These fakes can be told from the real ones relatively easily, as the quality is substantially worse. The fakes do USUALLY not come with boxes or assembling instructions.

Unfortunately also the Vol. 2 figure keychains by Banpresto have been copied into ugly little mini figures and keychains. This set of 7 poorly painted figures / keychains is made of low quality plastic and is definitely not worth a thing. Buy this set only if you have a budget of 7$ but desperately want something that at least distantly reminds you of FFVII characters.

Also, 5 of the Bandai chibi figure keychains have been copied to mini figures and keychains. It is not very easy to tell them from the real keychains, but the colors are slightly different and the material is of worse quality.

There is reason to believe that there are fake versions of all FFVII keychain sets. Therefore buyers should always be careful when purchasing FFVII collectibles especially if the seller is from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and has many sets of rare FFVII keychains for sale for a low price.

There are fake Final Fantasy Art Museum cards that come in packs featuring Squall from FFVIII. The pictures on the cards are however from several different FF games, including FFVII. These fakes can very easily be told from the authentic FF Art Museum cards, as the quality of the material and pictures is substantially worse and the names and logos are mixed up. Great big thanks to R. Capowski for this bit of information and pictures!

Note that there are also a lot of fake FFVII Advent Children merchandise from DVDs and soundtracks to jewelry and posters out there - be sure you know what you are buying!