doc:ffvii
In 2006,
Square-Enix added a new chapter to the story, deepening on the past
of the most mysterious character in the whole FFVII game: Vincent
Valentine, the gunman dressed in black who could take a monster
form. He was related to Hojo and Lucrecia in some way, and that's
precisely what this game will tell us about... and of course, that
evil forces never let Gaia people live in peace.
The name of the
game is Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII
(usually
abreviated as FFVII: DoC), and was released for
Playstation 2 and PC. What made this game a real
challenge for all FF fans, was
the fact that it wasn't a RPG (yet you still gather experience
points and those things) but a third-person shooter. Having
Vincent as the main character, the decision was clearly obvious...
An Online version was released, but only in Japan.
The story is set three years after the end of the original game,
ergo one year after Advent Children. Curiously enough, the
game makes many references to Final Fantasy VII but not the movie,
which is strange due to their closeness in time. Reeve Tuesti, Cait
Sith's manipulator, is now the leader of the WRO (World Regenesis
Organization), which has to deal with a new menace: the Deepground
SOLDIERs, a group of people who had been buried beneath Midgar and
now, thanks to its destruction, want to summon a new WEAPON, Omega.
Vincent Valentine is often required by the WRO, and also seems to
play a very important role in Deepground's plans... The game
presents new characters as Shelke, a girl who has some kind of
interaction with Lucrecia, Vincent's old love; Shalua, her sister
and a scientist who works for the WRO; the mysterious Nero; and
Weiss, Nero's brother, who actually hides a big secret...
The game is good or bad depending on what you're looking for. For
FFVII fans, it's an excellent game, because it reveals many things
about Vincent's past, and every member from the original party
appears here again. The graphics are gorgeous, as every Square-Enix
game, very detailed and realistic, reminding you of Advent Children.
The problem is, if you are a fan of shooters then try Counter Strike
or something like that. Seriously, the game is very story-focused,
and you don't have long hours of shooting and flying bullets, but
each level has constant cut scenes that don't really let you enjoy
the action, and killing enemies like mad -the aim of 99% of shooting
games- is very limited.
