8-20-2006		1-26-2006
	11-11-2006		11-11-2006

It has been three years since Meteor Fall, and a year since Cloud defeated Sephiroth again. The Geostigma is gone, and even Cloud and Tifa have become something of a family again. All is going well, until a group of people decide to look and see if there was anything else Shinra Inc. was hiding. What they find will threaten the world once more. It would seem their primary target is none other than Vincent.
After struggling so long with his past...he is about to come face to face with it.

The Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII was the second installment in the compilation to make it to America. Released in October of 2006, it had a lot of high expectations from fans. When it was said that it would be an RPG with a FPS style of fighting, most of the fans shied away from it.
It is definitely an RPG/FPS. There is the famous engrossing Final Fantasy storyline, woven into a game that is full of shoot-em-up action. You are in control of Vincent Valentine, as he searches for answers to his past, and battles the threat of the Shinra SOLDIER's Deep Ground.
The game play graphics are sharp, but not in comparison to Final Fantasy XII (released only a few weeks later). Though it can be a bit dark at times, it is easy enough to get around the world. The OMV's are of Square-Enix quality, and are great to look at. That said, there is a bit too much of them in the beginning, some taking ten minutes to get through. For those looking to bust up Sviet's, that can get a bit annoying. But they are important in terms of the story line, and telling what is going on now, as well as in Vincent's past.
There is a degree of challenge to the game, especially for those who are in the RPG end of the deal. For them there is a semi-automatic targeting feature, allowing you to find enemies you might not even see regularly. That said, it is by no means more difficult than the FPS's released at the time. This would be considered an entry FPS in comparison to the likes of Halo, and Medal of Honor. It is interesting to see the way Square combined the two, and they were successful with it too.
The story itself is, again, engrossing, and you will find that you want to continue, just to see what happens now, as well as figure out the truth about Vincent's past. The introduction of the Deep Ground unit of Shinra allows for different antagonists to appear in Final fantasy VII. This is good for a lot of people, since though we love him, Sephiroth is getting a bit used. After the second fight in Advent Children, some are quietly asking that he "remain in their memories" too. Though there is little time for character development inside the game, it was performed well. Each character has been given some depth, and background, though not with the detail of those in the main series. But it was enough to satisfy people.
The only real problem with Dirge of Cerberus is game time....or rather the lack of. You can easily finish the entire game in a bit over 15 hours. If you are a regular FPS, then cut that time down to 10-12 hours. This was also the biggest problem with the fans of the game, who were expecting another 90-120 hour thrill-ride through the Final Fantasy VII world. Though once the game is defeated, you are allowed access to the plethora of side missions that are un-lockable from doing certain things in the main story. Guess this is Square's way of saying that they are sorry for not making a longer game.
Though it is definitely not the awesome title we were hoping to get, it is indeed a great game to play. It is surely a different game from anything out there, and is sure that you will enjoy it.
If you complete a certain task in the game, you are treated to a OMV after the end credits are done. The character depicted in the sphere is Genesis, of Crisis Core's story line. Here, he picks up Weiss, and says: "It's not time for slumber, we still have much work to do, my brother". This for most people was the lead into another Dirge of Cerberus, or Final Fantasy VII story. You can see the short video below.