Not what was expected, but not a disappointment either. If you're a Final Fantasy VII fan you better check this one out.

User Rating: 7.3 | Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII PS2
While it may not have been the game we were all hoping for, Dirge of Cerberus still provides plenty of spine tingling moments that have you lapsing back into the Playstation 1 days on the original Final Fantasy VII.

The problem is, getting to these moments.

I'm not a first person, third person, whatever person shooter kind of person. I like my action games, and I like my RPGs. Which might be one of the reasons the controls felt a little more then slightly awkward to me as I first sat down to play the game.

It took me to about the 4th mission for me to feel comfortable with aiming and shooting and using items. But once you got the mechanics down, the game becomes infinetly more enjoyable. Sure, the Deepground SOLDIERS may not be the brightest bad guys, but they generally have enough numbers to make up for it.

Usually. And Boss Battles? Slap on a Limit Breaker, and you're made. Not only does Galian Beast have some crazy defense, the fact that he fires flaming projectiles makes these battles a walk in the park.

Usually.

Another drawback however is the numerous cutscenes. Everytime you start, end, or even in the middle of a battle, expect a 10 second to 3 minute delay as you watch a scene unfold.

Sometimes it's nice, sometimes it's annoying as all hell. ESPECIALLY since Vincent always finds the need to play with his cape. Either that, or kick things. Finally I find the reason behind those crazy shoes.

The voice acting, overall, is very nicely done. While Steve Blum did much better in Dirge of Cerberus then he did in Advent Children, you'd have to be dumb deaf and blind if you haven't seen or heard one of his characters before.

In a nutshell, it sounded unoriginal. Kinda like a Spike meets Darcia kind of thing.

The others however, are much better then I expected. In fact, I prefer listening to them then reading the subtitles. That's a first. Azul, Rosso, Shalua, the list goes on, all sound completely natural and very fitting. Hojo however, was a slightly to squeaky for me. Maybe it's because he's a bastard.

Speaking of sound, the soundtrack to this game is very nicely done. Maybe not as much big bam and boom as Nobou, but it provides a very nice backdrop to what's going on.

Graphics! ... Ok, they're rather dull, dreary and depressing which fits the mood of the story, but they do get boring after a while. However, with the bright reds, golds, and blues seen on the characters, it kind of balances out. Characters stand out, lampost don't.

And the FMVs would not look out of place in Advent Children. In fact, they used some FROM Advent Children in it. They are that good. Unfortunately, after the lengthy opening, they don't come by too often.

It is nice swinging throw the good old places seen in either VII or Advent Children. How many of you caught the sign in Edge that said "Pet Shop" with a sillouette of Red XIII on it? I sure did. And when you here them mention Junon and Midgar? Yes, I got chills. It's that nice to hear those names again.

And by the way, the STILL haven't finished the Meteor Monument in Edge. Or, haven't redone it. They filled in the hole at least.

The missions are rather linear, which means you don't have much oppurtunity to explore places. And your usually on a set path. Don't expect to go running across rooftops, or even climb random latters scattered about. You follow the path. You do not wander from the path. You must, follow, the path.

And the storyline? Well, I won't go to far into that and risk ruining something with it. But if you have sort of curiousity when it comes to Vincent, this game is a must. It's not just about him, but about Lucrecia, Hojo and Grimore... haha, wonder who that is? Play the game. But seriously, Tsviets provided a massive area of bad guys from the pyscho crazy **** to the monster men. And they even have the dark spooky guy covered as well.

Overall, I'm satisfied. Just short of pleased, but not disappointed. It wasn't the game I was expecting, but that doesn't make it a bad one either.