This game shouldn*t have received the Final Fantasy seal of approval.
GAMEPLAY: So you have what is an apparent 3rd person shooter with a precision mode that hops into 1st person. The 3rd person mode is the main mode to play here. So you can forget about the idea of this being a Final Fantasy FPS. That game has not come yet and if this was the intended game for it... it would be the most broken FPS in the history of games. Actually the FPS in the game is more for precise and long range aiming, although you can move around in this mode, all you will see is 1/16th of the front view and through a scope.
The shooting in the game, believe or not, is pretty good. The aiming is precise and acurate with where you want to shoot at (although this is more present with the side weapons of the character). Stafisfying?? Well, since the acurracy is ok, it doesn´t make it broken for that part... although some force feedback (rumble) would have been nice or at least one that had a more significant presence; beacause its weird to not have and use rumble when your shooting a tri-barrel gattling-esque side weapon.
The character movements are alright although the camera angle can be controlled by oneself... at times i.e. during heavy gunfire, it can get into these awkward angles, like at time when running away and turning a corner. The game is kinda long, but only because its been made to stretch out to its fullest various areas of the game, here is where the "boring" factor come into play while beating each level.
GRAPHICS: The game has no drops in frame rates, this of course is becuase they really didn´t make any effort to polish or seek any high quality ingame graphics. At times (not to say 95% of the time), this feels more like a PS1 game, rather then a PS2 game. Coming out at a time where many games have nailed the full specifications of the PS2 hardware and know its limits very well. You would think that they (Square-Enix) were trying to go for some nostalgia factor with these type of graphics... if they were, then it didn´t work and it just felt like a very un-emotional and lack of intrest type of game... which make the FF VII universe seem more like a lack luster, sloppy stretch and *milking it for all its got" type of game and saga.
The good here, is that the FMV sequences are very well done and imitating the CGI seen in Advent Children: Final Fantasy movie. Of course of great quality as all FMVs should look. Some very cool and colorful events happen in these FMVs, where you kinda notice the Final Fantasy brand on them.
SOUND: The sound quality in the game is alright. Normal. Stuff sounds, its not the best sound in the world but you here bullets, stuff crashing, etc. Were the biggest complain comes in the BGM / OST... JUST AIN*T A FINAL FANTASY SOUNDTRACK !!! No real epic fealing music or even acording to the atmosphere music. Really, something that should have been part of the Final Fantasy universe... should at least sound acordinly and step up to the level of excellence each Final Fantasy game has achieved. At least nail the mood some how would be nice. The only real rescuable music in the game, are not even instrumental but loaned tracks by Japanese music talent Gackt called *Longing* and *Redemption*; great tracks where they somewhat set a mood to the stages of the game where they are placed in. Other then that, the overall sound is rather mediocre.
OVERALL: Basically, this game is a PASS IT for shooter fans, a RENT IT or PASS IT for the Final Fantasy fans and just a RENT IT for only the die hard Final Fantasy or Final Fantasy VII specifically fans (to be able to follow the saga completly).
Alot more could have been acomplished in this game in terms of gameplay and overall feeling of the game... it just doesn´t feel like their is that Final Fantasy essence in the game, besides the character you would not guess this was a quality product brought out by Square Enix and their legacy of superb track history of games. A stain on the diamond of the marvelous saga of FFVII.