:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII English/Japanese Differences Guide Written by "itachi_no_jutsu" :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Copyright 2006 Jesse Phelps This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. NOTE: For the time being, this guide is only allowed on the following sites: www.gamefaqs.com www.gamewinners.com www.1up.com *************** About the guide *************** This guide is not meant to be detailed or complex, just a quick and easy-to-use information piece for those wondering what the game was like for our over-sea friends in japan, and what we recieved on the other side of the world. It won't contain any potential spoilers, just gameplay elements that were changed, added, or removed. If you need any other questions answered about this guide,I can be contacted at (ItachiShari_Videos@hotmail.com) ********** Navigation ********** Although it's not really necessary, If you need to get around the guide quickly, you can use the search function by pressing 'Ctrl+F' and entering the section number listed in the table of contents. ----------------- Table of contents ----------------- [Rel] Release Differences [I.] -- Multiplayer Online [Ia.] -- Multiplayer Online Negatives [Ib.] -- Multiplayer Online Positives [II.] -- Difficulty Adjustment [IIa.] -- Difficulty Adjustment Negatives [IIb.] -- Difficulty Adjustment Positives [III.] -- Aiming View [IIIa.] -- Aiming View Negatives [IIIb.] -- Aiming View Positives [IV.] -- Movement [IVa.] -- Movement Negatives [IVb.] -- Movement Positives [V.] -- Combat [Va.] -- Combat Negatives [Vb.] -- Combat Positives [VI.] -- Cover/Box Art [VIa.] -- Cover/Box Art Negatives [VIb.] -- Cover/Box Art Positives [VII.] -- Gackt [VIIa.] -- Gackt Negatives [VIIb.] -- Gackt Positives [Oth] Other Things [VIII.] Updates [XI.] Credits ======================================================================== ------------------------- [Rel] Release Differences ------------------------- ------------------------ [I.] Multiplayer Online ------------------------ In the original Japanese version of DoC there was an online mode that allowed you to play as a DeepGround soldier and complete verious missions. When brought to North America however, this feature was removed. This was because the online service was unpopular in Japan, as well as the fact that not many americans had/have an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), the device that was used to store the PlayOnline program. ---------------------------------- [Ia.] Multiplayer Online Negatives ---------------------------------- Ask almost any DoC player what they thought of the online removal, and they would suggest that it was a bad move on Square-Enix's part. If it had stayed though, how would it have fared? Some problematic discussions that came up were: *Lack of players on a server would leave players bored. *Possible lag would disrupt gameplay. *Costly payments for using PlayOnline (Final Fantasy XI is an example). ---------------------------------- [Ib.] Multiplayer Online Positives ---------------------------------- One good thing about online removal, was that it saved people the trouble of encountering the problems listed above. There was also 40 bonus unlockable missions added to the game. These were special missions that were actually based on the different online missions. While not a huge addition, some say that it makes up for not having online capabilities. --------------------------- [II.] Difficulty Adjustment --------------------------- When brought to North America, some minor changes were made to difficulty settings on the game. First of all, 'Easy' mode was taken out, and exchanged with an 'Extra Hard' difficulty setting, for those who wanted a more exciting game. Unfortunately, the AI is still somewhat 'brain-dead' when it comes to fighting you. -------------------------------------- [IIa.] Difficulty Adjustment Negatives -------------------------------------- As stated above, the AI on the Extra Hard mode is rather lacking. As for Easy mode being removed, most say it was for the better, seeing as how enemies were already rather easily defeated on the Normal and Hard difficulty For beginning gamers though, this could come as disappointment. But either way, accomplishing the game is not that difficult of a task. -------------------------------------- [IIb.] Difficulty Adjustment Positives -------------------------------------- There is really nothing more to say about the difficulty, except that veteran gamers were very much pleased with the addition of Extra Hard mode. Some will also agree that lately,the challenge level has been toned down on recent Square games, causing the need for more and greater challenges to rise. --------------------- [III.] -- Aiming View --------------------- In FFVII: Doc, when a gun is drawn and fired, the camera view either switches to a position somewhat behind Vincent, or into a first-person mode. It all depends on what type of weapon is equipped. -------------------------------- [IIIa.] -- Aiming View Negatives -------------------------------- Nothing was really bad about this change. It was seemingly all for the better, and almost every gamer was very pleased with the finished results. -------------------------------- [IIIb.] -- Aiming View Positives -------------------------------- Originally in the Japanese version, when firing a weapon, the view shifted to directly over Vincents shoulder. This was a problem because one could not see well as far as moving while you shot at enemies. In The North American release, the view was zoomed out a bit, and the player could see where he/she was moving. This was probably one of the most vital and helpful changes the game could have made. ----------------- [IV.] -- Movement ----------------- Movement in the original version of DoC was somewhat limited. Quite a lot of important things were added to improve the mobility of Vincent; in and out of battle. ---------------------------- [IVa.] -- Movement Negatives ---------------------------- Just as in the Aiming View Negatives, there was nothing remotely bad about the additions to this section of the game. Gameplay is what makes the game, so of course you'll want to improve on it! ---------------------------- [IVb.] -- Movement Positives ---------------------------- As opposed to the Japanese release, Vincent can now do much more to dodge, duck, swerve, and swoop out of danger. These great additions were: *Double Jump: After jumping in mid-air, Vincent can do another jump to reach higher places...or enemies. *Dash: The old 'Dodge Roll' technique was replaced with this quick burst of speed. Great when running for cover. *Extra Speed: Nothing huge, but Vincents running speed has been increased to 1.2 times faster than it was in the Japanese version. ----------- [V.] Combat ----------- A few moves were added that will allow Vincent to be more useful in combat. Three of which are: *In-Air-Shooting: Now Vincent can fire weapons while he is in mid-air. This is an extremely useful technique, and can be used to finish off enemies that are in higher areas. *In-Air-Combos: Vincent can pull off 1-2-3 combos in air, knocking an opponent backwards. This also works if you are fighting numerous enemies at once. *Limit Break: In the original version, when a limit break was activated, it subtracted magic from your magic bar. Now limits are activated using items called 'Limit Breakers'. When used, you can activate your special form (Galian Beast) for a limited amount of time. *Easier Weapon Drawing: In the english release, weapon weight was slightly toned down, to prevent weapon sluggishness when drawing a gun. ------------------------- [Va.] -- Combat Negatives ------------------------- Just like everything else, it is an improvement, therefore it is fo the better. The only thing however, is that some people say that they preferred a magic subtraction bar instead of a one-use item. ------------------------- [Vb.] -- Combat Positives ------------------------- Combat was improved to a point where it simply made the game more enjoyable. Being able to shoot and execute combos in air tones up the "Action" aspect, as well as making it easier to do away with larger enemies and bosses. ---------------------- [VI.] -- Cover/Box Art ---------------------- As with most games that come to the U.S., cover art is changed to one of two things. You either like the art, or you don't. Comparing the two, most gamers favor the Japanese cover. This featured Vincent in a more "dark and mysterious" anime type pose. The english cover art was simply a close-up CG-Image of Vincents face(Think Advent Children) with flames in the background. Personally, I favored the Japanese image over the North American one, but oh well. --------------------------------- [VIa.] -- Cover/Box Art Negatives ---------------------------------- A negative to the image switch was that fans were displeased with the U.S. cover art, saying that the cover creator was perhaps being "lazy", and that any old CG picture pasted on it could have looked like a game. --------------------------------- [VIb.] -- Cover/Box Art Positives --------------------------------- It's hard to find a good thing to say about the english cover art. It's boring, plain, and unoriginal. Compared to the Japanese version, there is nothing that stands out.Most people would agree that the cover art for a game is very important.It has to be eye-catching, or else it won't appeal to gamers. --------------- [VII.] -- Gackt --------------- He's a big star in Japan, and he's got his own movie. Chances are you've heard him before. In DoC he does the vocals for the games two theme songs: "Redemption" and "Longing". -------------------------- [VIIa.] -- Gackt Negatives -------------------------- One bad thing about Gackt: He can't sing in english.....supposedly. I wouldn't know, since the songs listed above are in japanese. >_> I have yet to hear the actual songs in the game, but I'm pretty sure that the vocals are in his orignal Japanese language. -------------------------- [VIIb.] -- Gackt Positives -------------------------- Believe it or not, Gackt actually has a role in DoC. He plays the character "G" or Genesis. This is actually pretty cool, seeing him in the game. The english voice actor who dubbed his voice is Robin Atkin Downes, also known for his roles as 'Luxord' in Kingdom Hearts II, and 'The Prince' in the Prince of Persia series. ------------------ [Oth] Other Things ------------------ *Cait Sith Additions: Rumor has it that the U.S. version added more Cait Sith missions than the Japanese release originally had. Note that this is just a rumor. *Vice/Weiss Battles: When fighting Weiss the Immaculate in the Japanese version, if a phoenix down is in your inventory, it will automatically be used upon death. This does not apply to the North American version. Also in the japanese version, when fighting Weiss Empowered, there is NO item shop/jukebox. --------------- [VIII.] Updates --------------- Updates 8/16/06: Added info about 'sluggish weapon drawing'. Added info about 'Cait Sith Missions' Updates 8/21/06: Added info about 'Weiss Battles' ------------- [XI.] Credits ------------- Now I'm going to list all the people who helped me make this guide (It'll be a small list).If your not here and you helped me (Which I'm pretty sure you didn't, e-mail me). -Ryan007 (Formerly oXKitsuneXo) for helping me layout this guide. -AnbuItachi (For giving me the Cait Sith info). -Jaganboy (For info about the Weiss Battle differences) -Random GameFAQ users I don't remember.... -Myself (For owning both versions of the game). -Jay and Silent Bob....'cause there just awesome. :::::::::::::::::::::: FINAL COPYRIGHT NOTICE :::::::::::::::::::::: Copyright 2006 Jesse Phelps This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. *Thanks for Reading* ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::