Straight forward shooter. Nothing wrong with that. Except...

User Rating: 8 | Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII PS2
...that it's a Final Fantasy, and we've come to expect great things of Square Enix. More so because it's Final Fantasy 7 related, taking some of the characters and putting them into a game revoloving around the coolest character, Vincent Vallentine. This game tells the story of what happens to Vincent three years after the Meteorfall incident, and a year after the geostigma incident.
The game takes place in similar locales to FF7, and they look as good as you might expect, but they seem a little too linear. Also, your ammo supply will be stretched, especially on the harder difficulties. The gun variety is nice to have, but you could avoid using anuthing but the standard handgun for the whole game. You might find yourself getting turned around in recycled environments, which is a shame, as when the game gets going, it's really hard to stop. Ultimately, the controls feel fluid, just what you'd expect from a FIRST person shooter, not a third person shooter. Still, as this is the only game in the series to try and do this, you might pick it up just for originality.
My absolute favorite thing about this game are the prerndered cutscenes. They don't occur often, but they look like Advent Children. Unfortunately, this game starts out a little stale, and gets better as you go, with the motivation being for unlocking the endings and getting the extra missions.
So, for a standard shooter, this game impresses. However, certain aspects of this game place a sad, sad curse over it. You may want to play it, but only if you can ignore Square Enix's reputation for great things. This is worth it, but you might just want to watch someone else do it instead of doing it yourself. A good standard shooter, a mediocre Final Fantasy game, and an overall ok game.