Vincent Valentine
From Final Fantasy Wiki
| Vincent Valentine | |
 Artwork by Tetsuya Nomura | |
| A.K.A. | Vince |
| Japanese Name | ヴィンセント・ヴァレンタイン |
| Romaji | Vinsento Varentain |
| Weapon | Gun |
| Birthplace | Unknown |
| Date of Birth | October 13, 1956 |
| Age | 27 (physically) 52 (chronologically, Final Fantasy VII) 54 (Advent Children) 55 (Dirge of Cerberus) |
| Height | 6'2" / 184 cm |
| Blood Type | A |
| Japanese Voice Actor | Shougo Suzuki |
| English Voice Actor | Steven Jay Blum |
| Final Fantasy VII Character | |
- "A mystical man, stern and upright while at the same time dark and mysterious..."
- —Description
Vincent Valentine is an optional playable character in Final Fantasy VII, and main character of Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-. A former Turk with a mysterious past, Vincent's hidden secrets tie him directly to several of the main antagonists of the series. At one time, though it has now been proven false, it was even rumored he was the father of Sephiroth.
Vincent's weapon of choice is a handgun and his Limit Breaks cause him to shapeshift as a result of the experiments Hojo performed on him. His Japanese voice actor is Shougo Suzuki, and he is voiced by Steven Jay Blum in English. Since his introduction, he has become one of the most popular characters in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.
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[edit] Appearance
Vincent is a man physically in his late 20s, and stands at exactly six feet tall. He has crimson eyes and long black hair that streams about a bit wildly at times. He wears a red band over his head with his bangs emerging over it. Vincent's most distinctive feature is his tattered red cape, held in place over his shoulders and lower face by several buckles. Underneath his cape, Vincent's attire is black with several straps and buckles. Vincent wears a holster for his gun against his right leg, and pointed metallic boots. He also wears a golden gauntlet on his left arm. His weapon of choice is the Cerberus, a three-barreled revolver. Vincent has kept this look in all his appearances, with subtle variations. His gauntlet was originally rumored to be a prosthetic claw, but newer artwork and information strongly indicates that it is simply metal armor covering a black leather glove.
Vincent was originally intended to appear in Kingdom Hearts alongside Cloud Strife, but was removed (see below), and aspects of his costume were incorporated into Cloud's design, including his tattered red cloak and gauntlet. In Dirge of Cerberus, Vincent's Galian Beast and Chaos forms incorporate his design into them; Galian Beast, for example, is wearing a shorter version of Vincent's cloak as a kilt, while Chaos's feet resemble Vincent's boots. In Advent Children, Vincent's cloak was meant to have an organic feel to it and was very difficult to animate. Furthermore, the developers decided that changing his costume would be conflicting with his character, so Vincent was the only living character in the film to appear the same as he had in Final Fantasy VII, although there are still minor changes such as a full body suit and a glove completely covering his previously partially bare right arm.
[edit] Character
- "Cold, huh? I guess that's just the way I am...sorry"
- —Vincent
Dark and brooding over his past "sins", Vincent carries many burdens and secrets. Despite his cold personality, he is not uncaring: at a point where Cloud admits he thought Vincent was cold and didn't care about the planet, Vincent casually brushes off the remark. He also has a soft spot for Lucrecia, referring to her as a beautiful lady when meeting Cloud's allies. He fiercely despises Hojo for his various immoral actions, and it is the promise of meeting him that stirs him to accompany the party in Final Fantasy VII. Vincent is reluctant to speak, although when he does he typically has something very important to say.
Nojima has noted that Vincent is naturally a loner, and had he not been a former ally of Cloud and his friends, he probably wouldn't have joined them to fight Bahamut SIN in Advent Children. His voice actor Shogo Suzuki noted that Vincent's few appearances had a profound impact each time they occur, and that Tifa's remark "they're our friends" after Vincent's arrival shows his underlying warmth. He was also noted to be very similar to Cloud, only more mature and older, which influenced his character and voice work. Vincent was originally intended to appear in Kingdom Hearts with Cloud, but it was decided to remove him due to similar brooding personalities.
[edit] Story
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
- "That was my sin, and this...this is my punishment."
- —Vincent, referring to his inability to stop the Jenova Project.
About 25 to thirty years before Final Fantasy VII, Vincent was once a member of the Turks, which was then known as Shinra's "Department of Administrative Research." When he was assigned to supervise the Jenova Project in Nibelheim, he fell in love with a scientist named Lucrecia Crescent, an assistant to Gast Faremis. When he discovered her link to his deceased father, Lucrecia fled from Vincent, ultimately entering a relationship with her associate Professor Hojo instead. Lucrecia became pregnant afterwards, and Hojo planned to use the fetus as a test subject for the Jenova Project.
Vincent objected to the use of humans—especially Lucrecia—as test subjects. Even so, in the interest of science, Lucrecia proceeded with the treatment and became very sick as a result. Outraged, Vincent confronted Hojo in the Shinra Mansion's underground laboratory and a heated argument ensued. Hojo ended it with treachery, pulling a gun from his lab coat and shooting Vincent in the stomach. He proceeded to use Vincent's half-dead body as the subject for experiments involving strengthening the endurance of the human body, and metamorphosis, enabling the body to transform into various monstrous forms. While Hojo does succeed in making Vincent's body stronger, Vincent dies during the procedure. Lucrecia, devastated with Vincent's death, used her knowledge about Chaos to resuscitate him by infusing the Chaos-tainted Mako into him. The procedure worked, as Vincent's body, due to Hojo's previous experiments was strong enough to become a Chaos vessel, however, Chaos was completely out of control and only stopped when the Protomateria had a reaction to Chaos. The Protomateria, which had been discovered by Grimoire alongside Chaos and theorized by Lucrecia to have been created by the Planet "out of necessity as a means to control Chaos and prolong it's own inevitable fate," had been in Lucrecia's laboratory. She put it inside Vincent's chest, and thus Vincent was able to control Chaos to a degree. Vincent later awakened on the operating table and responded to his modified body with both anguish and rage.
Believing himself responsible for Lucrecia's illness after Sephiroth's birth, he locked himself inside a coffin in the basement of Nibelheim's Shinra Mansion, where he slept mostly undisturbed for 28 years to atone for his "sins". He constantly relived his "nightmare" for these years as a punishment for his inability to stop Lucrecia from submitting to Hojo's experiment on her unborn baby.
[edit] Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
On December 19th, 2006, in Episode 19, the player's Turk and Verdot search for the Support Materia for the Summon Zirconiade at the Shinra Mansion. While searching, Verdot awakened Vincent inside his coffin. Despite the differences in their physical appearance, Vincent and Verdot knew each other when they were with the Turks. When he woke up, Vincent helped the Turks fight AVALANCHE, and displays sharp shooting skills, though he is rather jaded after his long sleep. It would turn out that the Materia was hidden inside the mansion and he knew of its existence. He gave it to Verdot before he returned to his rest once more, refusing to leave with the Turks.
[edit] Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
When Zack Fair heard groaning coming from a coffin, he opened it and was startled that a person is actually inside it. Due to the camera angle, Vincent is not actually seen. Deciding against disturbing the slumbering man, he replaced the cover, which locked back into place.
[edit] Final Fantasy VII
Vincent was discovered by Cloud and the party in a locked room in the basement of Shinra Manor in Nibelheim. After some careful coaxing, he was talked out of his sleep and spoke to Cloud. Cloud told him about Sephiroth, and Vincent, knowing that he was the child Lucrecia had conceived, considered it another "sin" and returned to sleep. However, when Cloud tried to leave, Vincent followed and asked if they would meet Hojo. Cloud confirmed this, and Vincent agreed to accompany him with thoughts of claiming revenge.
Later in the game, when the party found Lucrecia in the Crystal Cave, Vincent's backstory was hinted at, with scenes depicting an argument between Vincent and Hojo over Lucrecia, and Hojo shooting Vincent and experimenting on him. However, the lack of dialogue in the scenes made their true significance ambiguous at best. When the party confronted Hojo at the controls of the Sister Ray, Vincent had a small scene where he claimed that it was Hojo, not him, that was meant to sleep and atone for his crimes. Beyond these two segments, Vincent's character is fairly inconsequential.
As Vincent was an optional character in the game, he, along with Yuffie, was not shown in the ending FMV. Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- retcons that the two of them returned to Midgar early to help evacuate the city before Meteor hit, saving many lives, including a heavily-injured Rufus Shinra. This occurs following Sephiroth's defeat, while the other characters watch the events from above in the Highwind.
[edit] Acquiring Vincent
In Nibelheim, get the Mansion Key from the safe upstairs in the Shinra Mansion. The combination is RIGHT TO 36, LEFT TO 10, RIGHT TO 59, RIGHT TO 97. Following this is a tough boss called Lost Number. Pick up the key from the safe after the battle and enter the locked cellar halfway to the library in the basement. Enter the cellar using the gold key from the safe. Touch the foot of the purple coffin. The lid will fly off and Vincent will talk to you. Choose to talk about Sephiroth when he asks you a question. When the coffin closes, touch the coffin again. Choose to ask his name when Vincent poses another question, and you can name him. Leave the cavern and he'll join you.
[edit] Novellas
Vincent has been stated to appear in the upcoming On the Way to a Smile novella "Case of Red XIII".
[edit] Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
During the year following Final Fantasy VII, Vincent traveled the world, mysteriously popping in and out, retrieving information and helping those in need, keeping even looser connection with his friends than the rest of the party. In 2009, he eventually followed rumors to the Forgotten Capital, where the Remnants of Sephiroth were stationed. After Tseng and Elena were struck down and tortured by the trio at the Northern Crater, Vincent rescued them and helped them recover, while getting as much information about the remnants as he could.
When Kadaj began to fight Cloud in the Forgotten City, Vincent rushed in and opened fire at Kadaj while picking up Cloud and carrying him to safety. Resting in a remote part of the forest, Vincent relayed information about the Geostigma to Cloud, and the impending rebirth of Sephiroth. Cloud, still tormented over his guilt at being unable to prevent the deaths of Aerith and Zack, asked Vincent if sins were ever forgiven. Vincent simply replied "I've never tried". After a few minutes of thought, Cloud decided to try, and tells Vincent that he would "phone in the verdict".
Vincent showed up with the rest of AVALANCHE for the battle against Bahamut SIN, inquiring as to where he could buy a cell phone (a joke in the film; he apparently is the only member of AVALANCHE without one). He told the party the truth about Kadaj aboard the Shera, while Cloud dueled him atop the remains of Shinra Headquarters. Although the party members were eager to help, Vincent told them that Cloud could handle him alone.
During the bonus feature Reminiscence of Final Fantasy VII, Vincent made a call to Cloud. At some point after Advent Children, Vincent purchased a cell phone, and made a point to relay a message to Yuffie that she had no right to call it.
[edit] Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-
- "Hmph. Guess I have no choice. It's time...to save the world."
- —Vincent
A year following the events of Advent Children, in 2010, Vincent was called into duty once again. When the mysterious group Deepground began attacking people around the world, Vincent Valentine and the World Regenesis Organization started investigating. Deepground, they found, was a group based from secret experiments underground in the Shinra Building that were trying to awaken the final Weapon, Omega. To do this, they were hunting down Vincent Valentine, who housed the powerful Protomateria needed to control Omega. Vincent was forced to fight off the constant attacks while trying to solve the mystery of his own dark past. Eventually, he got his answers with the help of a young Tsviet named Shelke.
Deepground was able to steal the Protomateria straight from Vincent's body, and Chaos became increasingly unstable within Vincent throughout the game. At the end, it was revealed that a digitized version of Hojo was the mastermind of the plot. Chaos was finally completely unleashed and defeated Hojo, Deepground and Omega. When Vincent concluded his mission, he disappeared within the Crystal Cave where Lucrecia lay for some good time. Cloud's party eventually sent a befriended Shelke to retrieve Vincent, who had made his amends and forgiven himself for his "sin".
Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- revealed that when Vincent confronted Hojo he was shot, and turned into a sample for Hojo's metamorphosis experiment. The experiment left Vincent with three demonic transformations, but he was left in a death-like state. Upon discovering this, Lucrecia took his body and attempted to save him by implanting the Chaos gene within him. While Vincent was revived by this process, he became Chaos itself and had no control over the form. The Protomateria then appeared and Lucrecia used the materia to suppress Chaos and allow Vincent to have some control over the transformation. In a flashback, Vincent woke up on a table in a lab, and looked down to find himself in his Galian Beast form.
It is ambiguous precisely what happened between Vincent's awakening in the laboratory and the beginning of his extended slumber. In a note written by Hojo - the first clue provided for uncovering Vincent - he claimed to have put Vincent to sleep in the basement himself. While there was originally much conjecture as to whether Vincent's sleep was fully voluntary versus induced because of his own attitude toward it and the mystery of his in-game attire and long hair, a flashback scene in Dirge of Cerberus clearly illustrates Vincent was experimented on and then immediately put to sleep in his current appearance as a Turk. His change of appearance to his current design is unexplained.
[edit] Equipment and Stats
In Final Fantasy VII, Vincent uses a variety of different pistols, revolvers, shotguns, and rifles. His default weapon is the Quicksilver pistol, which he can be seen carrying in Nomura's artwork. His ultimate weapon is known as Death Penalty. It becomes stronger the more enemies are dealt the killing blow with it equipped. Vincent's guns typically have mediocre attack power, but two of them have a 255% hit rate, meaning they will never miss, and all of his guns are Long Range. The 255% accuracy makes Vincent a good choice for the "Deathblow" Materia, which inflicts double damage but has low accuracy normally - the 255% hit rate can make up for this.
Vincent's primary weapon in both Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children and Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- is the handgun Cerberus, named after the three-headed dog which guarded the Greek underworld for its three barrels (each of which is ornamented with a dog head in place of the iron sights). There is also a key chain attached to it that bears a Cerberus-shaped charm. It holds a total of eighteen rounds and fires three each time the trigger is pulled, making it extremely lethal to a normal person. The weapon can be upgraded to either be lighter, hold more ammo (80 rounds at most), or do more damage.
During the course of "Dirge of Cerberus," Vincent also acquires two other guns. One, a bolt-action rifle, is christened the "Hydra." The other, the "Griffon," resembles a Thompson machine gun, and has a rapid-fire ability, although shoots slowly enough that it is possible to only shoot one bullet. All three guns Vincent acquires in this game can be equipped with accessories, such as longer or shorter barrels, a scope, and Materia.
[edit] Limit Breaks
- See videos of the various Breaks here
Vincent's Limit Breaks are quite different from many others. There is only one Limit Break for each of the four levels. When he initiates one, he turns into a monster, who is constantly berserk, and stays that way until the battle is over, win or lose. When he shifts his form, Vincent's stats increase and his HP refills, but he cannot shift back at will. Thus, while his Limit Breaks can be very powerful, they are quite risky. If Vincent should be knocked out though, he will transform back to his normal form. Vincent is also notable in that he learns his new Limit Breaks the fastest of all party members, most others of which need to kill upwards of 70 enemies to learn their new techniques.
| Name | Information | Obtaining | Final Fantasy VII appearance | Dirge of Cerberus appearance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Galian Beast ガリアンビースト Garian Bīsuto | Vincent transforms into a reckless, wild purple beast that unleashes a variety of spells and attacks against the enemy. This Limit Break also appears in Dirge of Cerberus, allowing him to brutally attack enemies with his fists and energy blasts. He attacks using Beast Flare and Berserk Dance. | Known automatically. | 
| 
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| Death Gigas デスギガス Desu Gigasu | Vincent transforms himself into a monster which greatly resembles the monstrosity created by Dr. Frankenstein in Mary Shelley's famous novel: "Frankenstein". He attacks using Gigadunk and Livewire. | Kill 40 enemies with Vincent. | 
| N/A |
| Hell Masker ヘルマスカー Heru Masukā | Vincent transforms into a psychotic thug wearing a hockey mask and wielding a chainsaw which greatly resembles a combination of Jason Voorhees from the Friday the 13th horror films and the infamous Leatherface from Texas Chainsaw Massacre. He attacks with Splattercombo and Nightmare. | Kill 56 enemies with Vincent after learning Death Gigas. | 
| N/A |
| Chaos カオス Kaosu | Vincent transforms into a malevolent winged demon and attacks the enemy with Chaos Saber and Satan Slam. In Dirge of Cerberus, Vincent is capable of using this form in the final chapter, along with his final weapon, the Death Penalty. | After obtaining the Submarine, leave from Costa del Sol and take it to the river mouth up north. After going through the passage, and surface at the circular room. Dock the Submarine and go inside the Crystal Cave for several cutscenes. Afterwards, you must have had at least 10 random encounters, and return to the Crystal Cave. | 
| 
|
[edit] Development
During development, Vincent's character changed several times, from horror researcher to chemist to detective, and finally to a former member of the Turks. Although his connection to the Turks is not made explicit in Final Fantasy VII, it is explained in detail in Dirge of Cerberus. In Final Fantasy VII, a cut scene involving Cloud explaining SOLDIER to the party would have involved Vincent, who would outright state he was a former Turk who investigated "the Sephiroth project" that would lead to the development of SOLDIER.
In another early draft, Vincent was a detective working supernatural cases, most of them bogus. His last job was investigating Shinra's secrets to expose them to the world for the benefit of a rival company. Vincent's relationship with Hojo would have gone back to the Midgar University medical department, and then the Shinra Research Lab. Using leverage with Hojo's assistant, Lucrecia, Vincent delves deeper into Hojo's work. However, Lucrecia is captured by Hojo and used unwittingly as part of the Jenova Project. Vincent tries to save her, but Hojo puts him to sleep for twenty-three years. When the party finds him, Vincent has no idea what year it is or even that he has had any experiments done to him at all. He would join the party in the hopes of getting revenge on Hojo and finding out Lucrecia's fate. The player would not know that Vincent could transform into monsters and when it happens Vincent would be the most shocked of all. His transformations could carry outside of battle, changing cutscenes depending upon his form. In this draft, Vincent's personality was wildly different, with a far more suave and talkative demeanor. He would even go out of his way to flirt with female party members.
Kazushige Nojima has noted that, although Vincent doesn't have many scenes, when he does speak he usually has much to say and compared him to Auron, as "even though he's supposed to be a silent character, he still tends to talk a lot".
Vincent's Job Class was originally going to be Horror Teller.
[edit] Battle
- Main article: Vincent (Boss)
Vincent is fought as a boss in the Training Mode of Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-.
[edit] Non-Final Fantasy Appearances
[edit] Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring
Vincent is a secret character in the game Ehrgeiz: God Bless The Ring. He uses his claw and spiky boots to aid his martial arts, and can fire his gun to attack from a distance. The gun can be charged, and charged shots create images of his Limit Break alter egos on impact. For his alternate costume, he dons a Turk uniform.
[edit] Gallery
 Sketch by Tetsuya Nomura |
[edit] Trivia
- A running joke about Vincent is that he is a vampire. In-line with vampire myths, Vincent wears red and black with a cloak, has pale skin, is brooding, he also has pointed teeth as Chaos in Dirge of Cerberus, and due to Hojo's experiments can shapeshift into various demonic forms and also has an extended, some say immortal, life. He is also first found sleeping in a coffin in the basement of the Shinra mansion, and is seen with a glass of red liquid nearby in the opening of Dirge of Cerberus.
- Vincent is one of the only two characters in the entire Compilation of Final Fantasy VII to have had more than one playable appearance in its continuity, the other being Cait Sith.
- Despite his popularity, Vincent is not well endowed in terms of stats. He has the least HP at level 99 of all characters, and possesses only marginally more strength than Aeris, whilst still having far less MP and Magic power. Along with Cait Sith, he has the least Vitality at the highest levels, and his dexterity is average.
- Vincent is one of the series' only three playable characters, the others being Rydia and Fran, whose appearance does not mirror their actual age. While he appears to be in his late 20's, he is, in acutally, over 50 years old.
- Due to a glitch, with his ultimate weapon, Death Penalty, Vincent is capable of killing the Emerald Weapon with one shot.
[edit] External Links
| v · e · d | ||
|---|---|---|
| Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete | ||
| Characters | ||
| Main Characters | ||
| Cloud Strife - Tifa Lockhart - Marlene Wallace - Denzel | ||
| Villains | ||
| Kadaj - Yazoo - Loz - Sephiroth - Jenova | ||
| Other Characters | ||
| Aerith Gainsborough - Barret Wallace - Cait Sith - Cid Highwind - Elena - Moogle Girl - Red XIII - Reno - Rude - Rufus Shinra - Tseng - Vincent Valentine - Yuffie Kisaragi - Zack Fair | ||
| Locations | ||
| Edge - 7th Heaven - Healin Lodge - Forgotten Capital - Midgar - Northern Crater - Sector 5 Church - Shinra Headquarters | ||
| Terms | ||
| Cellphone - Fenrir - Fusion Swords - Geostigma - Lifestream - Meteor - Motorcycle - Remnants of Sephiroth - Shadow Creeper - The Shera - Strife Delivery Service - World Regenesis Organization | ||
| Novellas | ||
| On the Way to a Smile - Hoshi wo Meguru Otome | ||
| Music | ||
| Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children OST - "One-Winged Angel" - "Calling" - "Safe and Sound" |
