Final Fantasy VII is perhaps the most beloved of all the Final Fantasy titles so far (we personally love Final Fantasy IX but we definitely understand the appeal). For many, Final Fantasy VII was their first foray into the series, a game that would not only grab their attention but point them towards the past and call them to complete the entire series in succession.
It's definitely one of the best titles that ever released on the Playstation and it features a colorful cast of characters that have become much beloved over the years. But some characters are more beloved than others and even the "side characters" from Final Fantasy VII have their own cult following.
Vincent Valentine is a great example. He was so well-received by the community that he even received his own spin-off title.
Yet, even with all the love thrown his way, there are still quite a few things that fans may have missed concerning the brooding protagonist.
10 He Has His Own Triple Triad Card
Final Fantasy has experimented with a wide-array of mini-games over the years, some of them finding better success with gamers than others. When Final Fantasy VIII rolled around and presented Triple Triad, players were instantly hooked. In fact, the mini-game has exploded in popularity so much that it has been featured in Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn and can also be played on mobile devices.
Because of this, many characters have been added to the game, far past the restrictions of the Final Fantasy VIII character pool. This includes access to Vincent, who has his own 4-Star Triple Triad card on the Final Fantasy Portal App.
9 He Appeared In A Non-Final Fantasy Title
Square Enix is constantly moving their Final Fantasy characters around for guest appearances and inclusion in spin-off titles (even though, for the most part, Final Fantasy titles exist in separate worlds). Because of this, you would expect to find Vincent Valentine in a cameo appearance in another Square Enix title.
But you might not expect to see him in an entirely different game created by an entirely different company. In 1998, developer DreamFactory crafted Ehrgeiz: God Bless The Ring, a 3D fighting game the originally included Cloud and Tifa on the roster but later added Sephiroth, Yuffie, Zack Fair, Red XIII, and the man himself, Vincent.
8 He Doesn't Appear In Any FMV Sequences
One of the main things that gamers fawned over concerning Final Fantasy VII was its beautiful FMV sequences. Granted, these sequences are completely overshadowed by most modern video games but they were an absolutely astonishing graphical step-forward for their time.
You could tell that a lot of time and effort went into these scenes, so it's no surprise that Vincent doesn't feature in any of the specialized cutscenes. He and Yuffie are both considered side characters and the game can be completed without ever recruiting either of them.
7 The Voices Behind The Monster
In Japan, Vincent is voiced by Shōgo Suzuki, a man who spent most of his time creating voice-overs for instructional videos (for companies) and television commercials. Suzuki actually got his first big break as a voice actor by stepping in as Vincent in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. This lead to him returning to the role for Dirge Of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII.
In the West, Vincent is voiced by Stephen Jay Blum, a man also known for voicing Rytlock Brimstone in the Guild Wars 2 series, as well as Killer Croc in the Arkham line of games.
6 His Weapon Can Create An Overflow Glitch
Final Fantasy VII features a variety of glitches, especially considering the 32-bit versions (the original Playstation for example). One such glitch comes in the form of a damage overflow, using a mathematical formula that can calculate when a particular overflow will occur (given a certain set of parameters are met).
One of Vincent's weapons, the Death Penalty, can achieve this overflow and deal an immense amount of damage.
5 He's Considered A Horror-Terror
There is a lot of discussion about Vincent Valentine concerning his "class-type" and some may assume that Vincent is a vampire. After all, he attempts to hide his form as much as possible, he is found sleeping in a coffin, and his eyes gleam as if he's one of the baddest blood-suckers around.
But Vincent isn't actually a vampire and there is nothing past his looks and sleeping situation to suggest that he is. In game-lore, his "job title" is classified as a Horror-Terror and Vincent's Limit Break sees him transforming into a variety of rampaging monstrosities.
4 He Was A Boss In One Title
The Final Fantasy series has included a ton of spin-offs, with many of them stemming from the world of Final Fantasy VII. In 2007, Square Enix developed a mobile game (and Nintendo DS) titled Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII. The title took place six years before the events of the original game and would give players better insight into the Turks and their role in the events of Final Fantasy VII.
Because Vincent used to be a Turk, he actually acts as a Boss in this release (although he's just a "training boss" and is still very much a "protagonist"). This version of Vincent is a lot weaker than his Mako-infused form.
3 He Was Originally Going To Be In Kingdom Hearts
This one is a bit surprising but makes quite a bit of sense when you start to put the pieces together. When Kingdom Hearts was first being developed, the planned on including Vincent alongside Cloud. As development moved along, designers began to realize that having two "brooding" characters would be a bit too much, so they scrapped the idea to include Vincent.
However, they kept "homage" to him, which can be seen in Cloud's iconic outfit, which includes a familiar-looking cloak.
2 Vincent Is A Mishmash Of Powers
Vincent almost seems like a superhero once you start breaking down his individual skills and abilities. So much experimentation was done on the poor man, leaving him afflicted with a wide variety of side effects and powers.
From an in-game standpoint, Vincent has access to enhanced speed, strength, durability, "undeath," high intelligence, magical aptitude, transformations, and a rather intimate knowledge of Shinra and its practices. It's no wonder players scramble to recruit this powerhouse.
1 He Almost Used A Scythe
Although Vincent is best-known as the brooding gunslinger, he almost used a very different weapon. In the early design stages for Final Fantasy VII, Vincent was planned to be a melee character, one that would carry a large and foreboding scythe. This concept art from the Final Fantasy VII Ultimania Omega book shows what the change might have looked like. It's easy to imagine the cloaked-crusader swinging the bladed weapon around but we much prefer our pistolero.