FFVII spin-off goes online

Final Fantasy VII's PS2 spin-off Dirge of Cerberus will be playable over the internet via Square Enix's own Japanese PlayOnline service, according to reports from the Square Enix Party event that took place over the weekend.

As previously revealed, the main focus of the game will be a single-player campaign starring FFVII's Vincent, but there will also be an online mode that lets you take control of a soldier in Deep Ground, the organisation that represents the main game's Big Bad Guys.

Real players will be able to combine forces to take on various unspecified missions, and there will also be a versus mode for competitive play, where you'll be able to argue rock-paper-scissors style about the likelihood of a Final Fantasy VII remake on PS3. Possibly.

Those on-site had the chance to take a quick look over what was on offer, and reports varied. GameSpot said it was "fully featured" while IGN said it looked a bit choppy. Heigh-ho.

Square Enix will begin accepting Japanese beta testers today, with actual testing set to take place during the autumn - just to give you a sense of the timescale.

Dirge of Cerberus has yet to be given a firm European release date, but we'd suggest 2006 for this one too (having already done so for Final Fantasy XII and Kingdom Hearts II), although whether the online stuff will make the long voyage is more difficult to say.