Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII is an action role-playing third-person shooter. As the first shooter game in the Final Fantasy series, the action is viewed from an over-the-shoulder perspective similar to Resident Evil 4, although players can switch to a first-person perspective if they wish. Defeating enemies yields EXP, and at the end of each stage, the player can either use that EXP to level up, increasing Vincent's stats, or convert it to Gil (the in-game currency), which can then be used to purchase items and equipment upgrades.

The game is set three years after the events of the original game, and focuses on one of the game's playable characters, Vincent Valentine. In the story, Vincent is targeted by Deepground, a mysterious organization that plans to awaken a creature known as Omega, with the ability to destroy the Planet.