EXCLUSIVE: Matthew Mercer, voice of Vincent Valentine in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, explains his Sephiroth cosplay and how DM improves his craft

Vincent Valentine is one of the most fascinating characters among the Final Fantasy VII cast, thanks to his mysterious and undeniably offbeat fashion sense. Wearing a sleek red cape and a piercing gaze, Vincent's mysterious past as a former Turk with secrets that directly connect him to several of the main antagonists makes Vincent a truly standout character.

Now this Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Launched earlier this year to much positive fanfare, we had the opportunity to speak to the one and only Matthew Mercer, the English voice of Vincent in the remake project.

You may have heard of Mercer's voice, it appears in many popular video games and anime – most notably Cassidy OverwatchLeon in Resident Evil 6and Goro Majima in Yakuza: Like a dragonjust to name a few. He is also the Dungeon Master for Dungeons Web series Critical role.

Without further ado, here's what Mercer had to say about his experience voicing the stern and mysterious Vincent Valentine!

Become Valentine

Vincent Valentine is a mysterious and enigmatic character. Regarding the way Mercer captured Vincent's brooding personality and complex backstory in his performance, we asked him if he had ever acted Lament of Cerberus: FINAL FANTASY VII to better understand the character

“I actually played Lament of Cerberusright when it first came out!” Mercer replied.

“Refreshing Vincent's story and considering the length of his tragic story helped anchor me emotionally to where he was when Cloud and his crew first met him. Because of his past and trauma, he is far more reserved, suspicious, and cold, so I wanted to mark that starting point so we can enjoy his slow opening up to the others in this game and the upcoming one. Understanding where he came from and where he was going helped me gauge his mood and really empathize with his ruminations.”

Favorite limit break transformation

In the original game, Vincent has several transformations for his Limit Break ability. As for which one works best, Mercer was quick to point out “Chaos.”

“It's hard to beat Chaos, not only for story reasons, but the overall design is just AWESOME. I just saw what they did with Galian Beast REBIRTHI can't WAIT to see what happens in the next one. And you can bet I’ve already played with the sounds they all could have.”

Why the Sephiroth cosplay?

For those who didn't know, Mercer is definitely into cosplay. One of his most notable and truly impressive cosplays is Sephiroth, the biggest villain in the entire film Final Fantasy VII.

When we asked about his choice of cosplay, Mercer explained, “Partly because I had an affinity for the character and his elegant design and dark, villainous personality. I wanted to recreate and embody that. However, it was Halloween that same year Final Fantasy VII came out, and I had very little experience with costumes compared to ten years later.”

“Luckily, I was able to revisit my Sephiroth costume design later and bring it closer to my mind's eye. I also got to play as Cloud! I would love to go cosplay as Vincent sometime. I mean… I'm almost age appropriate now, hehe.”

A long time ago, but it was so much fun to build and live in.

Which cosplay made you feel the most powerful? pic.twitter.com/lsPZ2tPM52

— Matthew Mercer (@matthewmercer) September 15, 2021

Dungeon Master in Performances

As mentioned, Mercer also acts as a Dungeon Master Dungeons Web series Critical role, narrating and guiding his fellow voice actors in campaigns. When asked about the art of being a dungeon master and whether it helps with voice acting.

Mercer said: “I think it can only help! It was my Dungeon Mastering in high school that helped me explore my vocal range as well as practice performing and improvisational characterization.”

“Like many training methods, DMing can be a way to hone your skills as an artist. It's by no means a replacement for formal training, but it certainly doesn't hurt!”

This concludes our interview with Matthew Mercer, the voice actor of Vincent Valentine in Final Fantasy VII Rebirth.

We would like to thank Matthew Mercer for taking the time to answer our questions. If you would like to hear more from Matthew Mercer, you can follow him on X.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth

Publisher: Square Enix

Developer: Square Enix

Release date: February 29, 2024

PlayStation 5

Cloud and his comrades flee the city of Midgar in search of the fallen hero Sephiroth. As they travel the world, they find themselves on a journey that will decide the fate of the planet.

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