[General Discussion] FFVII Compilation Thread

I gave the game a good 2 hours of playtime. I have some impressions to share, but the short version is that there's good and there's bad, but whether there's more good or more bad depends on whether you value style over substance.

The first thing I noticed is that this game is LOUD. On my Home Theater, my whole room was booming as soon as the intro played, and I had my volume set lower than normal. As far as surround sound goes, this game certainly delivers.

Next up is the FMV. It's important for me to stress to you that this is some of the best FMV you'll see yet for PS2 (and once again it comes from Square), because the opening alone will help determine if you should bother with the game or not; if you're an FFVII fan (and especially if you recently watched AC), the opening almost serves as a sneak peek at a PS3 FFVII: The setting of Midgar and Kalm are rendered with perfect accuracy (although I don't recall seeing any hovercrafts like the one Yuffie uses), and the animation is nearly equal to AC's (which is why I hereby refer to this game as "Advent Children 1.5").

The opening also shows how dark and brutal this new entry is; it's a bit unnerving to see the townspeople celebrate with a catchy folk dance only to be mercilessly gunned down by the new enemies; women scream in horror, children are carried off by dog creatures. I don't envy the NPCs of FFVII's world (between having a plate crash down on their heads, blasted to bits by Weapons, Midgar having its power drained, a huge Meteor, and just recently three punk remnants and a big ass dragon, you have to wonder just how much of the world's population is left). The Tsviet members are also pretty creepy so far, having much simpler goals than Sephiroth or Kadaj; to murder every living human in the most brutal and painful way possible. Or at least that's how it looks right now.

The normal cutscenes are also worth watching, with Vincent taking a few cues from Cloud and leaping a hundred feet in the air, dodging a ton of missles and explosions, and making room to show off with menacing cape flutters and some revolver tricks. The draw with Vincent is that even though he's the token soft-speaking loner, he's not heartless (an early scene with Reeve proves just that, with shockingly humorous results). In some ways he's less angsty than Cloud; Cloud constantly worries about how his life will play out, while Vincent seems content the way things are going for him.

But I will concur with everyone else that the actual gameplay doesn't deliver. Oh, there is some fun to be had, if only to run around with a PS2 Vincent model while gunning down enemy soldiers (and saving cute kids with moogle dolls), and there aren't any broken gameplay elements (aside from the fact that far too few objects can be destroyed, and there's plenty of places Vincent should be able to reach with his double jump, but doesn't).

The thing is, on paper the gameplay elements are awesome; saving citizens from being brutally gunned down, hiding from snipers during a rainy setting, taking on a mutant helicicopter from hell, assisting WRO members to clear out the enemies (and for once, they give you supplies WITHOUT charging you), gunning down wildlife in a mounted gun in a speeding van. It's all exciting in cutscenes, but the problem is they simply don't give you enough to play with; the cutscenes have Vincent doing all these stylish moves, but the actual game doesn't have you perform any of them. If they had made him more agile, give the game more of an adrenaline rush, things would've turned out better.

So chalk this up to a case of aesthetics over gameplay; if you're an FFVII fan who wants to see more interaction with Vincent, Yuffie, and Reeve, this should be a no-brainer. The small bits of info you learn here add extra layers to the FFVII universe. Examples include learning how low in rank Reeve was, the timeline given to the events in the original game ("Meteorfall"), the original members now referred to as "Jenova War Heroes", and that Vincent's claw is bulletproof (I knew it), and that's just for starters.

Also, I once again fall victim to incorrect pronounciations. I always thought Lucrecia was pronounced "Loo Cree She Ah", but instead it's "Loo Cretsia". Also, Heidegger, which I said as "Hey Dehger (like digger but with an e)" is actually spoken much faster (like Witticker).

Voice acting is the usual good stuff (Blum is perfect for Vincent), but I'm still wondering if Christie Romano or her KHII replacement is voicing Yuffie.

Also, it's pretty neat/amusing to walk around Edge after seeing the movie. All the little easter eggs you might've missed in the film are shown in plain view when you wander around. The constant Loveless posters featuring an obviously recognizable character give me the impression that Square is spelling out the next FFVII entry. 8/16 has to mean something.

FELIPE NO

If you're only two hours in and you've rated it as such, I think you'll up your score a tad after playing a bit further. It wasn't until after the WRO Headquarters battle that I really got into it.

Spoiler:

However, I never imagined, not even Vincent back in the old Turks days, him to be a...picnic kinda guy. >_>;

Edit: Another spoiler....I guess.

Spoiler:

Seems Cid kept his Advent Children promise in the end -- "My Shera! Ain't she a beaut! I'll give ya the grand tour afterward!" Quoted from the movie, and now here's Vincent, walking around that very ship. Cool.

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

Just like the 24 game, this is worth drudging through just for the music, story, and overall presentation.

The gameplay still isn't that much fun, but there are some great memorable scenes in here (cut-scene wise). To mirror so many other reviews: not worth 50 bucks, maybe worth 20.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I concur; if the game was released 10 or 20 bucks cheaper (which they did for Drakengard), it would've been fine. If they only added some extra moves and more enemies it would've been more fun to actually play. I'm just greatful there's an event viewer (hopefully it'll collect non-CG cutscenes too).

Quote:

If you're only two hours in and you've rated it as such, I think you'll up your score a tad after playing a bit further. It wasn't until after the WRO Headquarters battle that I really got into it.

Funny you mention that, as I'm told that the story eventually reaches a new level of absurdity, and not the good kind. I'll have to make it to the end to decide for myself, but so far the story is plausable enough; it shouldn't be a surprise that Shinra would have some extra experiments running around that guys like Rufus wouldn't know about. And the little teaser that suggest that

Spoiler:

maybe Lucrecia had a hand in Vincent's experiment

is also intriguing.

Also, the POV flashback with Hojo just rocked (love the voice they gave him).

The only thing that bugs me is that even though Edge was attacked, there's no mention at all about Cloud and Tifa. I know they show up later, but you'd think Vincent and the others would be worried. On that note, it's a bit silly how Reeve is depending on Vincent alone to save the day. Where the heck is everyone else? Shouldn't Cait Sith be leveled up sufficiently to do some magic damage (even if he was useless)?

And why is Azul so freaking huge?

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Freddy Krueger

What was it again, if the game had jpn and american audio? If so then no, just american voices.

Pity, I liked the original dub of AC much better than the English one. But thx for answering.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

I've been playing it for an hour and I can say that the improvments are well worth it. The game feels much faster, the aiming seems better, and the game over all seems harder.

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Originally Posted by SOLDIER

I concur; if the game was released 10 or 20 bucks cheaper (which they did for Drakengard), it would've been fine. If they only added some extra moves and more enemies it would've been more fun to actually play. I'm just greatful there's an event viewer (hopefully it'll collect non-CG cutscenes too).



Funny you mention that, as I'm told that the story eventually reaches a new level of absurdity, and not the good kind. I'll have to make it to the end to decide for myself, but so far the story is plausable enough; it shouldn't be a surprise that Shinra would have some extra experiments running around that guys like Rufus wouldn't know about. And the little teaser that suggest that

Spoiler:

maybe Lucrecia had a hand in Vincent's experiment

is also intriguing.

Also, the POV flashback with Hojo just rocked (love the voice they gave him).

The only thing that bugs me is that even though Edge was attacked, there's no mention at all about Cloud and Tifa. I know they show up later, but you'd think Vincent and the others would be worried. On that note, it's a bit silly how Reeve is depending on Vincent alone to save the day. Where the heck is everyone else? Shouldn't Cait Sith be leveled up sufficiently to do some magic damage (even if he was useless)?

And why is Azul so freaking huge?

Yes you can watch EVERY cutscene inlcuding non CG ones.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER

The only thing that bugs me is that even though Edge was attacked, there's no mention at all about Cloud and Tifa. I know they show up later, but you'd think Vincent and the others would be worried. On that note, it's a bit silly how Reeve is depending on Vincent alone to save the day. Where the heck is everyone else? Shouldn't Cait Sith be leveled up sufficiently to do some magic damage (even if he was useless)?

And why is Azul so freaking huge?

You have to assume that Cloud, Tifa, and Barrett all made it out okay.

Spoiler:

They show up later anyway -- on that note, it sounded like all but Barrett's VA from AC made it back in DC -- Barrett's voice didn't sound quite so....Jet Black, as it were.

Because he's Azul the Cerulean AKA BLUE THE BLUE.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

That's just stupid. How long does it take to write something like this?

"What about Cloud and Tifa."

"Don't worry, they managed to escape just in time."

"I see."

It isn't pointless dialogue just because you assume nothing bad happened to them, it just shows that the characters all watch out for one another.

By the way, Shelke is currently my favorite new character. Her story, and her connection to another character makes for interesting drama. In fact, I hope she survives past this game and becomes a regular for the series. Azul is pretty cool too, if only for his imposing size and the biggest goddamn gun since Vulcan Raven.

FELIPE NO

I just got this game and I'm very early in it so I can't say much, but as a first impression the game is all I was expecting. I bought it really only for story and CG/game graphic and that's what I got^^ can't say if the story is good since i'm really early but I can't say that it does seem interresting^^ On another note I like the gameplay, ok yes it far from perfect but for what I expected it's just fun enough to keep me entertained in between cut-scene XD

and even if I don't like to watch AC with the english VA, I think I really do enjoy more vincent and yuffie in dirge of cerberus then in AC, don,t ask me why, they seem to put more effort in their voice acting. Well I can't understand that Vincent and Yuffie has more lines in this game then they did in AC ^^ btw anyone know if the VA for Yuffie is the same one as in KH2?

What, you don't want my bikini-clad body?

My exact same thoughts and opinions have just been conveyed by Inhert, just to save you readers from reading pratically the same thing twice. ^^

As for your question Inhert, the same VA did Yuffie in KH2 & 1, FFVII: AC and DoC (she is also Kim Possible on the cartoon of the same name)

If you would like to know anything else about voice actors roles, just reffer to the IMDB

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Except you and IMDB are wrong; Yuffie wasn't played by Romano in KH2. I'm still unsure who's playing her in this game, since the two actresses sound so identical. I do hope that they just pick someone and stick with her from now on.

That said, Yuffie sure has grown after 3 years. Of all the characters, she's shown the most aging. It might be hard to recognize her in the next few entries, depending how far they'll take the series chronologically.

pain ala yuffie <3

Wow, the body count is huge in this one.

Spoiler:

Watching what Deep Ground is doing with the captured townspeople, feeding them to Omegais pretty brutal, especially since there are children involved.

These villains are just merciless. I know Square would've never gone for it, but I really wish this game had an M rating. It just gets a bit silly after a while to see frequent headshots with no blood involved. The story and atmosphere is already darker than any entry in the FF series, so an M rating would've really enhanced the tone.

I am seriously enjoying the flashbacks with Vincent and Lucrecia (and a certain doctor...). It's like the brief Vincent flashbacks from the original game, retooled and with all the missing parts filled in. I can't wait to see what they're going with it, but I really hope my longterm theory pans out. The results would be spectacular if they did.

Spoiler:

that Hojo is not Sephiroth's biological father. Which can only mean....

And don't bother replying to that, as I won't read it til I finish the game.

I like how the Shinra mansion has all the rooms from the original game (Vincent's coffin, the operating table, the spiral stairs). At least Square gets points for accuracy.

I think I might end up liking Vincent over Cloud. He's just as angsty, but he never whines about it. In fact he's practically humble and sarcastic about his situation.

Also, they better tell you how Cait Sith is prounounced, and it better not be anything other than the obvious (Kate Sith).

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Dark Nation

I just saw one of the phones that MIGHT be able to play Before Crisis today on the bus, the swivel kind I mean.

The thing is: Japan is LIGHT YEARS ahead of the rest of the world in terms of general technology, and specifically Cellphones.

Except for the Nokia ones made in Europe of course. In fact, the actual phones available on the market in Japan are basically the same as in Europe. It's not that Japan is ahead with mobiles, America is just way behind the rest of the world.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

It looks like you could be right SOLDIER, I checked wikipedia and it has Mae Whitman there for the role of Yuffie (Kindom Hearts Ultimania has the same thing down for Yuffie aswell). As the startup montage sais at the end of the video on DoC this is the final entry in the FFVII series as far as the timeline goes. We still have Crisis Core to come out here, but that is a prequel to FFVII and Yuffie more then likely won't be in it.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

I got this game on the 16th of this month, and have been playing it alot since then (I beat it earlier today). I played in Normal Mode, so that I'll have a better sense of the controls the second time around when I play it again in Hard Mode.

Now, on to the review. If you've been following the video reviews on IGN or Gametrailers, or have read the review at RPGFan, leading up to the release date, they've pretty much not had too good of things to say about it. So, having already reserved it before listening/watching/reading these reviews, I was a tad skeptical at first. However, after the first area/level/town (Kalm) I began to thoroughly enjoy it. The only annoying thing in the beginning was the controls for the gun. As you may know, there is a "Config" tab in the main menu that allows you to set the speeds of the different cameras (i.e. horizontal/vertical/inverted/normal gun sight and horizontal/vertical/inverted/normal regular [out of battle]) and also designate whatever button you please to the numerous controls (i.e. shoot, jump, etc). I left the buttons as-is, but adjusted the cameras to my liking. Granted it took a while to get used to my choices, it became second nature by the second or third level/area.

Battles are fairly straight forward. You can either run in with guns blazing, which I tend to do unless I'm absolutely certain I'll get my ass kicked, or you can take the strategic route and utilize any rocks/walls/pipes/doors/etc for cover, while peeking out to pick off your foes when you feel it's safe to do so. Sometimes the aim/sight of your gun goes a little off when your trying to home in on an enemy, but not much. The battles are loads of fun and get your blood pumpin', really enjoyable.

Now for the voice actors. Sometimes SE doesn't make the best choices for their voice cast *cough*Mena Suvari*cough-cough* but this game is an exception. the guy who plays Vincent does lots of anime work, well...I don't watch anime anymore but I remember he was Shishio on that Kenshin show and was also the bad guy in an anime about wolves, and I must say he's quite good. I should point out that he intentionally made his voice deeper for the Vincent you play than the Turk Vincent you see in the numerous flash backs (which sounds more natural than the in-game Vincent). Either way though, he's still good, A.

Yuffie Kisaragi...not bad. Played again by the same girl who played her in the KH games, although slightly more over-the-top...which gets annoying sometimes. Overall though, I love her character, and despite the actress' over-the-topness, it's obvious she's very energetic and into her role, which is never a bad thing, A-.

Cid Highwind...meh. Though he talks like I imagined he would...the actor doesn't portray him quite as well as he could (I'm a poet and I didn't even knowet... >_>). If he put a little more energy into his role he'd be loads better, C.

Cloud Strife...also meh. I'm really not sure why SE hires screen actors for voice over work, other than for publicity. It would seem they are two different types of acting that require their own training. I really wish they looked a little harder to find a more suitable voice for Cloud, although this guy does get his attitude right. He did a bit better in Advent Children, but still...not as energetic/enthusiastic as he could be, C.

Barret Wallace...interesting. From what little I heard of his voice, it would seem SE hired a new guy to play his part than the one we heard in Advent Children, who I thought suited him very well. Not that this guy's bad...just maybe a bit...different, B.

Tifa Lockhart...HURRAY! This actress fits Tifa perfectly, just as I imagined her to sound like. She was quite good in Advent Children, and she's wowed me again, A.

Cait Sith...wow! I didn't really like him in Advent Children, mainly because I didn't get to hear him talk enough to get used to his Irish/Scottish accent, but he makes it work really well in this game. Funny, enthusiastic, awesome, A+.

Reeve Tuesti...amazing! This actor played Mister Tokuoka in the .hack//Liminality series, and I liked him alot then too. He suits Reeve quite well, and is into his role, A+.

Shalua Rui...WOW! I love this actress, never heard her before, but she is right up there with Reeve and Cait Sith. The way she moves her voice with Shalua's interesting body language is absolutely amazing, A++.

Lucrecia Crescent...also WOW! I never really thought about what she would sound like, but looking back to when I played the original FFVII, this actress fits her perfectly, and is VERY into her role. Almost more so than Shalua. During some of the darker flash backs, she is very emotional (in a good way) and really draws you into what she's feeling, very powerful, A++.

Hojo...hmm. Just as I imagined he'd sound like, this actor is quite good, though a bit squeaky. During the flash backs, where you see him the most, you really love to hate him, A.

[Just a few more, bear with me lol]

Shelke the Transparent...sounds more like KOS-MOS (for those of you who have played the Xenosaga games, for those of you who haven't, it means she sounds slightly robotic, not much emotion. It works for KOS-MOS because...well...she's an android, she's supposed to sound like that). There are times when some emotion shines through and she does a little better, but for the most part...meh, C-.

Azul the Cerulean...not bad. He has a booming, menacing voice that suits his massive size well. Sounds good, A-.

Rosso the Crimson...awesome! Her wicked Transylvanian accent is amazing, menacing, and at the same time beautiful. Methinks this is the same actress who played Helba in the .hack games, just using a Transylvanian accent, but I can't say for sure. So, to sum up: kick ass! A++.

Nero the Sable...*shivers*. This is one creepy dude, I must say, and his voice doesn't make him sound any sweeter (but that's a good thing). His voice matches his character well, bravo buddy! A.

Weiss (pronounced "Vice") the Immaculate...hmm. It's clear he's the main bad guy from early on in the game, as most of the DG (or "Deep Ground") soldiers yell "hail Weiss!" before certain fights. He sounds good, evil in a badass way, A.

And that's it for the voice actors, hope you liked my thorough review of them.

I'm not going to bother much with the music portion of the game, as most of you own or have heard the Japanese OST. However, I will say that there are some unreleased tracks that are really good. I started a thread in the Audio Requests forum, seeking out anyone who can rip the unreleased tracks from the game. So if you can, head on over there and post them in a yousendit/send space/etc link.

Finally, the graphics. I remember reading (I think RPGFan's review) that the graphics were uneven or recycled tile sets or something...but disregard that 'cus the graphics rock! the motion actors did well with the characters, and the backgrounds are vast, detailed, and fun to look at. My only complaint is the lip synching (SP?). SE worked real hard to change the US version of the game, so why couldn't they lip synch? It looks so much better when they do that (like in KH1 and KH2), it helps you get more into the story. They obviously lip synch for the Japanese version but...looks wierd on this side of the Pacific.

Overall, a great game. I don't consider it a flaw like other reviewers do, it's definately worth the buy.

My overall score? You really want to know? ... ... ... you sure?? Ok then...

***********drum role***********

***********drum role***********

9/10

Thanks for readin' folks, have a nice day

I was speaking idiomatically.

Shouldn't this be merged with the FFVII Compilation thread? As I thought it was agreed that all FFVII related discussions were to be left in that thread from now on...

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

I think it's great too, maybe a 8 or 9 from me.

FELIPE NO

Ya, perhaps 9 is more reasonable. I'll change it asap

How ya doing, buddy?

yawn....


While I didnt play the game. I did the HONOR in watching Shinsen-sub's "Movie" of Dirge of Cerberus. Yea... Many called it a carbon copy of Devil May Cry,Gungrave,Chaos Legion,Nano Breaker, Shinobi.

Hey, i wont disagree cause that shit started with DMC.

The NA release is supposedly good with its Emergency tweaks that SE added to the game. Your explanation of the gameplay is just fine but its also a "Yawn" cause we already heard and tried a game like that a looong time ago. If SE was smart, they could've made this an rpg or not rape the game at all (like they are currently doing with that and FFXIII).

As far as everything else goes...

Graphics dont mean shit to me. Its obvious SE will do anything to please FF7 fanatics to buy the damn thing only cause the word FINAL FANTASY is on it And of course, Add realistic backgrounds ,etc.If you're going to milk a series do it right.

Characters dont really mean shit to me cause its not like they made a big role in this. They were basically a cut/copy/paste characters from FFAC. Just Eye Candy.

Although I am interested in the music. This was done by Masashi Hamauzu if im correct. The only turn off is the overrated GACKT.

Overall : I'd give this game a 6.5/10. I got this game at a fair price of 18 bucks from a friend cause he said it was "G for Garbage" . Heh.. No Way in Hell im getting this game for 50 bucks. Its not worth the keep and memory for those that haven't purchased it yet. I could've bought some plain white t's with 18 bucks. Only a rental is good enough.


Nice Recommendation though , Vash. Im sure others will be interested. There is Crisis Core at least <rolleyes>

Jam it back in, in the dark.

I'll merge this with the FFVII Thread.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

I don't know why so many people think Barret is a different voice actor than the one in AC. It's the same guy, I confirmed it in the credits of DoC: Beau Billingslea (played Jet Black in Cowboy Bebop and has done a ton more acting work).

Beat the game tonight. Story is good, probably better than AC. The whole thing would have done much better as a full-on CG movie sequel to AC. I mean, they already rendered like 20 minutes of CG for this game. Anything to get rid of the horrible, horrible gameplay sections.

Basically, the in-game cinematics ran on and on and got repetitive. The entire Lucrecia story started off interesting, then got muddled and boring. How many times must we hear this woman whine and say "I'm so sorry." Not to mention the frequent load times in-between every bit of dialogue or scene change. It just stretched out a story that could have been told in 2 hours into a 9-hour borefest.

Music was top-notch, excellent all the way to the end.

However, wasn't there supposed to be a live-action Gackt cameo? I thought they filmed him and made him look CG-ish to act as one of the characters in the game?

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Quote:

I don't know why so many people think Barret is a different voice actor than the one in AC. It's the same guy, I confirmed it in the credits of DoC: Beau Billingslea (played Jet Black in Cowboy Bebop and has done a ton more acting work).

Thank God. It was retarded when they didn't reuse him for Helmer in XS, it'd be equally stupid to change him with Barret. Can you confirm which girl played Yuffie?

Also, a part of me really wants to just blaze through the game, because I'm really curious about all this Gackt business that people are really whining about (especially in Penny Arcade). Is the story behind his character so ridiculous that it deserves all this forum ire, or is it just pointless haters whining just because he's played by Gackt?

Quote:

However, wasn't there supposed to be a live-action Gackt cameo? I thought they filmed him and made him look CG-ish to act as one of the characters in the game?

I was wondering the same thing, but I guess we should be thankful they didn't do that.

Quote:

How many times must we hear this woman whine and say "I'm so sorry."

Seconded. Whatever she did, it had better be worth all those apologies.

I am a dolphin, do you want me on your body?

Ah never mind about the Gackt thing, you can see it on YouTube (or collect all the G-Files in the game, there are 3 of them) under "dirge of cerberus secret ending."

It's not that long, but it sets up a new character. I'm pretty meh about it. I'd rather this game have ended most of the FF7 stuff (then have Crisis Core just fill in some background).

Oh, and maybe it was just me, but the entire premise behind this game (all of the Omega stuff) is essentially a rip-off of Evangelion. I mean, a lot of animes and games have apocalyptic storylines, but this had the exact same purpose.

spoils both Eva and Dirge:

...you know, how the Evangelion / Omega Weapon will gather all life on the planet then drift among the stars to survive for all eternity or whatever.

Aw well, at least I'm a fan of Eva. Maybe that's why I found this one more epic than Advent Children.

I was speaking idiomatically.

I definetely felt a big apocalyptic vibe in this game like in Evangelion; like I said before, the bodycount is huge in this game, and between this, the original game, and AC (though I don't think too many people died in that one, since most of the chaos was in the center of Edge), I wonder how many NPCs are left standing. Hopefully the series won't end the way Eva did though.

It does seem to be a trend for Nomura to rip off a lot of ideas from animes. The Tsviets are basically the Gung-Ho Guns (Trigun), and Organization XIII is an almost exact match of the Sins from Full Metal Alchemist.

And while I'm still debating whether it's a good idea to end the series forever with at least one more game, or if they can still milk things for a bit longer, I didn't want Dirge to be the final game; it just didn't feel right with Vincent ending things off. The series began with Cloud, and it should end with Cloud. Also as an RPG.

What kind of toxic man-thing is happening now?

Not to mention just how awkward it feel having an optional character from the original title finish the series off. :/ No offense to Vincent, as he is the third most-popular character. Hopefully they'll end things with that SURPRISE REMAKE LOL but probably not.

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