Rufus Shinra



Rufus Shinra (ルーファウス神羅, Rūfausu Shinra) is a character from Final Fantasy VII and one of the game's main antagonists. He acted as Vice President of the Shinra Corporation through Before Crisis and Crisis Core, and as President through most of Final Fantasy VII. He most likely gained the title due to the fact that he is President Shinra's son. According to Case of Shinra, Rufus was born in 1982, making him 25 years old in ''Final Fantasy VII.

Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
Rufus plays a major role in the mobile game Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-. He is the main financier for the eco-terrorist group AVALANCHE, and feeds them key information to allow for their success. Along with the other Shinra Executives, Rufus took part in meetings and strategy, and had special access to his father, personally discussing key issues as the second-in-command. Rufus had no interest in the Planet or its fate while funding AVALANCHE, rather he was using the organization as a way that he could take power from his father. It is obvious early in Before Crisis that Shinra has a traitor, but it it not revealed to be Rufus until Episode 14 in Wutai. He is captured by the Turks in Episode 16 during the attack on the Old Corel. The Turks use Rufus as leverage with President Shinra so that they can save their commander Verdot, and his daughter, Elfé, the commander of AVALANCHE. Afterwards, Rufus is neither killed nor stripped of his title for being a traitor. President Shinra orders him to be placed under house-arrest in Junon. His absence is explained by claiming that he is on an "extended assignment overseas".

Final Fantasy VII
During Sephiroth's attack on Shinra Headquarters in Midgar, the Shinra executive Palmer called Junon for help, Rufus responded by hopping on a helicopter to Midgar to take command of the company. By the time he arrived, mostly everyone in the building was dead, including President Shinra, Rufus' father.

After a brief fight against Cloud Strife, during which he uses a double-barreled sawed-off shotgun and is accompanied by his Guard Hound, Dark Nation, Rufus flees the building. It is eventually restored and Rufus resumes normal operations as the President of the Shinra Corporation. Unlike his father, who ruled with money and power, Rufus claims that he will rule by fear.

Rufus decides to go after Sephiroth, and follows him across the Planet with an entourage of Shinra Executives. The next time Rufus is seen by AVALANCHE is when they board his cargo ship from Junon to Costa del Sol. He never interacts with them. His attempts to take control of Cid Highwind's Tiny Bronco airplane are foiled when Cloud's crew help the pilot escape in said plane.

Rufus is encountered again when he is confronted by Cloud at the Northern Crater, which Shinra believes to be the Promised Land. Afterward, he tries to have Tifa Lockhart and Barret Wallace publicly executed to help calm the panic from Sephiroth's summoned Meteor. His plans are foiled when Sapphire WEAPON attacks Junon and causes enough confusion for the two to escape on the Highwind.

Rufus is seen one last time in Final Fantasy VII when he has the Sister Ray cannon moved from Junon to Midgar in order to destroy Diamond Weapon and the barrier surrounding Sephiroth. As he launches the cannon, Diamond Weapon launches its own attack on Midgar, which hits on-level with the President's office, from which he is overseeing the operation. Due to the damage, no one can reach the office to find a body, so he is simply presumed dead. However, he "ducked". The opening of Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- further revealed he was alive, being loaded into the helicopter during Meteorfall.

Novella
Rufus and the Turks are the central characters in On the Way to a Smile: Case of Shinra. Rufus escapes death in Diamond Weapon's attack by using a hidden escape tunnel his father built for when Rufus would need it. Taking refuge in Kalm, Rufus is taken prisoner by Mutten Kylegate while the Turks are absent and is interrogated, where he reveals his plan to construct the city of Edge east of Midgar. After escaping with the help of Kilmister, Rufus helps him recover Hojo's research from Midgar to discover the origins of Geostigma, which Kilmister knows is connected to Jenova. Though Kilmister is eventually killed, Rufus still orders the Turks to locate Jenova's remains and keep them safe from being used by others.

Advent Children/Advent Children Complete
In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Rufus reveals himself to Cloud and that he was under the protection of the Turks for the two year period, living with them in the Healen Lodge in a wheelchair, covered by a white sheet which is supposedly hiding his Geostigma, being in the final stages of the disease. Seemingly reformed and renouncing his past cruelty, Rufus explains that his near-death experience opened his eyes to the truth and now desires to undo the chaos his company brought onto the world. Near the movie's climax, he backed up his resolve as he removes the sheet and stands from the wheelchair. The sheet seems to have only been around him to hide the head of Jenova from Kadaj. He has something of a shootout with the villain after throwing the container off the ledge with him and Kadaj plunging after it. Like most of the characters, he is cured of Geostigma at the end, prolonging the life of the Shinra family and Rufus' chance for further redemption.

In Advent Children Complete, in a new opening scene, after Kadaj asks Rufus why mankind bothers to constantly rebuild after destroying everything they make, Rufus tells him that people rebuild in order to "guild the past" and rid themselves of a recent problem. Kadaj assumes that Rufus means Geostigma, something he says Shinra brought upon the Planet. Kadaj says that Rufus has a short memory, Rufus objects and says that it's his choice to forget. In the scene he is revealed, Rufus explains to Cloud that Sephiroth's will in the Lifestream is the cause of Geostigma rather than Mako energy as the populace believes.

Rufus in the film was covered with a sheet so as to hide his face, and his voice was also made soft and deceptive to give him a sense of mystery. Toru Okawa, who voiced Rufus in the Japanese version of the film, stated he got the impression that Rufus was the type of person who was always hiding something, and states that the scene where he rises from his wheelchair and casts off his cloak is one of his favorites, where Rufus reveals his secrets at last. Okawa also noted that Rufus' line "a good son would have known" has become a fan favorite, and Nomura has joked that the irony is that such a line comes from Rufus. Nomura said that Okawa's voice had an undertone of mystery and elegance, and was perfect for Rufus's part: "Only someone like Rufus, a big shot president, would be able to jump off a building without hesitation and expect his Turks to take care of everything".

Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-
It is hinted at in the game Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII- that he is secretly funding the World Regenesis Organization headed by Reeve Tuesti, who had a feeling his mysterious benefactor was someone who owed "a debt to the planet" (nearly quoting Rufus Shinra's words to Cloud from Advent Children word for word). His signature white jacket is seen in the opening of Dirge of Cerberus as Rufus is being loaded into an emergency transport while Yuffie is evacuating a sector of Midgar during Meteorfall.

Traits
He, like his father, wishes to rule the world. But he doesn't view on taking the world with money, but rather of fear. It is also noted that he makes big speeches. He goes toward lengths to find Sephiroth, such as crossing the ocean on a cargo ship (which ironically was attacked by Sephiroth), sending the Turks to find him, and even using a giant cannon to blast Sephiroth. He is also very strong, as he can handle a shotgun with one hand without even recoiling and he easily holds onto the rails of a helicopter.

Battle
Rufus fights the player alongside Dark Nation.

Musical Themes
Rufus has one theme that plays on his initiation ceremony titled "Rufus' Welcoming Ceremony." "Rufus' Welcoming Ceremony" is also heard in Final Fantasy IX being played by a band on the Prima Vista after it's shot down by Queen Brahne.

Trivia

 * Ever since the appearance of Lazard Deusericus in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, it has been confirmed that Rufus is Lazard's younger half-brother. An infantryman in the director's office tells Zack that he found Lazard to resemble "the V.P.".
 * In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, Rufus is not seen throughout the whole game, but only mentioned in an email from Kunsel to Zack Fair that Rufus had become the Vice President of the company.