Cloud (SSBU)

Cloud (, Cloud) is a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Cloud was confirmed on June 12th, 2018 and is classified as Fighter #61.
 reprises his role as Cloud in all regions, albeit via recycled voice clips from Super Smash Bros. 4. This makes him the first character to remain fully voiced in Japanese in all regions despite having an existing English voice actor. In 's reveal trailer, and as part of the version 10.1.0 update, Sakurai reprises his role as Cloud with new voice lines exclusively for the Advent Children costumes, albeit only for his aesthetically different Omnislash Ver. 5.
Cloud is currently ranked 17th out of 82 characters on the Ultimate tier list, ranking him in the upper half of the A+ tier. This is a noticeable drop from his ranking in Smash 4, where he was ranked 2nd/3rd out of 54 and was tied with . Thanks to his Buster Sword, Cloud has superb range on many of his moves, outranging the majority of the cast. His above-average mobility, fast frame data, fairly large hitboxes, and safe moves grants Cloud a strong advantage state and combo game. His aerials especially are notoriously spammable in neutral, combos, and as edgeguarding options. In addition, Cloud has one of the greatest out-of-shield options in the game, with his Climhazzard making pressuring him and landing against him rather difficult. Finally, all of Cloud's attributes are improved when Limit is in effect, allowing him to perform combos or edgeguards that he would normally be unable to do. 
However, Cloud also has several weaknesses. His greatest weakness is his recovery, as Climhazzard has below-average vertical distance, virtually no horizontal distance, and cannot snap to ledge; as such, a simple hit out of his jump can lead to an early KO. Climhazzard is also unsafe on shield, and Cloud's other options at escaping pressure have drawbacks, leaving Cloud somewhat vulnerable to combos. In addition, Cloud possesses short range on his grab and a weak set of throws, with very limited combo potential at early percents and an inability to KO at higher percents. Finally, Cloud cannot keep Limit indefinitely and has to use it within 15 seconds.
Overall, Cloud is known as a fast character with spammable moves, allowing him to pressure opponents when he's in advantage. Conversely, Cloud can struggle to escape disadvantage and is especially vulnerable offstage; success with Cloud also revolves around how the player utilizes Limit to the fullest. Though Cloud's reputation was lukewarm in the early metagame, it has improved significantly since then, due to 's rise to becoming one of the game's greatest players.
==How to unlock==
Complete one of the following:
*Play VS. matches, with Cloud being the 55th character to be unlocked.
*Clear with or any character in her unlock tree, being the 6th character unlocked after .
*Have Cloud join the player's party in World of Light.
Cloud must then be defeated on Midgar (the Ω form is used in World of Light).
==Attributes==
Cloud is a middleweight swordsman, tied with at 100 units of weight. Despite his weight class, Cloud boasts high overall mobility: he has average walking speed, very fast dashing speed, above-average air speed and average air acceleration, which collectively make him quick both on the ground and in the air. Cloud also has above-average falling speed and high gravity, however, which prevent him from staying in the air for long in spite of his good aerial maneuverability.
While under his unique Limit Break status, Cloud's already impressive mobility improves further. His traction slightly improves, his dashing speed becomes even faster, his falling speed becomes the fourth fastest, and his air speed becomes the fastest in the game under normal circumstances. His increased gravity and falling speed, however, make his jumps slightly lower and prevent him from autocanceling some of his aerial attacks (notably back aerial and up aerial) as easily. As a result, Cloud's Limit Break status only marginally benefits his aerial mobility, but it can nevertheless help him move along the ground better.
Cloud's greatest asset is his effective range, courtesy of his Buster Sword; Cloud's attacks have among the longest reaches in the game and can space out the opponent quite easily, snuff out opposing approaches and adeptly punish most careless attacks due to his speed and range. A prime example of this trait is Cloud's aerial attacks: neutral aerial, despite having its range decreased noticeably in the transition to Ultimate, still covers Cloud's hurtbox well, making it a go-to option for spacing or air-to-ground transition movement. It is also very fast on both ends, can autocancel with a short hop, and has a low launching angle, all of which make it a good edgeguarding and spacing tool despite its below-average knockback.
Up aerial has a rather large hitbox, overall decent speed, a long duration, and decent damage and knockback; altogether, these traits make it effective at juggling and denying landings. Down aerial is not only a very strong meteor smash when sweetspotted, but also possesses a long-lasting late hitbox, which grants it good anti-juggling potential and allows him to follow up into another move if it connects while he is falling. Like up aerial, it also has a long autocancel window, being able to autocancel from a jump regardless of his Limit Break status.
Back aerial has tremendous range, decent power, very low landing lag, and autocancels from a short hop; altogether, these traits allow him to edgeguard and space effectively, and even perform a wall of pain at low percentages. However, it can often miss low opponents due to its minimal vertical range. Forward aerial is very strong when its clean, hitbox connects, and its sweetspot is a powerful meteor smash on aerial opponents. Like down aerial, it autocancels from a jump and has low landing lag in relation to its range and power. However, it has the slowest startup of his aerials, making it his riskiest one to use regardless.
Cloud's grounded moveset, while much less effective than his aerial moveset, nevertheless has its own merits. Neutral attack is his fastest attack, has decent overall range, and its third hit can force a tech-chase. Forward tilt has serviceable speed and respectable power, which make it a decent KO option at high percentages. However, its moderate ending lag and very low base knockback make it unsafe on hit at low percentages if it not spaced sufficiently. Down tilt is a low-profile sliding kick and is reasonably quick; while these traits make it useful primarily for avoiding projectiles and putting the opponent into a disadvantageous state, its final frames also allow it to combo into his neutral and up aerials at low percentages. Up tilt is a reliable combo starter, as it can combo into itself at low percentages and into neutral, back and up aerials at medium percentages. While it can even combo into up smash at low to medium percentages, this combo is heavily dependent on the opponent's reaction.
Dash attack is a quick punishing option from a distance, and its respectable power enables its clean hit to either KO at reasonable percentages or, at worst, put an opponent in an unfavorable position. However, like forward tilt, it is easily punished when shielded or avoided. In regard to Cloud's smash attacks, up smash covers a very large arc, has decent speed, and rather high knockback despite its middling damage output. As a result, it is among his best and least risky KOing options out of his standard moveset. Forward smash is Cloud's most powerful non-Limit Break move, though to compensate it also takes the longest to start and is very punishable if it whiffs. Down smash is also prone to punishment if the front hit is avoided, but it drags the opponent into the back hit if it connects, with the latter being a strong semi-spike.
Cloud's special moveset also offers interesting options. Blade Beam is a projectile with good range and activity, making it useful for forcing approaches, though it gets weakened over the duration and has rather high endlag, which hampers its otherwise useful utility. It also stalls Cloud in the air, giving it additional, albeit situational, utility in guard breaking. Cross Slash is similar to Dancing Blade and Double-Edge Dance, as it requires additional inputs from the player to initiate the remaining slashes. In contrast, it has wider input windows, but the full move is only allowed to continue if all hits connect. It can also stall Cloud in the air, just like Blade Beam, though much more briefly. Climhazzard is similar to Aether and Final Cutter, as it is an ascending slash, but differs from them in that it can be followed by an optional descending slash. This allows Cloud to mix-up his recovery and enables Climhazzard to function as his fastest out of shield option, though it is very risky to use.
In reference to Final Fantasy VII, Cloud possesses a unique Limit Break mechanic. It is indicated by the Limit Gauge, which is displayed above his damage meter and becomes visible while charging it to show its progress, similarly to the Power Meter. Cloud can charge his Limit Gauge by inflicting 150%, receiving 100%, or by manually charging it for 5.58 seconds via his down special, Limit Charge. Unlike most other chargeable special moves, it can be canceled with a simple special move button press. When the Limit Gauge is full, Cloud gets a boost to all of his movement attributes except for attack speed, allowing him to move very quickly across the stage and in the air, with his overall mobility almost rivaling that of and . In addition, all of Cloud's special attacks are given a single-use power boost that enables them to KO reliably around 90%-120%.
Limit Charge is also converted to Finishing Touch, a spinning slash with such tremendous knockback that can KO most characters around 60%-70%. It also emits a whirlwind that pushes away opponents, making it harder to punish and providing Cloud a situational method of gimping weak recoveries. With the exception of Finishing Touch, all Limit Break specials are also granted brief intangibility upon start-up, as well as additional properties: Blade Beam is faster, stronger, and gains transcendent priority; Cross Slash requires no additional button inputs and strikes five times immediately, has very low ending lag in relation to its immense power, and stalls Cloud completely in the air; and Climhazzard grants more vertical distance and much more horizontal momentum, as well as having the ability to sweetspot an edge at any time. With all these benefits underneath the Limit Break status, players must be wary of this, as one small slip-up from the opponent can give Cloud the perfect opportunity to strike and turn the tide of battle instantaneously, making Cloud's Limit Break a mechanic that should not be taken lightly when in the hands of a competent player.
However, Cloud has some notable flaws. The most prominent one is his poor recovery; despite his aerial mobility and jump height being arguably better than most sword-wielding characters, his diagonal speed remains slow when compared to them, making him prone to edgeguarding and gimping, and making it mandatory to stay a safe distance within reaching the edge. Climhazzard is also a poor recovery move for many reasons: it grants below average vertical distance, little horizontal momentum, its ascending hit is completely incapable of edge sweetspotting, and its descending hit cannot edge sweetspot until it covers slight distance. The last problem about Cloud's recovery is that if he gets grabbed near the edge and gets air released while lacking access to his double jump, he will not be able to return to the stage unless he properly times a Blade Beam to stall towards the edge, uses aerials or air dodges to reset his momentum, or possesses a Limit Break. These factors make Cloud's recovery among the riskiest and most ineffective without use of his wall jump or Limit Break Climhazzard (which loses the active hitbox near the end of his ascent, making it less safe than the regular Climhazzard in some situations).
Another of Cloud's glaring flaws is his terrible grab game, being among the worst in the game. His grabs possess low range while having relatively high startup for a non-tether grab, his throws' damage outputs are mediocre and, barring down throw, they lack combo potential. Forward and back throws' decent speed are significantly offset by the problematic combination of their virtual lack of combo potential and low knockback scaling, both failing to KO before 300% unless the opponent is light, Cloud has rage, and/or is at the edge upon performing them. Back throw can be used as a situational tech-chase option, but even then is largely ineffective in this role. Up and down throws both have misleading power, with the former failing to KO until well beyond 200%. Up throw has too much ending lag to set up combos reliably, while down throw lacks reliable combos at low percentages and loses all of its combo potential past low percentages if the opponent DIs properly due to its more horizontal angle. Ironically, it is also Cloud's only throw that can KO below 200% with exception of up throw KOing slightly earlier on platform stages.
Although Cloud's range, combo options and Blade Beam collectively grant him a strong neutral game, he has a below-average approach at best. His approach options are linear: dash attack is easily punishable, neutral aerial's hitbox starts from behind him, and up aerial is very predictable as well as surprisingly punishable on shield if it is not spaced properly. This is further compounded by his other attacks lacking the frame data or the utility to be used as reliable approach options, such as his poor grab game.
Cloud also lacks a reliable means of escaping pressure. His neutral attack and down tilt are his fastest ground options, while Climhazzard is a great out of shield option. However, they are noticeably unsafe on shield, while none of his fast aerial attacks start from in front or below him. Down aerial's late hitbox can be used to escape juggling directly from below him, but its otherwise narrow hitbox allows opponents to hit Cloud laterally. Thus, Cloud is fairly easy to combo, and is just as easily forced on the defensive if his attacks are improperly spaced.
Aside from Limit Charge, Cloud's special moves have some noticeable weaknesses. Blade Beam is relatively slow in regard to start-up and ending lag, as well as depreciating in damage over time or when used in the air, all of which make it less effective for spamming. Cross Slash is inconsistent with linking all five of its hits due to SDI or landing different parts of the hitboxes, along with being very vulnerable to stale-move negation because of its reliability as a damage racking option. In addition to its aforementioned weaknesses in regard to recovery, Climhazzard is also can be punishable if shielded and DI'd out of, while all of his specials only boast KO power when they are boosted by the Limit Break.
The Limit Break mechanic itself is also problematic: it acts as a double-edged sword, as it increases Cloud's fall speed and gravity at full charge, making recovery without the use of Climhazzard deceptively difficult, and rendering Cloud even easier to combo at medium percentages. It makes precise use of his special attacks mandatory, as his Limit Break specials can still be blocked and possess limited range. While Limit Blade Beam can be used as a ranged KOing option, it can just as easily be reflected or otherwise avoided at the tip of its range, leaving Cloud wide open to punishment. Finishing Touch deals only 1% and has very high ending lag that renders Cloud vulnerable if the slash or whirlwind do not hit. Finally and most notably, his Limit will be depleted if it is not used in 15 seconds, requiring Cloud to either "go big or go home" with the charge in a short amount of time, which could potentially be a huge turnabout on him at the wrong time.
Overall, Cloud has all the tools required to be successful, yet the player must manage these resources to the best of their ability and avoid being thrown off the stage at all times. These abilities also, more often then not, force the player to be vulnerable before they can be used effectively. Even though Cloud has many playstyles applicable to him, the combination of all of the traits above make him a fundamentals-oriented character most of the time, much like , and .
==Changes from Super Smash Bros. 4==
Cloud was previously considered to be one of the best characters in SSB4 and widely considered the second best character, after , due to a myriad of advantages, including deceptively lingering hitboxes, excellent speed-to-range ratio (with very quick mobility, surprising frame data and very generous autocancel windows), and a powerful advantage in the form of his Limit Gauge, which further boosted his mobility, allowing him to force approaches and also pose a constant threat due to his unique Limit Break special attacks. All these factors shined brighter in doubles play, where teams containing at least one Cloud were notorious within the community for their prominence and disproportionate effectiveness (statistically, Cloud in doubles held more dominance than even in Brawl singles). Likely as a result of his dominance, Cloud was initially noticeably nerfed in his transition to Ultimate, though he did remain a potent character, and buffs from game updates, the revamped gameplay physics, and general optimizations in the metagame have proven very benefitial to him. In bulk, Cloud has been moderately nerfed overall.
Cloud's nerfs have primarily addressed his most powerful moves and traits. Limit Charge can no longer be instant charge-canceled since it incurs 7 frames of lag when canceling a charge, will have its charge neutralized if Cloud is hit during the process of charging, and Limit's mobility and special move buffs now end on their own after 15 seconds if none of his Limit Break special moves are used. These changes result in Cloud's Limit mechanic no longer being able to be kept for mindgames or a lasting stat boost, and forces him to be more cautious of both charging and activating it, vastly reducing the sheer game changing abilities it once had in the previous game.
Disregarding the changes to landing lag, Cloud's infamous aerial game has also been toned down. Neutral aerial has a new animation that significantly reduces its range, making it less safe and effective for spacing. Down aerial's lingering hitbox ends earlier and has more ending lag, making it much harder to follow up in midair and riskier to use to combat juggling. His notorious up aerial has seen the most substantial nerfs: its increased startup with no animation change significantly reduces its range below him, the clean hit has smaller hitboxes, and the whole move has worsened KO ability and autocancel window; these changes almost completely remove its ability to start combos on grounded opponents, and reduce its incontestability as well as its previously respectable KO power.
Cloud's already poor grab game was also hindered even further; despite his faster pummel and his slower animations now matching his grabs' startup, down throw has lost its already lacking combo potential, and the universal nerfs to grabs have slightly reduced dash grab's already lackluster range and made his own grabs slower and more punishable. Finally, other minor nerfs were to his smash attacks, as forward smash has slightly more ending lag and less range, and down smash's damage and KO power were reduced.
Despite these changes, the changes to game physics have significantly benefited Cloud. The reductions to landing lag benefit Cloud more than most characters, as his aerials' lower landing lag now give him a more conventional combo game since he can follow up from them more consistently (most notably with his forward, back and up aerials, the latter despite its stricter autocancel window), and combined with his Buster Sword's respectable range and excellent mobility, this also drastically benefits his spacing game (most infamously with his back aerial, now widely considered the best in the game). On that note, much like the returning cast, Cloud now sports even faster mobility, making him harder to catch and easier for him to keep up with the cast. The changes to air dodge mechanics improve his edgeguarding game and keep his juggling prowess mostly intact despite his other nerfs, and the reintroduction of directional air dodges allow him to extend his notoriously weak horizontal recovery when his Limit Meter is not fully charged, and now make him much harder to gimp if he is grabbed during Climhazzard. The ability to dash cancel into any ground move and the introduction of spot dodge canceling both allow Cloud to make even better use of his ground attacks to approach and KO, making his ground game more imposing.
Cloud has also received a fair share of buffs to his less impressive moves. Dash attack and up smash are now much more reliable KO options thanks to their increased knockback. His special moves have also been given some noteworthy improvements without the need for Limit. Blade Beam has ending lag, making it less punishable and giving Cloud a semi-reliable camping tool. Climhazzard has much lower landing lag and transitions quicker, now making it one of the most reliable and infamous out of shield options in the game; it can also be teched at the end of the move, snaps to ledge faster when using the downward slash, and KOs more consistently if used offstage due to the changes to meteor smashes, making it more consistent for sacrificial KOs. Limit Charge now allows Cloud to jump or air dodge out of it, charges significantly faster when he inflicts damage, and is now displayed above his damage meter.
While Limit has seen detriments to its duration, it has also seen some improvements: his Limit Gauge fills faster via inflicting damage and especially via Limit Charge, allowing Cloud to use his Limit Break special moves much more frequently than in SSB4. Lastly, Finishing Touch is an even more potent KO move: it has less startup, noticeably more knockback, and its grounded version's late hit had its vertical range increased to the point that it can hit opponents on the bottom platforms of Battlefield form stages.
Overall, Cloud's nerfs have toned down his most oppressive factor and further defined his weaknesses. Limit's temporary duration now forces Cloud to approach more and optimize its usage, and his further weakened grab game and powerful tools now necessitate him to play even more aggressively than ever before. He also still retains his very exploitable recovery, which has seen no substantial improvements, as his faster air mobility doesn't compensate for this. However, his buffs to his other tools and the huge shifts to the engine have benefitted his aggressive options, as his damage-racking game is mostly intact thanks to his improved combo game, and he can now Limit space his moves with more liberty while being ironically harder to punish him, as well as KO more easily without the need to rely on Limit; many of these buffs have also been granted to him through game updates. As a result, Cloud remains a fundamentally solid character with a relatively low learning curve and effective tools, and while he is not as overpowered and performs worse than in SSB4, he's still considered to be a very strong character in Ultimate, especially in competitive play.
==Update history==
Aside from a single nerf to Blade Beam in update 3.0.0, Cloud was buffed via game updates. While updates 2.0.0 and 3.1.0 provided only negligible improvements, update 7.0.0 buffed Cloud much more in comparison. Most notably, his inconsistent KO potential (one of his biggest weaknesses) was alleviated in a few ways: clean dash attack became a viable KOing option thanks to its higher knockback, up smash is faster overall and its sweetspot gained more knockback, and Limit Charge fills the Limit Gauge much faster. In addition, Cloud received a few quality of life buffs: forward smash's hits connect more reliably, Climhazzard snaps to an edge earlier, and his shield was enlarged as part of a near-universal buff. 
Lastly, update 13.0.1 decreased Finishing Touch's overall lag to the point that it is not only safer to use, but also much easier to perform from setups at certain percentages.
Overall, Cloud fares better than he did at the launch of Ultimate.
 
 
 
 
 
 
==Moveset==
*Cloud has a unique fighter ability called the Limit Gauge. Over the course of normal play, the Limit Gauge will be filled automatically by inflicting or receiving damage. Alternatively, it can be filled manually by using his down special move, Limit Charge. The Limit Gauge is always present above his damage meter and will display its current state of charge. When it is filled up, Cloud's body will emit a blue, fiery aura and he will gain upgraded, single use versions of his special moves alongside enhanced mobility for the duration of the charge.
*Cloud can wall jump.
For a gallery of Cloud's hitboxes, see here.
===Stats===
===Announcer call===
Cloud English Announcer SSB4-SSBU.wav|English/Japanese/Chinese
Cloud French Announcer SSBU.wav|French
Cloud Russian Announcer SSBU.wav|Russian
===On-screen appearance===
*Descends from the sky and catches the Buster Sword with a flourish. Based on his landing animation from after Omnislash Ver. 5 in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children.
CloudOnScreenAppearanceSSBU.gif|Cloud's on-screen appearance.
===Taunts===
*Up taunt: Twirls the Buster Sword and places it behind his back. It is almost identical to his victory animation and the official artwork from , while saying ("I'm not interested."), his catchphrase from Final Fantasy VII.
*Side taunt: Performs his magic casting animation from Final Fantasy VII, complete with the sound effect and aura from that game.
*Down taunt: Leans on the Buster Sword while scoffing. It resembles the cocky pose he assumes in many cutscenes throughout Final Fantasy VII.
SSBUCloudTaunt1.gif|Cloud's up taunt.
SSBUCloudTaunt2.gif|Cloud's side taunt.
SSBUCloudTaunt3.gif|Cloud's down taunt.
===Idle poses===
*Pulls the Buster Sword back and rubs the edge of its blade.
*Holds the Buster Sword upward in front of himself with both hands.
SSBUCloudIdle1.gif|Cloud's first idle pose.
SSBUCloudIdle2.gif|Cloud's second idle pose.
===Crowd cheer===
 	Cheer (English) 	Cheer (Japanese/Chinese)	Cheer (Italian) 	Cheer (Dutch) 	Cheer (German/French)
Cheer 	 	 	 	 	
Description	Cloud! - Cloud! - Cloud!	Ku - rau -do! 	Forza Cloud! *claps 5 times*	Cloud! Cloud! Clo - Clo - Cloud!	Cloud! *claps 2 times*
 	Cheer (Spanish) 	Cheer (Russian)	Cheer (Korean)
Cheer 	 	 	
Description	Cloud, Cloud, y na - die más!	Cloud! Cloud! 	Keu - lla - u - deu!
===Victory poses===
*Left: Twirls the Buster Sword with one hand and places it on his back with his eyes closed and says "", which translates to "No hard feelings." Based on his victory animation in Final Fantasy VII.
*Up: While turning away from the camera, he twirls the Buster Sword, places it on his back and then looks to the left while hiding his face, saying "", which translates to "Better luck next time." Based on his appearance in the North American box art of Final Fantasy VII and his pose when he first enters Shinra Headquarters. 
*Right: Dashes into the screen, slashes the Buster Sword twice and gets in his battle stance while saying "", which translates to "You cannot defeat me." The slashes resemble Cloud’s animation when using the 2x-Cut command in Final Fantasy VII.
CloudVictoryPose1SSBU.gif
CloudVictoryPose2SSBU.gif
CloudVictoryPose3SSBU.gif
==In competitive play==
===Most historically significant players===
See also: :Category:Cloud players (SSBU)
* - The best Cloud player in Europe, playing the character for his entire competitive career aside from a brief stint with in the first half of 2022. His breakout event was his 7th-place finish at , where he defeated several notable European talent including , , and . In addition to other successful performances outside his region, including 9th at defeating , he has also placed highly at many UK events, including 2nd at defeating and 3rd at .
* - One of the best Cloud players in North America, especially during the online metagame and in 2022, eventually ranking 100th on the UltRank 2022 thanks to noteworthy major performances such as 17th at and 25th at , defeating in the former and in the latter. He has seldomly attended majors since, though he had a notable run to 17th at with a win over , and continues to dominate competitive play in his region.
* - Although better known for his , Kola also played Cloud throughout his competitive career, especially in the early metagame and 2021 where he used Cloud as a co-main, including winning with primarily Cloud and both and using Cloud in crucial sets, in addition to placing 2nd at and 5th at with primarily Cloud. He has since relegated Cloud to a secondary or counterpick in matchups that are less favorable to Roy. 
* - The best Cloud player in Japan in the early metagame. Alongside a series of great performances at and events, he notably placed well at two of the largest events of the early metagame -- 25th at and 33rd at -- despite an overall mixed track record at major events. He has achieved some success in the post-pandemic metagame, including placing 13th at and 17th at ; however, his results became increasingly inconsistent as time went on.
* - One of the best Cloud players in North America. He is best known for his performance at , where he defeated , , and to place 7th, in addition to several other noteworthy performances that year, including 17th at , which led to him ranking 56th on the UltRank 2022. Since then, he remains mostly active in his region, with strong performances such as 13th at and 25th at , and has only made a handful of appearances outside his region, most notably placing 13th at .
* - One of the greatest Ultimate players of all time who was the best in the second half of 2024, and by far the greatest Cloud player of all time, his performances greatly contributing to an improvement in Cloud's community reception. In addition to being one of the earliest successful Cloud players in competitive play, he is also the only Cloud player who remains relevant in top-level play throughout competitive Ultimate, having been frequently ranked among the top 3 since the online metagame. He has won many supermajors, including , , and , and remains the only Cloud player to win a major.
* - The best Cloud player in Japan in the post-pandemic metagame, although similar to Masashi, his major performances have also been inconsistent. His 7th-place finish at remains the only top 8 major finish from a primarily Cloud player other than Sparg0, and he has also placed 9th at and 13th at . In addition, YOC has several noteworthy superregional performances, having placed 5th at both and as well as 7th at , defeating in the latter event.
===Tier placement and history===
While Cloud was initially considered to be an extremely potent character, his results initially saw a significant drop from his Smash 4 days, as most of his best players either moved on from competitive Smash or dropped the character. This is due to Cloud's noticeably worse toolkit and flaws, such as inconsistencies with KOing, the shortened Limit Gauge time, his linear recovery, and his poor grab game, becoming more apparent in the new metagame. As such, players initially considered him to be amongst the lower half of mid tier, with many of his top players even agreeing that he belongs there.
Cloud's reputation improved around the summer of 2019 thanks to the efforts of players such as and , both of whom managed to see consistent national-level success and wins, as well as Cloud's noteworthy buffs in update 7.0.0 which improved his KO power. This perception continued to improve during the COVID-19 pandemic thanks to the efforts of Sparg0, who used both Cloud and the then-newly released and to eventually claim the top spot on the Wi-Fi Warrior Rank v7. When offline competitive play returned, Sparg0 established himself as one of the best players in the world, eventually winning his first major at using mostly Cloud. Since then, most of his tournament performances have been with Cloud, leading many to agree that, while he was still worse than his Smash 4 counterpart, he was still just as viable in Ultimates metagame. As such, Cloud was ranked 10th on the first tier list as a top tier character.
Following the first tier list, players began questioning whether Cloud should really be considered a top tier character. These players pointed out how no other Cloud players came remotely close to Sparg0 in terms of skill level and results; noted how Sparg0 took up 50% of all Cloud results in 2023, with only one other player -- -- taking up more than 5%. In addition, Sparg0 was the only player ranked on the LumiRank 2023 who primarily played Cloud, while all other players ranked with Cloud only used him as a secondary and to a lesser degree of success. On the other hand, with the metagame favoring characters with more patient and campier playstyles, players pointed out how Cloud served as a good counter to some of those characters, which was most apparent with Sparg0's flawless record against and for that year. As such, even with the discourse surrounding Cloud's representation, he was ranked 13th on the second tier list as an A-tier, with the drop mainly being the result of the meteoric rise of and Mr. Game & Watch on the tier list, while also dropping to 17th on the third tier list.
==: A Ride? Not Interested.==
All of Cloud's battles occur on vehicular stages and his opponents are characters associated with them. This is a reference to the fact that he suffers from motion sickness, while his Classic Mode route's title is a direct reference to his catchphrase, "Not interested."
Round 	Opponent 	Stage 	Music 	Notes
1 	 	Spirit Train 	 	References the train that he hops off of in the opening of Final Fantasy VII.
2 	and 	Corneria 	 	A possible reference to the Tiny Bronco, a crashed plane in Final Fantasy VII.
3 	 	Halberd 	 	References the Highwind in Final Fantasy VII.
4 	, , and 	Rainbow Cruise	 	References the similar use of airships in both the Final Fantasy series and series, which are usually depicted as sailing ships that fly through the sky.
5 	 	Big Blue 	 	References the motorcycle chase in Final Fantasy VII.
6 	 	Lylat Cruise 	 	References his trip to space in the Shinra No. 26 during Final Fantasy VII.
Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage 	Bonus Stage
Final 	 	 	(Less than 7.0 intensity) (Intensity 7.0 or higher)	On intensity 7.0 and higher, fights alongside Master Hand.
Credits roll after completing Classic Mode. Completing it as Cloud has accompany the credits.
==Role in World of Light==
Although Cloud does not appear in the World of Light opening cutscene, he was vaporized and later imprisoned alongside the rest of the fighters (with the exception of ) when Galeem unleashed his beams of light.
Cloud was one of the many fighters that fell under Dharkon's control upon Galeem's first defeat. He is unlocked in the Sacred Land sub-area in The Dark Realm, guarding the Master Sword required to dispel the darkness clouding the top part of the land which makes up the Triforce of Power after has been awakened, making his unlocking mandatory.
In Sephiroth's reveal trailer, Cloud is seen in his Advent Children design (specifically the P6 variant as indicated by the ribbon on his left arm) with the other fighters trying to fend off Galeem. When Sephiroth arrives and disposes of Galeem, Cloud recognizes him, and later fights him one-on-one in a manner similar to their final battle in Advent Children. After hitting Sephiroth with Omnislash Ver. 5, he and Sephiroth have an exchange (taken word-for-word from Advent Children) before Sephiroth transforms into Safer∙Sephiroth as a prelude to his own Final Smash.
===Fighter Battle===
No.	Image	Name 	Type	Power 	Stage 	Music
61 	 	Cloud	 	11,200	Midgar (Ω form)	
==Spirits==
Cloud's default fighter spirit can be obtained by completing as Cloud. It is also available periodically for purchase in the shop for 300 Gold, but only after Cloud has been unlocked. Unlocking Cloud in World of Light allows the player to preview the first spirit below in the Spirit List under the name "???". As a fighter spirit, it cannot be used in Spirit Battles and is purely aesthetic. This fighter spirit has an alternate version that replaces them with their artwork in Ultimate. Originally, only Ultimates render of Cloud's default appearance was available for his default fighter spirit. However, update 10.1.0 added artwork of him from Final Fantasy VII for his default fighter spirit.
Cloud's Advent Children outfit also has a fighter spirit of its own, available through the shop, or by completing a challenge (Smash: As Cloud, hit an opponent with his side special, Cross Slash, while the Limit Gauge is charged). Unlike his default fighter spirit, his Advent Children fighter spirit only uses his Ultimate P2 render instead of also featuring alternative artwork from a previous appearance.
SSBU spirit Cloud.png|1,004. Cloud
SSBU spirit Cloud (Advent Children).png|1,005. Cloud (Advent Children)
==In Spirit Battles==
===As the main opponent===
Spirit	Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series 	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music
973 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • 	 	2,500 	Kongo Falls (Battlefield form)	•Sudden Final Smash•Hazard: Zap Floor	•Survive until the timer runs out•The floor is electrified•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash after a little while	 	
973 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • 	 	2,500 	Kongo Falls (Battlefield form)	•Sudden Final Smash•Hazard: Zap Floor	•Survive until the timer runs out•The floor is electrified•The enemy will suddenly have a Final Smash after a little while	 	
1,103 	 	Super Smash Bros. Series 	• Team ×4 (100 HP)	 	9,500 	 	N/A 	•The enemy's melee weapons have increased power•Stamina battle•The enemy has increased move speed and reduced weight 	 	
1,378 	 	ASTRAL CHAIN 	• • Team ×3 	 	4,200 	New Pork City (hazards off) 	•Attack Power ↑•Item: Exploding Types	•The enemy has increased attack power when the enemy's at high damage•Reinforcements will appear after an enemy is KO'd 	 	
1,463 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• (160 HP) 	 	9,800 	Summit (Ω form) 	•Move Speed ↑•Hazard: Ice Floor 	•The floor is frozen•Stamina battle•The enemy has increased move speed 	 	
===As a minion===
Spirit	Spirit 	Spirit 	Spirit	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters 	Battle parameters	Battle parameters	Inspiration
No. 	Image 	Name 	Series	Enemy Fighter(s) 	Type 	Power 	Stage 	Rules 	Conditions 	Music 	Character
1,442 	 	FINAL FANTASY Series 	• • 	 	7,500 	Fountain of Dreams 	•Health Recovery 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy is healed after a little while	 	Cloud Strife 	
1,442 	• (Moveset 1312, Aerith's outfit, Normal Voice Type 6)•	FINAL FANTASY Series 	 	 	7,500 	Fountain of Dreams 	•Health Recovery 	•Defeat the main fighter to win•The enemy is healed after a little while	 	Cloud Strife 	
1,461 	 	Xenoblade Chronicles Series	• • • 	 	3,800 	Jungle Japes (Battlefield form)	N/A 	•Defeat the main fighter to win 	 	Jin 	
This alternative occurs when the corresponding DLC has been purchased and downloaded.
==Alternate costumes==
Cloud's default costume is based on his appearance in Final Fantasy VII while accommodating some changes to his design originating from Dissidia Final Fantasy, namely the redesigned SOLDIER logo on his belt and a redesigned pauldron. He has an alternate costume based on his appearance in , known as "Cloudy Wolf" in Dissidia Final Fantasy, which replaces the Buster Sword with the Fusion Sword. It has two minor variants: one with a long sleeve covering Cloud's left arm to hide the visible signs of his Geostigma, and the other revealing Cloud's left arm after he has been cured of Geostigma, as well as a pink ribbon wrapped around it, which he and his party wear in memory of Aerith Gainsborough.
							
							
==Gallery==
Link Kirby Mario and Cloud artwork.png|Link, Kirby, Mario, and Cloud artwork, as posted by Tetsuya Nomura's official Twitter account.
SSBU Cloud Number.png|Cloud's fighter card.
Cloud unlock notice SSBU.jpg|Cloud's unlock notice.
SSBUWebsiteCloud1.jpg|On Gaur Plain.
SSBUWebsiteCloud2.jpg|Posing on the Bridge of Eldin.
SSBUWebsiteCloud3.jpg|Using Cross Slash on on the Umbra Clock Tower.
SSBUWebsiteCloud4.jpg|Charging up his Limit Charge on Midgar.
SSBUWebsiteCloud5.jpg|Cloud on Figure-8 Circuit.
SSBUWebsiteCloud6.jpg|Cloud and his Advent Children costume posing on the Bridge of Eldin.
SSBUWebsiteLuigi2.jpg|Cloud getting hit by 's Super Jump Punch on .
SSBUWebsiteTechnique1.jpg|Grabbing on Great Bay Ω.
SSBUWebsiteHero3.jpg|Taunting while the Luminary uses on Spear Pillar.
SSBUWebsiteSephiroth6.jpg|Fighting in his Advent Children alternate costume on Midgar.
SSBUSoraCloudSephy.jpg|With Sephiroth and on Midgar.
SSBUSoraMarioCloudSephy.jpg|Combating , Sora and Sephiroth on Hollow Bastion.
SSBU challenge image 011.png|Cloud with on Tortimer Island.
===Fighter Showcase Video===
==Trivia==
*A section of Cloud's trailer pictures him using his side taunt with in the distance, who is promptly struck by . This is a direct reference to spellcasting and its general animations in the Final Fantasy series, with Thunder being a basic Black Magic spell throughout the series. Thunder, localized as "Bolt" in Final Fantasy VII, is one of Cloud's starting spells in that game, and is often effective against mechanical enemies.
*Cloud's official artwork resembles his idle animation from Final Fantasy VII and Super Smash Bros., as well as 's official render for Brawl.
*With and now dubbed in English for international releases of Ultimate, Cloud is the one of the four playable characters along with , and with an established English voice actor (in Cloud's case, at the time of the game's launch) to only be voiced by his Japanese voice actor in all versions of Ultimate.
**Additionally, he, Sephiroth, and are the only ones who speak in Japanese in all versions of the game, while they and are the only characters to not speak English in all versions of the game.
*Within the 1,297 spirits included at launch in the game, Cloud has the fewest Spirit battles out of the entire non-DLC roster, being only part of the Zeke and Master Edges spirits. If post-launch spirits are counted, however, both and take this distinction instead.
**Since both spirit battles do not take place during World of Light's events, Cloud is one of two characters whose only appearance is as their original fighter in World of Light (the other being the ).
***Technically, and themselves also hold this distinction, even though their alternate costumes (the Koopalings and Alph) do appear in Spirit Battles in said mode.
*As of update 10.1.0, Cloud is the first fighter to change their spirit artwork.
*Cloud's Advent Children fighter spirit is one of only 11 fighter spirits in the game to use their in-game render for their spirit artwork instead of original artwork from their game.
**The other characters are both male and female Pokémon Trainer, both male and female Robin, both male and female Wii Fit Trainer, all three Mii Fighters, and the default version of Kazuya.
**This distinction also applied to Cloud's regular fighter spirit until update 10.1.0.
*Prior to update 10.1.0, Cloud could not receive a series bonus from a spirit, as Final Fantasy did not have any spirits apart from Cloud's fighter spirits. After this update, that distinction is now only held by the and 
*As of the version 10.1.0, Cloud, along with , the , , , , are the only non-DLC characters who do not appear in more than one spirit battles from their home series. doesn't appear in any Mario spirit battles at all. This is not counting , who appears only in the Mockiwi spirit battle as himself, but is fought in other spirit battles as Alph.
**While the s technically represent the universe, they appear in most of the Mii-related spirit battles.
*According to Masahiro Sakurai from a Famitsu column, as of January 2019, Cloud was the most used fighter online.https://nintendoeverything.com/sakurai-talks-smash-bros-ultimate-online-mode-victory-rates-character-usage-more/
*When using one of Cloud's Advent Children costumes, part of his left shoulder will be cut out on his damage meter.
**Oddly, the shoulder was not cut in the E3 demo of the game.
*When fighting off the fifty puppet fighter army as Master Hand in World of Light, Cloud is one of the eight fighters fought there, being affiliated with Dharkon.
*Striking opponents with the sweetspot of Cloud's up smash does not trigger controller rumble. This is likely due to the startup of the move being altered in update 3.0.0, and the controller vibration was not similarly changed,
**Striking opponents with the sourspot of the same move triggers controller rumble with the same intensity as hitting the sweetspot normally would.
*Cloud's CGI model in both 's and 's trailers is, notably, based on his Advent Children design with the sleeve off rather than his default costume, making him the only character who appears in CGI with an alternate costume, but not the default costume.
*Cloud is the first character in the Super Smash Bros. series to have a move differ between his alternate costumes, as in version 10.1.0, Omnislash Ver. 5 was added as a replacement Final Smash when wearing his Advent Children costumes. However, the change is mostly aesthetic.
**Since this alternate version of the attack was added via update 10.1.0, this also makes Cloud the first character in the series to be granted a new move, as well as new voice clips (other than Kirby), via an update.
*Cloud is the only third-party veteran to gain new voice clips (albeit after an update and only for Omnislash Ver. 5). Sonic (barring Japanese), Ryu, and Bayonetta use their voice clips from SSB4, Snake and Sonic (in Japanese) use their voice clips from Brawl, while Mega Man and Pac-Man remain mute.
*Cloud is one of two characters whose Final Smash background color changes depending on the alternate costume used. The background will be dark blue when using Omnislash (which is used by his Final Fantasy VII costumes) and gray when using Omnislash Ver. 5 (which is used by his Advent Children costumes). The other character with this distinction is .
*In the World of Light, Cloud is the only fighter to have no affiliations with Galeem whatsoever as his only encounter as himself is associated with Dharkon.
==References==
 
Category:Third-party characters
Category:Square Enix
Category:Spirits
es:Cloud (SSBU)