Sephiroth

**Sephiroth** is a playable character in *Super Smash Bros. Ultimate* and is the third fighter in Fighters Pass Volume 2 and the ninth downloadable character overall. His inclusion as a playable character was revealed on December 10th, 2020. He is the second fighter from *Final Fantasy VII* to join *Smash*, alongside protagonist Cloud, and the third from Square Enix alongside Cloud and Hero.

Sephiroth was released on December 22; however, if a player successfully defeated him in the Sephiroth Challenge event from December 17 - 22, they were able to acquire him early (this is only exclusive to those who purchased the Fighters Pass or Challenger Pack 8).

## Description

Sephiroth, armed with his ruthless Masamune sword and a desire to destroy, joins the Super Smash Bros.™ Ultimate game as a part of the Fighters Pass Vol 2 DLC! This silver-haired swordsman is Cloud’s arch nemesis and one of the most iconic villains in gaming. Don’t be fooled by his chillingly calm demeanor, Sephiroth can deal some white-hot damage.

## Trivia

* Sephiroth's codename within the game's files is "edge", likely a reference to either his sword Masamune or the town built on Midgar's ruins in the film *Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children*.
* Sephiroth is the first:
	+ Third-party primary antagonist, with Kazuya following suit.
	+ Character from an already-represented third-party universe to not be an Echo Fighter.
	+ DLC character representing a DLC universe (albeit DLC from the previous game).
	+ DLC character that needs to be fought first to be acquired (albeit optionally through a limited-time mode).
	+ Character to fight all the Classic Mode bosses in their route, as well as to not face any fighters at any point.
		- He is also one of four characters to fight a boss outside of the final round, following Bowser, Mega Man, and Hero.
		- He is also the third character to face Master Hand and Crazy Hand outside of Final Destination, following Donkey Kong and Joker.
	+ Whose victory screen is in a pre-rendered setting.
* Sephiroth is the second character:
	+ Revealed in a non-Nintendo-related event, being The Game Awards. He follows Joker, who was also revealed in The Game Awards during the 2018 ceremonies.
		- Coincidentally, both have unique solo victory poses, unique fanfares, and a secret team pose.
	+ Whose trailer is directly set during *World of Light*, following Hero.
		- Coincidentally, both are DLC Square Enix characters.
* Sephiroth is the third:
	+ DLC character to come from an already-represented universe, following Piranha Plant and Byleth.
	+ Enemy DLC character, following Piranha Plant and Zombie & Enderman.
	+ DLC character to not be fought in any Spirit Battles, following Piranha Plant and Terry.
* Almost all of the CG portions of Sephiroth's trailer make many references to *Advent Children*:
	+ His line "Now, I shall give Smash despair" is a variant of "Shall I give you despair?", a question he asks Cloud during their final battle.
	+ Sephiroth turning the skies dark green is a direct recreation of a similar scene from the film as their final battle begins (which is also referenced during their final battle in *Final Fantasy VII Remake*).
	+ The silhouetted shot where he seemingly stabs Mario is a near exact recreation of a similar shot where he impales Cloud.
	+ Their sword fight and Cloud's triggering of Omnislash Ver. 5 is an abridged version of their final battle in the film, where Cloud deals the finishing blow to Sephiroth. In fact, several brief shots during the sequence, such as the zoom-in on their faces and Cloud flying up to Sephiroth, are exact recreations of similar shots from the film.
	+ Their final dialogue in the trailer ("Stay where you belong, in my memories." "I will never be a memory.") is ripped straight from the film, where Cloud successfully defeats Sephiroth.
	+ Sephiroth cloaking himself in his wing before activating his Final Smash is also how he disappears after being defeated in the film.
	+ Cloud is in his *Advent Children* outfit through the entirety of the trailer, specifically the variant that exposes the ribbon tied to his arm that commemorates Aerith Gainsborough. This version of the outfit is fitting, as the sleeve covering it was torn off during the battle against Bahamut SIN by the time Sephiroth reveals himself in the film.
		- Another reference to Aerith can be seen during the trailer's gameplay portion, where Sephiroth can be seen piercing the ground with his Down Aerial next to Zelda, referencing the infamous cutscene from the original *Final Fantasy VII* where he kills Aerith. It also continues the same reference from Cloud's own reveal trailer, where Zelda is also used as a stand-in for Aerith.
	+ The song heard throughout the trailer, "Advent: One-Winged Angel", is taken from the film's score, which also played during Cloud and Sephiroth's final battle in the movie.
	+ Outside of the trailer, the sixth image on Sephiroth's page in *Ultimate*'s website also holds another reference to the film, as it is a recreation of the Blu-ray cover for the Director's Cut.
* Sephiroth's trailer marks the first appearance of Cloud in CGI, as all of his previous appearances in other characters' trailers were during the gameplay portions.
* Sephiroth's trailer is the first to feature appearances from previous DLC characters in CGI, being Hero (specifically Erdrick) and Banjo & Kazooie.
* Interestingly, Sephiroth's official render for *Ultimate* doesn't show the full length of Masamune, instead being shortened to reach the same height as his wing. However, it is possible that this could actually be the effect of forced perspective. Given that his coatless variant, which shows him in a different pose, does show the full length, this is likely the case.
* The usual fighting stance Sephiroth takes in almost all of his appearances (such as the render for his shirtless palette swap) is now his side Taunt, while the stance he takes in *Ultimate* is instead the one Kadaj uses in *Advent Children*.
* In keeping with his character, all of Sephiroth's KO voice clips are nothing more than very short grunts.
* Sephiroth is one of six characters whose fanfares are direct rips, the other five being Sonic, Bayonetta, Joker, Hero, and Steve.
* Sephiroth is the ninth character to have unique dialogue in a victory screen when a specific character is present, the other eight being Fox, Falco, Wolf, Palutena, Dark Pit, Robin, Lucina, and Simon.
	+ This makes him the first DLC fighter to have this easter egg.
* Much like Cloud, *Super Smash Bros.* is Sephiroth's third appearance in a fighting series, following *Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring* and the *Dissidia Final Fantasy* series.

## Notes

1. ↑ / Megaflare / Gigaflare
2. ↑ / Octaslash