Cloud Strife/Dissidia NT

Cloud Strife is a Warrior of Materia in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT and its arcade version, representing Final Fantasy VII. He is a Vanguard-type character.

Cloud's default player name is titled Nameless Soldier. His manikin counterpart has been renamed Ethereal Mercenary, and now resembles his Cloudy Wolf attire.

Appearance
Cloud's default attire, Ex-SOLDIER Op, is an updated version of his default attire from the original Final Fantasy VII, though his clothing is now darker in coloration. The first alternate coloration of this costume is dark black with a black and white shoulder pauldron, based on the 1st Class SOLDIER uniforms in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-. The second alternate coloration colors his outfit purple, more closely resembling his attire in the original Final Fantasy VII.

Cloud's first alternate costume is Cloudy Wolf. This is an updated version of his "Cloudy Wolf" attire from Dissidia Final Fantasy and Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, based on his attire in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, and is Cloud's main attire in the story of Dissidia Final Fantasy NT. The first alternate coloration of this costume colors his shirt blue, and his leg cloth gains a camouflage pattern. The second alternate coloration colors his shirt purple, and his leg cloth gains a Fenrir emblem pattern.

His second alternate costume is the Sky-Soarer. This is an updated version of his "Kingdom Hearts Gear" attire from Dissidia 012 and Kingdom Hearts I, where he wears Vincent Valentine's red mantle and bronzed gauntlet over his SOLDIER fatigues, and possesses a black demonic wing on his left side. The outfit has gained a metal plate in three segments over his right hip, with the segments from the top being bronze, gold, and silver. The first alternate coloration of this recolors his mantle green, his SOLDIER fatigues brighter purple, and his wing brown. The second recolors his mantle black, his SOLDIER fatigues bright gray, and his wing white.

Personality
Cloud's personality in Dissidia is a mix between his created "SOLDIER" personality and his true personality from Final Fantasy VII. On the surface, Cloud remains calm and reserved, speaking only when necessary and being focused on the task at hand, which has allowed him to earn respect from the other warriors of Cosmos, though they commonly mistake him for being gloomy and brooding.

Equipment
Cloud equips greatswords. Nearly all of his weapons can be equipped by Cloud in the original Final Fantasy VII, with two exceptions being the Fusion Sword from Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, and the Kingdom Hearts I version of the Buster Sword. His default weapon is the Buster Sword, his iconic weapon from Final Fantasy VII, using the original design.

Cloud's first alternate weapon is the Hardedge, which is considerably larger than the original appearance and is equal in size to the Buster Sword, retaining its inscribed kanji from its official art. His second alternate weapon is the Fusion Sword, originally from Advent Children, and Cloud's main weapon in the story of Dissidia Final Fantasy NT. His third alternate weapon is the Force Stealer, designed with a more mechanical and sleeked look, particularly the steel-jointed hinge wings crossguard. This blade is thinner with a symmetrical beveled grove pattern, and has a small red orb imitating materia in the base.

The fourth alternate weapon is the Organyx which, like the Force Stealer, is more mechanical and industrial in design, making it out to be a composite constructed weapon. The main blade is now a simple steel silver, thicker and with a smaller triangular gap on the blunt side fastened into an L pattern slot and held in place with bolts and rivets on a track slide marking the rim of the mouth of the base section. The golden guard on the base section has a large bolt centerpiece that appears to hold the blade's tang in place with the handle.

Cloud has a fifth alternate weapon, the Buster Sword (KH), which is based on the Kingdom Hearts I variation of the iconic sword, in which the weapon is wrapped in bandages. Cloud also has a bonus alternate weapon, the Nail Bat, which is available to players who pre-ordered or purchased the "Day One Edition".

Story
Cloud is summoned as a warrior of Materia to fight in the new war. At Materia's tower, Cloud and the other champions are informed by Materia that they must fight each other to produce enough energy to sustain the existence of this world. After their meeting is interrupted by Spiritus, Materia orders her champions to fight his forces. Cloud sets off alone to find Bartz, as he was absent during their meeting with the goddess. Traveling to the Interdimensional Rift, Cloud saves Bartz from Sephiroth's ambush while the latter was distracted by his fight with Exdeath. The four of them battle until the planesgorgers arrive to devour the realm. Before they retreat, Sephiroth tells Cloud that both parties' goals will eventually align. Fazed by his cryptic warning, Cloud and Bartz fall through a portal that appears beneath them.

Arriving in an illusion Eden gateway, Cloud and Bartz properly reunite and reveal that they each hold memories of both their homeworld and the previous cycles. As they travel back to Materia's tower, Cloud briefs Bartz on Materia's identity and the reason why they were summoned back to World B. However, as the pair ended up lost, they decide to wait in Alexandria for help just as Shantotto drops from another portal. Cloud enlists her assistance to return to Materia's domain. As Bartz does not recognize Shantotto from the previous cycles, Cloud explains she is their new ally. As they depart the area, Cloud realizes that if they eliminate Spiritus as they did with Chaos, they could end the new conflict, but does not voice his opinion, much to Bartz's confusion.

At Materia's tower, Cloud introduces Bartz to her and informs her of the planesgorgers' presence. Cloud is taken aback when asks why her champions do not simply excise them before Shantotto steps in and opens communications with Spiritus. fter being informed of the situation, the heroes and antagonists agree to stage a battle against each other to lure out Shinryu, the true cause for the loss of energy in World B. In the ensuing fight, Cloud and Bartz come to Squall's aid who is being attacked by Jecht and Golbez. Cloud protects Squall when Golbez sends a barrage of flying rocks at him before directly engaging Golbez. Once the battle energy summons Shinryu, Cloud participates in a joint attack against the dragon, but is repelled as Shinryu reveals his true form in a potent burst of power. Once the warriors regain their composure, they work together to defeat Shinryu.

Shortly after killing Shinryu, the moogles give Cloud a crystal to host his memories for Materia to use in the new cycles of wars. With a crystal doppelgänger of himself to serve on Materia's behalf, Cloud is sent home.

Gameplay

 * Type: Vanguard - Most of Cloud's skills can be charged up to two extra levels by holding down the skill button, and charging can be canceled by sidestepping.
 * EX Skill: Limit Break - Enhance defense, shorten charge times, strengthen some HP attacks, and gain more time in which to unleash Cloud's moves.

Trivia

 * Yosuke Hayashi from Team Ninja, who had never worked on a Final Fantasy game before, felt there was a fixation surrounding character modeling, and has commented they re-created Cloud's face almost a hundred times for the arcade version due to feedback that something wasn't quite "Cloud-like" enough about him.