Limit (Final Fantasy VII)



The Limit (リミット) command (Special command in the 1996 Aeris Demo release) is a means to using Limit Breaks, also known as Limits, Limit Techniques, or Special Abilities in the 1996 Demo release.

Limit Breaks are a set of abilities unique to each character in Final Fantasy VII. They function similarly to the Desperation Attacks of Final Fantasy VI, except there is slightly more player control over the system. Each character has a Limit gauge (a Special gauge in the 1996 Demo release) which fills as the character gets angrier as they are attacked by opponents. When the gauge is filled, it will flash, the pink battle message "LIMIT BREAK" appears, the term preceded by the character's name, and their Attack command is replaced with the "Limit" command, which flashes in different colors. Also, if the gauge is filled after selecting a command, not on the command menu, the time gauge will fill up far quicker than usual. It will fill up at normal speed on future turns if the player does not use a Limit Break.

When using a Limit Break, the camera angle focuses in on the character, a flame-colored light emits outwards from the ground beneath them while a sound is played before the technique is used.

Development
It is unknown how far along in the planning stages the Limit Break system was designed, but it seems to have been an idea even in the earlier development stages. The first screens of the game with the less defined models in 1995 shows the Limit gauge next to the character's name on the left of the HP. Barret also seemed to use Hammerblow Limit Break as a normal attack, indicating his gun-arm was only initially meant to be used for Limit Breaks.

It appears the text in the upper portion of the screen next to each character's avatar would have indicated character status changes. The Japanese kanji characters for 8 different statuses appear all the time, with them likely to have been highlighted in some way should the character have a given status.

The release of the Japanese 1996 demo showed the reorganization of the status window to the format used in the game's final version and a working system and animations. In the English version of the 1996 demo release, there were a number of differences that could be seen from the final English version concerning Limit Breaks. Firstly, they were renamed to "Special Abilities", and to the "Special" command, despite being called "Limit Breaks" in the Japanese demo. Cloud has his first two Limit Breaks available, Braver, a strong attack which inflicts Paralysis, and Cross Slash, a stronger attack with no statuses attached. Barret can use Heavy Shot, a stronger version of his attack, and Aeris has Healing Wind.

While there were no changes for the Japanese version from the Japanese demo to the final release, the 1996 Aeris demo saw a number of changes between itself and the 1997 Tifa demo that would make it closer to how the final version would be, mainly because the game had been released in Japan by that time. The translation had been altered, and the functionality of Braver and Cross-slash has been changed to what is seen in the final game.

The most notable change to the Limit Break system for the final game was the chance to explore the system in its full.

System
The Limit Break system is far more in-depth than the Desperation Attacks of Final Fantasy VI. Characters have four Limit Levels, each containing one or two Limit Breaks. Only one level can be set to a player at a time, and therefore only one or two Limit Breaks are available when the gauge is filled, not all previously learned. The first Limit Break of a character is available automatically, while the others require the player to use Limit Breaks a certain number of times, or to kill a certain amount of enemies, to be unlocked. The final Limit Break for most characters is taught through the use of a unique item.

There are only two methods of using a Limit Break: The first is to fill up the gauge, selecting the "Limit" command, while the second is to have previously used the Limit command, not used another attack since then (including counters), and using the Mime command. Characters can only Mime their own Limit Breaks, not other characters'. This can be exploited many times in the game, particularly in the Battle Square where only one player can battle at the same time, and after the series of battles end, the stats are reset to before the series of battles were initiated.

It should also be noted, when trying to Mime another character's Limit Break, the sound plays and the flame-colored light is emitted, but the command will fail.

Tutorials


In Final Fantasy VII, Cloud gives a number of tutorials about Limit Breaks while in 7th Heaven for the benefit of the player. For the short time towards the start of the game, the player can visit the Beginner's Hall before leaving for the train.

The first tutorial is given to the guy outside the cage. Cloud explains the Limit gauge is based on how angry the character is and the basics about Limit levels. Cloud will briefly talk about the system if the player selects the option about the status window, but explains the functions of the Limit window if the player asks about the Limit status in particular.

A second tutorial can be given to the men standing on the boxes focusing on the functions of the Limit system in battle when asking about the gauges.

Cloud can also give a visual tutorial for the benefit of the player to the kids standing on the boxes. The boy will repeatedly attack the girl until a light flashes, she glows white, and inflicts a combo attack and knocks her opponent over.

Limit Levels


In the menu, each character is shown to have four Limit Levels. Each level contains two Limit Breaks with exception to everyone's Level 4 where there is only one, Vincent who has one for each level, and Cait Sith who has only two Limit Breaks in total, one for Level 1 and one for Level 2.

It should be noted that Level 4 Limit Breaks act like summon scenes where the camera changes regardless of settings, and the player cannot choose the targets for commands by other characters.

To obtain the second Limit Break of a level, the character must have used the level's first Limit Break a specific number of times. To obtain the first Limit of a level, the character must have killed a specific number of enemies after having set the preceding Limit Level. It is entirely possible to obtain the first Limit Break of a Limit Level before having obtained the second Limit Break of the preceding Limit Level. The character's next Limit Level can still be set. However, each character's Level 4 Limit Break can only be taught through an item once all of their other Limit Breaks have been learned. If one is missed, the player must go back and re-set their Limit Level and continue in getting the specified amount of uses of the first Limit Break of that level to learn the second one before being able to add the manual.

Vincent only has one Limit ability per level, so it is technically possible to learn all his Limit Breaks without having to use any since the first Limit abilities of a Limit Level are obtained by kills on the preceding Limit Level.

Tifa is the only character that has access to all her Limit abilities at once, since she doesn't have sub-commands beneath her Limit command, but slot reels that decide whether each ability misses, hits, or criticals.

Players who grind at early stages of the game often obtain most of their Limit Breaks on the first disc. The earliest stage of the game for a player to grind for Limit Breaks is in Midgar's Sector 4 Train Tunnel, where, if the player backtracks far enough, they will get into a series of battles that only stop when the player chooses to, and after healing, or switching Materia with characters who still have MP remaining, can re-enter another series of battles. This is the best place for quick kills, and with Level 1 Limit Breaks, the player's gauges should fill quickly.

The Matra Magic Enemy Skill attacks all enemies with typeless magic for 8 MP; players may use this to get quick kills against nearby enemy groups near the Chocobo Farm, in the Mythril Mine, or in the Junon Area. And since the Levrikon enemies' Flaming Peck attack gives the Fury status (unless the character already has the Sadness Status), the Limit gauge can be filled faster.

After obtaining the Tiny Bronco, at which point in the game it is possible to have all nine characters in the party, players may use the Mideel area's large groups of enemies and the Fury status, granted by Hypers to get kills and fill Limit gauges. Additionally, a sufficiently leveled Restore Materia containing the Regen, or at high enough levels, the Fury Ring to keep the party in Berserk, can make gaining kills quick and easy.

Aeris has the Limit Break Fury Brand which, when used, fills the other two allies' Limit gauges. This is a quicker way to get other characters to use their Limit Breaks to learn new ones, and is a net gain of one limit break when her teammates' limit levels are set to 2. It is even better if they are set to 3, as her Level 2 gauge fills quicker than all Level 3 gauges. If Aeris's full Limit gauge is withheld, the player can wait for the other two characters to use their Limit commands before Aeris uses hers so there is no wasted build-up.

The Cover Materia can be used to divert limit-building damage to one character. Damage is halved when characters are in the back row; characters can be moved from the front to the back row during combat with the Left button command Change. The Manipulate Materia can be used to apply known and measured amounts of damage, to characters from hard-hitting enemies with little risk. This is particularly effective for spells that hit all characters at once. Before Manipulate is obtained, Sleep can be used to give characters time to heal up. Filling limit meters combines well with Stealing.

Half of the characters can get all their Limit Breaks on the first disc, while the rest only only find them starting from the second. Aeris actually requires a prerequisite item to get her ability manual item, which can be obtained before any other characters receive their manual items. The earliest available manual is Red XIII's Cosmo Memory; Aeris's Great Gospel and Cloud's Omnislash are available at the same time, and next is Yuffie's All Creation. The character with the latest opportunity to obtain their final Limit Break is Cid due to his item being inside the Gelnika, requiring the use of the submarine. While Vincent's can be obtained through use of the submarine, it can be obtained earlier through either the Green or Blue Chocobo.

Limit Gauge


There are four variables that affect how quickly the Limit Gauge fills up: The first is the damage taken by the attack, the second is the character's maximum HP, the third is the Limit Level, and the fourth is the status the character is in.

The basics of the system is the more damage a character takes, the higher the gauge will fill. The Limit gauge fills when an enemy unit attacks a player unit, and the amount of damage is taken into consideration. The Max HP acts against this stat where the higher the player's max HP, the less the gauge fills. An enemy unit under the Manipulate status still increases the player's gauge, while a player unit attacking another player unit or itself will not increase the gauge. A character in the Confusion status attacking another player unit will not increase the gauge, either. Restorative items will not reduce the gauge.

Each character technically has four Limit Levels, while Cait Sith only has access to two. As the Limit Levels progress, the damage the character needs to take increases. This is because enemies become stronger as the player progresses through the story and therefore it will take roughly the same time to achieve the Limit Breaks, which also improve as the story progresses. While the difference in time it takes Cait Sith to fill a gauge between levels 1 and 2 is very small, it takes over double the time for Cloud.

The final variable is the status effects affecting a character. There are two statuses that have an effect on the Limit Break: The Fury status doubles the rate at which the Limit Gauge increases and the Sadness status halves it. Fury and Sadness cannot be inflicted at the same time. Attempting to inflict Fury on a target with Sadness will balance and leave no status inflicted and vice-versa. Players can use the Hyper item, ostensibly intended to cure Sadness, to exploit the Fury status to gain Limit Breaks quicker.

Though the Limit Gauge is a gauge and has no number attributes, the game treats a full bar as 255 and an empty one as 0. To discover the integer the gauge increases, the system must first take the amount of damage inflicted, and multiply it by 300, then divide the new total by the player's max HP, and then to truncate the total to find a full number. This result is then multiplied by 256, then multiplied by 0.5 if the player is in Sadness, multiplied by 2 if the player is in Fury, or multiplied by one if the player is in neither. The end result is then divided by a number based on the individual character and their Limit Level.

$$[[300 * Damage / Max HP] * 256 * Status Multiplier / Level number ]$$

Each character has their own individual level number for each of their Limit Levels. These numbers are as follows:

It should be noted that Cait Sith doesn't have any Limit Breaks at Level 3 or Level 4, and therefore they cannot be selected for Cait Sith. Despite it not being possible to use them, integers still exist for Cait Sith's Level 3 and Level 4 limits. Tifa has the lowest integer on Level 1 at 120, where at Level 4, she has the highest of 566.

If we create a formula with her Max HP set to 1000, and the Damage set to 500, with no status involved, we result in 38,400.

$$[300 * 500 / 1000] * 256 * 1 = 38,400$$

Dividing by 120 gives 320, which would result an the gauge being filled instantly. Dividing by 566, and then truncating it, would result in 67, almost five times as little. Also, it should be noted that Tifa's Level 3 integer is the second highest overall behind her Level 4 Limit. However, Vincent has the highest integer of all the other character's Level 1 limits, who then becomes the third-lowest at Level 2, and the lowest at Level 3 and Level 4.

Every character has to lose more than their Max HP to fill the gauge on their third and fourth Limit Levels, which means the player will have to gain HP between their Limit gauge being reset and refilling it, as the gauge will deplete to zero if the character has the Death status. This also applies for Cloud and Tifa on their second Limit, while Red XIII and Yuffie lie just beneath having to lose 99.6% of their health. At this level Cait Sith only has to lose 59.8%. If the player has the Fury status, under no Limit Level would they have to lose more than their Max HP except for Cait Sith's unusable Limit Levels.

In three instances will the gauge reduce to empty: The first is the normal way of using a Limit Break after it has filled. When characters fall into the Death status, they lose their Limit Break, and it starts empty once they are revived. The final way is when Limit Levels are switched, preventing players from setting a character to a lower Limit Level to build up the Limit gauge quickly and retaining the Limit for higher levels.

The only time the Limit gauge fills in another way is for the final scripted battle against Sephiroth, where Cloud's Limit gauge starts full with his Limit Level automatically set to Level 4 (Omnislash), regardless of whether he previously learned the skill.

Manuals


Limit Break manuals are menu items given to characters to learn Limit Breaks. Each character other than Cait Sith has one Limit Break manual which teaches them their Level 4 Limit Break. These items give no indication in-game whom they belong to, nor what their use is for, although the way they are obtained can be a strong indication. If the player attempts to use a wrong manual on a character, they will comment on it not being the right one.

Players can only be taught their Level 4 Limit Break when all their other Limit Breaks have been learned. This means if the second Limit Break of a Limit Level is not learned, the player will have to go back and learn it.

Great Gospel (Aeris)


The player can begin the search for Aeris's manual as soon as the player acquires the Buggy. Driving it into the Costa del Sol buildings allows passage aboard the cargo ship to Junon; in the north of the Junon area, there is a cave past some shallows. A sleeping man in the cave will give the player the Mythril item if the last two numbers of battles the player has fought ends in matching odd numbers or zeros; e.g. 11, 133, 255, 1077, 699, 200. After the events in Rocket Town, the Mythril can then be taken to the man in the cabin between the Gold Saucer and Gongaga Village and opening the correct one of two compartments (the smaller one located on the upper floor of the house) to get the Great Gospel item. Until the player receives the Tiny Bronco, the blacksmith's house will be empty, and Cloud is immediately returned to the field screen after entering.

Cosmo Memory (Red XIII)


Red XIII's can learn his final Limit earliest; the Cosmo Memory manual is obtained from defeating the optional boss Lost Number in Shinra Mansion's safe.

Omnislash (Cloud)


The Omnislash manual is available at the same time as Aeris' manual. After getting the Tiny Bronco, it can be won at the Battle Square in Gold Saucer. The manual costs 51,200 Battle Points on disc 1, and 32,000 BP from disc 2 onwards.

All Creation (Yuffie)


Yuffie's All Creation Limit Break can be obtained after defeating Godo, the final boss of the optional Pagoda sidequest in Wutai.

Chaos (Vincent)


The player must enter the waterfall cave near Nibelheim with Vincent in the party and witness the scene, then leave the cave and fight ten Random Encounters and return to find the Chaos manual. To get to the cave, the player can either use the submarine, or get there faster through use of either the green or blue chocobo obtained through chocobo breeding.

Catastrophe (Barret)


The Catastrophe manual can be obtained only after accomplishing the North Corel Huge Materia sidequest by talking to a woman in the ruined building near the inn in North Corel. If the player fails to stop the train, it cannot be obtained. This is the only manual that can be missed.

Final Heaven (Tifa)


Tifa's Final Heaven manual is discovered only after Cloud returns to the party on disc 2. The player must enter Tifa's House in Nibelheim with Tifa in the party, and play the piano. The player must insert the following buttons:

,, , L1 and , L1 and , , , , L1 and , , , ,

After doing this, a letter from Zangan is discovered, containing the Final Heaven manual.

If the player plays the piano on disc 1 they will only get a gil. If they play it with Tifa as the party leader, an Elemental Materia is uncovered.

Highwind (Cid)


Cid's Highwind manual is found inside the optional dungeon Gelnika, only discoverable with the submarine. The chest containing the manual is on the left of the hall after entering, past the room where the optional bosses Reno and Rude are fought.

Limit Breaks
Each Limit Break does a different thing. Most of them inflict damage to one or all enemies based on the same stats as an ordinary attack, albeit multiplied. Others use different variables to calculate the damage, and a number of them also inflict statuses to either enemy or party.

Every character has seven Limit Break commands except Vincent and Cait Sith, and every character has seven Limit Break abilities except both Vincent and Cait Sith who have more. Vincent's four Limit Breaks each can use two abilities, giving him eight different abilities. Cait Sith's first Limit Break is one ability, and his second one has eight results. Due to the nature of two of them, he can summon one of sixteen summons, and use one of seven abilities in Toy Box, technically giving him a total of 29 abilities. So while Cait Sith and Vincent both have the least amount of Limit commands, they have the most Limit Breaks. Also, since Tifa doesn't select a Limit to use, it could be said that she doesn't have any sub-commands, just the main Limit command.

Young Cloud and Sephiroth do not have Limit Breaks. Through use of the GameShark, Sephiroth's and Young Cloud's Limit Break will display Vincent's and Cait Sith's respectively, however it is not possible to use them. Every time the player enters a battle with one of these characters in their party, their Limit gauge will be empty.

Cloud
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Of the Final Fantasy VII party members, Cloud's Limit Breaks are the strongest of all. However, they are learned much slower, and Cloud typically needs to kill twice as many enemies as his comrades to learn his stronger techniques. His ultimate Limit Break, Omnislash, can be among the most powerful moves in the game providing that Ultima Weapon is equipped and Cloud has full HP. Against single enemies, this is even stronger than Knights of Round.

Barret
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Barret's Limit Breaks mostly consist of physical blows, and one, the Angermax (called Ungarmax in the PlayStation version), is part of a strategy to defeat Emerald Weapon. It is of particular note that Mindblow is one of a limited number of attacks available to the player that drains enemy MP. If the player is keen in their leveling, Barret can learn his level 2 technique Hammer Blow early, making it useful for dispatching enemies instantly.

Tifa
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Tifa's Limit Breaks are unlike most Final Fantasy VII characters'. Instead of selecting a move from a list, Tifa's Limit Breaks consist of consecutively hitting the opponent with each move adding on to the previous. Each move deals physical damage to a random opponent. The Limits are selected through a selection process similar to the Slot skill from Final Fantasy VI. Each time the reel hits "Yeah!" damage is doubled, but each time it hits "Miss", the attack does not connect. Stopping the reel on "Hit" allows the attack to connect, but does not increase its power. Later skills have "Yeah!" harder to hit and surrounded by "Miss".

Aeris
See the Limit Break sequences here.

As a White Mage-like character, most of Aeris's Limit Breaks revolve around healing the party, and a few buff the party up. They also have the theme of drawing power from the earth, as Aeris was originally planned to be a Geomancer. Of particular note is Fury Brand, which instantly fills the other two party members' Limit Break bars. Aeris's ultimate Limit Break requires a bit of work to find and teach, but fully heals the party and makes them invincible.

Red XIII
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Red XIII's lower-level Limit Breaks involve increasing his stats, particularly through the use of Haste, which boosts his speed. His later Limit Breaks hit multiple enemies, and his ultimate Limit Break, Cosmo Memory, hits all enemies for almost eight times damage, allowing it to easily do 9,999 damage at a relatively low level.

Yuffie
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Yuffie's Limit Breaks have fair power, and most of them hit multiple enemies. She also learns her Limit Breaks slightly quicker than other party members. Of particular note, her Clear Tranquil ability is one of the two healing Limit Breaks not learned by Aeris; the other one is Cait Sith's Moogle Dance. All of Yuffie's Limit Breaks, besides Clear Tranquil, are ordinary Limit attacks.

Cait Sith
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Unlike most characters, Cait Sith only has two Limit Breaks, Dice and Slot. Both are similar to moves used by Setzer Gabbiani in Final Fantasy VI, as Cait Sith is a Gambler-type character. The damage they inflict is random on both counts, so Cait Sith's Limit Breaks could be very strong or very weak depending on the results.

Vincent
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Vincent's Limit Breaks are quite different from the others'. There is only one Limit Break for each of the four levels. When he initiates one, he turns into an uncontrollable monster and stays that way until the battle is over or he falls into Death status, which results in him transforming back. When he shifts his form, Vincent's stats increase and his HP refills, but he cannot shift back at will. Thus, while his Limit Breaks can be powerful, they are risky. During his transformation, Vincent is immune to Berserk, Frog and Confusion. Vincent is also notable in that he learns his new Limit Breaks the fastest of all party members, most others of which must kill upwards of 70 enemies to learn their new techniques.

In the following table, the first attack listed in the description does damage based on Vincent's physical attack, while the second does damage based on Vincent's magic attack. He will use the physical attack 70% of the time.

Cid
See the Limit Break sequences here.

Cid's Limit Breaks often hit multiple enemies or hit multiple times, letting him do massive damage. His strongest Limit Break, Highwind, could potentially do 9999 x 18 damage, a feat only Barret's Ungarmax can match - even Cloud's infamous Omnislash cannot do this much damage. Cid also learns his Limit Breaks fairly quickly. All of Cid's Limit Breaks use his physical strength to determine their power.

Other appearances
A number of the Limit Breaks have been emulated into other games in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII and also beyond into appearances where characters from the universe appear. This can be largely attributed to the number of times Cloud has appeared outside the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children many of the characters perform techniques based on their Limit Breaks from the original Final Fantasy VII. Cloud uses some of his Limit Breaks, such as Blade Beam against Loz in the Forgotten Capital and later against Sephiroth, Climhazzard against Bahamut SIN, Braver against both Bahamut SIN and Yazoo and Loz (in a highway tunnel), and Finishing Touch against Kadaj. In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete, Cloud also uses the original Omnislash in the battle with Sephiroth, but Sephiroth evades or parries every strike with the exception of the final blow, which is interrupted as he impales Cloud with the Masamune.

A stronger variation of Omnislash, known as Omnislash Version 5, is used to defeat Sephiroth in Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. The attack utilizes the Fusion Swords. The Limit Break involves Cloud separating his sword into its individual components, and attacking the opponent once with each sword. The attack was called "Omnislash Version 5" as it was the fifth version of the attack designed for the film. In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete, an extended version of this attack used fourteen slashes instead of the six. Due to the reasoning for the "Version 5" of the attack in the original version of the film, this attack is known to fans as "Omnislash Version 6".

In Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, Barret fires a green energy blast at Bahamut SIN, similar to Big Shot and Mindblow. Since neither of the attacks are green, but the colors of the attacks, orange and blue, make green, it is believed to be a merge of the attack. Tifa uses attacks similar in appearance to Beat Rush, Somersault, Waterkick, Dolphin Blow (though without the appearance of water and a dolphin), and Meteor Strike when fighting Loz in the Sector 5 Church. Vincent also transforms into an amorphous, crimson mist. Vincent appears to gain an added resistance to swords and bullets while in this form, and is also seen to levitate. Though there is no indication that this is a Limit Break, the fact it is an inhuman transformation had lead many fans to believe so, until Advent Children: Complete in which Vincent is glimpsed under his swirling cloak, firing at Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz. It should be noted that this could still be a variation of Chaos, much like what Vincent uses in the final battle in Dirge of Cerberus.

Aerith also uses "Great Gospel" from the Lifestream to cure Geostigma victims.

Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-
In Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-, Vincent's ability to transform into different creatures is further explained. Vincent is seen in both his Galian Beast form, and his Chaos form, albeit their designs slightly altered from their original designs to incorporate Vincent's appearance into his transformations.

Vincent transforms into Galian Beast when the Limit Breaker item is used. Chaos is also playable during the final level of the game. This form allows him to hover briefly, perform a series of attacks, perform a large jump equal to a double jump, and wield a more threatening variation of the Death Penalty gun.

Additionally, the tutorial is framed as a training session during Vincent's days as a Turk, and features a Limit Break which merely boosts Vincent's strength and defense for a period of time.

Final Fantasy Tactics
The job class Soldier in Final Fantasy Tactics, to which Cloud is the only user, can use Limit abilities only when equipped with the Materia Blade. While many of the names are same as in Final Fantasy VII, the attacks' effects differ. Braver, later changed to Brave Slash in the The War of the Lions release, is a quick strike. Cross-slash, renamed Cross Slash in the The War of the Lions release, is his second quickest attack where he slices twice in a cross pattern, similar to the original attack, towards the enemy. Blade Beam is an attack that inflicts damage commensurate with the damage the user has endured, while Climhazzard functions the same but commensurate with the damage the unit being attacked has already endured and with a far higher JP cost, both only sharing their names with the original attacks, not the attack itself. Meteorain summons only a single meteor from the sky. Finish Touch, renamed Finishing Touch for the The War of the Lions release, only inflicts Death, Doom, or Petrification, but will not do damage if the enemies are immune. Omnislash is just a strong attack, while Cherry Blossom, his ultimate attack, is based on Kjata's Tetra-Disaster, and not one of Cloud's Limit Breaks from Final Fantasy VII.

Dissidia Final Fantasy
In Dissidia Final Fantasy, Cloud's attacks originate from Final Fantasy VII, a vast number being his seven Limit Breaks. Two of his Brave attacks, Climhazzard and Blade Beam, are used but slightly redesigned. Climhazzard strikes the opponent and pulls them up before slamming them down, while the sheer size of some enemies in Final Fantasy VII means slicing up through them would have looked more plausible. Blade Beam works exactly the same, although due to battles being one-on-ones, there is no repercussion shockwaves for other enemies in the battle.

All three of his HP attacks are Limit Breaks. Cross-Slash will make three strikes with the symbol identical to the one in the original Final Fantasy VII. However, it will only make as many parts of the symbol as he hits with. Meteorain works slightly differently in that Cloud sends the meteors up in the air before slinging them down, unlike the original attack in Final Fantasy VII which just calls them down. Braver stabs them before unleashing the jump-attack also seen in the original attack.

Cloud's two Brave to HP attacks are also Limit Breaks. Finishing Touch has little in common with the original attack. Cloud jumps in the air and spins around the opponent and unleashes multiple attacks before knocking them down. The other attack is Omnislash Version 5, a weaker variation of Omnislash, which is five attacks and a leap for a final strike.

Omnislash itself isn't omitted from the game, and serves as Cloud's EX Burst. The player must tap to fill up a gauge (a Limit Gauge). If it fills he will unleash fourteen strikes before a stronger fifteenth strike. Failing to fill the gauge will cause Cloud to perform only up to three swings and an upward finishing slash.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy
In Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, Tifa joins Cloud. She spins slot reels the same as in her original Limit Break, then performs up to seven punch attacks followed by Final Heaven. Most of her bravery are derived from her other Limit Breaks, all of which allows her to perform feints. Beat Rush is her basic attack, combo punching a few times. Waterkick performs some low kicks, and once mastered allows her to use Somersault as her only Brave to HP attack. Dolphin Blow is an aerial uppercut that launches enemies upward.

Two of her HP attacks are Limit Breaks. Meteodrive is a ground attack that lifts the opponent up with her legs, and then slams them into the ground. Meteor Strike can be charged before she pushes the opponent forward, slams the opponent down sending them up, and then smashes them down.

In addition, newcomer Laguna has two attacks derived from Barret Wallace's limit breaks: Grenade Bomb and Satellite Beam.

Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring
Cloud can use a throw called Omnislash by moving the D-pad in a circle. He uses Meteorain when he uses the special button. A number of sword techniques can be used when wielding his sword, which are Braver, Crosslash, and three attacks, Clim Hazard, Clim Slash, and Clim Mirage which originate from his Climhazzard Limit Break. Sephiroth also uses Meteorain, but his attack is called Black Materia, as does Zack, his called Meteo Shower.

Tifa can use combo attacks called Dolphin Blow, Dolphin Blow Real, and Water Kick (derived from Waterkick), throws called Meteor Drive (derived from Meteodrive), Beat Rush, Somersault, and Meteor Strike. Pressing special uses Final Heaven, hold special and down for Final Hell, and just holding special uses Hell And Heaven.

Vincent can use combos used Hell Masker, Splatter Combo, Chaos Saber, two just frame move, Satan Impact, and Neo Satan Impact, deriving from his Satan Slam impact, and a throw called Giga Dunk, derived from Gigadunk. While his specials don't incorporate his Limit Break attacks, images of his forms can appear when used.

Yuffie has one attack based on her Limit Breaks. Her "The Alive Will Perish" attack derives from the same Japanese as Doom of the Living.

Kingdom Hearts
Cloud can use the three-hit chain Cross-slash, in addition to a version where he teleports behind the opponent before the attack called Chain-slash+. In the original Kingdom Hearts, he also has the Omnislash ability which involves him extending his wing and flying around the arena while slashing the opponent. In Kingdom Hearts II, instead of the Omnislash ability, Cloud uses Omnislash ver5. In this ability Cloud circles the field while slashing the opponent and for the finale, lands on the floor and causes an explosion. In Kingdom Hearts: Chain Of Memories, using a single Cloud card results in the "Slash" in which Cloud strikes with 2 slashes with a single enemy, using 2 Cloud cards in a "Sleight" results in the "Cross Slash" command in which Cloud strikes a single enemy three times, and using 3 consecutive Cloud cards results in the "Omnislash" command being used which results in Cloud teleporting behind up to 5 different enemies and slashing them, causing significant damage. When fought as a boss in Re:Chain of Memories, one of Cloud's normal attacks is "Climb Hazard", an alternate translation of Climhazzard. In Kingdom Hearts: Re: Coded, Cloud uses the Omnislash attack while battling Sora and Hercules at Olympus Coliseum.

Tifa uses an attack called Final Heaven, which is a combo attack, like her Limit Break is a combo of attacks.

Yuffie can use a number of her Limit Breaks as attacks in Kingdom Hearts II. These are Greased Lightning where she throws her shuriken at the enemy, unlike Final Fantasy VII where she strikes the enemy, Clear Tranquil, where she heals herself, and Doom of the Living where she throws a massive magic shuriken at the enemy, instead of striking the enemy a number of times.

In Kingdom Hearts Re:coded, Sora is able to use Meteor Rain as a finish command.

Legacy
A number of the Limit Breaks have been emulated into other games in the Final Fantasy series as well as other games related to Square Enix. A smaller amount have grown to be traits for similar characters in the Final Fantasy series.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, the lone player character, Zack, uses a Limit Break system that relies on other characters being rolled on an automated slots system. The Crisis Core Complete Guide explains that when a person's spirit energy rises to its ultimate limit, for a short while it aligns with and emits from the person's body. The Guide also mentions Zack being unusual in that he can copy Limit Breaks, such as taking Aerith's Limit, Healing Wind, from Final Fantasy VII and turning it into his Limit Break, Healing Wave. Three Cloud icons allows Zack to use Meteor Shots, the animation of which is vastly similar to Cloud's Meteorain Limit Break. While Cissnei doesn't appear in Final Fantasy VII, her attack, Lucky Stars, gives the Critical status to Zack, much-like Cait Sith's Lucky Girl gives the status to the party. Lining up three Angeal icons will allow Zack to use a technique similar to Tifa's Beat Rush, but potentially greater in power, called "Rush Assault."

Final Fantasy VIII
Zell Dincht's Duel Limit Break functions like Tifa's Limit Breaks in terms of the combo attacks. Instead of her Slots system, Zell uses a character input system. His basic attack, Punch Rush, is similar to Tifa's basic attack, Beat Rush, the attacks Dolphin Blow and Meteor Strike are given the same name as Tifa's Limit Breaks. His ultimate Limit Break, My Final Heaven, is given the same name as Tifa's, Final Heaven.

Final Fantasy IX
Climhazzard is a Sword Arts ability available to Steiner and Beatrix, an ability originating from Cloud's Limit Break of the same name. Unlike the original, Climhazzard attacks all enemies for twice normal damage.

Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring
Django, a character who is represented as a member of the same species as Red XIII, makes a number of references in his moveset to Final Fantasy VII. Sled Fang and Blood Fang are combos used by Django. Jo, who fights in a wolf-like style, uses Lunatic High when her special gauge is empty. Zack has the same moveset as Cloud with his moves renamed. Meteorain becomes Meteo Shots, Braver becomes High Braver, and Crosslash becomes True Crosslash.

Kingdom Hearts
A number of characters from Final Fantasy VII appear in the Kingdom Hearts series as support characters or enemies who do not appear as player characters in Final Fantasy VII and therefore do not have Limit Breaks. However, due to related playable characters in Final Fantasy VII, they are given their Limit Breaks, or variations, as their attacks.

In the original Kingdom Hearts, Sephiroth uses many of abilities named after abilities used by Safer∙Sephiroth, but he also has one ability called Omnislash, named after Cloud's Limit Break, which does a number of ground and aerial attacks before doing a final leaping blow for more damage.

Zack appears in Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep, controlled by darkness, where he uses multiple attacks similar to a number of Cloud's Limit Breaks. He uses an attack where he leaps and descends to unleash a shockwave, similar to Cloud's Braver, and also has a three-chain attack similar to Cross-slash, and a meteor attack similar to Meteo Shots or Meteorain. His strongest in this form is to charge dark energy into his sword, then use a sequence of dashing slash attacks from all directions that drives the opponent into the air, before Zack uses a final downward slash to knock them down. The attack resembles Cloud's Omnislash.

Cloud also appears in Kingdom Hearts Re:coded, making his debut as an actual party member. Sometimes in the turn based battles of the Olympus Coliseum, Cloud will randomly use Omnislash, slashing at random enemies several times. Also one of Sora's Finishers, Meteor Rain, resembles Cloud's Meteorain.