Among the protagonists of the Final Fantasy franchise, Cloud Strife ranks among the most renowned characters, crossing over into a number of other major game franchises like Kingdom Hearts and Super Smash Bros. At the beginning of his debut game—Final Fantasy VII—Cloud touts himself as an ex-SOLDIER turned mercenary who wields a cold, apathetic wit.
Final Fantasy VII Remake reimagines the opening hours of the original game in great detail, bringing with it deeper dives and new perspectives to characters players have come to know and love over the past two decades. Although Cloud does not get much in the way of character development during the early hours of the original game, Remake is able to complement his SOLDIER persona with the diverse and vibrant personalities Cloud encounters in Remake's Midgar.
10 Worse: Players Lack Agency In How Cloud's Story Progresses
As the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII has evolved over the years to unfold a sprawling narrative that expands beyond Cloud's entourage, many specific choices that players could make in the original game became inconsequential. The opening of Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII canonizes the presence of Yuffie Kisaragi and Vincent Valentine in Midgar during Meteorfall.
Like its late predecessors, Remake continues the trend of telling a singular narrative that lacks player agency. While in part due to changing social norms, something is nevertheless lost in the fact that players can no longer control choices like whether or not to interact with Aerith in Sector 8 or who Don Corneo chooses as his next bride in Remake.
9 Worse: Cloud's Willingness To Take Other Characters' Lives
Because Cloud has become such a beloved fan favorite, it can be difficult for players to contend with his sometimes apathetic personality towards taking the lives of others. Ironically, this callousness towards others' lives epitomizes the monstrous nature that 1st Class SOLDIERs seem to exhibit, especially when looking towards Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII.
Remake expands upon Cloud's cold, uncaring nature as an "ex-SOLDIER," allowing him to go as far as to almost finish off named characters like Johnny and Reno. In fact, Cloud only stops himself at the behest of Tifa and Aerith respectively, taking a brief, but critical moment to listen to the voices of reason in his life.
8 Better: There Are Hints About Cloud's Relationship With SOLDIER
One of the advantages of having prior material to work with is the Easter eggs and allusions that developers can place into later titles. Remake is no different in this regard; one of the strongest elements of the game is that the narrative is both accessible to newcomers and self-referential for veterans of the franchise.
Remake takes the opportunity to drop several teases about Cloud's true origins. When Cloud tells Reno he's a 1st Class SOLDIER during their confrontation in the Sector 5 Church, the Turk retorts that Cloud should at least make himself believable. Likewise, Hojo attempts to correct similarly Cloud's claim after the party rescues Aerith, yet is interrupted by the Whispers before he can spill the beans.
7 Worse: Cloud Is Supposed To Be Mentally Young And Inexperienced
When discussing Remake's Cloud, the creative team revealed that Cloud is supposed to be portrayed as mentally young and inexperienced. While these moments can certainly be seen in brief glimpses throughout the game like when Jessie flirts with Cloud, this personality is starkly contrasted whenever Cloud is put into any situation that involves fighting and combat.
Granted, while Cloud has supposedly been trained for these scenarios, fans of the broader compilation know that Cloud hasn't had enough experience to pull off many of the ridiculous feats he's able to pull off during Remake, whether it be escaping the destruction of Mako Reactor 1 or fighting the Motor Ball on his Hardy-Daytona.
6 Better: Cloud Has Been Hiding Some Sick Dance Moves
Perhaps one of the shining moments in all of the Remake is Cloud's dance-off against Andrea Rhodea during Chapter 9. It's an absolutely fantastic three-stage quick-time event that allows players to see a completely different side of Cloud that was never shown in the original Final Fantasy VII.
Furthermore, Cloud's unconventional challenge at the Honeybee Inn follows up a rather entertaining exchange between Cloud, Tifa, and Barret two chapters earlier in Mako Reactor 5. After Tifa declines Barret's implied invitation to dance, the Avalanche leader pops the question to Cloud, to which the mercenary promptly responds: "I don't dance." Well, it turns out Cloud secretly moonlights as a dancer.
5 Better: Cloud's Initial Awkward Personality Shines Through
It's no secret that Cloud can be awkward around others—in fact, he's rather notoriously well-known for it. Despite the apathetic front Cloud puts up in the opening hours of Remake, his social awkwardness is actually a key characteristic that defines Cloud throughout the entire compilation.
Remake specifically chooses to capitalize on this awkwardness during the quieter moments of the story. When Marle points out Cloud's awkwardness during Chapter 3, he quickly becomes defensive until Tifa manages to talk him down. Likewise, his awkwardness leads to a comical series of missteps throughout the Collapsed Expressway as Aerith repeatedly attempts to coax him into giving her a high five.
4 Worse: Cloud's More Humane Side Is Shown Too Early
One of the inevitable pitfalls of Cloud's character development is that Remake only covers the opening hours of the original game, meaning that most of the major twists and developments concerning Cloud don't come until after Remake's credits role. Consequently, Remake has an inherent need develop its central protagonist earlier than it usually would.
The result of this need is that Cloud's humane side starts to come through much earlier on in the story. It doesn't go unnoticed by the game's characters either. Before ascending the fallen Sector 7 plate, Barret remarks that Cloud's a good person deep down. But if the characters have already seen Cloud's "goodness," that leaves the question of where his character development can go in the sequels.
3 Better: Expanded Interactions With Members Of Avalanche
Among the additions to Remake, one of the most universally welcomed was the extended time we got to spend with the other members of Avalanche: Jessie, Biggs, and Wedge. Chapter 4 in particular offers a more in-depth glimpse into the lives of these minor characters, showcasing a series of more nuanced interactions between them and Cloud.
Between Jessie's inspiring motivations, Biggs' overly analytical mind (and anxiety), and Wedge's love of cats, Cloud cannot help but begin to warm up to this charismatic family. Even if it does reveal Cloud's truer colors a little too soon, these expanded interactions only strengthen the believability of Cloud's new development.
2 Worse: Cloud Is Forced To Confront Sephiroth Much Earlier
With the choice to end Remake as the party mounts their escape from the City of Mako through the Midgar Expressway, another decision was made to fully bring Sephiroth into the fold much earlier in the story. In the original game, Sephiroth was nothing more than an enigmatic presence that hung over the party during their time in Midgar.
However, in Remake, Sephiroth makes his first appearance to Cloud almost immediately following the destruction of Mako Reactor 1. The fact that Cloud is forced to confront arguably his greatest fear so early in the narrative undermines much of the mental trauma he wrestles with in the original game post-Midgar.
1 Better: Andrea Rhodea Helps Cloud Embrace Gender Fluidity
When Remake was announced, fans were skeptical about how Square Enix intended to handle the Don Corneo bride sequence that involved Cloud cross-dressing as a woman. Not only did the developers wholeheartedly embrace the concept, they turned the sequence into one of Remake's highlights.
Andrea Rhodea, a brand-new character to Remake, gives Cloud the much-needed makeover following their dance challenge. At first, Cloud is hesitant about his new look, but Andrea encourages him to step up and shine, exclaiming that true beauty is not confined by gender and comes from the heart. When Cloud meets Andrea later on, he follows up on the experience, thanking the Honeybee Inn owner for helping him in his own self-discovery.