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Cloud Moveset analysis (including Gifycats + Frame Data)

Smash4United

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Intro:
Hey guys,

I bet everyone has seen the Cloud Strife announcement from the Nintendo Direct. If you haven't:
(thanks P PreedReve for sharing the link)

Below you will find frame data & Gfycats on all of Cloud's known and shown moves. Some moves, their properties/mechanisms and their respective key bindings are still up for debate. Don't take anything at face value just yet. Anyone can add his opinion and I will try to add the most plausible comments as descriptions. Again, opinions might differ, so don't take anything at face value until it is 100% confirmed. Please also note that this is probably an alpha build of Cloud Strife and thus it might be subject to change prior to the official release.

I want to thank L for helping me render and cut the video although he had to get up for work early (past 01:00 here).


About Cloud Strife:
Cloud Strife is the main protagonist from Final Fantasy 7, released for the Playstation 1.

Appearance:
Cloud's normal costume seems to be based on his Final Fantasy 7 costume (on the right). He has his trademark pointy blonde hair and he wields his Buster sword.
His other outfit seems to be based on Advent Children (on the left).


He is a sword fighter (obviously). Whenever he uses his sword his active hitboxes appear to have a distinct greenish glow (resembling the green materia glow in Final Fantasy 7). Non-active hitboxes don't have this glow.
His moves seem to be "instant". All moves have a start up animation but skip the appropriate following motion completely. Because of this his slash hitboxes don't have a fluid motion but appear out of nowhere. As showcased here (suggested by @FlynnCL:





Additionally Cloud has access to another set of Special Moves. He appears to have a Limit Break Meter. In Final Fantasy 7 this meter charges when taking damage. It appears that you can manually charge it with Down B in Smash Bros. for Wii U. It might also be a combination of taking damage and being able to manually charge.
Cloud gains a blue glow when his Limit Break moves are ready to use. He loses this glow after using a move, implying it has one charge. All his special moves gain additional property when his Limit Break is full. This is likely to include: stronger and larger animations, extra movement, and invincibility frames.


Furthermore he seems to have an incredible dash. Let's hope dash dancing is possible for mix-ups.

Frame data:
All frame data as shown in Sony Vegas in the file I have. I don't know if it matters but Windows file property details label the file as 29 fps. In Sony Vegas the file is marked as 25.008 fps. The rendered Gfycat is supposed to be 30 fps. Frame data interpretation help needed!

Utility:
Roll:
Start: 1.404
End: 1.416 / 1.417
Frames: 12/13


Spotdodge:
Start: 1.134
End 1.145 / 1.146
Frames: 11/12


Jump:
Start: 1.048
Double Jump:
Start: 1.058
End: 1.068

Jab:
Neutral Jab:
Landing: 1.167
Start: 1.168
Connect: 1.170
First hit end: 1.174
Second hit start & confirm: 1.175 (motion appears to be instant)
Second hit end: 1.180
Third hit start: 1.181
Third hit confirm: 1.182
Third hit end: 1.188 (sword stops glowing)
Video end: 1.195 (Cloud is not shown to go into neutral)


Dash Attack:
Start: 1.755 (animation start, motion change from dash to dash attack, he changes sword stance during this motion)
Hitbox: 1.757 (sword starts glowing)
Confirm: 1.758 (hits Mega Man)
Second Motion Hitbox: 1.762 (holds sword in front of him)
Hitbox end: 1.766 (glow stops)
At 1.768 Cloud is not yet in neutral.

Throws:
Back throw:
Lands at: 1.772
Dashes at: 1.773
Starts grab: 1.776 (changes animation)
Grabs at: 1.780
Starts Back Throw: 1.781
Hitbox Back throw: 1.786 (kick)
Neutral stance: 1.801

Arials:
Neutral Air:
Start: 1.731 (probably already started before this)
Hitbox start: 1.732
Confirm: 1.736
End hitbox: 1.740 (stops glowing)
Lands: 1.742
Ends: 1.748
Start Dash: 1.749

Up Air:
Start: 1.264 (animation starts)
Hitbox: 1.266 (hit confirm and moment where his sword glows green)
First Hitbox end: 1.267 (no more glowing animation)
Second hitbox start: 1.269 (sword starts to glow again)
Second hitbox end: 1.279 (sword loses glow)
No idea about move end.

Down Air:
Start: 1.333 (animation starts)
Hitbox: 1.337 (the coincidence!!!!!!!!!!!) (sword glows green and hitbox confirmed)
End hitbox: 1.354 (sword stop glowing green)
End animation: 1.364 (cloud imputs jump animation)

Forward Air:
Start: 1.092
Flash: 1.096
Hitbox: 1.098
End: 1.115
Startup frames: 5/6
Total frames: 23

Back Air:
Jump start: 1.145
Start: 1.147 (Back Air Animation starts)
Swing: 1.150 (Back Air hitbox starts, sword glows green)
Connects: 1.152
End glowing animation: 1.156
End: 1.164 (Clip ends).
I'm not sure if he already defaults to neutral stance during the clip.

Tilts:
Up Tilt:
Start: 1.116
End glowing animation: 1.123
End: 1.134 (start of Spotdodge)

Down Tilt:
Landing: 1.239
Start: 1.241
Connects: 1.245 (also first fully stretched feet position)
Slide end: 1.255
End: 1.261 (start of jump)

Forward Tilt:
Start: 1.197
Startup end: 1.199 (sword still behind cloud)
Hit confirm: 1.200
Still glow on sword: 1.204
End of hitbox: 1.205 (sword is behind him and has no glow)
Neutral stance: 1.230 (not sure about this. Can't really see his end animation).

Smash Attacks:
Up Smash:
Start: 1.1375
Hitbox start: 1.381 (sword glows green)
Hit confirm: 1.383
Hitbox end: 1.392 (sword stops glowing green)
At 1.399 Cloud is still not in Neutral stance.

Down Smash:
Start: 1.417 (start of animation)
Hilt connect: 1.420 (hilt of the sword connects with Little Mac)
Hilt retract: 1.422 (starts retracting hilt)
Backward hitbox: 1.427 (sword starts glowing green)
End backward hitbox: 1.433 (sword stops glowing green)
End animation: 1.451 (transitions to taunt afterwards)

Forward Smash:
This move behaves differently if you connect a hit.


No enemy:
Start: 1.587 (start of animation)
First Hitbox start: 1.595 (sword starts glowing)
First Hitbox end: 1.596
Second Hitbox start: 1.597 (sword starts glowing)
Second Hitbox end: 1.598
Third Hitbox start: 1.599
Third Hitbox end: 1.600
End animation: 1.621

On Robin:
Start: 1.642 (start of animation)
First Hitbox start: 1.650 (Hits Robin)
First Hitbox end: 1.653 (stops glowing)
Second Hitbox start: 1.655 (Sword starts glowing)
Second Hitbox confirm: 1.656 (hits Robin)
Second Hitbox end: 1.659
Third Hitbox start: 1.660
Third Hitbox end: 1.667
End animation: 1.688

Special Moves:
Neutral B:
Already in motion at: 1.841
Sword behind cloud: 1.842
Hitbox active: 1.847 (sword in front of him glowing green)
Blade Beam launched: 1.848 (Beam short distance from sword)
Blade Beam still active: 1.856

Neutral B in air (animation behave's differently?):
Already in motion at: 1.857
Hitbox: 1.860
Hits bowser: 1.864
Hitbox dissapears: 1.867

Neutral B during landing/grounded:
In motion at: 1.877
Hitbox: 1.885
Hits Bowser: 1.892
1.092 Cloud almost in neutral stance.

Up B:
This move appears to have have different animations based on either input - or hit confirm;

Normal Up B:
start: 2.000
thrust forward start: 2.002
thrust complete: 2.003
upward momentum: 2.004
Cake hit: 2.006
top of motion range: 2.012 (hitbox end)
Sword flashes at 2.038
neutral stance: 2.039
Not sure if 2.012 - 2.037 is lag or just falling animation without input. Probably lag since his sword shines at 2.039

Up B against Falcon:
Animation start: 2.048
Hit confirm: 2.050
Upward momentum: 2.056
2nd hitbox: 2.058
hitbox end: 2.063
top range of upward motion: 2.071
new move animation start: 2.068
downward hitbox: 2.073
spikes ground: 2.080 (appears to be hitbox end too)
neutral stance: 2.098 (falcon still in hitstun as evident by smoke coming from his body)

Down B (Limit charge):
This move either charges when taking damag, when manually charging or with a combination of taking damage and charging additional meter manually.

Already in animation at: 2.251
fully charged: 2.288
Neutral stance: 2.295


Forward B
This move seems to behave differently grounded vs. arial

Grounded against Ryu:
In animation at: 1.903
First Hitbox: 1.906 (green glow)
Hit confirm: 1.907
End first hitbox: 1.912
Second hitbox: 1.913
Confirm: 1.913
End second hitbox: 1.918
Third hitbox: 1.921
Confirm hit: 1.922
Fourt hitbox: 1.925
Confirm: 1.925
End hitbox: 1.928
Fifth hitbox: 1.930
Confirm: 1.932
End hitbox:. 1.939

Arial against Greninja:
In animation at: 1.943
First Hitbox: 1.944
Confirm: 1.945
End first hitbox: 1.947
2nd hitbox: 1.948
confirm: 1.948
end 2nd hitbox: 1.953
3rd hitbox: 1.957
confirm: 1.957
4th hitbox: 1.960
end 4th: 1.963
5th hitbox: 1.965
confirm: 1.966
5th end: 1.975
Animation end not shown at 1.977

Limit Charged Special Moves:
Limit Charged Neutral B:
Animation starts: 2.368
hitbox: 2.374 (assumed since there is no glow)

beam hits: 2.380
last hit confirm from beam: 2.394 (multiple hits, can't count hitboxes)
clouds sword blinks at: 2.392
animation ends: 2.397
neutral stance: 2.398

Limit Charged Up B:
Animation starts: 2.410
keeps falling until: 2.412
hitbox: 2.412/2.413
upward momentum: 2.414
hitbox end 2.419
peak: 2.423
cliff grab: 2.426


Limit Charged Down B:
Animation start: 2.451
Hitbox: 2.455
Confirm Roy: 2.457
confirm link: 2.474
End hitbox: 2.480
No neutral stance at 2.510


Limit Charged Forward B:

Appears to be invincible during startup.

animation starts at 2.320
First hitbox starts: 2.323
Fox Dash confirms on cloud at 2.323
Sheik's Bouncing Fish confirms on cloud at 2.324
Cloud's animation confirms on sheik at: 2.325
Cloud's animation on fox confirms at: 2.325
First hitbox ends: 2.327
Second hitbox starts: 2.328
confirms: 2.329
third hitbox starts: 2.331
confirms: 2.332
ends: 2.334
fourth hitbox starts: 2.335
confirms: 2.336
ends: 2.356
Not returned to neutral at: 2.366

Moveset gfycat:

Utility:
Roll Animation:
His roll seems pretty fast and covers a large distance.
His initial roll starts of with a flash around him, after which he dashes a short distance. After this dash he places his left knee and left hand on the ground as he turns arounds. He slides a short distance on his hand and knee as he turns around.

Spot Dodge:
His spot dodge looks pretty normal.



Jump and Double Jump:
During Cloud's first jump he holds his Buster sword behind his behind his body with his right arm. His left leg is fully stretched. He pulls his right knee up during the jump. His face points vertically upwards in the direction your jumping too. His left arm is held a bit in front of his face.
During his second jump he briefly pulls up both his legs and moves his right arm and the Buster sword a bit. Afterwards he makes a spinning motion changing the way he grips the sword and holds his arms.
Jump starts at 1.048. Second jump starts at 1.058. Double jump seems to end at 1.068.

Shield Break:

Taunt 1:

Taunt 2:

Taunt 3:

Ground Locked?:

Neutral:
Neutral Jab:
Cloud makes a semi side way kick with his left leg, hitting with his sole. During this time he grabs the handle of his sword with his right and holds his left arm straight alongside his left leg. After the left kick he places his left leg on the ground and delivers a semi round-house kick with his right leg. While he's in the motion of putting his right leg on the ground he unsheathes his sword and stars swinging it from the left to the right with his right hand. As soon has his right foot touches the ground he finishes his slicing animation in front of him. Cloud travels quite a distance forward during this move.

Movement:
Dash Attack:
Cloud holds his blade diagonally in front of him supporting it with his left hand on the long side of the blade.

Throws:
Backthrow:
Pretty much like Ike's backthrow.


Arials:
Neutral Air:
Makes a full circle around cloud. Starting from behind him just below his shoulders, moving over his head, in front of his head, downward in front of his feet, under his feet and eventually behind is back again around the area of his waist. There is a small blind spot in this move.

Up Air:
Pretty similar to his dash attack only now he holds his blade horizontally above him.

Down Air:
Thrusts the blade downward as if trying to stab it into the ground. This move spikes.


Forward Air:
During his forward air Cloud grips his sword with both arms behind his back. Just before he is about to slash forward in a downward angle from above his head his sword flashes close to the tip. Afterwards he swings his sword in front of him. This move is shown to spike his opponent into the ground.


Back Air:
Cloud grips his sword with both hands. Afterwards he makes a right turn while also slashing his sword to the right in horizontal slightly upward angle. It looks like he makes a 180 degree turn. However it could also be possible that he will face the same way he was facing before he made the move (full animation not shown in the video).

Smash Attacks:
Up Smash:
Turns 180 eegrees and swings his sword along the ground from the left side to the right side, to the upper right side and finally towards the left side above his head. Hits with the short side of his blade.

Forward Smash:
Three slashes. Last slash produces knockback.

Animation is longer as soon as there is hit confirm opposed to no hit confirm.


Down Smash:
Works similar to that of Toon Link and Ganondorf. Cloud strife hold the sword behind him as it flashes briefly. Afterwards he thrusts the hilt forward with his right hand which produces hit confirm. Afterwards he pulls/pushes the hilt back, supported by his left hand at the end of the hilt. This part of the move produces backward knockback. The opponent is also pulled and knocked back during this move.

Tilts:
Up Tilt:
During his up tilt Cloud swing his blade with one hand from the right side of his body to the left side of his body, making a motion which stretches his arm above his head. He hits sonic with the short side of his blade.

Forward Tilt:
During his forward tilt cloud moves out of his neutral stance by holding his sword behind his back with two hands. Afterwards he swings the blade diagonally downward from above his head. At the end of the move his sword is behind him and he only holds it with one hand. His left leg is bent at the knee in front of him and his right leg is fully stretched trailing behind him.

Down Tilt:
During his down tilt Cloud crouches low and turns a bit backwards. He turns forward again, with his sword point in front of him held in his right hand, almost resting on his shoulders. Afterwards he starts something that looks like a football sliding. At this point his sword rests on his shoulders. His feet are pointed in the direction which he is sliding. During the sliding he pulls his left knee up and hits with his right sole. It seems his slide covers 2/10th of Palutena's Temple Omega form.

Specials:
Neutral B - Blade Beam:
Slashes forward producing green energy waves. These energy waves have knockback. This move can be used in the air.


Up B:
Normal:

Looks a lot like Kirby's up B.

Against Captain Falcon:
Looks like a combination of Kirby's, Ike's and Shulk's up B. The second hit and upward knockback is either on hit confirm or on button press. This move seems to spike / meteor.


Down B
Limit Break Charger (speculation)

Cloud holds his sword horizontally in front of him while charging his Limit Break meter. After the meter is full it flashes and changes color. Afterwards cloud gains a blue aura.


Forward B - Crosh Slash:
Cloud strikes in front of him 5 times producing knockback on the fifth hit. The move's animation is different in arial and in grounded form.


Limit Break Special Moves:
Neutral B - Blade Beam:

Cloud uses his charge of Limit Break. He slashes his sword forward producing blue energy waves with increased knockback.

Up B - Climhazard:
Significantly extended horizontal and vertical movement. Expands Limit Break charge.

Forward B - Cross Slash:
Produces three forward slashes with increased knockback over the non Limit Break version. Startup slash also appears to have significant invincibility as it ignores Sheik's Bouncing Fish and Fox's dash attack.


Down B - Finishing Touch (not a counter):
Produces multiple hits in a 360 degree arc (not a the same time). Knocks enemies up almost completely vertically. Will be great if used on platforms.

Final Smash - Omnislash:
Beefed up version from his PS1 / Advent Children Omnislash. By the way, Cloud hails from a 1997 game. Ike hails from a 2005 game. Ike's Final Smash is based on Cloud's Omnislash rather than the other way around.




- Arceus

 
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PreedReve

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Here's his trailer, for anyone who wants to analyze it:


From what it looks like, his specials might run on a Limit Break bar or maybe he's Final Smash is his Limit Break bar filling up and strengthening his specials.
 

Mr. Johan

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Limit Break appears to be its own special button. Either Cloud can charge it manually, or his attacks raise the bar, then he presses the special button, goes through the startup, and then activates Limit Break and amplify all of his attacks.

Omnislash is his Final Smash.
 

DrakeRowan

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He honestly is shaping up to be a speedier Ike with a projectile (Blade Beam). The limit break system & magic is still in the air though. So far, I imagine his specials to be (:GCB: = Blade Beam) (:GCU::GCB: = Climhazzard) (:GCD::GCB:Down+B = Magic) (:GCL:/:GCR::GCB: = Cross-Slash).
 
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Deathlightning21

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Here's his trailer, for anyone who wants to analyze it:


From what it looks like, his specials might run on a Limit Break bar or maybe he's Final Smash is his Limit Break bar filling up and strengthening his specials.
Don't think so.

I think that his Down B is charging his limit break meter.
 

TheGlamourGroup

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Well he attacks with his sword, has counter, has a monado thingy, and has Ike's final smash. No idea what some do.
 
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Anuran

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Shulk/ike/palutena with a projectile. not impressed. They seem to have just rehashed parts of other characters.
 

Dr. Tuen

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What looks like his dash attack, at 1:03, looks to be a very low profile, and quick attack. It may be the lowest to the ground of any dash attack in the game. That alone could be a great tool.
 

BackwardCap

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Looks like all of his smash attacks are multi-hit. Neutral A is ridiculously fast, down tilt is slide, up tilt sends him into the air.
 

DrakeRowan

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What looks like his dash attack, at 1:03, looks to be a very low profile, and quick attack. It may be the lowest to the ground of any dash attack in the game. That alone could be a great tool.
Looks more like Down Tilt to me (Like Megamans). His Dash attack is 1:20
 
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Dr. Tuen

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Looks more like Down Tilt to me (Like Megamans)
Could be! I think it'd be easier to do and apply if it's a dash attack, but I think it'll be great either way. Anything that makes you harder to hit is good.

Oh and the animations on screen may imply that Limit break could work one of two ways:

Get hit
Charge manually for use with a move
 
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Deathlightning21

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Something to note about His limits.

From what I noticed, Once you use a limit enhanced move it seems like your limit goes away. Cool way to keep things balanced and original to the source game.

Also, His Advent costume is preeety great.
 

berserker00

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His range is notably short for his sword length. He seems like he has Toon Link level sword range to me. His recovery is pretty similar to BKF (Mii Swordfighter). He looks like he hits a bit less hard than Ike in general but is quite mobile. His movement gives me Roy vibes
 
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roymustang1990-

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So,cloud specials

Neutral b - blade beam
Side b - cross slash
Up b- dolphin slash(which could have been claimhazard instead,)
Down b- wind counter?

Final smash- summons/onmislash
 
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Ffamran

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Shulk/ike/palutena with a projectile. not impressed. They seem to have just rehashed parts of other characters.
There is really not much you can do with a two-handed sword or even swords in general. The basic options you have are 8 directions of slashing - 4 diagonals, 2 verticals, and 2 horizontals - and thrusts. That's 9 moves going to be shared for all swordsmen. Contrast this with hand-to-hand where you have your regular jab, straight, hook, upper/overcut, haymaker, lariat, stab (with your hand), chop, hammerfist, elbow, headbutt, knee, front, side, round, whip, crescent, back, and sweep kick which are pretty common in many martial arts along with other weird things like Zui Quan, specialized techniques like Wing Chun's "sticky hands", or grappling moves. At a certain point, you'll have to make really weird things some of which two-handed swords can't do because of their size - Cloud's Down Smash? is already weird enough and it's just a variation of Link, Ike, Little Mac, Samus, Mario, Zelda, and Captain Falcon's hit front and hit back, but looks much more similar to Link and Ike's than Little Mac, Samus, Mario, Zelda, or Captain Falcon's.

The only sword styles we're missing - as far as I know - is fencing or swashbuckling which Eirika from Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones is the only one who comes to mind who can fulfill this if they don't overhaul Zelda, a kenjutsu or Japanese swordsmanship which Takamaru, Lyndis, and more can fulfill, and perhaps wushu which I can't think of much other some random character in Fire Emblem like Joshua. Unorthodox swordsmanship sort of is fulfilled by (Toon) Link, Ike, and Roy, the Pits fulfill the duel-wielding part, and "regular" is fulfilled by Marth, Robin - also counts as sword and sorcery -, and Cloud and Shulk for both one-handed and two-handed. At this point, if another weapon user makes it in, it would be a breath of fresh air for a spear, dagger, or axe user.

Anyway, for resources on Cloud's moveset, aside from Final Fantasy VII and Advent Children (and maybe Crisis Core and Dirge of Cerberus?), look at Kingdom Hearts and Dissidia. Dissidia's probably the best place to look at since it's pretty much a fighting game with moves all over. Problem is that I don't know if there's a command sheet you can easily find.
 
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berserker00

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So,cloud specials

Neutral b - blade beam
Side b - cross slash
Up b- dolphin slash
Down b- wind counter?

Final smash- summons
The summons were probably stage hazards. His Final smash is definitely Omnislash. Up B is generally similar to Swordfighter's default Up B. Side B might be similar to Dancing Blade but fancier lol
 

Erimir

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It appears that when his Limit Break is ready, he glows. In each case, when he uses the powered up special move, he loses that glow. So it's good for one time only (its use for recovering is probably not going to be frequent then).

So how come nobody is saying he's Shulk/Ike crossed with Little Mac and/or Wii Fit Trainer? The way most people seem to be thinking, with charging the Limit Break being related to a special move... that's much more like Deep Breathing than Monado Arts. But the one time use is more like KO Punch. And the way Limit Breaks work in Final Fantasy VII? Is more like the KO Meter. You don't sit and charge them, they're charged by taking damage.

Not only that, but we see him use four moves with Limit Break, presumably all special moves, and one of them is a spinning tornado-type move (similar to Link's grounded Spin Attack) which seems like a good candidate for Cloud's down-B. Which leaves no room for Limit Break to be its own move. Omnislash is clearly his Final Smash and thus almost certainly unrelated to the Limit Break mechanic.

So, therefore, I think Limit Break probably works more similarly to Little Mac's KO Meter and is a special mechanic for Cloud, not a special move. The only question, then, is whether it's based only on damage taken or if it also includes damage dealt like Little Mac.

ETA: Alternatively, when Limit Break is charged, it could change into that spinning attack we saw in the trailer. That could work as well, considering we didn't see a normal version of that attack. But I feel that it probably has some connection to taking damage, as that is how Limit Breaks generally work in Final Fantasy games and how it works specifically in FF7.
 
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MarioFireRed

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Made this just now in my spare time. I can't guarantee its accuracy and made a few assumption but I took note of everything that happens in the video in order starting in the gameplay at 0:50.

He does a SH Fair by hitting Mario
SH Fair either gets low landing lag or autocancels
Utilt's Sonic right as he lands
SH Bair's Ryu after dodging his DP
He most likely won't have a rapid jab because he starts with a kick, another kick, and ends with a slash
Ftilt's Pit and seems to suffer a bit of endlag
DTilt then Uair's Samus

Obligatory Dair spike looking like a faster version of Ike's Dair

Shows off his FSmash. Similar to the Links except his two strikes attack much sooner and you can't seem to only input one of the slashes
DSmash the Mac with the same properties as Ganon's DSmash
Nair's Mega Man and then Dash Attack's him
I think he USmash's Shulk

Oh his dash attack doesn't go very far
Looks like it isn't safe on shield either then
BThrow's Wario with the same animation as Ike's
Because he can use it in the air without moving, I assume the sword beams are his neutral B

The art symbols look like Side B and could function similar to Dancing Blade

With Villager we see the height of his Up B

With Falcon we see that Cloud can both catch opponents into his Up B and input B a second time to strike downwards
Could work as a spike maybe
No idea on that move that "changed" the boy into a frog, looks like a taunt maybe
Limit Break mechanic shown and it looks like you'll charge it (probably Down B)
It has more kill power and can change the properties of some of his moves
Neutral B for example can catch an opponent into a whirlwind of multiple slashes
Up B has much better recovery than normal

I have no idea on the move that killed Roy and Link but it might be something unique to Limit Break

And of course his Final Smash is the Omnislash

I don't know a lot about Cloud so this is pure speculation on my part.
 
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Banjodorf

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I've been watching the trailer, but see no counters. Are we sure we're not just assuming?

My thought was that the Down-B is some kind of limit gauge.

I remember when people thought Nosferatu was a counter.

Edit: If people are talking about the Limit-Broken Wind slash (IDK the actual name, my FF7 knowledge is fuzzy at best), it's not a counter at all. Roy and Link both don't hit Cloud before the sword smacks Roy in the face.

It's obviously some kind of spin-slash.

Source: 5 minutes of watching the same clip on repeat closely.
 
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JokeOnTheInternet

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What I don't get is that in one attack, he swings his sword up along with himself. I thought, "That must be his Up-B. Another time he did the same motion but went back down. My assumption is that it's either his Down-B, or you have to press b again to activate it (like Shulk's up B), or it differentiates between when you're in the air and when you're on the ground.
 

DrakeRowan

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The spinning tornado slash move was likely Finishing Touch, one of his limit breaks from the game. Honestly all he's missing as far as limits is concerned are Meteorain and Braver (though you can argue his fair or dair are Braver).

I've been watching the trailer, but see no counters. Are we sure we're not just assuming?

My thought was that the Down-B is some kind of limit gauge.

I remember when people thought Nosferatu was a counter.
The counter comments is a running gag that all Smash sword users must have counter. (Ike, Lucina, Marth, Roy, Shulk - all sword users - have counter. That's not including other counters such as Palutena, Little Mac, Lucario, Greninja, Mii Swordfighter (one of his customs) and the other counter-like abilities such as Peach's Toad.)
 
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Sonicninja115

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Dash Attack: Cloud runs forward and holds the sword horizontally in front of him

Jab: A three hit series, Cloud takes a step forward on the final hit.

Ftilt: Horizontal slash.

Utilt: Utilt is like Marths, with less distance.

Dtilt: He slides like Megaman.

Fsmash: This one is either one single upwards cut or a series of three slashes in front.

Usmash: One forward facing upwards cut?

Dsmash: Similar to Ganondorfs. Hits in front and then in back, bringing the opponent with the blade for a double hit attack.

Nair: It looks like Shulks Fair?

Fair: Forward slice that seemingly spikes. DK's?

Bair: A single horizontal slice behind Cloud, based off of Ike's.

Uair: He pushes the blade above him edge, not point, up.

Dair: He places the sword below him facing down, can spike and looks like Link's Dair.

Neutral Special: Either Limit Break or the Shockwave. LB is more likely as Cloud charges it. LB is a chargeable attack that unleashes Cloud's power, doubling the distance of Up B, increasing the Damage/KB? of side B and making Shockwave burst. Could LB behave like Wario's Waft?

Neutral Special 2: Only a possibility, but there is an extra move where cloud slices in front, then back before finishing with an upward hit. Possibly a replacement for LB after LB is used.

Side Special: Dancing Blade variant, very, very different.

Up Special: Cloud's obvious downside. Only goes up, and goes nowhere. A single vertical slice like Roy's Up B, It seemingly acquires a second downward slash if an opponent is hit.

Down Special: Shockwave or LB. Shockwave is a grounded shockwave that is fairly high and long, it is pretty slow it seems, and looks to be as fast as hadouken.

Final Smash: Omnislash, rip-off of Ike.
 
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Ffamran

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He dashes like Rosalina, Palutena, and Mewtwo instead of running like in Dissidia and like Zack Fair in Crisis Core. Dashing is a thing you can do in Dissidia, but you can just run. Did we - need to rewatch the trailer - see him "run" at all? If so, he might have one of the faster walks. Random gameplay of Dissidia for the whole dashing thing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgvgVHuJwCU.

Final Smash: Omnislash, rip-off of Ike.
More like Ike ripped off Cloud's Omnislash. Been a thing since Final Fantasy VII: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2genMmEmCwg.
 
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Rakurai

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I'm thinking his Limit Break could actually be mapped to one of the taunt buttons.

Down B is most likely Finishing Touch (AKA the wind vortex).
 

gByron

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Spike is moderately fast. He has a charge move to buff himself. Projectile doesnt seem so punishable. His character and sword animations are a bit meh. I am not much impressed. A sexier shulk?
 
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Buci01

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his a moves and final smash all look like Ike's, but his specials all look better
 

LZCXR

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What I don't get is that in one attack, he swings his sword up along with himself. I thought, "That must be his Up-B. Another time he did the same motion but went back down. My assumption is that it's either his Down-B, or you have to press b again to activate it (like Shulk's up B), or it differentiates between when you're in the air and when you're on the ground.
His Up B is probably similar to Shulk's, being 2 parts
 

PreedReve

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I think his Down B is gonna be him charging up his Limit Break bar and when it's full, he gets a power up in someway.
 

meleebrawler

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Dash Attack: Cloud runs forward and holds the sword horizontally in front of him

Jab: A three hit series, Cloud takes a step forward on the final hit.

Ftilt: Doesn't show.

Utilt: Utilt is like Marths, with less distance.

Dtilt: He slides like Megaman.

Fsmash: This one is either one single upwards cut or a series of three slashes in front.

Usmash: One forward facing upwards cut?

Dsmash: Similar to Ganondorfs. Hits in front and then in back, bringing the opponent with the blade for a double hit attack.

Nair: It looks like Shulks Fair?

Fair: Forward slice that seemingly spikes. DK's?

Bair: A single horizontal slice behind Cloud, based off of Ike's.

Uair: He pushes the blade above him edge, not point, up.

Dair: He places the sword below him facing down, can spike and looks like Link's Dair.

Neutral Special: Either Limit Break or the Shockwave. LB is more likely as Cloud charges it. LB is a chargeable attack that unleashes Cloud's power, doubling the distance of Up B, increasing the Damage/KB? of side B and making Shockwave burst. Could LB behave like Wario's Waft?

Neutral Special 2: Only a possibility, but there is an extra move where cloud slices in front, then back before finishing with an upward hit. Possibly a replacement for LB after LB is used.

Side Special: Dancing Blade variant, very, very different.

Up Special: Cloud's obvious downside. Only goes up, and goes nowhere. A single vertical slice like Roy's Up B, It seemingly acquires a second downward slash if an opponent is hit.

Down Special: Shockwave or LB. Shockwave is a grounded shockwave that is fairly high and long, it is pretty slow it seems, and looks to be as fast as hadouken.

Final Smash: Omnislash, rip-off of Ike.
We also see his bthrow, he spins around and kicks his opponent away like Ike.

His nair is basically a mix of Ike's forward-to-back circular swing with Shulk's range.

Fsmash might be like Link's where you can choose to do the additional swing or not.

Climhazzard also looks like Shulk's, where you press b again to perform the downswing. Also it might be a limit break only thing, but it looks like you can steer it a bit.

Dair looks more like Roy's honestly. Perhaps the green glowing indicates active frames?
 

Ffamran

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The spinning tornado slash move was likely Finishing Touch, one of his limit breaks from the game. Honestly all he's missing as far as limits is concerned are Meteorain and Braver (though you can argue his fair or dair are Braver).
Crappy as hell gif incoming.


Dair looks like he's using the flat of his blade to slam people down. Perhaps a Crisis Core reference? Angeal said he didn't want to wear down the Buster Sword, so he would probably have used the unsharpened side and the flat. Also, there are videos up of Cloud's moveset in Dissidia: [Part 1], [Part 2], and [Part 3], for people who want comparisons or references.

Edit: Another set of videos; part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k24k6zpe3Qg, with the rest on the "Up Next" side bar.

His air speed seems pretty lousy.
You were reliant on air dashes and rails in Dissidia to get anywhere in the air. With those not existing in Smash... yeah... He might have a really low air speed and high air acceleration like Palutena and Pikachu or a high air speed and low air acceleration like Ryu, Mewtwo, and Little Mac. There's always just low air speed and regular air acceleration like Fox and Falco. Worse would be low air speed and low air acceleration... That's Ganondorf if I remember correctly.
 
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Metal B

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GUYS! Stop saying his special is "Charging his Limit Break"!
This isn't now it worked in Final Fanasy 7. You can't charge your bar in the game. It will be charged by taking damage similar to Little Mac.

Here his my idea, how his Move-List looks like:

Up-B: Climhazzard (Braver has no pink line and starts in the air)
Two hit move similar to Shulk and Kirby. The first part lets him jump in the air and the second has him slashing downwards. He can cancel the second part. The Limitbreak gives him more altitude (and properly power).

B: Blade Beam
A simple horizontal beam. I think it is stronger and has more reach on the ground. The Limitbreak increase power, reach and makes it into a multi-hit-move.

Side-B: Cross-Slash
A natural combo similar to Marth or some standard A-moves. The Limitbreak increase its power.

Down B: Modified Finishing Touch
The move is actually only the first part of his original Finishing Touch (it has the same animation), but it misses the tornado at the end. He spins around, to hit all his opponents around him. It's a strange special. The Limitbreak increase its power, i guess.
 
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Neo Zero

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I'm guessing that Finishing Touch only happens when Limit is fully charged (so like, Down B charges Limit, then when full uses Finishing Touch). Rest are obviously enhancements.
GUYS! Stop saying his special is "Charging his Limit Break"!
This isn't now it worked in Final Fanasy 7. You can't charge your bar in the game. It will be charged by taking damage similar to Little Mac.

Here his my idea, how his Move-List looks like:

Up-B: Climhazzard (Braver has no pink line and starts in the air)
Two hit move similar to Shulk and Kirby. The first part lets him jump in the air and the second has him slashing downwards. He can cancel the second part. The Limitbreak gives him more altitude (and properly power).

B: Blade Beam
A simple horizontal beam. I think it is stronger and has more reach on the ground. The Limitbreak increase power, reach and makes it into a multi-hit-move.

Side-B: Cross-Slash
A natural combo similar to Marth or some standard A-moves. The Limitbreak increase its power.

Down B: Modified Finishing Touch
The move is actually only the first part of his original Finishing Touch (it has the same animation), but it misses the tornado at the end. He spins around, to hit all his opponents around him. It's a strange special. The Limitbreak increase its power, i guess.
You physically see him charging it though...it's not like Little Mac where you couldn't see what he was doing in his trailer, you flat out see Cloud charging it.
 
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