As unlikely as i find it, so is every other character I would like in Smash, then Sakurai surprises us… count me in. I would go crazy if Sephiroth actually made it, even tho i don't want to get my hopes up for him.
Edit: I would like to ask you guys… do you think we would really get a second FF VII stage, considering we are getting a stage per DLC character? and if so, which stage?… It's one of the main reasons i'm super doubtful about Sephiroth, sadly… But I still cross my fingers for him.
So, I just wanted to make a case for him, to better illustrate some things.
Given how S-E has been through some really rough times over the last few years, given how Cloud is listed as part of the FFVII (not FF) franchise, and how little there is in terms of additional things that he could've bringed with him in the base game, I think this opens up the possibility for the S-E character to be a FFVII character.
The FFVII DLC would bring the rest of the music, which part of the revenue would pay for the cost of the licenses, spirits from the game, and hype up the next S-E character in the game. Basically, the DLC would complete what was lacking for the FFVII representation. And, the revenue from the DLC would have a higher share for S-E to get than raw Smash Bros Ultimate sales. It would help them hype up the remake, and they would get support from the money obtained from the DLC sales. You can look at S-E's track record for yourself. When they show up as guest characters in fighting games, it's always through the form of DLC. Actually, Smash is the first time ever that a game of this kind gets S-E content on the base game. Given that Sakurai has a good relationship with both Tetsuya Nomura and Nobuo Uematsu, I think that they would be on board for it as well.
To answer a possible question, the stage in question should match the character, and thus, the Northern Crater, Planet's Core (I hate this idea given that it was supposed to be abstract in the original game and not the mess Dissidia made), or Junon (a stretch, but possibly the second most iconic location in the game).
Music should include tracks from FFVII, mostly original versions but also some remixes. Expect One Winged Angel to be a thing.
Ironically, Sephiroth imagery has been done repeatdly throughout these last few years, from Smash 4's Congratulation screen to the subtle nod with Alucard in Midgar doing his exiting animation with the black cape and Chrom's picture with one angel wing.
Remember, it may not be the best of practices, but getting that money from DLC would help S-E a ton and pay for the spirits and other content missing.
I really do think, and hope, that the S-E rep is Sephiroth, with Tifa as a Mii Brawler outfit, Barret for Mii Gunner, spirits from the OG FFVII, Safer Sephiroth as a boss for World of Light (would perfectly fit the story and aesthetics, tbh), and any of the three stages mentioned above.
To close it off, today Tetsuya Nomura posted this on the FFVII Twitter account. Notice that they usually never post anything, and when they do, usually it's strictly S-E content within S-E games.
In Japanese, he states:
https://twitter.com/FFVIIR_CLOUD/st...RjroOm3UPB8uYv75eHxv33shc7tWXTYEDlcDQHxq9nwJM
"This year passed by in a blink of an eye. Next week seems like it may take forever to come. I must get back to work!"
This may be another commemorative art like other companies did, but not posting it on the company's main account is interesting. And, maybe this work is something related to the DLC. After all, Nomura does appear in the credits for Smash Ultimate as one of the three people from S-E who worked on the game directly for counseling and support (alongside Yoshinori Kitase, the director for the OG FFVII and the producer of the Remake, ironically).
One final note: it would be very fitting for them to promote the FFVII, IX and X launch on the Switch with Sephiroth's DLC in Smash. Hence why I think an announcement like this would come in the Nintendo Direct that announces the release date for the FF games. And getting Seph in the game may be that key to clinch the FFVII Remake on Nintendo's console.
Hoping for the best here and may FFVII get the representation it deserves! I'll be supporting this until the very end.