Super Smash Bros. Ultimate stunned the masses with its The Game Awards presentation where it revealed Sephiroth as the next available fighter in the second Fighters Pass. While fans of the game have run wild with speculation about his moveset, strengths, and weaknesses, there's also the interesting matter of match ups. Like all characters, Sephiroth is bound to perform better against certain fighters than others, but there's also a lot of intrigue to be had in looking at the types of match ups Sephiroth can take part in. There are some pretty zany characters in Smash, so it will be hilarious to see Sephiroth go toe to toe with them.
This wouldn't be the first time that Sephiroth found himself in an alternate universe fighting strange characters. The Dissidia Final Fantasy franchise let him fight other heroes and villains from his own series, and the Kingdom Hearts series saw him face off against the likes of Disney's Donald and Goofy. Even so, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate undoubtedly has the widest variety of characters not native to the Final Fantasy franchise that Sephiroth has ever come in contact with, so the possibilities for cool, silly, or funny match ups is nearly endless.
Sephiroth VS Cloud
This one's obvious but it had to be said. In almost every form of media they are in, Cloud's character is defined by Sephiroth. The two seem to share a twisted, unbreakable bond that draws them together no matter what universe they are fighting in. Few hero/villain dynamics are quite as epic as the battle between Cloud and Sephiroth, and it's been recreated countless times through remakes, spin offs, and side games. Now players can re-enact this epic battle in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, as they will both be playable characters once Sephiroth's DLC releases.
In terms of actual match-up, Cloud just might be at a disadvantage here. From the snippets of gameplay that were shown in Sephiroth's reveal trailer, it looks as though he'll be a very long ranged fighter. Much like Byleth, he'll want to keep foes at a distance, and this is something that Cloud sometimes struggles to deal with. That said, Sephiroth's full kit still hasn't been completely revealed, so it's really anyone's game at this point. Regardless, this will certainly be the match-up for the ages, and it will be interesting to see how it plays out for the two diametrically opposed foes.
Sephiroth VS Byleth
When Byleth hit the competitive scene, they were (sometimes not so) fondly nicknamed the distance demon. This is because their weaponry allows them to maintain a great distance between themselves and their opponent. Proper spacing is vital to Byleth's playstyle, and it is important to keep foes at medium range at all times. As previously mentioned, it looks like Sephiroth will play similarly to Byleth, or at the very least challenge them for the title of distance demon. The Masamune sword that Sephiroth wields might be one of the only weapons longer than Byleth's Areadbhar after all.
Regarding how the match-up between these two characters would play out, it's difficult to tell. As a character that focuses so heavily on spacing, they can handle others that do quite well. It will really come down to who has the better reach, but perhaps more importantly, who is the better player. That said, Sephiroth has some unique tools in his kit that might just give him the upperhand. His counter will effectively neutralize Byleth's down special, and his Heartless Angel ability might make it difficult for them to use their neutral special arrow attack.
Sephiroth VS Galeem
Naturally, since Sephiroth's reveal trailer featured him slicing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's main antagonist in half with a single blow, many fans want to see this fight play out in game. Unfortunately, it probably won't go quite as well for Sephiroth during the actual boss fight, as the One Winged Angel will most certainly be balanced to play similarly to all the other fighters. With that in mind, how well would Sephiroth actually fair against Galeem, and how would things change once Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's other main antagonist, Dharkon, is added into the mix?
Again, until Sephiroth's full moveset is revealed, it is difficult to parse out exactly how well he'd hold up against the two, but he does have a few things going for him. Though spacing isn't particularly important in these fights, it does allow Sephiroth to strike from a safer distance. What's more, counters tend to be incredibly effective in Super Smash Bros.' boss fights, as it is much easier to predict when this type of enemy will attack than it is when fighting another player or even a computer-controlled fighter. Finally, both of these bosses summon other fighters, and Sephiroth's powerful attacks should help him deal with them quickly.
Sephiroth VS Jigglypuff
Characters in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate can be epic heroes like Link, giant aliens like Ridley, or even goddesses like Palutena, but despite all of that there will always be Jigglypuff. As one of the original characters in Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 64, Jigglypuff has been in every Smash game and will likely continue to do so. There's something that seems horribly wrong about Sephiroth battling a Jigglypuff to the death, but that's the kind of crazy stuff that Super Smash Bros. was made for.
One of the defining traits of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a fighting game, however, is that all the characters are balanced with one another for the most part. Typically speaking, Jigglypuff performs better against slower and heavier characters, so someone like Sephiroth with long reach could pose a serious problem. Time will tell, however, as for all anyone knows, Jigglypuff may be capable of defeating Sephiroth easier than Cloud is.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is available now on Nintendo Switch.