Final Fantasy VII was a landmark title that established the series as one of the greatest gaming franchises around and set the stage for the PlayStation to be dominated by a wave of amazing JRPGs. Over time, Final Fantasy slowly lost this aura of greatness and became just another run-of-the-mill gaming franchise, with the series even discarding its turn-based roots with Final Fantasy XV and the Final Fantasy VII Remake.
However, the genre was far from obsolete, and Atlus replaced Square as the king of the JRPG. Their Persona games have been excellent in every sense of the word, with Persona 5 Royal being an obvious standout in this regard. Final Fantasy 7's Cloud and Persona 5's Joker are worlds apart as characters, but they would give each other an amazing fight.
10 CLOUD: Close-Range Combat Expert
When it comes to close-range combat, it goes without saying that Cloud is vastly superior to Joker in this regard. A fully-decked out Cloud with his Ultima Weapon would easily make quick work of Joker in just a few hits.
9 JOKER: Range Is No Issue
While Joker might lack the physical edge in close-quarters combat, he more than makes up for it with his diverse skill set.
Keeping spellcasting aside, Joker can use both guns and melee weapons in combat, allowing him to diversify his arsenal and keep the pressure on Cloud, regardless of how far he may be.
8 CLOUD: Has A Wide Range Of Materia
The materia system in Final Fantasy VII allows for characters to pick from a diverse range of skill sets, giving characters access to a potentially massive moveset. This will allow Cloud to pick and choose the most effective materia that can target Joker's weaknesses and hit him for a ton of damage.
7 JOKER: Multiple Personas Exploit & Cover Weaknesses
While Cloud might have a ton of materia to choose from, Joker can just switch Personas on the fly to access a wide range of powerful moves. This system is arguably more robust and will give Joker more freedom to choose from a wide range of skills. In comparison, trying to change materia on the fly may prove to be rather challenging for Cloud, who will need to be quite smart with his materia loadout if he's forced to change it up in the middle of an intense battle.
6 CLOUD: Immensely Powerful
Cloud has the highest Strength potential in Final Fantasy VII, making him one of the most powerful characters in the entire game. If he decides to bring his all in this battle against Joker, it goes without saying that the Phantom Thief will find it incredibly hard to keep up with this relentless onslaught.
5 JOKER: Calm, Cool, & Collected
A common trait among pretty much every Persona protagonist post the third game is the fact that all the main characters are unnaturally cool, and never let their emotions get the better of them in any given scenario. This calm and composed nature means that Joker will never panic during this battle, allowing him to use proper, well-thought-out moves and tactics that can skew the odds of victory in his favor.
4 CLOUD: Summons Can Turn The Tide Of Battle
There are two major aces that Cloud has in his arsenal which can easily win him the fight... provided that he uses them correctly. The first ace in question is the materia that will allow him to summon powerful otherworldly beings that can hit for massive damage. These summons are a staple of the Final Fantasy franchise, and one can only wonder how Joker will be able to survive a casting of Knights of the Round.
3 JOKER: Could Take Advantage Of Cloud
One thing to keep in mind about Cloud is the fact that his mind has perhaps been permanently damaged, following the illicit Mako experimentation that Hojo performed on him. While Joker is the last person who would ever utilize such an underhanded tactic, there's no denying that this is a massive weakness in Cloud's armor that can be exploited regardless.
2 CLOUD: A Single Omnislash Could End The Fight
We've already mentioned the first trick up Cloud's sleeve, with the second one perhaps even more useful in combat. Limit Breaks are quite legendary in the Final Fantasy series, and Cloud's Limit Break — in particular — can be quite damaging.
The Omnislash is one of the most powerful — and popular — moves in Final Fantasy, and using this move on Joker even once can certainly spell his demise.
1 JOKER: All-Out Attacks Deal A Ton Of Damage
While this might technically be a one-on-one duel, there's no reason to think that Joker won't be able to call his friends just for this one massive attack — he's done the same in Smash, after all. Exploiting Cloud's weakness and then hitting him for massive damage with an All-Out Attack can prove to be just what this Phantom Thief needs to come out victorious in battle.