Since Final Fantasy VII's 1997 release, no character has been as iconic to the franchise as Cloud Strife. The protagonist featured in Advent Children, Kingdom Hearts, and Super Smash Bros. in addition to his original game. With the highly anticipated remake on the horizon, excitement about the franchise is reaching an all-time high.
The beloved game has no shortage of devoted fans. As such, there are a plethora of talented artists bringing characters to life with stunning cosplays. Cloud's style significantly changes with each new title he partakes in. From the silly to the serious, here are 10 Cloud cosplays that look just like the character they are modeled after.
10 SpinDashDude
Although a cosplay can look stunning in real life, it doesn't always come across in photos. That's where a good photographer can make or break an image. The stunning composition in this one certainly makes it.
Leading lines in the ceiling center the cosplayers. Pillars and the crosswalk add extra framing. The gritty urban environment adds to the theme of conflict. Of course, the costume itself is wonderfully crafted. We definitely hear One-Winged Angel playing in our heads!
Of course, it's no surprise his cosplay is awesome. SpinDash exclusively cosplays Cloud Strife. His Instagram page @spindashdude is full of photos of his improvement.
9 Lorentz_iwood
In cosplay, as with all things, the devil's in the details. With this Cloud cosplay, that's where lorentz_iwood truly shines. From the perfectly weathered wrist armor to the frayed cloth and leather straps, the build is gorgeous. The bolts on the shoulder are especially well crafted. This cosplay could single-handedly launch the industrial-chic trend.
Lorentz_iwood is a popular cosplayer with over 75,000 followers on Instagram. Some of his other impressive work includes Tanjirou from Demon Slayer, Deku from My Hero Academia, and Kayron from Epic Seven.
8 Ryosuke91kc
Ryosuke's interpretation of Cloud is another example of the importance of little things. Specifically, the shoulder armor looks sturdy enough to survive more than a few sword strikes. The excellent weathering helps it look more like real metal than painted craft foam and Worbla. We once again adore the leather straps and the near-perfect stitching.
Ryosuke, like SpinDash, is a dedicated Cloud cosplayer. He hails from Dallas and has a lot of cute group pictures with the rest of the Final Fantasy VII crew.
7 Nikkosplay
The most impressive part of Nikkosplay's cosplay is the makeup. When it comes to recreating anime-style characters, finding the line between exact replication and realistic interpretation is difficult. Too much similarity borders on the uncanny territory.
Too little similarity leads to confusion. We think Nikko found a wonderful balance. The oval-shaped face, the high nose bridge, the slightly upturned eyebrows, and the thick doll-like lashes all resemble Cloud (if Cloud were a real person!)
Nikko is a non-binary Peurto Rican cosplayer based in Orlando. They do a lot of Yaoi photoshoots and genderbending. We think Nikko's Riku from Kingdom Hearts is perfect as well.
6 Pixel Cosplay
Just like the faces, the hairstyles we see coming out of Japanese video games are difficult to achieve in reality. Cloud's wildly spikey hair poses quite a challenge for cosplayers. What we love most about Pixel's cosplay is that incredible wig.
Despite how much product must be in place to hold those spikes, they still look soft and airy. Set against the smoke and the Buster Sword, the top half of the photo could easily be mistaken as a leaked screenshot of the remake!
Pixel is a German cosplayer with other stunning cosplays as gender-bent KDA Akali from League of Legends, Gilgamesh from Fate Grand Order, and Sora from Kingdom Hearts.
5 Tmprojection
Everything about this is perfect. The dilapidated cathedral wall with only a glimpse of sunlight peeking through the window sets a somber, yet hopeful, atmosphere. His wig looks like real hair. Standing with such confident and prepared posture, tmprojection looks like he's about to fight Sephiroth himself.
This Lithuanian cosplayer is also an alternative model with some incredible photos on his Instagram. Even out of cosplay, he looks just like an anime character!
4 Uncredited Cosplayer
With all of Cloud's modern depictions, it's easy to forget how the first iteration looked. The technology available to video game creators in 1997 was much more limited. As such, art assets were low-poly sprites much like this.
The unnamed cosplayer at Anime NYC captured his likeness perfectly. Cardboard builds like this are the perfect way to stand out at a convention. Even better, it is incredibly cost-effective!
3 Oh_hai_bonzai
Kingdom Hearts' concept of Disney meets Final Fantasy created many fond childhood memories in the early 2000s. Square Enix's most popular characters made appearances through Sora's journey. Seeing Cloud as a momentary puppet of Hades' was jarring, but more striking yet was his redesign. Complete with a tattered bat-wing and several more of Tetsuya Nomura's signature unnecessary belts, this was Cloud for the next generation.
Oh_hai_bonzai's cosplay recreates that mini boss-battle moment. We love the grunge aesthetics that look straight out of Halloween Town. Specifically, the wing and the bandaged sword look even cooler in real life than in-game.
He is a concept artist from South California. His second account @bonzai.doodlez shows off his original art. His main account hosts some other cool cosplays such as Joker from Persona 5, Tidus from Final Fantasy X, and Ozymandias from Fate Grand Order.
2 Isber Cosplay
Cosplay is about more than looking awesome in Instagram photos. One major aspect of the culture is going to conventions. It's a place where we can finally relax after weeks of sewing, painting, and sautering. This moment of Final Fantasy X's Jecht and Final Fantasy VII's Cloud crossing swords in Madrid embodies that convention fun.
There's beauty in simplicity. If there's one word to describe this costume, it is clean. The construction of the sword looks flawless. There are no unsightly bends or bulges. The engraved lines are perfectly straight and the circle cutouts would make an art teacher cry. This is an example of simply good craftmanship.
Isber_Cosplay is a Spanish cosplayer with only 1,151 followers on Instagram. However, with his work on Bayek de Ziwa from Assassins Creed Origins and General Grievous from Star Wars, we're not sure why he isn't more popular!
1 Ryuvie Cosplay
If there's one thing that helps sell the illusion of cosplay, it's other cosplayers. Having a group or a partner that matches you makes the image all the more realistic. These two look adorable together as childhood friends and power duo. Although the Cloud cosplayer admits to not having made the sword himself, we can't be too upset when the picture looks this good!
RyuvieCosplay is a couple: Ryusuke and Evvie Antei. They are both very talented Singaporean cosplayers who have done looks from Overwatch, Hypnosis Mic, and Fate Grand Order.