Good evening to you all! ^_^

Seeing as a lot of you who work in the DMS, including a significant number outside of the Video Games division specifically, are followers and fans of Nintendo-related continua, I trust that you are aware of, among other recent Nintendo-related news, the recent announcement that Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy 7 has been added to the Super Smash Bros character roster. On top of this, a new Nintendo Direct centered around SSB will be shown next month, hopefully giving us the remaining few fighters that will be added (or added back) into the game. As expected, a lot of us, myself included, are more than a little excited for this development, and I certainly hope to see people put this archetypical ex-soldier to good use once he is released along with the latest DLC content!

Unfortunately, there is one repercussion stemming from this development that even my partner (or his canon counterpart, for that matter) couldn't see, and that is how polarizing this new development has become. A lot of Smash Bros. fans have been upset over Cloud's inclusion, citing plenty of reasons such as his being a supposed Ike clone, another swordsman, or belonging to a game that never received a Nintendo console port. A good number have also speculated that he was the winner of the Smash Ballot which ended several months ago, thus crippling the chances of Shovel Knight, Shantae, or King K. Rool being playable. (I personally voted for Sceptile and Bandanna Dee, but that's beside the point.)

I personally believe a lot of those arguments are baseless for several reasons. First, the Final Fantasy series originated with Nintendo console releases before moving to PlayStation, with the original even being released on the NES. Second, developer Yoshinori Kitase stated in a 2008 interview that FF7 was itself planned for release on the Super Nintendo console prior to its being moved to the N64 and finally the Playstation, so the Nintendo consoles do have relevance for this game to some degree. And third, Cloud's moveset, while derivative of some of the preexisting characters in the roster, I don't believe he will be a clone of anyone necessarily. It takes four months for a playable character to be completed including the moveset, so the fact that Cloud, like Mewtwo and Ryu, took that long to be developed suggests that he will play as his own character rather than a slightly altered copy of anyone else.

Therefore, while I understand why some of you may not be taking his reveal so well, it's important to realize that he and his home franchise have more history with Nintendo than you think. Besides, we still have the December Direct to look forward to, so hopefully we'll get to know the true winner of the Smash Ballot by then.

Naturally, a lot of you agents will be asking what this announcement means for Super Smash Bros. fanfic and badfic, and future missions therein. I believe that Cloud's addition, as controversial as it is, will likely result in a resurgence of fanfics featuring him now that his appearance in Smash is canon. Our treatment of him in a mission will likewise be different in light of the announcement, especially because information about him is still forthcoming. It's important to keep in mind that Cloud has appeared in plenty of SSB fanfic prior to his official reveal, so in the weeks and months to come, we would do best to check the date when the fic being missioned was published. If it was written prior to the announcement date (November 12, 2015), then it would be better to send him back to his home continuum. For fics published after that, however, I guess he's allowed to stay with the rest of the Smash fighters. That's my personal judgement on the matter, though - perhaps more information will be needed before we can cement his status in SSB missions.

As it is, however, this is truly a time to be alive, and Cloud's inclusion in SSB will certainly open more figurative doors for both this game and the Final Fantasy franchise, what with a remake of FF7 in the works. I know it may be a stretch to say that the entire Smash fandom will eventually embrace him, but I hope that he will come to be accepted as a fighter by the fans of SSB - and you agents as well - in the times ahead!

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to tend to my partner... He's too busy squeeing and flailing about on the floor to speak. Take care!

- Agent Whitney, who is cautiously shipping Cloud with Linkle from the upcoming Hyrule Warriors 3DS port.