With the sole exception of Cloud's slip-up against Mario in 2002, Cloud has been one of the two biggest forces in the entire contest setting. And even in that contest, the argument can be made that Cloud would have won the match had there not been three major factors going against him. One, Super Mario Sunshine was released on the day of the match. Two, Cloud was up by 1000 votes when www.planetgamecube.com posted a link to the poll. And finally, there was a mysterious 500 vote jump in Mario's vote total that was never looked into despite photo evidence that someone may have done something fishy in Mario's favor. The 2002 stats are misleading in that Cloud surely would have finished at least second in the Xsts had he won that match.

With the sole exception of that one match in that one contest, only Link could possibly be considered more dominant than Cloud. Link is the only character to have beaten Cloud in the past two contests, and has a better win-loss record at 16-1. But with that said, it is a marvel to look at Cloud's numbers. In the three Summer Contests, Cloud has managed to score at least 80% three times, at least 70% eight times, and at least 60% ten times. He is not only the only character to ever beat Link, but he is the only character aside from Sephiroth to even break 40% on Link. He is the only character to have ever held Sonic the Hedgehog under 40%, and he is the only character aside from Link to have ever held Sephiroth under 45%.

To put it in simple terms, Cloud is one of two characters that has grown to be so dominant in these contests that there has been talk of retiring any and all contest winners. It isn't a matter of whether or not Cloud will win his matches anymore, but by how much. Mark my words, Cloud would have finished #2 in the Xsts in 2002 had he managed to take down Mario. Crono wouldn't have taken him down, and he would have beaten the percentage that Sephiroth managed to score on Link. And it is no coincidence that Mario and Cloud have gone in opposite directions since their fabled match in 2002. When there is talk of retiring you from all future contests, it speaks volumes about how damned good you are in polls. Cloud is so powerful that despite Board 8 and even the Final Fantasy 7 board itself not liking him at all, Cloud still manages to overcome any and all odds every single year. If that doesn't prove how good he is, then I don't know what does. No matter who Cloud faces in a match, they are virtually guaranteed to get the early lead simply because of how much Cloud is hated by two separate boards. I find that to be a compliment more than anything, because only those who have success wind up being hated in any competitve setting.

If your name isn't Link, then you will not beat Cloud. Period. This is why every character not named Link is hoping that winners are retired from future contests, because it means that they will not be fated to get their asses handed to them by the likes of Link or Cloud no matter how well they manage to do. But this is more of a compliment than a hate factor. Cloud has been so damned good in these contests that people want to see him gone. And that, I believe, is the biggest compliment that can be given to any character that has appeared in the contests.

Division 2 Round 1 --- 1st place, 87496 [61.24%] - Revolver Ocelot, 25256 [17.68%] - Jill Valentine, 22248 [15.57%] - Midgar Zolom, 7874 [5.51%]
Division 2 Round 2 --- 1st place, 81956 [56.10%] - Marcus Fenix, 22782 [15.59%] - Revolver Ocelot, 22006 [15.06%] - Kefka, 19348 [13.24%]
Division 2 Finals --- 1st place, 71041 [49.59%] - Ryu, 29007 [20.25%] - Auron, 26021 [18.16%] - Marcus Fenix, 17188 [12.00%]
Contest Quarterfinals --- 1st place, 59587 [41.23%] - Samus Aran, 41623 [28.80%] - Mega Man, 26641 [18.43%] - Ryu, 16682 [11.54%]
Contest Semifinals --- 2nd place, 40836 [28.46%] - Link, 55996 [39.02%] - Samus Aran, 24078 [16.78%] - Sephiroth, 22582 [15.74%]
Contest Finals --- 3rd place, 47834 [24.49%] - L-Block, 65462 [33.51%] - Link, 58100 [29.74%] - Solid Snake, 23964 [12.27%]

For the first time in three years, Cloud was inserted into the main bracket apart from Link, and he took full advantage of it. He was so dominant in his first four matches that people thought he might have a shot at Link himself, though he still fell short when the time came. The reason why we were so impressed with his dominance is that we've forgotten just how strong he is because this is the first time since 2004 that he's been involved in a match without Link in it. He may not still (or ever again) be up to par with the Legend of Zelda hero, but he proved that he's still untouched as this site's second strongest character.

...In a one-on-one format, that is. The L-Block is another story altogether.

-Ulti