Results[]
Ulti's Analysis[]
| Division | East Division |
|---|---|
| Match # | 37 |
| Match Date | Wednesday, August 6th, 2003 |
| Vote difference | 50,246 |
| Oracle Expectations |
Cloud - 69.10% 43 for - 2 against |
| GameFAQs Prediction |
Cloud - 81.52% (33,470 brackets) |
Believe it or not, this was a fairly hyped match, especially in the first few minutes of Cloud's match with CATS. Both characters are FF leads from popular Square games, both characters wield huge swords, both characters are moody loners (CJayC literally called Cloud, Squall, and Auron 'The sully, moody character from FF7/8/X', or something alone those lines, in their bios), and both characters are OMG Badass! Badass! Badass! Badass!
Clearly the idea of SFF and its nasty effects weren't in full swing yet, as was the idea of rSFF actually being worth much in matches like this. Cloud was the clear favorite going in, and what people were hoping for was a hardcore case of rSFF giving Auron the win. I do wonder how many people took Auron's upset prospects seriously, however.
Well, aside from the 20% of people that actually gave CATS/Auron/Tails a chance of beating Cloud. It's a very bad prediction percentage, and it goes to show that people had no faith in Cloud after Mario broke everyone's hearts in 2002. Not that it had much bearing on Cloud's match with Auron, however, as he predictably jumped out to an SFF beating from the beginning of the poll and never looked back.
This didn't drastically debilitate Auron from the contests like blowouts do with certain other characters, though. The guy is a shade or two under Noble Nine status, and has proven it in his days since the Summer 2003 Contest. The company he represents certainly doesn't hurt.
This match went a long way to prove that Cloud was #2 in the Square pecking order behind Sephiroth, and he may wind up being #1 some day. At least, that was the mentality at the time. For the longest time, people either liked Sephiroth more or simply put more faith into him. It took a long time, Summer 2004 in fact, for people to fully agree to the contrary.