Tifa Lockhart (Final Fantasy VII)
Tifa Lockhart is one of the playable characters from Final Fantasy VII. She is Cloud’s childhood friend, a barmaid in 7th Heaven, and an active member of the resistance group known as AVALANCHE. Growing up in a small town called Nibelheim, she was once a tour guide before a tragedy robbed her of everything, including her family. Tifa plays a major role in the game and the spinoffs, and acts as the emotional backbone of the group. While many men fawn over her stunning looks, it seems like she only has her eyes on Cloud.
However, don’t let her pretty face fool you as she is a master in hand-to-hand combat. She took martial arts lessons from Zangan at a young age and has used these skills to help the party on their journey. Similarly, Tifa is no stranger to the Dissidia series as she made her debut in Duodecim. Her moves comprised mainly of her limit breaks with the ability to feint and trick her opponents. It wouldn’t be surprising to see her reprise her role in Dissidia NT judging by her immense popularity in the fanbase. Moreover, adding Tifa to Dissidia NT would be a great way to advertise the upcoming Final Fantasy VII Remake.
Auron (Final Fantasy X)
Auron made his appearance in Final Fantasy X where he accompanied Yuna’s father, Braska, as a guardian on his pilgrimage to stop Sin. He then became Tidus’s caretaker and aided Yuna on her own journey to put an end to Spira’s suffering. Auron acts as the party’s advisor as they often approach him when asking for advice or permission. Despite his mature qualities, Auron hides his own mysterious past that links to the mysterious destruction of Zanarkand and the major blitzball star, Jecht.
Auron has yet to make an appearance in any of the Dissidia games so far but has been a popular request from fans. The character would be a great fit for Dissidia NT because of his strong ties to the main story, his popularity, and his fighting style. In the main game, he is a strong physical attacker with powerful Break skills that debuff the enemy. These qualities can be easily reworked into Dissidia NT wherein he can be one slow, yet powerful force to be reckoned with.
Sazh Katzroy (Final Fantasy XIII)
Sazh Katzroy hails from Final Fantasy XIII where he joins Lightning and the others on their journey to defy their fate. Before the events of the main game, he worked as an airship pilot who took care of his son, Dajh, alone after his wife passed away. After a holiday trip gone wrong, his son became a Cocoon l’Cie and was taken into PSICOM custody. Sazh quickly took action to save Dajh and stumbled across Lightning and Snow before they all turned into l’Cie. Throughout his journey, Sazh learns the real reason behind his son’s transformation and the true state of their world.
The character is actually quite skilled with firearms despite his job as a pilot. Sazh wields a pair of pistols that can transform into an assault rifle. While he has the ability to attack from afar, he has slow animation speed so he is best used as a buffing and de-buffing mage. He could inherit Lightning’s Paradigm ability from Duodecim while adding new twists with some gun skills. Sazh is one of the more underappreciated characters in the series so adding him in Dissidia NT should boost his popularity. Not to mention the fact that Lightning is the only character from her game to appear in the crossover franchise.
Leon (Final Fantasy II)
Leon is a pioneer in the Final Fantasy franchise as he appears in the second game who serves both as an ally and antagonist. He is one of the four protagonists that managed to escape the clutches of the Empire when they invaded Flynn. However, he was soon separated from the party and became the Emperor’s Dark Knight, eventually fighting against his former friends. Nevertheless, Leon did end up rejoining Firion and the party to defeat the Emperor at the Pandaemonium.
Leon is the first Dark Knight in the series and is also the first party member in the series to betray the party. This trope is later expanded on by Kain in Final Fantasy IV who was included in Duodecim. The Dark Knight had powerful stats that focused mainly on Intelligence and Strength. Since Firion’s play style revolved around the many weapons he could use, Leon could focus mainly on dealing spells with a few melee attacks mixed in. Including Leon in Dissidia NT would pay a great homage to the early Final Fantasy titles while expanding the second game’s roster.
Locke Cole (Final Fantasy VI)
The first thing you have to know about Locke Cole is that he is an acclaimed treasure hunter and not a thief. With that out of the way, this infamous ladies’ man debuts in Final Fantasy VI as a contact, spy, and a saboteur for the resistance group known as the Returners. He takes up arms against the Gestahlian Empire and is a major character who helped Terra and Celes in many sticky situations early in the game. While he may come off as flirty, Locke hides away the reason behind his passion for women that haunts him throughout his journey.
Locke has the traits of a thief in battle with his main ability being Steal, which allows him to take an item from the enemy. He has well-rounded stats with high speed and evasion but is burdened with low magical stats. In terms of equipment, he can use weapons ranging from swords, boomerangs, and daggers. If he manages to secure himself a spot in Dissidia NT, Locke would prioritize his speed along with tricking the enemy. Moreover, if Dissidia NT keeps the equipment system, the thief could also “steal” some of their weapons or armor in a match to weaken them.
Ashe Dalmasca (Final Fantasy XII)
Princess Ashelia B’nargin Dalmasca, or better known as Ashe, had everything she could have ever wanted – her kingdom, a husband, and adoration from her people. Unfortunately, the Final Fantasy XII heroine lost everything after getting tangled in a major political affair that threatened her entire kingdom. Even so, she remained true to her ideals and decided to take matters into her own hands and restore her family to its rightful place. Despite her royal upbringing, Ashe is fiercely independent and driven to complete the tasks at hand.
Similarly, the princess was no stranger to the defensive arts as she is skilled with various weapons – especially the blade. In the game, she has the highest MP and Magick Power growth along with average Speed and Vitality. Ashe specializes in both magic oriented and physical oriented jobs which make her suited for equipping weapons with high Magick Power and Strength stats. In the Revenant Wings spinoff, she acts as a Time Mage with both support and offensive abilities. Combining these features together could make Ashe a powerful magic user in Dissidia NT with the ability to alter time and use powerful spells.
Faris Scherwiz (Final Fantasy V)
Faris Scherwiz is a pirate captain who travels in a ship with her crew in Final Fantasy V. She is a proud, courageous, and sometimes reckless individual who cares little about what people think of her. However, being raised by male pirates at a young age and has made her somewhat sensitive when it comes to her gender and how she communicates with others. The party encounters her on their adventures when they try to steal the pirate ship. Along the way, she becomes chosen to fight as one of the Warriors of Light.
In battle, Faris has great agility with her other attributes fairly balanced compared to the other party members. Because of this, she is flexible with her roles, meaning the party could always have at least two fighters or spellcasters during battle. Similarly, you could also take advantage of her stats and turn her into a Red Mage instead. Dissidia NT could expand character classes by including Faris and her abilities as a potential Red Mage. She could be a quick character that focuses on close combat with magic that could draw her foes in.
Caius Ballad (Final Fantasy XIII-2)
Caius Ballad acts as one of the main antagonists in the Final Fantasy XIII franchise who constantly clashed with the series protagonists. The villain causes trouble for Farron sisters as he fought an “endless” battle with Lightning in the realm of Valhalla and followed Serah and Noel on their journey through time. In the past, he was originally a Gran Pulse l’Cie who was charged with protecting the seeress Yeul as her Guardian. Because of this, Caius makes it his goal to stop Serah and Noel from completing their mission as every change in the timeline further shortens Yeul’s lifespan.
He is an intimidating opponent with his massive blade and powerful magic that can easily crush his foes. Players will have multiple boss battles against him in XIII-2 and even holds the record of being the most recurring boss in a single Final Fantasy game. He also has the ability to cast multiple boons on himself, the most notable one being Regen. There is no doubt that Caius would make for a powerful character and formidable rival against Lightning in Dissidia NT.
Vivi Ornitier (Final Fantasy IX)
Black Mage took on a literal meaning with Vivi Ornitier who debuted back in Final Fantasy IX. This playable mage is iconic for his traditional Black Mage appearance complete with the black aura surrounding his outer skin and yellow eyes. The character starts off as shy, clumsy, and often gullible, and is afraid to use his magic and learn more about himself. Throughout his journey with Zidane, Vivi begins to understand the truth about his origins and slowly gains the confidence and self-esteem he needs to help his friends.
Following the mage cliche, Vivi uses staves in battle and his special ability is Focus which boosts his magic power. He has access to a large pool of power offensive and elemental magic that can melt foes. Similarly, he also has access to many support abilities that can enhance his magic or shield him from negative status effects. Judging by his power and popularity, Vivi would make another great addition as a mage in Dissidia NT.
Ardyn Izunia (Final Fantasy XV)
Ardyn Izunia is a man of many mysteries who aids Noctis and his friends on their journey in Final Fantasy XV. Despite his kind words and actions, the chancellor of Niflheim isn’t afraid to use others for his ulterior motives. Throughout their journey, Noctis and his gang slowly begin seeing the man behind the mask and his plot for the world of Eos. However, some may argue that Ardyn’s actions are just and he was treated unfairly in the past. Be that as it may, none can deny that he is a cunning and sly individual with impressive power over both magic and politics.
Aside from his gift of the gab, Ardyn has the ability to conjure illusions that range from teleportation to configuration. He was able to fool Noctis into hurting Prompto and has toyed with young prince’s mind on many occasions. In battle, he shares most of his abilities with Noctis except his weapons glow red instead of blue. In Dissidia NT, Ardyn would act as the representing villain for Final Fantasy XV with a play style that shares some concepts with Noctis. Dissidia NT could also incorporate some of his mind magic by fooling opponents to hit their own allies.
Bonus: Sora (Kingdom Hearts)
Sora might not be from the Final Fantasy franchise but there is no denying the popularity he has over fans. Kingdom Hearts has some connections with the Final Fantasy series, most notably their characters. Sora is the main protagonist in the franchise who keeps nothing but a Keyblade during his ongoing quest.
He is also a powerful warrior who has taken down countless Heartless in the past. His powers have seemed to expand in the upcoming Kingdom Hearts 3 as his Keyblade can now transform. Including the character and these upcoming changes in Dissidia NT will no doubt be a great way to please fans and hype them up for the third mainline game.
