Cloud Strife
is the game's primary protagonist and a self-proclaimed ex-SOLDIER-turned-mercenary employed by AVALANCHE. Initially, Cloud is confused and conflicted with an occasionally arrogant attitude and a cool disposition, until a traumatic experience in the Lifestream helps him discover lost memories of his true self. He wears a purple/dark blue SOLDIER uniform and is distinguished by his glowing blue eyes (a sign of having been exposed to a large amount of mako). He has spiky blond hair and wields an over-sized sword in combat.
Sephiroth
is the main antagonist, he's known to be the most powerful member of SOLDIER ever, and rose to a prominent rank at an early age. After a traumatic incident in which he learned of what he assumed to be his true origins, he left SOLDIER and indeed civilization altogether with plans to become a god-like power by wounding the Planet with Meteor and absorbing the entirety of the Lifestream sent to heal the damage. He manipulates Cloud (and the party, by extension) over the course of the game, as well as killing Aeris.
Sephiroth is also a member of the party for a very short period (during a flashback sequence), however he is totally controlled by the computer during combat and the player cannot change his equipment and materia. He is personified by his primary weapon; the powerful Masamune sword which he uses to inflict large amounts of damage.
Cloud destroys Sephiroth at the end of the game; however, he returns for a short time in the sequel Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children where he is reborn through the body of Kadaj and subsequently defeated once again by Cloud. He warns Cloud that he will "Never be a mere memory".
Sephiroth was injected with Jenova cells a short time after his conception, making him arguably her direct offspring, though he was originally the unborn son of Lucrecia and Hojo. He believes that his mother is Jenova because that is what Hojo told him; it is doubtful he knows that Lucrecia even exists.
Vincent
is a dark, brooding, and sardonic man whose heart has been numbed by a tragic love. He loved Lucrecia Crescent, who saved him after he was shot by Hojo when Vincent discovered that Lucrecia was part of an experiment (the Jenova project, from which Sephiroth was born) implanting in his body the most lethal weapon, Chaos, and the protomateria into Vincent with which to control Chaos. Vincent is a former Turk gunman who was experimented on by Hojo approximately thirty years before the start of the game, and consequently failed to age and developed superhuman abilities and characteristics. After the numerous experiments and help of the protomateria, Vincent is able to transform into other demons while having nearly complete control. Cloud and the others eventually discover him sleeping inside a coffin in the basement of the Shinra Mansion, where he joins them in their quest. Vincent joining in Final Fantasy VII is optional and not required to complete the game. Vincent also starred in two games, Dirge of Cerberus: Final Fantasy VII for the PlayStation 2 and the mobile game Dirge of Cerberus Lost Episode: Final Fantasy VII
Zack
is a non-player character from the game Final Fantasy VII, and the protagonist of its prequel, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII. He also appears with Aerith in Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, as a SOLDIER in Before Crisis: Final Fantasy VII, and plays a significant role in Last Order: Final Fantasy VII. In the original game, he appears only in flashback sequences, which portray him as almost identical to Cloud Strife (the game's main playable character) in physical appearance except for his black hair. When strung together, the sequences explain a great deal about Cloud's past and his connection to Sephiroth, the game's arch-villain. He also wielded the Buster Sword before Cloud. Zack was born in the town of Gongaga, where he lived until he left to join Shinra's militant force, SOLDIER. Eventually he works his way up to SOLDIER 1st class.
Aerith
is a flower girl on the streets of Midgar, sought after by Shinra's research department because she is the last of the Cetra. She asks Cloud to be her bodyguard after a run-in with the Turks, and subsequently joins AVALANCHE. Aerith has long brown hair she keeps in a braid with pink bows and green eyes, and wears a red mini-jacket with a pink dress.
While with AVALANCHE Aerith realizes that she is the one who must stop Sephiroth's plot and save the planet. Sephiroth realizes that Aerith is a danger to him and kills her in the forgotten city as she prays. However Aeriths' spirit remains in the life stream and she maintains her cognitive powers.
In Advent Children Aerith is seen to be a totally sentient force, albeit dead, she has the ability to communicate with the living, in this case Cloud, and maintain her living form. In the film, each of the main cast bear a reddish pink ribbon on one of their arms as a sign of remembrance to her. After Cloud defeats Sephiroth, Aerith releases her final limit break The Great Gospel at the end of the movie to cure the people of geostigma.
Tifa
is a childhood friend of Cloud and a skilled martial artist. She is one of the lead members of AVALANCHE and convinces Cloud to join them in their rebellion against Shinra. She has long black hair tied back in a loose pony-tail and reddish-brown eyes. She has deep feelings for the main hero, Cloud, due to a promise made by the two of them as children.
In the original game Tifa journeys with Cloud and the rest of AVALANCHE across the world to fight Shinra and save the world from Sephiroth. As the journey progresses Tifa appears more and more attracted to Cloud- when he has a mental breakdown she stays with him and helps him through it. It is here the player learns of Tifa and Cloud's childhood and the events surrounding the burning of Tifa's hometown.
In Advent Children she is found to be living with Cloud, Denzel and Marlene at her bar, Seventh Heaven. She describes this unit as a "family" in the film.
Barret
is one of the main characters in Final Fantasy VII. He is voiced by Masahiro Kobayashi in the original Japanese publications of the Compilation and by Beau Billingslea in the English dubs. In Final Fantasy VII, Barret starts out as the leader of the paramilitary organization known as AVALANCHE. He is opposed to the use of Shinra’s mako technology, which he believes to be killing the planet. After the group disbands, Barret chooses to continue his mission to save the planet by joining with Cloud in the battle against Sephiroth. As the game proceeds, Barret maintains his hate for Shinra and what it is doing to the planet, but he also begins to regret his actions as the leader of AVALANCHE and mourns the loss of its members in Midgar. Following the defeat of Sephiroth, Barret travels the world aiming to rebuild the planet's infrastructure and find new power sources to replace Mako, which is shown to be oil in Advent Children.
Originally, Barret advocates cooperating with Shinra to build a mako reactor in his hometown of Corel before the events of the series. After AVALANCHE attacks the reactor, Shinra eradicates the town and its villagers, including Barret's wife, Myrna. Barret, his best friend, Dyne, and Dyne's daughter, Marlene, are some of the only survivors. Soon after, Barret and Dyne are attacked by Shinra troops led by Scarlet. Though Barret survives, his right forearm is hit by gunfire and rendered useless when he tries, in vain, to prevent Dyne from falling off a cliff. Assuming Dyne to have been killed, he adopts Marlene, and then travels to Midgar. He also has a gun prosthetic grafted to his arm and begins seeking revenge on Shinra, eventually becoming the leader of the second incarnation of AVALANCHE, while remaining ignorant of the first group's involvement in Corel.
Prior to the events of Advent Children, Barret had his prosthetic gunarm upgraded by Shalua Rui where it can transform into a variety of alternative firearms, as well as a regular hand. During the events of Dirge of Cerberus, Barret is among the troops leading the land assault against the Deepground Soldiers in Midgar and is pictured with the group supporting Vincent during the final battle against Omega.
