Sephiroth officially joins the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate cast next week, but players eager to open their presents early can unlock this surprisingly shirtless Final Fantasy VII villain right now by simply kicking the crap out of him.
“Sephiroth Challenge,” which can be found on the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate main menu if you pre-purchase the Sephiroth content bundle, tasks players with facing off against the swordsman in a one-on-one HP-based battle. Beating Sephiroth at any difficulty level will add him, his special Northern Cave stage, and a bunch of Final Fantasy music to the game early.
“In the initial plan, if players couldn’t win with the difficulty they selected, they wouldn’t be able to use Sephiroth until the official release date,” Smash series director Masahiro Sakurai said during a presentation earlier today. “This was to make it challenging for players who chose Very Hard. But in the end, we canceled that idea.”
I mean, sure, you have to pay $5.99 for him either way, but this is still pretty neat. Sephiroth Challenge is available now and will be until he and the rest of the Challenger Pack 8 content are officially released on December 22.