Final Fantasy VIII

I first became introduced to Final Fantasy through VII, and the game EASILY became one of my all time favorite RPG'S. From VII, I played through IV (which is also a favorite.) Eagerly I awaited FFVIII, and when I finally had it in my hands and played through it I was TERRIBLY disappointed.

Let me first start out by saying that the game has great graphics and looks phenominal, some of the best you will see on the playstation.

On the other side of things, there are many MANY problems. The story, characters, and battle system, are horacious, drag and find you not giving a damn where they might go or where they may end up; whilst in 4 and 7, the characters help every other part move along quite nicely. The story in 8, is very boring, randomized, and just plain ridiculous. It seems that Square came up with this story in a matter of seconds and figured, hey if people liked 7 they'll like 8...think again. I remember in one part of the game the main characters are just standing around (note i havn't played this game in a while, im doing this from memory) and ALL OF A SUDDEN recall they all grew up in a orphahage! I mean c'mon, all of a sudden? U expect me to believe that, its ridiculous. And the antaganist should not become revieled WELL INTO THE END OF THE GAME!

The character development is terrible, when i was playing through it i remember all the characters not having any personality, and Squall and Rinoa "being in love" did NOT work in the slightest bit. Above all things, i did not see the point in them and the story.

Yah, i just noticed this is a lil too long, and im gonna end it by saying i was very disappointed, and PRAY Square can pull something off with number 9.


A Classic   August 18, 2001
12 out of 12 found this review helpful

Final Fantasy VIII, the second installment of the Final Fantasy series on the Playstation is a game with outstanding graphics,an original storyline,great character design,and more. You are Squall Leonhart, a SeeD of the Balamb Garden Military Academy.SeeD is a codename for Balambs elite mercenary soliders. Balamb was created in order to train soliders to battle against an evil sorceress trapped in the future. Squall and his comrades go on a mission once they become SeeDs and then the little problem they were sent to solve turns big.They get caught up in a mess and the time has come to fight the evil sorceress from the future. There are many twists in the game and many side quests which makes the game more interesting.Personally, I love the Real-Time graphics done by Akira Fujii, who also worked on Final Fantasy IX. The music is great and it will capture the player in battle sequences. Theres much to say about this game, but I cant give everything away. This game is definetly worth a buy.


READ READ READ !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   September 30, 2000
11 out of 27 found this review helpful

If you are reading this, then i can help you from spending money. I have been a diehard ff fan from ff to ff8, well of course, THe graphics are.........ok.........but this is just my opinion. I think that the ff7 graphics are better, and the sound and storyline and characters are too! If anyone agrees with me hit the yes button!!!!!!! Oh by the way, i think that the jenova music is cool. Hit yes if you agree.


Highly Disappointing   March 12, 2002
thegreatjustino (Stockton, CA United States)
11 out of 27 found this review helpful

Playing Final Fantasy VIII is a lot like buying a new CD from you favorite band and realizing that they've passed their commercial peak. I've played through every domestically released Final Fantasy game, and was drooling with anticipation about playing VIII. Unfortunately this is one game in the series that doesn't live up to the Final Fantasy name. I commend Square for having the guts to overhaul the traditional role playing engine by incorporating the draw and junctioning systems into this game, but unfortunately this is one of the times that the saying "if it ain't broke don't fix it" is appropriate. You spend so much time finding all the necessary items to refine your weapons and drawing spells that you lose track of the big picture of the game. Of course, weapons (and to a lesser extent spells) are pointless in this game since they do almost no damage to enemies. Too much of the game revolves around the Guardian Forces which you can endlessly use in battle giving the game a very one dimentional feel. The best role playing games are those that require you to apropriately balance the usage of weapons vs. spells and have situations where each type of attack has its benefits and drawbacks. Unfortunately the balance in this game is way too lopsided. The low quality of FFVIII can really be seen when the lopsidedness is coupled with an idiotic storyline (yeah right all seven party members grew up in the same orphanage, and just HAPPENED to forget about it only to be reunited many years later by chance encounters). Sorry, but even taken with the biggest grain of salt this story needs work, and a flying garden????? Someone please explain that one to me. After thoroughly enjoying the storyline and Materia system of Final Fantasy VII, the overall experience of VIII was incredibly dissapointing.


FITHOS LUSEC NO CAVEAT EMPTOR   November 23, 1999
10 out of 12 found this review helpful

Somepeople are comparing Lunar to FF8. This is ludicrous. I don't see a comparison. There are also RPG "oldtimers" that complain about the good old days of Final Fantasy IV and V. There are so many reasons FFVIII is the best. First the little things. The second and third characters are no longer hidden. People actually look human this time rather than freaky marionettes.

There were big changes too. No more MP. Generally I think the draw system was pretty cool even though I agree Summon spells should be skippable.

The artistic design in this game was amazing. The best of the entire series. I almost fainted at seeing the Lunar Base. The FMV of the parade in Deling City is just about as close you can get to a pagan bacchanalia. The only fault I can find is that I miss the "castle" type of Final Fantasy. I heard FFIX is going to be more of a medieval fantasy, so at least I have something to look forward too.

The music is amazing. You almost forget that some of the tracks are looping over and over. I can't get enough of the opening movie's music. The Carmina Burana type vocals really add a lot of mood. Character design in this game is almost as good looking as the backdrops. I miss the Blade Runner feel of Midgar, but the provencial feel of FF8's towns is nice. The video sequences actually tell a story. It's like watching a silent movie, especially at the end. The finale is much more clear cut and cathartic than FF7. The graphics are great but the story is just as good as previous games, or better.