Final Fantasy VIII PlayStation

Final Fantasy VIII PlayStation

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Oct 18, 2006 | 3 out of 3 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

Pros: Stunning graphics, great soundtrack, imaginative environments, addictive and absorbing, 4 discs of play, plenty of replay value

Cons: Hit and miss new ideas, initially quite daunting, over - complicated 'Junction' system, not a patch on FFVII

When Squaresoft decided to release Final Fantasy VII (the first 32-bit instalment of their enduring RPG series) on a global scale, it is unlikely that even the most optimistic of developers could have predicted the success that would follow. 30,000,...000 sales, two-and-a-half years and a mass of expectancy later, the brave souls at Square released a follow up. Brave being the operative word; Final Fantasy VIII was not only very different to its immediate predecessor, it also strayed radically from many of the basic concepts maintained throughout the series’ 12 year history. Whilst a lot of the playing mechanics have been tweaked or altered, the basic premise of Final Fantasy VIII remains true to its earlier siblings – travel the world slaying a myriad of monsters, completing set tasks, exploring towns and dungeons and having a good old natter with anyone who’ll give you the time of day. As is now customary with all Final Fantasy games, things begin on a relatively small scale. The player is introduced to the 17 year-old, reclusive loner that is Squall Leonheart, whom it soon becomes apparent is the story’s central figure. He is a student at Balamb Garden, which is essentially a military college, and aspires to become a cadet in SeeD – a special combat unit. The college is very much the central hub in the early stages of the game, impressing with its variety and depth; a visit to the library is helpful for gaining general information, as is checking Squall’s ‘desk’ (a computer network). If on the other hand you fancy something a little more taxing, you can exorcise a few beasties in the battle arena, or challenge a random student to a game of ‘Triple Triad’ cards (more on that a little later). With extended play, the storyline begins to open out, stretching to the familiarly-epic proportions gamers have come to associate with the Final Fantasy titles; Squall meets a host of friendly faces to aid him on his journey, as well as inevitably running into some troublesome foes, most notably the Galbadian Army and the powerful, spell-binding Princess Edea. FFVIII throws a host of new ideas into the mixing pot, so credit to the developers for taking the series down a more original path. But to be brutally honest, it is primarily the new features that cause FFVIII the greatest hindrance. The most positive and notable inclusion comes in the form of a series of dream/flashback sections – Squall and his party will at set points, collapse into a form of deep sleep, and it’s at these intervals that the player gets to control a second lead character – the fabulously-named Laguna Loire; a mysterious soldier turned journalist, who gradually seems to be forming a closer and closer link to Squall as these ‘dream’ sequences continue. They are very well implemented and genuinely fascinating. Final Fantasy’s trademark mystical beasts return under the guise of ‘Guardian Forces’ (or GF’s) – these creatures can be equipped to one party member at a time, and gift a wide range of abilities and attributes, as well as their own battle moves; FF mainstays Shiva and Ifrit perform Ice and Fire-based attacks respectively, whilst the inclusion of status-chaging guardian’s adds some weight; Carbunkle casts a magic-reflecting barrier on your party, whilst Cerberus grants the ability to use three magic's in a single turn rather than just the one. On a more negative note, certain parts of the game just seem to have been overcomplicated for the sake of adding a bit more depth and playing time – money cannot be attained from defeating monsters like in previous games; instead you must take a series of SeeD written examinations to earn a set salary – didn’t anyone tell the developers that this was meant to be fun? Also, certain rare items and pieces of equipment must be attained before you can buy something as simple as a new weapon. Final Fantasy VIII uses a new ‘Junction’ system, which is clever in theory as it allows individual character Read more Less

*FINAL FANTASY * ROCKS DONT DENY *_*

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Dec 3, 2002 | 2 out of 2 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

final fantasy has the best story and romance line!!!!!! and alothough they should have made the fourth disc longer, there should have at least something to play with after defeating ultemcia because squall and rinoa are so cute together!!!!!!!! and t...hey should make a continuing of final fantasy 8 because it is the best final fantasy and they shouldnt have children with big feet like a certain final fantasy (ahem final fantasy 9!!) Read more Less

BEAUTIFUL

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Mar 15, 2002 | 2 out of 2 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

This is the best game ever!!!!!!The storyline rocks the playability rox.Everything rox!!!The ending is worth it too.Make sure to watch all of the movis at the end.It's not over until it says ~the end~

the story and the characters is so cool!

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Dec 5, 2001 | 2 out of 2 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

the characters is so cool and the story is out of this world!!

final fantasy 8

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Mar 21, 2002 | 2 out of 3 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

i think is game is the best game ever close to final fantasy 10. i like the limits breaks they do. the swords the weapons like the aeons are the best like eden. the storyline is sweet. the womens are the best like rinoa do you agree with me!!!!!!!!!...!! Read more Less

The Best Ever Made

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Sep 15, 2003 | 1 out of 1 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

The Most Dramatical RPG ever Made in this world.

great

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Jan 20, 2002 | 1 out of 1 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

wonderful

one of the greatest game ever

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Jan 13, 2002 | 1 out of 1 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

ff8 is one of the greatest game that i ever played. i like the characters and also the FMV's their so cool especialy the GF's. and also i also like the story line too.

Final fantasy VIII

By Yahoo! Shopping User  Dec 7, 2001 | 1 out of 1 found this Final Fantasy VIII review helpful

The game is just too cool but I couldn't complete it cos my CD is scratched.Anyway it's visual effects are cool,the graphics are superb and sound is ok too. The story line is not too different and I give those who created this game a hand.