Should I skip Final fantasy VIII?

[kevin_psx]

I hear nothing but bad reviews of it? Good story; lousy game.

[pacmanhat]

I seriously question the credibility of the 'reviews' you've heard...FF8 is excellent. It's not the best game ever (or even in the series), but that doesnt' mean it's not worth playing. Take a look at this if you feel like it:

http://www.gamerankings.com/htmlpages2/197343.asp?q=fantasy%20viii

There's plenty of positive reviews you can read from there.

[blissfulnoise]

I personally think, story wise, it's the best game in the series. But that's not a popular opinion.

If you consider yourself a fan of role-playing games then every Final Fantasy game needs to be on your must-play list.

[kevin_psx]

To get magic in Final Fantasy VIII, you must “Draw” it, either from an enemy or from draw points, which is annoying because you can eventually run out of magic and spend your time battling just to draw stupid magic. It’s quite irritating indeed. Also, you can junction your magic to raise certain stats if you have learned a Stat-Junction ability. You have no idea how much time this takes up. And this happens to be very boring, taking away any fun factor this game has. http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/review/R15242.html

Sounds boring to me too. Is it?

[Sylentwulf]

Personally, I think it's the third or fourth best game in the series. Much better than FF9, and MUCH MUCH better than FFX could ever hope to dream of becoming.

[Joelius]

Reviews don't make the game. You must expierence it for yourself. ESPECIALLY if it's from a blockbuster series like Final Fantasy.

[Daltone]

I'd at least try it. Should be pretty cheap, and what's the worst that can happen? Well, other than your PSX suddenly exploding making the disc fly out and decapitate you. Personally I didn't think that it was that great, but the story at least kept me interested.

[davepesc]

To get magic in Final Fantasy VIII, you must “Draw” it, either from an enemy or from draw points, which is annoying because you can eventually run out of magic and spend your time battling just to draw stupid magic. It’s quite irritating indeed. Also, you can junction your magic to raise certain stats if you have learned a Stat-Junction ability. You have no idea how much time this takes up. And this happens to be very boring, taking away any fun factor this game has. http://www.gamefaqs.com/console/psx/review/R15242.html

Sounds boring to me too. Is it?

Unfortunately, it's the junction system that kills the game for me. Not only is it a pain to draw magic, but actually using that magic permanently (unless you draw more) lowers your stats. I am against any FF game that penalizes you for using magic.

[s1lence]

The junction system in VIII blows. Its not a bad game to play and if you are a FF fan I would say go for it.

[Poofta!]

the best part of the game is the card mini game that you can play with variouse denizens of the ff8 world. other than that id say its pretty bad, story was 'meh' and the gameplay is just plain horrid.

youll pretty much know if you like it or hate it after playing it for half a day, so try that. my vote? try for the card game, and after that lost its appeal, on to the next game on your list.

[hezeuschrist]

The junction system in VIII blows. Its not a bad game to play and if you are a FF fan I would say go for it.

That pretty much sums it up. That and the protagonist is a completely whiney pussy. Why can't anyone OVER THE AGE OF 17 SAVE THE FUCKING WORLD?

[calthaer]

Someone said "Bad game, good story"

I'd disagree. I'd say "mediocre game, bad story." The inane plot twists (oh my! we're all orphans, WE JUST FORGOT!) and crap like that make the story absolutely ho-hum. The junction system sucks, as has already been mentioned...and I'd agree - it's only that card game that saves this game from being a complete and utter bore.

The PC version comes with a cool little ChocoboWorld program that gets you some neat items, though.

[kevin_psx]

Decided to just watch the movie & sell the game



http://cgi.ebay.com/Final-Fantasy-VIII-8-Complete-DVD-FMV-Anime-Movie_W0QQitemZ6442367717QQcategoryZ617QQssPageNam eZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Kim Possible]

Ick. FFVIII was terrible. I barely made it through the first time and will NEVER play it again. Boring story (only good toward the end), too much "school" at the beginning, terrible "junction" system, boring card game (the game in FFIX is better), etc.

The only think I liked a lot were the summons. They were awesome.

[s1lence]

Ick. FFVIII was terrible. I barely made it through the first time and will NEVER play it again. Boring story (only good toward the end), too much "school" at the beginning, terrible "junction" system, boring card game (the game in FFIX is better), etc.

The only think I liked a lot were the summons. They were awesome.

The summons are cool the first couple times, but they get really old , really quick.

[whoisKeel]

Oh c'mon it isn't that bad. It's not my favorite either, but I only remember excessive drawing of magic when trying get strong enough to beat the *optional* bosses. (Omega or whatever). Sure the summons were long, but wasn't that the one (or was it 9?) that you can hit the button really fast to build them up, so at least you're doing something while watching the animations. My memory is a little foggy, as it's been a few years, but seem to recall the ending being the best I had ever seen (at the time). There's still some sequences I remember like the parade and space that were cool.

[towerofsong]

Final Fantasy VIII is my least favourite game in the series, found it frustrating and was not keen on the character designs at all. Couldn't get the hang of the battle system, the junction thing is annoying as hell.
But...well
I still reccomend you play it. It still has that certain hold over you as you play it, well it did for me anyway. Annoying as it was I still completed it.
Thank god FF IX rocked.

[Chronodriftersx]

no m8 it's great

[Arkaign]

Bottom line, check it out for yourself, there's no sure way of telling how *you* will care for it. It's cheap now as well, as many others have already noted.

Personally, I don't like any of the FFs on PSX onwards. I went to Diablo and other PC RPGs from the 16-bit stuff.

But that's just me, everyone will come to and from each game with their own perspectives and experience, and though they may share some degree of their outlook on a title, it's fundamentally and undeniably an individual opinion that each of us ultimately arrive at.

[Kid Fenris]

I'm with the posters who've suggested that you hunt the game down and play it. If this thread shows anything, it's that Final Fantasy VIII leans heavily into the "love it or hate it" category.

For what it’s worth, I found FFVIII decent. It’s amusing even when the plot stumbles, and the magic-extraction play mechanics are a nice break from the repetitive attacking found in most RPG battle systems.


I'd disagree. I'd say "mediocre game, bad story." The inane plot twists (oh my! we're all orphans, WE JUST FORGOT!)

Detractors tend to overstate the silliness of this particular revelation, which is actually plausible if one pays attention to the subtler points of the story.

Also: SPOILERS, DUDE.


The PC version comes with a cool little ChocoboWorld program that gets you some neat items, though.

This mini-game is available in the regular PlayStation version, provided that you have a Pocketstation on which to run it. Also bear in mind that the PC version's interface is more awkward than the original's.

[Crush Crawfish]

Personally, I didn't like it much. I found the story and characters to be pretty uninteresting, and the Draw/Junction magic system was a real pain. Not to mention the ridiculously long, unskippable summon animations. But still, It's not like FF8 is a rare or expensive game, so you should probably just give it a shot anyways.

Hell, If I'd listened to all the negative reviews for Shadow Hearts, I never would have played it. But I did, and it turned out to be one of my all-time favorite games. Simply put, only you can decide what you like. :)

[Joker T]

I liked FF8 more than FF7 :)

[hentaigamerkitty]

I'm another one who liked 8 better than 7.

The junctioning system takes a while to get used to but once you get the hang of it, its ok.

I thought the story was wonderful (especially the love story between squall and rinoa.)

Its MUCH better than 9 (which was so boring to me that I couldn't finish it.)

[AMG]

It's all a matter of taste.

I found FFVIII to have dull characters, good story, great music and graphics. I enjoyed the game, but have played overall better.

The junction system is a blessing if you use it often from the start. Since the summon JFs take so long, stocking magic and getting your stats high early on will make them uneeded in battle. My characters were strong enough to the point where I didn't need to use the magic I had, or the JFs either.

Overall I rank the game below all the recent FF games (FFVII-FFX2). But if you're a Final Fantasy fan I feel you'll enjoy the game. There's a lot to like here.

[DDCecil]

I preferred FFVIII a HUGE amount over VII, but still liked FFIX better than both. I never figured out the Junction crap or the card game.

[jdc]

I found FF8 to have the most interesting story, the best setting and atmosphere, the coolest system (junctioning), best music....and the most impossible end boss ever. Maxed out everything, never did take her down.

It's the "different" Final Fantasy. Play it.

[SoulBlazer]

Put me down as another person who loves FF8. In fact, I liked it better then 7. While there is not a FF game I have not liked, I rank it third in the series (behind 4 and 6).

Story: Very good, not overaly complex like 7 is, and faster paced then 9. Disc 3 is the slowest one, but things keep happening at a good pace.
Charcters: Love them, wish there was more of them. Each person is expanded on and is spent a lot of time on, unlike previous FF games which ignored some people. I'm a lot like Squall in real life so I can relate. :)
Graphics: Very nice, I'm a big fan of the super realisitc style, and it helps with the setting as well. For example, when Riona looks down and shuffles her foot, you KNOW what she's thinking and feeling.
Music: VERY good. One of the best soundtracks of the series. I even enjoy "Eyes on Me". :)
Gameplay: Sure, the junction system is the weakest part of the game, but you don't need to use it. Square experiment with a lot of different stuff in this game, such as: monsters stay at right about the same difficulty throughout the game, you get a salery for money, weapons and armor are upgraded instead of bought, you can boost summons during the animations.
Difficulty and play time: Pretty hard game, there are some nasty quests, and if you take your time and do all the sub quests you can log in 40-60 hours.
Card game: LOVE the card game. And if you spend time with it, you cna get some really nice stuff in the game.

FF8 is the 'different' game of the series. You'll either love it or hate it. But for as many bad reviews of the game I've seen, I've seen a equal number of good ones. Don't listen to the reviews, try the game out yourself, and try to go through Disc 1 before you make your mind up! The game is quite cheap now, thanks to the GH line, so it's worth a shot.

Question to the fans of the game: there's a LOT of hidden dialogue and other stuff you may not see in the game your first time through. I've played through it about four times now and it was only in the last walkthrough that I saw one of the BEST dialogues in the game. Around the middle of the game when Squall has the chance to choose two parties after the events of Galbadia Garden, Irvine makes two groups based on his 'suggestions', with Riona and Selphie with him. Then he'll ask if this is okay. If you say yes instead of no, Squall will do one of his 'whatever' things and that ticks off the two girls who flirt with Irvine like crazy before they leave and just leave Squall really confused and upset. :D It's totally funny. LOL

[uncontrollable_0bsession]

Being a Final Fantasy fan, I was a bit disappointed by all the ragging going on about FF8. I am currently playing the game (for the third time through) and am finding it quite enjoyable. There aren't many games that have that "replay" value to them where you actually WANT to play them again. As far as I've heard, FF8 is one of the few that does have said value.

As far as gameplay goes, I didn't find much to complain about. The graphics are beautiful, the FMV's are a personal favorite of mine, and the storyline is one that you will either love or dislike, depending on how romantic you are. (Basically, what I'm trying to say is that most people find that the storyline's core is almost mainly centered on the love story between Rinoa and Squall.)

The negative things that were said on which I agree would probably be the amount of levelling up that is necessary in the game. Fortunately, SquareSoft learned from it's lesson in FF9 in which sporadic levelling up is necessary, but if you fight all of your random encounters it should be enough to get you more than just by. Also, I found that the battle system is really confusing, especially the first time around. (Hence my mistake of using GF's all the way through and flailing helplessly on the final boss when my GFs were tragically taken from me. -.-) However, if you take your time and try to really understand it, it isn't that terrible and you'll soon get the hang of it.

Drawing magic can also be a pain, but I found it good especially when you run out of spells. Personally, I found that with some monsters (mostly random encounters) that if you cast 'Sleep' on them, you can sit there and draw magic and stock it up to your heart's content. It's also helpful in the aspect that healing items rarely need be used, sparing precious gil for other things.

Squall doesn't fit the cliched stereotype of most main characters in RPGs which are all hyped up and really looking forward to saving the world. He's more like an actual person than a lot of the other characters I've seen in most of the RPG's I've played. Granted, most of the main characters aren't very loveable, (even though they may be meant to be). Most of the their personalities are a little bland, but the main story revolves around Sorceresses, Squall, Rinoa, and occasionally Seifer. You probably won't even be paying much attention to the other characters for a large portion of the storyline.

All in all, I found it to be a good game, and very much worth playing as I feel that reviews are only opinions of the person who played the game, and in order to get a real feel for it, you must play it yourself. I also believe that every game should be played as it does really help you figure out your standpoint in a lot of gaming aspects.
Of course, there are exceptions in which a game really really really sucks, *coughSuikoden4cough* and there's just nothing you can do about it. No matter how much you try.............

Anyways, definitely a must-play, and not worth skipping.

[unbroken]

You should definetly try ff8, some people love it and some people hate it. I thought it was a great game, ive never beat it, but i put alot of hours into it. if it makes any different i thought ff10 was worse.

[kevin_psx]

Drawing magic can also be a pain, but I found it good especially when you run out of spells.



Can the game be played w/o Summons or Drawing Magic?

What's a pocketstation?

[s1lence]

Drawing magic can also be a pain, but I found it good especially when you run out of spells.



Can the game be played w/o Summons or Drawing Magic?

What's a pocketstation?

Well the summons and drawing magic are big parts of the game so you really kinda need to use them.

The pocketstation is this : http://www.vidgame.net/SONY/POCKETSTATION.htm

[Lothars]

I think it's a great game and I would definilty give it a whirl

it's definitly a recommended game to give it a chance.

I really enjoy it.

[kevin_psx]

Pocketstation = Dreamcast VMU?

Which came first?

[Poofta!]

Pocketstation = Dreamcast VMU?

Which came first?


yes, its a SONY VMU. the pocketstation came first, but it was only released in Japan, and never came here, so im not even sure if itll work with the few US games that surprisingly support it.

also, unlike the VMU, the pocketstation had some games released specifically for it, but again, only in japan.

[kevin_psx]

Who is this?

http://www.digitpress.com/forum/images/avatars/75394811143228b691ce8f.jpg