FINAL FANTASY VIII

It entertains me.

Awesome version if you don't have the thing for the chicobo quest

Classic

9/10 – A Beautiful Love Story

Final Fantasy VIII is a worthy successor to VII, even if it hits a few bumps along the way. It’s just as iconic, though I get why it's so divisive within the community.

I came into this game fully expecting not to like it from everything I’d heard, plus the bits of gameplay I’d seen before. But in the end I was floored by how much I enjoyed it. This game delivered far more than I ever expected, and I’m confident it’ll stick with me for a long time.

Regarding the port and build of the game, like FFVII, the is rough. The graphics haven’t aged well, and the more realistic visual approach (compared to VII’s stylized models) actually makes the age more glaring, 25 years later anyway. The modding scene for FFVIII is sadly much smaller, but there are still a few good ones that help improve the experience. Ultimately, FFVIII is a fantastic experience wrapped in a very dated package.

Movement in the world is one of the game’s pain points. FFVII was the series’ breakthrough into 3D, it had its hiccups, sure, but overall it delivered a surprisingly smooth experience. FFVIII, in some spots, feels like a step backward in this regard. Movement is often stiffer and clunkier, and it can get in the way of you and your goals more than it should, especially since detailed character models are always used, adding to the awkwardness.

That said, the animation work on those models for in-game and pre-rendered cutscenes is impressive. Their skeletons and rigging feel thousands of times more natural and expressive than most games even today. Squall and Rinoa, in particular, have some incredibly nuanced movement that adds so much emotion to the story.

FFVIII’s story has great pacing, unlike its predecessor, I never felt it dragged or lost me. Sure, it’s got its flaws of some plot threads getting dropped or added out of nowhere, and there are a few glaring holes. But it’s all in service of maintaining momentum. The main villain is not particularly well-developed, easily one of the weaker final antagonists in the series. This and the shenanigans of the last quarter of the

It took a while for me to warm up to the setting and characters, but once I did, through the game's many incredible scenarios, I was hooked. Every payoff felt earned. Squall, who started as my most disliked character, ended up being one of my favourites in the whole franchise, alongside Rinoa, and the incredible Laguna.

The game’s focus on cinematography, paired with another masterclass score from Nobuo Uematsu (the man does not miss), elevates nearly every scene with emotional weight, and many will stick with you long after the credits roll. Especially one particular payoff for Squall near the end, where everything in the motion, direction, storytelling, and above all, the brilliant FFVIII main theme, comes together perfectly in an iconic and unforgettable moment, easily one of the most emotionally resonant scenes in the entire franchise.

The story’s twists mostly work well. One in particular though, has the fanbase divided for being too similar to the one in FFVII. I think this one works too, one because while FFVII's twist was about identity, FFVIII's was about connection, but also because there were pretty good hints dropped on the world material (although if they dropped a bit more hints during the main story would've probably helped a lot).

Going over gameplay and the other divisive point, the Junction and Draw Systems. It’s definitely a weird one. Magic is no longer cast with MP, instead, spells are consumables that you farm to use, but also slot into your stats to boost attributes. Which means using magic actually makes you weaker. To unlock those stat slots, you equip summons (GFs), which function somewhat like FFVI’s Magicite, which was another system I didn't like.

It’s messy. I hated it at first. But once I wrapped my head around it and started leaning into the system, it became manageable, sometimes even interesting. I still don’t love it, but I respect the attempt. It’s not bad, just very different than what we were used to.

As for the rest of the combat: levelling barely matters, since enemies scale with you (in fact, staying under levelled makes the game easier), and the revamped limit break system gives each character unique actions and activation conditions. Only downside is their activation in battle is not so straight forward.

In the end, Final Fantasy VIII is a gem I wasn’t expecting to find. It is an ambitious masterpiece that manages to outshine its flaws through a beautiful love story, an amazing cast of heartfelt characters, stunning music, ambitious cinematography and storytelling. It may have surpassed FFVII and be right along V and VI as my favourite entries in the franchise. I just hope one day we get a Pixel Remaster-style treatment, to help the game shine the way it truly deserves.

10/10
Its been over 20 years since I've played this game, still love it!

it's just a good game, enough said.

9/10

FF8 is a game with different priorities. It's a game that wants to have emotional cathartic moments even if that comes at the expense of the plot or general writing. Its junction system is easily exploitable and can break the game's difficulty in mere hours. And you don't have to have in-depth knowledge of its systems to figure how to do it. You turn the Tent item into Curagas and junction it to your health stat. There, I just broke the game for you.

Drawing magic is tedious and kills the excitement of battles (though you eventually stop having to draw magic when you get enough of certain items that you can refine into the magic you need). Limit breaks are also exploitable but not nearly has strategic and fun to use as FF7. Gameplay in general seems undercooked.

The story in general doesn't really seem to dive into their ideas beyond a shallow surface level. If you watch reviews on youtube they'll bring up the fact that the cast of characters are essentially brainwashed, child-soldiers. Yet the game itself doesn't really seem to acknowledge that fact. They wanted the cast to be in a highschool-esque setting but they also wanted them to fight monsters and go on an adventure. DING! Let's do a setting where they're in a military academy for training mercenaries. That's as far as the idea goes and I really don't think anyone put more depth into it.

The plot twist around the mid-point (won't spoil it, but if you have any knowledge of this game you probably know what I'm talking about) is bad. It's really bad. It has to do with memory loss and yet this loss is not even to all the characters, and the ones that do remember (or should remember) use insane hand-waving moon logic for why things are never brought up or explained. It takes a twist that is already contrived and then unnecessarily breaks it even further into total nonsense. What should be a serious, emotional moment becomes the lowest point in the game.

Yet the romance, the core part of the game, actually works and that's what saves the game's writing from being a complete disaster. I liked the space sequence, I like "Eyes on Me", and there's a part after the space sequence that I think is quite sweet and tender.
But beyond that? Everything is underdeveloped: Most of the story, the rivalry aspect, the main villain, the gameplay, the WORLD. All of it feels under-cooked and rushed. Hell, after the space sequence is basically the endgame. So run around and do what side quests you want before you go and beat the game. At least the final dungeon is great.

All in all I think a thumbs down is too harsh. There are some good moments to be had and what the game prioritizes (the romance) works. But everything beyond that feels sloppy at best. This should not be the first Final Fantasy game you play and you may want to consider waiting for a sale before purchasing this.

the only good final fantasy

Unplayable.

fUN TO PLAY

Extremely underrated.

idk whats happening but its cool

Very okay.

Music is good as usual, but the story is a bit obtuse and characters are lackluster.

Combat is fairly quick (high speed mode helps a lot) and can vary from brainless to challenging to borderline gimmicky. Drawing and stocking magic from fonts and enemies is an interesting idea in concept, but can be a grind.

By now, a classic among RPGs.

The game stands out due to its European setting. The character development and plot reveal more depth and interconnections upon closer inspection, culminating in a multi-layered love story.

The integrated card game offers many possibilities and, especially for more experienced players, becomes one of the key elements in mastering battles and overall game progression—particularly through the card creation mechanics.

The game’s biggest antagonist is its leveling system. If you focus too much on leveling up without paying attention to the status system, you’ll have a hard time. On the other hand, this also provides an opportunity to increase the game’s difficulty, which is a welcome challenge for players seeking a more demanding experience.

The combat system allows players full freedom in setting up commands for party members, except for the limit abilities, which are unique to each character.

The music by Nobuo Uematsu blends wonderfully into the gameplay. A great example of this becomes clear when listening to the tracks on their own—you are instantly transported back to specific in-game moments or characters, evoking the intended emotions and atmosphere.

Especially the quality-of-life improvements, which can be adjusted and activated in the menu, make the game more accessible for new players and invite veterans to enjoy another playthrough.

It's a classic!

An absolute Classic! Cannot be denied, this is one of the greatest FF games ever.

I am having issues with the controllers not working, this is very unfortunate because I love this game. A lot

Played this game as a kid and the Steam version is great for playing again!

so happyu

(Don't let my low playtime confuse you. I have ~120 hrs on two playthroughs on PS, just bought the steam version to check out mods)

TLDR: I'll never forget booting this up as a high schooler and being immediately drawn in. To this day it remains one of my fav RPGs. Yes it has flaws, sometimes big ones: the plot is convoluted, the drawing system is broken, and Squall starts off unlikeable. But despite all that: The unabashed teenage romance, the world-building, the gorgeous artwork, the goated soundtrack, and that feeling of being young in the pre-social media era all made FF8 win my heart. I'll recommend it to this day alongside Ragnarok balance mod, Angelwing 4k upscale, and Wine & Roses for the music. Just be ready for some low moments in your playthrough in-between some charming and amazing heights.

Longer full review:

FF8 starts with an absolute banger, and ends with a banger. I love the first disc and the late third disc onwards. However, in between there are some poor execution. It suffers from Japan’s unique love of plot twists, but here it’s not just plot twist, it’s “plot twist twist twist”. Now, plot twists can be great, but it needs to be set up properly and then followed through. Here it felt like the writer wanted a cool “oh sh*t!” moment, and inserted random points without ever following up. This happens not just once, but four or five times. By the end, everything becomes needlessly complex and revelations feel out of left field. This can seriously distracts from the strength of the story esp from the the infamous basketball court scene onwards.

In addition, the writing in some sections is a little weak. For example (big time spoiler): Squall finds out Laguna is his dad . Like wow, that’s quite a revelation! This should be really impactful. Instead, we get a few throwaway lines and it’s never mentioned again. There are quite a few scenes like this where I was left holding my controller going “wait is that it?” These big moments felt emotionally flat or rushed.

So, why do I love FF8? Because plot holes and some shaky writing aside, the overall vibe and characters really charmed and captured my heart! For when it hits, FF8 hits hard! Esp around late Disc 3 and Disc 4, this game has some of the highest moments in the entire FF franchise. It's a pity the whole game didn't have that quality. If it did, this could've been one of the greatest games ever made.
Still, the game does many things well. For one, romance. Judging by the popularity of Baldur's Gate and Dragon Age, which have basically turned into dating Sims, I feel like I'm not the only one who enjoys romance between party members. FF8 was one of the first games that put romance front and center in the plot (at least for the FF franchise). It wasn't just between Squall and Rinoa either, it’s Laguna, It’s Cid, the pseudo love triangle with Quistis etc… and I absolutely loved it. Especially as the game progressed into late Disc 3, culminating in several fantastic scenes which made all the slow burn up to that point worth it.

The world building is also top-notch. I don’t think any other game quite nails that sort of post-industrial militarized youth culture, advanced tech and vague cyber-chic… which feels elegant and yet slightly melancholic. It’s a cool look and it fits the plot and characters well.

And the music. Goddamn! From Liberi Fatali, to Balamb Garden, to Man with the Machine Gun, to Eyes on Me, this has one of the best soundtracks in the franchise. I’m listening even 20 years after my first playthru.

So to sum up, I can’t not be biased when I recommend FF8. I know it’s not for everyone: but alongside FF6, FF9, and FF10, these were the GOATED entries for me and part of the Final Fantasy Golden Age.

It's the early RPGs of my childhood. Unforgettable and unbelievable storytelling at 16.

Whatever

Love it.

A mix of one of the coolest games of all time and a tremendous disappointment to me, with neither side fully overpowering the other, instead leaving me in this conflicted, but ultimately positive feeling when I consider the game as a whole. Regardless of what the end results sometimes amount to, I can't help but appreciate how bold the core design of this game is in terms of how it completely flips a lot of basic ideas on how a JRPG is "meant to work" on its head, especially admirable to see in such a big series. It keeps that spirit of Final Fantasy alive, this constant drive to reinvent itself and bring forth a different, experimental experience each time, this one being the biggest departure so far, to mixed results. The way I see this game as a whole is that the first two discs are some of the best Final Fantasy I've played to the point where I was considering if I had found a new favourite in the series, but the final beats of the game dragged it down enough for me to drop this line of thought.

While there are a couple of reasons for this, I feel that the biggest one is due to the consequences of the basic combat mechanics and how they feed into each other, particularly the junction system. While I feel like the insistence on this system being too difficult to learn stem largely from a refusal to learn something new, more than any particularly obtuse with the system itself, the way that junctioning is so central to everything with the game's combat puts everything surrounding it in a weird position. Levelling up is still present, but the level scaling of enemies causes there to be this constant bittersweet feeling upon levelling up and a sense of apprehension about actually fighting anything on the chance that it makes things that tiny bit harder. Everything revolving around magic also has the other effect of making a lot of exploration feel far less rewarding, since the most you'll get is just going to be a draw point, no items or equipment to be found. This leaves the majority of dungeons feeling remarkably empty and pointless to delve into.

This similarly wouldn't be the case if not for the way that each spell junction scales in potency based on how many of them you have stocked. This means that while a Flare or Quake spell would technically be more powerful for boosting attack than Firaga, you're typically only finding a small handful of those more powerful spells out in the open at a time, so finding those draw points ultimately feels meaningless because you'll likely have a full stack of Firaga, which still outclasses 15 Flares. Despite all this, I feel like it would be a disservice to completely denounce the combat system of FF8, because despite it all, I do really, really love some aspects of it, particularly with how fun it is to work out ways to break apart the early game. The mechanical joys of exploiting every fibre of the systems in play for incredible power are not lost on me here, especially when some of the ways in which you can do so are as off kilter as they are here. Through progressing in the game just enough to start unlocking refining tools and CardMod, I was able to get some extremely high level magic before the end of disc 1 through careful use of my money to buy certain items, and with Triple Triad, which also happens to be one of the best minigames in any Final Fantasy game.

Repeatedly getting stronger through cards I won in Triple Triad made for such a fun and unique grind, with all the other steps taken feeling like this huge string of events to prepare for something that would then last me the vast majority of what was left in the game, with only minor adjustments being needed along the way. Being able to reach such heights through intimate knowledge of the game's mechanics is something I frequently find to be very entertaining, being a big draw of FF2 and 5 as well to me, so seeing something of possibly an even greater caliber return here was wonderful. The core idea of drawing is also one that I really enjoy, even if it's handled a little weirdly here thanks to the aforementioned way in which junctioned magic scales based on quantity. The extent in which you can turn your party into unstoppable beasts is also really funny to witness, in my case having Squall hit enemies for multiple thousands of damage while moving over twice as fast as anything else on the battlefield, essentially turning him into a one man wrecking crew. I'll say that one thing that did frustrate me a lot in party composition that would've made a world of difference is that the whole process of giving a character a loadout of spells felt super cumbersome and tedious, often dissuading me from even bothering to fine tune a lot of things just because of not wanting to mess around in unwieldy menus for any longer than absolutely necessary.

Outside of having some of the boldest but most weirdly lopsided combat design in the series, I do need to make mention of how fantastic a sense of spectacle this game manages to convey. While Final Fantasy VII had its moments, it was also really hard to deny that everything was a bit of a mess visually, with some cool prerendered backgrounds put alongside a bunch of barely decipherable mush with characters that look like Lego figures, with any moments of technical marvel feeling more in spite of limitations than anything. FF8 on the other hand felt like it was going out of its way to constantly exceed any expectations that I had, being especially noteworthy in how many times it was able to perfectly seamlessly transition from one of its prerendered cutscenes into gameplay, giving a lot of pivotal scenes this real sense of momentum. This even gets taken a step further in places, having you actively play through sections of the game while these cutscenes are playing out in the background, leading to some moments of dramatic framing that I hadn't yet seen in this series, genuinely awe inspiring stuff.

I similarly find it beautiful how despite this bombast and extravagance, Final Fantasy VIII is also unafraid to provide a lot of slower moments of breathing room that tie everything together and allow the more character focused angle of the game to work so well. This is where the disappointment seeps in however, because the moment the plot starts properly picking up in the 3rd disc, a lot of things start falling apart and certain elements of the experience as a whole lose a bit of their lustre. Those few areas that the game allows the player to spend a lot of time in are wonderful, but the rest of the world feels oddly small and nondescript. This final portion also felt as if it was rushing through a lot of stuff, almost as if it was compensating for it's slow (yet amazing) start by trying to cram an entire game's worth of ideas into the space of 1 and a half discs, making it feel like a huge mess.

This deflating final stretch of the game was still not enough to fully turn me away, I need to make that clear. I feel nothing but adoration for how those first 2 discs handle just about everything, from Squall's constant inner turmoil about having this sense of leadership pushed onto him, to generally showcasing a cast of characters deeply hurt by the life of violence they've been pushed into, it's just a shame that so many of these threads ultimately go nowhere big past disc 2. I just felt a little exhausted by the end of my time with this. At the end of the day, this is an extremely cool take on an RPG despite the shortcomings that arise directly as a result of the experimental elements of it, but I still like it despite feeling really tired by the end and feeling disappointed in the almost nonexistent scope of the world. More than anything it's just a wonderful reminder that Final Fantasy is always doing new, weird stuff and always has, and that's awesome!

7/10

FF8, the black sheep of Final Fantasy. Though in my opinion overhated. For context this was my first Final Fantasy, granted when I first was introduced had no idea what I was doing and couldn't get past that mech spider cause "someone" (you know who you are) didn't tell me how I was supposed to run away from it after beat it down LOL. But over the years I've come to cherish this one, for its visuals style, the unique gameplay, and those sweet FMV sequences that still hold up today. Heck the idea of being able to move your character during a lot of them was a pretty unique thing for the time, even if nowadays it does look a bit goofy n out of place.

Triple Triad no one can ever say was a bad idea, a fun minigame that when you master can help you break the game. And thats another reason why I love this game, the fact if you know exactly what you are doing you can completely break this game like Bane breaks Batmen over his knee.

Is this game flawless...OH HELL NAW, the plot goes completely insane at Disc 2, the junction system is confusing and punishes you for using magic as you need maxed magic to get best gains, the fact if you grind experience enemies get stronger further punishing you, like in FF7 minigames do suddenly show up out of know where (though not as annoying), the characters are pretty one note and flat, even with the hindsight of realizing that they are all a bit of a deconstruction of the child soldier archetype (seriously if you look at Squall as a moody teen with PTSD not to mention being an orphan all his life, his attitude suddenly makes a lot more sense) and you get a mess of a game.

And I freakin love it all. Yes its dumb, yes its broken, and yes its completely and utterly deserving of its Black Sheep Status...but I still love this game. If there was a game that deserved the FF7 Remake treatment, I feel like this one really would benefit from it. The pieces to a great story is here, just with hindsight and better writing can it be elevated to something greater.

As for this port, skip it, I only completed it cause I already had it from years ago, but nowadays the remastered port is better...except for one thing. This is the only port that throws in the Chocobo world minigame, in the remaster everything you can find from chocobo world is found in another ways, but thats like the only thing this port has that the remastered doesn't.

So yeah, thats my thoughts, onward to the next final fantasy...

Final Fantasy VIII is an RPG with the hottest GFs and limit breaks. You'll be fighting to protect your one true love, Rinoa, with a gunblade that cuts through dragons with several smashing hits. Squall is an energetic young SeeD and leads his charismatic crew into battles across jungles, seas, and deep sea research facilities. Ultimecia and her castle presents players with the most endearing finale to a mind-blowing game. Explore the gardens with Ragnarok and summon Guardian Forces in FF8 to annihilate your enemies. Ifrit can be your best friend on your adventure in this Square Enix classic. Zell, Quistis, Irvine, and Selphie are waiting to fight by your side. The Lion Heart is by far the biggest visual validation you'll need to play Final Fantasy VIII on Steam.

For an older generational game, this release of the FF series is captivating, insightful, and can resonate with the player!

Really fun card game that comes with a free rpg. Make sure you get the mod that fixes the soundtrack. Also keep a walkthrough handy, it's pretty easy to brick your save if you don't know what you're doing.

Decent Game

don't believe the haters it's gdlk

Hvis du kan rigtig godt lide FF´s Serien (1-16) så vil du kunne lide FF7
Plot/Historien. Du starter som en Student på Balagarden (Mercenary Academy) som hedder Squall Lionheart
og det er der spillert starter men et Plot som kører igennem Historien og de forskellig Personer du møder på vej... To be continued

One of the best and my favorite Final Fantasy game!

Classic

Best FF ever. Play it and if you judge it on the junction system, you are a fool.

beast mode

This is the second best Final Fantasy, second only to FF7 and far superior to FF9 and beyond.

I played this some 25 years ago and had a blast. But lost track of an item at the very end and never finished.

As for THIS iteration:
1: Expect controller issues! NOT using Steam Input seems to work best for me but still has issues of wrong prompts (B1-10 instead of PS or Xbox prompts). Using a PS4 controller. R2 is Pause. Just saying.
2: You NEED a Square Enix account.

A timeless classic RPG and one of my personal favorites behind Final Fantasy VII. The junction system is an interesting take on the way you build up your characters and unlocks levels of gameplay that were unheard of when the game released on the PS1. Great nostalgia game.

I really love this game, but I don't recommend getting it on steam. Just play it on the PlayStation. The awful MIDI soundtrack, that they've used instead of the original PS1 tracks, is so terrible and jarring and completely distracted me from feeling any kind of nostalgia and kinda ruined it for me. You CAN use mods to get the original soundtrack, but you shouldn't have to.

save the world as teenagers and fight a witch

I think this is one of the best Final Fantasies. I believe this version of the game can be sped up to help deal with the grindy sections of the game.
High Comfy Factor.

Remember to upgrade your weapons and junction high level spells to your stats or you will get curb stomped.

s

Nothing wrong with the game other than just getting stuck in places for no reason. I am stuck after the fight with the spider during the seed test because my keyboard or controller will not agree to sleep at the hotel. I am stuck at the dumbest fucking place in the game because i cant confirm or exit the conversation. While every other button worked, including all the Fkeys, losing all of my progress up to that point because I couldn't save is fucking stupid. Fuck this game.

17 year old mopey and apathetic asshat is hired to save existence, gets bitches and cracks a smile or two along the way.

yes

An amazing and truly underrated installment for Final Fantasy

Classic

My favourite Final Fantasy game of all times until the end of time.

Firstly, I feel it's important to know, this game crashed on me 8 times at different points, and every time it was caused by using the trigger command on Squall's gunblade.
I don't know if the HD remaster solves this problem, but if you're dead set on trying this game, I would recommend you try that version instead to possibly avoid this issue.

FF8 is one of the most frustrating games I've ever decided to finish.
Having completed FF6, FF7, and wanting to play FF9, I felt it would be wrong to leave this one unfinished, even though I didn't enjoy most of the experience.

FF8 is infamous for its controversial mechanics for a reason. Without getting too deep into it, enemies get stronger when you level your party, making leveling complicated/scary, and magic/summons are equipped to a party member as their main means of gaining stats.
There's also no MP, magic is gained and used up like ammunition.

Most of your time will be wasted just readjusting your party as the game constantly demands.

The story was also disappointing, only a couple of characters feel like they really get time to shine, and the ending wasn't satisfying.

I would only recommend this game to people who love grinding and don't mind having to refer to guides a lot.
Know that there are missable things in this game, and things that will make the game a lot harder depending on the order you do them/how you do them. It's rough.