Final Fantasy Eight; Final Fantasy or just another RPG?
In my opinion I would have to say that Eight is a good game but lacks the qualities of any other Final Fantasy. I own all of the games and have been pleased with each one but I'd have to say Squaresoft tried to over dew the graphics and didn't stick to the basic character builder. I am one to enjoy any game I play but this game wasn't up to the potential of any of the other Final Fantasies. I would like to know what other people think on this Game.

you don't really have much of a choice, its got ff in the name

Compared to other RPGs, it's difenatly FF.

Originally posted by Durendal
you don't really have much of a choice, its got ff in the name

So did FFMQ. *shudder*

But I think FFVIII deserves to be an FF. There's no point to saying that the story doesn't live up to other FFs; it may not be as good as VI or VII but it definitely beats FFI-III. The GFs were a major gameplay flaw but truthfully I think FFVII was worse. (none of the non-bosses were challenging, for the bosses it was a simple matter of miming KOR over and over.) My only complaint is that Squall is the only dynamic character. I like stories like FFVI, where all the characters change.

Even that FFVIII are less better than FFVII, IT's still FF

i thought this game was the worst out of all ff's....story sucked..gameplay sucked.. menu sucked.. graphics were good... but its a ff ..

I have said this before. FF8 was a great RPG and probably would of been one of the best ever if it was Final Fantasy. No Gil, no money from enemies, no armor, dont buy or win weapons, drive a car :rolleyes: , and no arch rival. Besides sumons it is no FF, but it is a great game.

It's definitely FF. It's got chocobos and all the other basic factors...magic....summons....etc...

Besides, if any game doesn't live up to it's series-name, it's Breath of Fire 3....dear GOD that was shit..

:D

Chocobos were useless in this game and almost all RPGs have magic.

Originally posted by Ramza
i thought this game was the worst out of all ff's....story sucked..gameplay sucked.. menu sucked.. graphics were good... but its a ff ..


Actually FF3 and 2 (originals) Had to have sucked even more if they weren't even released.

All the FF's are RPGs, and they are all FF's. You can't just label it one or the other. Sucky or not it's a RPG, and a FF.

im gonna stick with what i said.. the game was crap.

What do you mean FF8 isn't an FF. It's brilliant. The only problem is the junction system. How could you say the gameplay sucks. It's fun! And it's not boring. The story is great, not as good as FF7 but still great. And the graphics are the best on PSone. So how could you say it sucks? It's still an FF, and one of the best, and longest.:eye:

Mr. Stryfe up there is referring to the fact that he doesn't think that Eight deserves the name Final Fantasy. I agree with him. He and I have both played the game, and we both think it is terrible in comparison to other Final Fantasy games. Maybe not terrible, it was a great game. But I refuse to call Eight a true Final Fantasy game. I enjoyed the ORIGINAL FF more than that piece of work they call FF8. I've said my piece, I'm done. Goodnight. :notgood:

I am getting sick and tired of this FF VIII bashing !!!! To me it is the best FF VIII game of all time. And yes I have played every American release as well. I have been playing FF games since I think it was 1990. I am now going on 28 years old this year, so what I said is possible.

First off, Final Fantasy VIII has one mature storyline and the characters are pretty good too. I am so glad they broke out the traditional mold of RPGs with this FF instalment. Sadly we may never get another another FF of this caliber again.

I loved the Junction System and the Draw Mode. For once I could choose what spells I wanted and how many of them I wanted, not having to worry about if I have enough MP to pull them off. Also in most other MP based RPGs, you have to get the magic they give that character, even rathe weak spells. In FF VIII I could skip say Fire and go staight to a stronger version called Flaraga. There are many spells like that. The only other FF that came close to FF VIII in that aspect is FF X with its Sphere Grid. Also being able to make a symbious of sorts with you GF was awesome, so you could make it stronger than say if it was assigned to somebody else.

Enough with the Juction and Draw systems, lets talk about the money. I also love the fact that you actually got paid on how you did during misssions. Come on beating up creatures and stealing money is over done at times. I am a disabled veteran and having to actually earn you paycheck like the SeeD's did, reminds me alot of my military days. Plus it is more realistic as well.

Now on to stroyline, it is sad that many of you people didn't like it, it was different compared to the other FF games. I think it was a very mature storyline and plus it had a great romantic plot as well. I really love those kind of stories. Not only did it have a romantic storyline, it was also mixed with Fantasy and Sci-Fi at the same time. The time compression thing, space travel, cars, and modern day conveinces gives the story a more sci-fi or realistic feel. Plus then there is the Fantasy part as well like Sorcesses, Magic, GFs, and such. So it is just as much a FF as any of the others.

Plus the fact while in the Navy, I dated a woman named Ami who had an uncanny resemble to Rinoa, helped drag me into the game. But by the time the game came out in 1999, I was already discharged on a Medical and lost contact with her. So when FF VIII came out, and I saw the lead female character, my jaw dropped and I my emotions started on a roller coaster. I bought that game quicker than any FF game I have ever bought.

There were also Chocobos, a Cid, and various returning creatures that have appeared in all the FF games, so yes it belongs in the series. It is sad that most people don't have the mentality to play this awesome game.

On a closing note, I will agree the Chocobos in this game weren't a strong point, I loved the Chocobo Farm in FF VII, but it really didn't matter that much to me. I spent most of my time playing Triple Triad, now that was a fun mini-game. And also agree that Cid didn't fit the same mold as the other Cids but he was cool in his own way. Overall I love all the FF series, even the old games because Squaresoft has never let me down until FF XI.

Here are my top 5 Favorite FF games.

FF VIII
FF X
FF VII
FF VI
FF IX


:alien:

Originally posted by Nanaki XIII
I have said this before. FF8 was a great RPG and probably would of been one of the best ever if it was Final Fantasy. No Gil, no money from enemies, no armor, dont buy or win weapons, drive a car :rolleyes: , and no arch rival. Besides sumons it is no FF, but it is a great game.

no Gil? :confused: And upgrading is close enough to buying weapons. Even better, because it's more difficult. In the other games, you just fight till you have enough money. Here, you have to go crazy looking for things like Malboro tentacles.


Originally posted by Jamie

Actually FF3 and 2 (originals) Had to have sucked even more if they weren't even released.


FFV wasn't originally released over here either, but it's arguably the best game in the series. And, in my opinion at least, FFIII was much better than FFI.


Originally posted by Flounder
I am a disabled veteran and having to actually earn you paycheck like the SeeD's did, reminds me alot of my military days.

That's so cool. I've related to these games in the sense of having a personality like Squall's and stuff, but it never occurred to me that someone may have actually lived like these characters. What's it like for you to play FFVIII? You ever think "this part is so unrealistic" or "I had an experience just like that part" or anything?


Originally posted by Flounder
Plus the fact while in the Navy, I dated a woman named Ami who had an uncanny resemble to Rinoa, helped drag me into the game.

Did you know the song that plays during the orphanage flashback is called "Ami"?


Originally posted by Flounder
And also agree that Cid didn't fit the same mold as the other Cids but he was cool in his own way.

Well, there was no airship builder in this game; it had been there since before the game, so they couldn't make him the owner of the airship like the other Cids. Come to think of it, FFVI's Cid didn't fit the mold either; Setzer should have been that game's "Cid." But Cid Kramer was cool. He was so... coolly dorky. I know that sounds stupid but you know what I mean. Besides, he had an interesting story.

(spoiler)

(I warned you.)

(why would someone who hasn't finished the game be reading this thread anyway?)

...

Can you imagine what it must have felt like for him to order the SeeDs to fight against Edea? That must have hurt so badly. :(

I agree with the last two posts....
This game had an excellent storyline,
The characters were well-developed..
At first, I didn't like the Draw/Junction system, but it grows on you....the Triple Triad mini-game was excellent, and well-thought out...

I've been playing for a little less time than some people, since I was about 9, that is; and I'm 17, now.

Hell, FF3 (US) wasn't exactly like all the other FF's, either.
I mean; sure you had summons, but learning your magic from Espers? Never been done. Each new Final-Fantasy brings something new to the table; if you think that a game shouldn't be called a Final Fantasy just because it isn't up to your expectations, maybe your expectations should change; because this was a damned good game, and most definitely a FF.

To all of you who are sick of the FF8 bashing, tough! FF8 isn't the best of games as far as Final Fantasies. It lacks the magic system, abilities and classes. This game is GOOD, but it isn't a FF.

Well Cloud, apparently not very many people agree with us. I mean, that's fine. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But I do not consider Eight a Final Fantasy for the following reasons:

Junction. That killed me. Where's the mana? Where's the cool spells I can buy? Where's the waiting until I'm high enough level to CAST them? Where's the whole having to find the places that actually HAVE the spells to buy? Plus, WHY should the spells affect my STATS? My stats should be affected by my level, and by ITEMS and ACCESSORIES. Junction. That is NOT a Final Fantasy system, and you'll never convince me otherwise.

GUARDIAN FORCES!??! :confused: WHAT THE HELL?!! WHERE'S MY SUMMONS?!?! I DON'T WANT A THING LIKE THIS TO TAKE SO DAMN LONG!!!!! oh, you killed me SUMMON!?!!? Uhhhhhhh..............

Who's this Seifer? Oh, just a Sephiroth wannabe. But he sucks. And he's a pompous little sh*t.

Gunblades..... why? :eye:

Again, I've said my piece. Good afternoon.

Like I said, every Final Fantasy brings something new to the table; how about I go to the fu**ing FF7 forum and say that FF7 isn't a damned Final Fantasy?

Oh, what the fu** is Materia?

Dude, every final fantasy is different, if you want every Final Fantasy to be the same as 7, go bit** at Square.

I love FFs 1-7, and 9. Haven't played 10. I JUST DON'T LIKE EIGHT. Never said I wanted them to be JUST LIKE 7. That would be shitty. But I hated almost everything about Eight, and I don't think of it as a true FF game. Period. End of story.

I didn't expect to change everybodies minds, that would be near impossible. I guess to each his or her own. But I will stand by Final Fantasy VIII. Somebody asked earlier in one of the other posts how it felt to actually to have been in a similar envirnment. Well I guess SeeD could be like the military, maybe that's one reason I was able to relate to it more than others. Anyway I think, and this is my opinion, so don't drop on me, that because some people wouldn't give FF VIII a fair chance, that Square will not make another FF quite like that again. Fantasy games are cool, but sometimes you need to add in a little realism to hook in the player more.


OK then all you FF VIII haters, then will agree FF VIII was the best looking of the first 9 installments? I think it even looked better than FF IX, they should not have made the characters look like that in my opinion, but at least FF IX characters looked better than FF VII.

Also many of you critised FF VIII be too futuristic, well OK let me point out that FF VII had plenty of Technology as well. It had cars, trucks, and motorcycles. There were computers all over the place, and there were weapons like guns and such. That's not really fantasy now is it? Also there was Airplanes and Rockets as well. So don't you guys think its a little double standard to put down FF VIII, when FF VII had many of the same aspects?



:alien:

Hehe. I'm going to stir up ALOT of controversy and say that compared to FF8, FF7 sux! GO FF8!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also, Squall could open a can o' whoop ass on Cloud.

Hehe, I love making mischief. :D

*pictures a face-off between Cloud and Squall*

Cloud: ...

Squall: ...

Cloud: ...

Squall: ...whatever.

Cloud: My hair's cooler than yours.

Squall: Yeah, well my name is a cooler type of weather pattern than yours.

Cloud: My hair's still cooler than yours.

Squall: Gunblades are cooler weapons than buster swords.

Cloud: My hair can be used as weapon. I almost got cast to play the role of Seifer in FFVIII, but they fired me because I used my hair as a weapon. I got in a fight with the posse and headbutted Fujin. You thought she wears an eyepatch just to look cool?

Squall: Well, my mysterious past is cooler than yours.

Cloud: Is not. I thought I was Zack. Zack has cool hair.

Squall: Whatever.


...And this, people, is why I'm not a professional humor writer. (hey, if the guy who writes 8-bit Theatre can make money off of constantly using the "I like swords" joke, I can make Cloud use his "my hair is cool" line all the time.)

That was great! Heheheheh. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. And Ultima 7 r0x0rz ALL FF games. I'm done now. :eye:

Lmao dude, that seriously was funny; kind of like this RPG I used to play...you could ask for tips on various topics; and when you requested a tip on swords, you got one of the following:

Swords are pointy.
Swords are sharp.
Use the pointy end.
Don't poke your eye out.
Swords are very VERY sharp.

.........Bwahaha.

I still find it hard to believe that if you are a Squaresoft fan, how can anybody hate any installment of the Final Fantasy series. True some may be better than others, and I will agree on that, but non of them in my opinion deserve the ridicule FF VIII has received. Squaresoft is always throwing new ideas into the series to keep it fresh and no two stories are exactly alike.

I guess what I am trying to say is that everybody is entitled to their opinions, but it still hurts many of us loyal FF VIII fans when the game is smashed. I could have jumped on the Band Wagon like many people have and say Final Fantasy X is the best, but I will not. I love it emensely and yes it looks the best, but somehow FF VIII has remained my favorite. I may be riduculed for standing by it, but that's what I believe.

two people laughed at what I wrote? :) *self-esteem goes up a notch.*

Test, LOL. Kinda like 8-bit theatre, when Fighter defines swordsmanship as "the art of sticking pointy things into fleshy things that scream and bleed." Or (to leave the world of FF and go into fantasy novels) in A Song of Ice and Fire, Arya Stark's description of how to use a sword: "Stick 'em with the pointy end!" :D