So, here it is. FFVIII
is the number one Final Fantasy game
for me. Not the most popular choice but I do have reasons. Hopefully, you won’t
stop reading out of disgust. You’ll give me a chance to explain and you’ll even
accept a different opinion from FFVII
at the top. Maybe?
Story
I’ll hold my hands up and admit it right now – this is not
the best story seen in the series. In fact, too many parts of it seem to try
and rival VII in some way, which
makes it even less appealing considering the different world, look and system
involved. That being said, it’s not the worst story either, compared to titles
on either side of its release. It is pretty decent overall, with some areas
standing out and others lacking. It’s like many Final Fantasy titles in this respect.
The characters are the same. Squall is an emo kid, we get
it. He’s annoyingly cool for the first 20 minutes, maybe (if you’re having a
good day) but then gets to be a pain in the ass very quickly. By the end, he’s
actually grown as a person though, which is something a lot of protagonists
throughout Final Fantasy titles just
do not do. Each character has flaws to their personality that makes life
difficult but they have a goal and they come together to get it done – the
romance story is probably one of the weaker aspects while Laguna’s story is
great just for the comedy they (try to) bring.
Graphics and music
FFVIII carried on from FFVII’s graphics leap, and it made
the game stunning at the time – especially the CGI scenes. Even now, it doesn’t
hold up too badly compared to some older games, just a bit blocky but what do
you expect from a Playstation title. The music is great too and catches the
tone of each scene and area perfectly. These are two areas that Square (later
Square-Enix) would later seem to prioritise over gameplay and story. They seem
to take the attitude that looks mean everything. Hopefully, they’ll learn that
while good and pretty, there’s far more to a title than that.
Junction system
This is probably my favourite aspect of the game, and my
favourite system of all Final Fantasy
games to date. The system was as simple or as complex as you wanted. You could
choose an automatic setup or you could do it yourself and I spent hours
tailoring my characters to suit my style of play.
Being reasonably young on the first time playing, I didn’t realise
that using junctioned magic MADE ME WEAKER with each spell. Obvious now, I
know, but it made magic more tactical than how strong the magic stat was, what
the weakness was and how much MP or Mana I had. It would directly impact other
stats. Magic was, in some cases, difficult to find so more strategy was needed.
What really let this system down was the ease of which you
could max out GF’s (Guardian Forces – AKA summons) and the 1,000 experience
points per level. A tiered system would have been more difficult.
Side games
Triple Triad! I love this little card game – it’s a fun
addition that isn’t actually necessary to completing the game. Tactical
thinking and a variety of rules make it fun to play, even if the AI is a little
too predictable at times. I’d love an updated version and I do remember the
days where a group of FFVIII fans got
together and made an online version. I met some great people back then. The
abilities involving Triple Triad and the items you could get definitely made
this venture worth it on any play through.
Summary
Overall, FFVIII is
a great game. It has its shortcomings as do most, if not all, games. Some
people beat down on it more thn others and I’m not sure why. Personal opinion
plays a part, but as the title that followed VII, it had a lot to live up to and ultimately failed to surpass it
according to most people. Then again, every title since VII has failed in that regard. Technically, I think it works well
and it’s one of my favourite games to go back and play with one of the most
enjoyable side games of the lot. It’s definitely one of my favourite games of
all time and favourite Final Fantasy
title to date.
Side note
I haven’t included Kingdom
Hearts or non-numbered titles in this top five. I love both Kingdom Hearts and titles such as Final Fantasy Tactics and Dissidia. They may get their own posts
in the future – we’ll see. As it stands, this is based on my opinions of the
five games covered, not influenced by other people or sales statistics or
anything – just one gamer and his thoughts. I hope you’ve enjoyed the countdown
and will join me for more next year.
Just to recap:
5 – FFX
4 – FFIV
3 – FFVI
2 – FFVII
1 – FVIII
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