Final Fantasy VIII was released in 1999 for the Playstation One, then again in 2000 for Windows home computers. The game was received with mix reviews from players as instead of being high fantasy in nature; it turned to a more realistic style.
The game story is based around military academies, known as Gardens which produce mercenaries named SeeDs who are hired by different organisations as warriors to help keep the peace. It all begins with the introduction of Squall and Seifer, who scar each other during a duel outside the Garden. This helps to outline instantly the constant rivalry between the two. Once they return to the Garden they are treated for their wounds and reprimanded before being sent on a mission to help Dollet.
The Galabadian’s have invaded Dollet, forcing Dollet to hire out SeeDs to help them. With the help of Quistis, Squall’s instructor, he passes a test first before being able to help out Dollet and take on the mission. A small group of candidates for SeeD are gathered and taken to Dollet to help out. During the mission Seifer abandons his team and leaves Selphie on her own, who joins Squall’s and Zell’s team instead. The three manage to stop the Galabadians from taking over Dollet and return to the Garden to graduate into fully fledged SeeDs.
Next the three are assigned to help a group of rebels, led by Rinoa who are helping to fight the Galabadians. During this mission Squall learns of Edea, a sorceress who is behind the attacks from the Galabadians. They head out to stop Edea and gradually begin to unfurl a plot to destroy the order of their world.
The gameplay focuses heavily on role-playing and allows the player to explore and interact with the game world. The player can travel the world using a variety of modes of transport ranging from on foot to trains to chocobos later in the game, as well as some surprising, exotic modes of travel which I will not ruin for new players.
The battle system is similar to Final Fantasy VII with some changes. Magic has to be drawn from enemies or draw points and has no MP cost, rather it acts like an item system of sorts. GFs, or Guardian Forces, are the new summons and give the characters different abilities when they are equipped or Junctioned. Summons can also have their powers boosted, after learning an ability imaginatively named Boost, by pressing a button rapidly during the cut scene sequence while the GF attacks.
Limit breaks are handled slightly differently as well, instead of having a gauge which has to be filled, limit breaks are available when a character’s health drops below a certain percentage and is then randomly available for use each turn. Some limit breaks have an interactive element to them, unlike the Boost ability of the GFs, which allows the player to increase the damage dealt by the attack.
The serious nature of the story and focus on realism can be off putting to fans of the high fantasy nature of previous Final Fantasy stories. The gameplay is enjoyable, but players may find that they can complete the entire game without even bothering with the new magic system. Some people love it and others were disappointed by it, either way Final Fantasy VIII is a well made game and deserves at least one play through to see what it did right, and what it got wrong. It deserves a chance, but may not appeal to fans of previous games.
