Square Takes "Fantasy" To Heart
Written: Nov 23 '04 (Updated Nov 24 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Excellent storyline, stellar soundtrack and graphics.
Cons: Junction, Junction, Junction!
The Bottom Line: I recommend this as a staple game for the PSOne and PS2 consoles. It is by far the best in the series, and one of the best all-time.
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| heldk6's Full Review: Final Fantasy VIII for PlayStation 1 |
Have you ever thought of walking in the shoes of a member of an elite mercenary force? Like action, adventure, and drama? Fortunately for you, Squaresoft delivers all of this- and much, much more, in an unforgettable RPG: Final Fantasy VIII.
Enter Squall Leonhart, Quistis Trepe, Zell Dincht, Selphie Tilmitt, and the other pot-luck party members of SeeD. At the beginning of this thriller, you are playing as Squall. You travel around Balamb Garden, the home of prospective and inducted SeeD ranks. The first hurdle in the game is to pass the final exams for SeeD. One of the first party members you meet is Quistis, because she is your instructor for helping you pass the exam. Zell and Selphie are part of your graduating class and...whoops! We need a villain, don't we...?
Now comes the best rivalry in video game history. Seifer Almsay, the game's instigator, perpetrator, and just plain old rude 18 year old is your worst enemy. He continuously picks on our hero, Squall, and is always calling poor Zell, the game's dart board, a "chicken wuss". He is the type that makes you want to wring his neck halfway through the first disc. Originally, he is part of the Balamb Garden crowd, but because of his overbearing personality and refusal to take orders, fails the SeeD exam and goes about doing other extracurricular activities.
Shortly following your graduation ceremony for SeeD, you attend a dance, where you are introduced to the game's dark haired damsel, Rinoa Heartilly.
Squall is rather detached from society and the world around him. He keeps everything inside and never wants people to see who he really is. He is a big believer in the philosophy that he can take care of himself. The reasons for this behavior are explained as the game goes on. Rinoa's role in the game, as they eventually fall in love, is to bring Squall out of this position. Squall's first experience in letting go is at the dance, where you are introduced to the game's full motion video sequences.
These jaw-dropping, and often time consuming events are at the forefront of what the game has to offer. Squaresoft pushed the limits of the PlayStation system with this title. There had been nothing before it, or since then, that has even come close. It is no small wonder that the amazing scenery and spectacular soundtrack had to be placed on four discs.
As it was in the last Final Fantasy title, your quest shifts from being a mercenary for hire to saving the world-all before you have time to catch your breath and reflect on what exactly happened.
On that note, near the beginning of the game your focus shifts from Squall and company to a stranger and his friends. You have no idea why, but fear not- the game writers wanted it to be that way. You find that Laguna, Ward, and Kiros are interconnected to your journey in ways that you never imagined possible.
Near the end of disc one, you find out which extracurricular activities Seifer was participating in, as well as being introduced to the last party member, Irvine Kinneas. You find that Seifer has become the right-hand man of an evil sorceress, Edea. Edea has all but taken over the opposing Galbadian Garden, and it's no surprise that Squall and company have been hired to take her out. This is another experience with Rinoa, as she was the one that did the hiring. Irvine joins the party, at the recommendation of a SeeD officer, to be the sniper in the operation. You try the best you can to carry out the plans of the mission, but a few monkey wrenches get tossed into the mix of things and you end up having to fight both Seifer and Edea. This is one of many challenges you will have to face.
Telling more of the story will spoil a lot of surprises in the game. And believe me, there are A LOT of surprises. Hold on to your seat and remember that this is Final Fantasy. Doing anything less will certainly cause whiplash.
There are many wonderful addenda in this edition that are noteworthy, one being the previously mentioned FMV's. These help the player see the characters in the game up close and personal. The video sequences are so stunningly lifelike that one can almost feel what is going on. Another vast improvement comes in the battle scenes themselves, where the characters are taller and much less polygonal than the predecessor. While fighting, a player can press the "select" button to get a breathtaking view of the entire battle scene. This is great for when you are sitting through a Guardian Force summons.
Now to the game play. Guardian Forces are the creatures who can be summoned by each player. They carry special abilities and talents, each unique. Each Guardian Force must be Junctioned to a specific character. This is the painstakingly complicated, and at times annoying, part of game play. You must have your Guardian Forces learn abilities one at a time, and select their order by hand. You must also Junction specific elemental attacks and defenses. Your success in this game depends highly on how much you know about the Junction system and how willing you are to spend time working with it. It is recommended that from the beginning a player spend time learning how to use this feature. It's not for the faint of heart, so Squaresoft put in an "Auto" Junctioning option for players who don't want to spend time bothering with it.
One of the most pertinent abilities learned by Guardian Forces is the "boost" ability, which allows a player to help their GF boost its attack to over 100 percent of its original power. It is done by holding down the "select" button and repeatedly tapping the "square" button. An icon appears at the bottom right-hand corner of the screen so that you can see how much you have boosted your GF's attack. Be aware, however, that if you continue to push the "square" button after a red "X" has appeared over top of that icon, your power will be reset at 75. You have an option to take that chance or not. It should also be noted that not every Guardian Force can learn the "boost" ability.
New to this edition is the concept of drawing magic. Magic includes ways of reviving yourself, such as the "cure" spell. Also included are elemental spells, such as "fire", "ice", and so on. It seems to be a more logical solution as opposed to the Materia system of old. Instead of always having magic at your disposal, you now must stock magic and it depletes as you use it. This is no problem, because you can get magic from draw points throughout the game. You can also draw magic directly from your enemies. With random enemies that you meet along your travels, you can obtain a constant supply. It is also an option to take a spell from an enemy and cast it directly on yourself or them without stocking it. This is handy when you've run out of a certain spell and need it to wrap up your battle. In some boss battles, you can draw new Guardian Forces. Be aware of where these battles are, and be sure to draw them: If you continue on, you will not have another chance.
"Leveling" is what makes you strong throughout the game. You have your own HP (hit points), and when they get down to zero...well, you're dead. Your Guardian Forces also have their own HP. It requires special potions to revive them and to replenish their HP, which you must buy at stores as you go about your journey. To learn new abilities, Guardian Forces obtain AP (ability points) from each battle. AP are exclusive to the Guardian Forces. You also have EXP (experience) points, which you gain from defeating enemies. You cannot gain experience from any boss, and it takes a very long time to gain enough experience to level up in this game because of that.
The random enemies that you encounter are always at the same level as you are. This makes things more difficult. You cannot simply continue to battle enemies that you encounter to level up unless you draw cure spells from them at a consistent rate. As you get stronger, they do too. Here's a bonus: Once our friend Squall learns the "mug" command, you can rip those enemies off for valuable items, such as ethers and phoenix down potions. You can also buy those items for yourself.
Being a member of SeeD, Squall receives a monthly stipend for his duties. You don't really need all that much money, because you can draw magic as you go along. As you do your duties for the organization, your SeeD rank goes up. More rank, more money.
There is also an interesting card game that you can play. This replaces the side quests of VII. You can use cards that you acquire throughout the game for different items. This is purely optional, but highly recommended as well. Again, it depends on how successful someone wants to be in the game. It is possible to get by without playing cards, but a player already spends 80 hours with the standard run through, so why not?
A recurring theme weaves its way through the entire game. From Squall and Rinoa's fuse-lit romance, to the rage inspiring antics of Seifer, from the twists and turns of the storyline to the final battle with Ultimecia, this game screams one word: Epic. Epic in proportion to other games of its genre, to its system and to all games before and after it.
In fact, "video game" sounds a bit generic. The masterminds at Squaresoft should be touted as pioneers, because they have made this Fantasy a reality.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
heldk6
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Member: Krista
Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Reviews written: 16
Trusted by: 3 members
About Me:
Music lover who also just so happens to like writing.
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