Final Fantasy VIII (Playstation)

As an avid follower of the FF series since its inception, I've played each one and am a steadfast fan of all things FF. Final Fantasy VIII is a welcome addition to this lineup, with great graphics, incredible cut scenes, a more mature and intense storyline, highly customizable characters and gameplay, and many other unique features that are almost too many to list. Many reviewers seem to be disappointed that it wasn't "as good" as FFVII (or other games in the series.) However, one of the dependable features of FF games is that each one is clearly different than the rest. Characters, storyline, gameplay, even the "mood" of each game are unique and continually evolving, not stagnating. Any RPG fan would love this game, which gives you countless hours of gameplay and a very high re-play value. I highly recommend it to any lover of RPG or fantasy.

PROS
- Compelling, fascinating, rich storyline with unforgettable and personable characters, from the heroes to the bosses, and unique features (such as the "dream sequences") that really add to the mystery and drama of the plot.

- New junction system allows you to "draw" magic from opponents and allows for high level of customization for your characters and gameplay.

- Darker, more mature theme with sinister villians, plot, and battles; not lighthearted gameplay as some past FF games.

- Incredible, more true-to-life realistic graphics (for its time) and the use of nearly an hour of cutscenes ("mini-movies" that highlight pertinent scenes in storyline and enrich the gaming experience with lush, beautiful sequences.)

- Outstanding musical score.

- Interesting side quests including an engrossing card game; cards can be "cashed in" for valuable items which makes the game even more entertaining.

- Great replay value with interesting side quests.


CONS
- Leveling up takes many hours of gameplay.

This one was probably my favorite. I never really got that much into final fantasy 7. The hype surrounding 7 was so huge, the second I got to the second disk, I was so disapointed with it, I just couldn't continue. The only good characters were Cloud, Sephiroth and thats about it. The only reason people even cared about Tifa was because of her "tomb raider"-like rack.

Anyway, back on-topic. Final Fantasy 8 is often criticized for the card system involving monsters that you battled. I myself didn't like the system either, however the beauty of it was, you didn't need to use it. It was more in there for the sake of putting more into the game if you ask me.

The characters are all pretty cool, and if you've played kingdom hearts before, the main character from 8 shows up several times, although with a different name and slightly longer hair. (I forgot what his new name in Kindgom Hearts was, but in ff8 his name is Squall LeonHeart). Probably the coolest thing in the game is Squall's gunblade. As you go for a melee attack if you hit the right button at the same instant that the blade makes contact with the enemy you will also shoot the enemy as you slice through them. Very nice extra damage bonuses.

You will meet up with alot of other very likeable characters as you go along through the game. One of the stranger sides to the story however, is while some parts of the game you are playing as Squall and his company, there are what seem to be flashbacks or visions of someone else's adventure. This machine gun wielding mystery man is on the run, and I won't spoil the twists for you here.

Needless to say the graphics are very nice for a playstation 1 game, the battlesystem and interfaces are all as easy as ever to use, and the story is phenominal.

If you like good rpgs, or are a die hard final fantasy fan, definetly look into getting this gem of a game (its pretty easy to find a cheap but good condition copy).

This is by far the most under rated Final Fantasy in the series. Granted 7 was the best, this has to be a CLOSE second. The gunblade is a very creative weapon, the storyline is deep, and the gameplay is challenging. Granted by now, it is a few years old, but classics are STILL sometimes better than new releases. If you do not have this one yet, pick it up, add it to your collection, and enjoy one of the best in the series.

A true classic that lives up to the Final Fantasy name. Great combat and magic systems that all come together with a compelling story.

At the time I purchased FFVIII, I already had Final Fantasy VII and IX. I am a big fan of the Role Play genre of video games, and have long been a fan of Squaresoft's hit series.

Eight differs from the other Final Fantasies that I own (listed above) most notably in the character's visual design. The characters are very elongated. This must have proven rather popular for Final Fantasy because all of the 'episodes' following Nine have had the same, more realistic height of it's characters. Personally, I liked the cute, cartoon-like characters of Seven and Nine, but Eight does have it's merits.

One of the things I have really enjoyed about the Final Fantasy universe, is that they never use the same mechanics for learning and using magic in each saga. The 'Draw' system of acquiring and using magic has not been very popular, and I must admit that especially in the beginning of the game, it is a pain in the butt to get your characters to a working level of magic. This requires many battles spent sustaining your enemy just so that you can get every last bit of whatever particular spell or spells that enemy has.

The summons in this episode, I think were rather genius. The player has the option of naming each of the 'Guardian forces' acquired during game play. Currently, I have a theme going of short names beginning with the letter 's'. It is nice to have the control over what beneficial talent the GF's learn, and who they share that talent with, facilitating every status benefit of the characters.

Of note Eight has the first appearance of the card game. While I like the more refined version presented in Nine, it is nice to see that evolution. It is difficult to a)keep all the additional rules straight, and b)make sure the rules you don't like don't spread, but having the challenge of collecting as many cards as possible is fun too. Even if you don't like playing the card game, there are advantages to collecting the cards. One of the abilities of one of the GF's is the card mod ability. This ability allows you to change cards into useful items. So the cards are worth collecting, especially the rare cards. Using the card mod ability with some of the rare cards is the easiest if not the only way to obtain a large amount of some of the rarest objects in the game.

Over all, while there are some cumbersome parts of the game, it is definitely worth owning.

the item is perfect, the price reasonable, the shipment was suposed to be free, but when i checked out i discovered that i had to do a "minimum" purchase (that wasn't displayed at the auction's page) to win that free shipping... but in the end it was cheap.

this item was one of my best transactions, i got an incredible deal on a black label final fantasy 8 game sealed.the only thing i disliked was a small tear in in shrink wrap, but hardly noticeable.i would just like to add i find ebay to be my one and only source in finding the unique and weird stuff like me,and for that i love you.

Excellent seller, I was very pleased with my overall experience!
Will definately l look to this seller for video games in the future.

I love this particular final fantasy, I decided to buy it because I wanted a copy for my collection to play over and over again. Final fantasy is the greatest series of games I have ever played and I have been obsessed with it for years.

This is, in my opinion, the best game in the Final Fantasy series. The graphics are typical Playstation 1 quality, and there are no character voices (all dialogue is written). The storyline, though, makes the old technology within the game worth it. The story is captivating. The game play is easy to adjust to, unlike the difficult techniques involved in other Final Fantasy games. The battle system is easy to understand and control. The game is not difficult if you put in the time to advance your characters' levels, but it is challenging enough to hold one's interest through all four discs of play.

Though not as "blown out" as what is out there in the markets today, classics are just as good as the 'new stuff'.

Part of my Final Fantasy Collection.

This is the first RPG I ever played, back in the day. I still play it once a year all the way through and wore out my first copy, so I'm buying another. The characters and backgrounds are gorgeous. The storyline is good with one minus - the romance between Squall and Rinoa. Even though the story is ultimately about the fight between good and evil, there's something peaceful and innocent about this game. Other RPGs that have the same beauty and innocence are Final Fantasy X and X-2 and Chrono Cross. What I'd like to see is FF8 updated with gameplay similar to FF12's, the artwork updated and the game re-released. I don't think that's going to happen with Squenix working on FF13, but I can always dream!

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Great selection of products from seller, found three that I liked at reasonable prices. Purchase was smooth sailing, no problems at all. Shipping was prompt and well packaged, product arrived A-OK, even though it was used. Great seller!

i love final fantasy games and i recently lost my old version and i really wanted to pay it again and thats why i decided to buy it again. this games is very long and thats why i like it and it has a great story line and its just fun

I am collecting all the games and this is one of the ones I was missing. It is also the only Final Fantasy I have not beaten.

this is one of the incredible final fantasy games. FF VIII a really nice game, and you get many hours of play time for small money. i would advice everyone to buy final fantasy games because they are great.

I liked that it was an easy fast and easy experience.
They handled everything verby quickly ,which i enjoy, and confirmed my payment and sent my package .

I bought this item for my son's birthday. He really loves and enjoys the game. I liked it because it was brand new, still in the plastic wrap.

Great game. If you're a fan of FF7, you're going to love this game. The battles are more interactive, the graphics are great, and like all the other Final Fantasy games, you won't be able to stop playing because the story line is like reading book you can't put down. Definately one of my all time favorites.

LOVED THE GAME ITS SELF ..
MEMERY CARD WAS BAD .
THEY SAID THEY WOULD SEND A GOODONE.
BUT THEY AINT NEVER SENT IT.
FIGURE ITS A LOST AND WILL NOT BUY FROM THIS SELLER AGAIN ..
PLEASE WACH THIS SELLER .
JET4849

Great storyline. Great battle system. Beautiful graphics. Plenty of playtime. Detailed characters...

'Nuf said.

I loved playing this game before the PS2 even came out. The mini-games are a lot of fun and you can deffinately get lost in the story.

Great turn around time on receiving this item. I will definitely do business with this seller in the future.

i buy it because it was the first final fantasy i play, i was hook ,on so i buy to add to my collection