I think I may have found one of my new favorite gaming articles ever. While there are many Final Fantasy games that have been praised over the years, none seem to be more divisive than Final Fantasy VIII, starring Squall and Rinoa. Some people hated the magic system, some hated the story, and some simply hated the fact that it wasn’t Final Fantasy VII.
Despite all that, though, Pop Matters has written an in-depth piece about Final Fantasy VIII called Remembering the Orphan, dissecting the things that really made the game shine, especially its attention to human relationships. The main thrust of the article has to do with the focus on the orphaned characters, who through the use of magic and battle begin to lose their memories and thus, their innocence. It really provides an eye-opening look at the game, with an attention to detail that most don’t often give to video games.
Even though I wasn’t crazy about Final Fantasy VIII, I really do think that had to do more with my age and what I expected from the game. Reading this article really makes me want to go back and play it and give it another look. And to be honest, I really would love to see more articles like this out of the gaming community, because it was fascinating.
What do you guys think? What are your thoughts on Final Fantasy VIII?
Source- Pop Matters
Huh, that does take my respect of the game up a notch or two. I definitely had no appreciation for it at the time – slogged halfway through and then lost all interest. I think my major difficulty in getting the point was in the poor translation – I just couldn’t get what was going on with Squall enough to generate any emotion beyond annoyance. The battle system was obnoxious enough that I probably won’t give it another shot, but it is a little bit more tempting now. I absolutely agree that we need more articles like this one, and more games with enough depth to warrant them!
Yeah looking back on some of his comments, he really has some solid points. I wasn’t a big fan of the junction system at all. If they had some kind of updated version that drew twice as much magic, I’d be all over it.
Thing is, Drawing magic was no different than grinding for levels. I did not mind it at all, but I was prepared for the drastic changes that occur between each Final Fantasy game.
[quote comment=”7228″]Thing is, Drawing magic was no different than grinding for levels. I did not mind it at all, but I was prepared for the drastic changes that occur between each Final Fantasy game.[/quote]
How is it not different? You don’t have to grind for levels, but you DID have to grind for magic. I’ve heard that argument before and it’s weak sauce.
[quote comment=”7230″][quote comment=”7228″]Thing is, Drawing magic was no different than grinding for levels. I did not mind it at all, but I was prepared for the drastic changes that occur between each Final Fantasy game.[/quote]
How is it not different? You don’t have to grind for levels, but you DID have to grind for magic. I’ve heard that argument before and it’s weak sauce.[/quote]
I think you misunderstood me. Let me clarify:
In other Final Fantasy games, you have to grind for levels or to raise your materia or to raise your Espers. In VIII, you have to grind in order to draw magic. So, they are the same thing, except in VIII, you usually fight less battles, because you keep an enemy alive until you have maxed out its spells. Other than that, there is no difference, not to me at least.
Sauce a little stronger now?
No, not at all. Leveling anything is unnecessary. You didn’t have to level materia, people just did it to make it stronger. Drawing magic is absolutely necessary, or you’re screwed for magic altogether.
I mean, it’d be like having to grind to KEEP your materia. Or to get it in the first place. And who wants to do that?
I see the distinction, but you did have to grind materia to learn spells. You didn’t start off with all the Blizzard spells, you have to level it up to get Blizzara and Blizzaga. So unless you want to go through life with the weakest spells, then yeah, you don’t have to grind.
Same with Espers. You have to grind to learn all the spells.
The magic in VIII was weak to begin with, it was mainly used to Junction and make your characters stronger. So instead of grinding to increase your party’s HP or strength, you just drew magic and did the same thing.
OMG FITE FITE FITE 😉
I guess it does more or less come to the same type of concept – a grinding mechanic to flesh out the gameplay – but it was just frustrating to me at the time. I typically like to keep grinding to a minimum, but with VIII I felt like I had to grind all the time.
Dang it, now I’ve got to track down a copy and give it another shot.