Epic Love | Final Fantasy VIII

     If we talk about love, most of us will remember Romeo & Juliet by Shakespeare. However, for me Romeo & Juliet is extremely stupid and degrading. I think gamers all around the world will have to agree with me that there is such a game that is epic with love theme and that game is Final Fantasy 8.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FINAL FANTASY VIII

     Final Fantasy 8 was released in 1999 for console PlayStation. It was developed by SquareSoft with music composed by Nonuo Uematsu. I don't think Hironobu Sakaguchi (Creator of FF series) involved in the development of this specific game. The game was such a hit that I think 90% of gamers have had played this game.

      The main theme of the game is LOVE. Yes, love; though it might seems unlikely to happen ehh. The plot revolved around a young military trainee named Squall Leonhart. He undergoes training at Balamb Garden with the aim of becoming a SeeD, which is a military unit formed to combat the sorceress Edea. Along his missions, he is accompanied by several companions which are Rinoa Heartilly (the heroin of the game), Quistis Trepe (former SeeD instructor), Zell Dincht (Martial artist), Selphie Tilmitt and Irvine Kinneas (Sharpshooter). They were being sent to assassinate the sorceress with the help from Rinoa's father.

      However, they had failed their mission only to find that the Gardens (SeeD training facilities) all around the globe was being targeted and Seifer, one of their comrade is Edea's second-in-command. Through the endeavors, they then learned a secret that is kept by their headmaster, Cid. In actuality, it was Edea's ideas to trained SeeD and waged war against the sorceress Ultimecia; unfortunately Ultimecia's power had been transferred to Edea thus turning Edea's into a wicked sorceress.

      Love relation starts to develop between Squall and Rinoa; however after the decisive battle against Galbadian Army lead by Seifer and Edea, Rinoa's had been unconscious. She had been possessed by Ultimecia. Squall then followed her to the space station and save her. Then, they returned back with a derelict spaceship, Ragnarok. This is were the cutscene between Squall and Rinoa with the song 'Eyes on Me' by Faye Wong. Trust me guys, the scene was lovely and touching.

     

      The system of the game was different from other FF games. The magic were drawn from specific draw point or from the monsters themselves. These magic then could be junction into the character's stats and amplified the stats with the element that you had junction. These junction capabilities were made possible with Guardian Force or GF. GFs are summoned beast that the characters used to aid them during battle.

GF Ifrit

     The battle were similar to most RPG games where the enemies encountered were randomized. The battle system was made turn-based and affected by the agility of each characters. The system were called Active Time Battle, ATB if I am not mistaken.

     For me, this is the one of the greatest game I had ever played. The plot were great and the gameplay was amazing. Square had managed to turn a love story into a game that is full of action and mystery. I greatly recommend this game for all FF lovers.