Final Fantasy VIII

 PlayStation
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1236 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,043 out of 1236
  2. Mixed: 119 out of 1236
  3. Negative: 74 out of 1236
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  1. [Anonymous]
    Jun 17, 2006
    7
    This was a pretty good game. It just didn't get me hooked on as much as FFVII did. I know it's kind of hard on this game since it's the first to come out after FFVII which is believed one of the best RPG's despite the graphics now. I mean... it has to live up to its name. The thing that really annoyed me was that it took ages to get magic out of monsters and you This was a pretty good game. It just didn't get me hooked on as much as FFVII did. I know it's kind of hard on this game since it's the first to come out after FFVII which is believed one of the best RPG's despite the graphics now. I mean... it has to live up to its name. The thing that really annoyed me was that it took ages to get magic out of monsters and you can't equip your people. Well junction is ok..... but i mean all the time wasted in drawing magic just pisses me off. This game is quite good though i would recommend it to people that are into RPG's.… Expand
  2. Jouna92
    Dec 25, 2013
    6
    So many problems in this game. Drawing system and junction system are so much busy work. Annoying and awkward characters. Story is unfocused, bizarre and full of plot holes. The game includes some satisfying scenes and battles.
  3. 6xdandangp
    Dec 29, 2012
    5
    My opinion is split over this game. On one hand, we have a decent story, amazing graphics/soundtrack, and interesting concept. On the other hand, we have rather limited development for most characters, an unorthodox but definitely unenjoyable battle system, and an overdose of melodrama.
  4. TJD2
    Jul 17, 2012
    6
    I can't give this game any higher than a 6....I can't stand all the plot holes, or ANY of the characters for that matter...Zell is an annoying ADHD punk, Squall is so out of touch with his emotions he can't even pick up signals, and they all use first grade comebacks for everything. Aside from that, the plot up to disc 1 was pretty great, then it got really messed up. I enjoy all theI can't give this game any higher than a 6....I can't stand all the plot holes, or ANY of the characters for that matter...Zell is an annoying ADHD punk, Squall is so out of touch with his emotions he can't even pick up signals, and they all use first grade comebacks for everything. Aside from that, the plot up to disc 1 was pretty great, then it got really messed up. I enjoy all the theories about Rinoa being Ultimecia and Squall being dead throughout the game, but the game itself has many flaws. The Draw/Junction system is the most ANNOYING b u l l s h i t way of powering up characters in any RPG I've ever played. You sit there and draw spells to "junction" to your character, and then you cant use them so what's the point of having a cast button?? Oh and don't even get me started on the lame plot twists such as the orphanage scene...they all conveniently "forgot" because of their GFs. Yeah right. The graphics however are very top notch for the PS1, but in that comes very cryptic backgrounds the game requires you to check before being allowed to move foreward. some of it is so cryptic you'd never even know what to do without looking it up.... The fiend animations are again amazing and the battles themselves are well done. The overworld is VERY annoying due to terrain issues, but then again after you gain access to the Ragnarok it becomes quite fun to fly around. Overall, this game has turned out to be a meh experience for me. 6/10.… Expand
  5. VillainFan42
    Aug 25, 2014
    5
    I will admit that 7 was a tough act to follow, but even on its own merits, 8 falls flat. Its gameplay mechanics are interesting in concept, but require so much micromanagement that it grinds the pace of the game to a grinding halt. Drawing magic is a chore, the characters are really underwhelming, and the story is just confusing. It's the only game in the series I really dislike- heck,I will admit that 7 was a tough act to follow, but even on its own merits, 8 falls flat. Its gameplay mechanics are interesting in concept, but require so much micromanagement that it grinds the pace of the game to a grinding halt. Drawing magic is a chore, the characters are really underwhelming, and the story is just confusing. It's the only game in the series I really dislike- heck, with all the issues of 13 I still thought its battle system was interesting- and I recommend you skip this one.… Expand
  6. WillT
    Jan 10, 2010
    7
    This game's probelm isn't it's looks, it's not that the games boring it's just that all the junction and card game is terrible, if you don't like grinding, then stay away from this, worth a spin-off at least, but not lower than 70%
  7. elitefour
    Jan 9, 2014
    6
    Im sorry
    i really tried to like this game
    but i cant. its too bored,too repetitive the gameplay is slower than final fantasy vii the graphics and the soundtrack are amazing!!!! but the plot is too simple to me,i mean students who tried to save world of a future witch? the dialogs are bored and corny like Titanic or Twilight the characters are not deep and impressive than Final    Im sorry
    i really tried to like this game
    but i cant. its too bored,too repetitive
    the gameplay is slower than final fantasy vii
    the graphics and the soundtrack are amazing!!!!
    but the plot is too simple to me,i mean
    students who tried to save world of a future witch?
    the dialogs are bored and corny like Titanic or Twilight
    the characters are not deep
    and impressive than Final Fantasy VII (I hate Zell and Quistis)
    they are too simple and cliche
    but i have to admit that its a masterpiece and i undesrstand why people like it
    so,
    Go ahead And Enjoy this jewel man!!    … Expand
  8. DragonKnightofFinalFantasy
    Feb 15, 2004
    6
    A mockery of Final Fantasy but not bad the battle system is pretty crummy though and none of the girls are hot I mean look at Questis she is 18 but looks like she's 30!But the story is good and it is Final Fantasy so you still feel like you're having a pretty good time. Go buy FF7 instead.
  9. Anebriate
    Jan 15, 2014
    5
    It does not compare well at all to the Squaresoft masterpieces of its era, but in the end, it's still a decent game.

    If you absolutely must complete every game in the series, you'll find that there are far worse hurdles to overcome than Final Fantasy VIII (like XIII, for instance), but don't expect its quality of design and storytelling to live up to some of the others. The plot is    It does not compare well at all to the Squaresoft masterpieces of its era, but in the end, it's still a decent game.

    If you absolutely must complete every game in the series, you'll find that there are far worse hurdles to overcome than Final Fantasy VIII (like XIII, for instance), but don't expect its quality of design and storytelling to live up to some of the others.

    The plot is convoluted and a bit too convenient at times, and nearly all of the characters are tiresome cliches. The game really throws you for a loop when you suddenly take control of a completely different cast with no context whatsoever, but I came to care about Laguna's plight far more than I ever did about Squall's, which I think says a lot.    … Expand
  10. AlienSpaceBats
    Mar 11, 2013
    7
    I loved the story and (most of) the characters, but at times, I hated this game. Final Fantasy VIII has a nice (albeit nonsensical) story, with a cast of characters led by one who mopes so hard he gives Shinji Ikari a run for his money. Boasts impressive use of the technology at the time with beautiful music (as ever), but game mechanics are unfortunately broken (eg. not obtained A or B?I loved the story and (most of) the characters, but at times, I hated this game. Final Fantasy VIII has a nice (albeit nonsensical) story, with a cast of characters led by one who mopes so hard he gives Shinji Ikari a run for his money. Boasts impressive use of the technology at the time with beautiful music (as ever), but game mechanics are unfortunately broken (eg. not obtained A or B? Can not pass C), suffers from "how the hell was I supposed to know that?" syndrome and the junction and GF systems are poorly explained and unnecessarily confusing to begin with.… Expand
  11. bliz008
    Jan 7, 2015
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Okay. I have not played all the games in the final fantasy series, most notably not FFVII, a game which many seem to compare VIII to (obviously). But when I read some of the reviews here on metacritic I thought that I could give my opinion. The story starts of great. You have a intresting story of schools that train these young adults to become some sort of soldiers or mercenaries, and everything is very well presented with nice looking cutscenes and nice in-game environments. And the music is, as expected from a FF-game, absolutely fantastic throughout the game.
    But after a while (after disc 1) the story starts to decline. The red thread is lost somewhere and at the end of the game you barely who the final boss is or even what is going on. I wasn´t really intrested in the end.
    The characters didn´t really apeal to me. I mostly found them to be annoying, but thats maybe just me.
    And while the combat and gameplay mechanics are unique, they are quite clumsy and pretty much disencourage you from using magic since it will make your characters base stats weaker. One mayor problem in my opinion is the fact that it is so easy to abuse the limits.
    A positive thing though is the minigames and side quests you can take part in, especially the card game. You feel really encouraged to collect all the cards and win over the best card players, something which FFIX failed with for me.
    My verdic would be that it´s an okay final fantasy game with obious flaws and I wouldn´t recommend it to someone who hasn´t played any other FF-games. But if you are hungry for more JRPGs from this era you could play this and might enjoy it.    … Expand
  12. HopelessVoice
    Feb 1, 2015
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. For all the bad rep this game sometimes gets, it is still a good game. The junction system is solid, although breaks the game when the player realizes just to draw 99 stacks of every spell which results in every employed character becoming overpowered as fudge. The limit breaks in this one are still gold although the way they are obtained was a bit of step back from VII; whereas VII made you complete a huge battle arena with difficult monsters and penalties, in VIII the limit breaks are far easier to obtain. The game still has the other ingredients; open world exploration, hidden islands, epic plot, epic score etc. Some may think that 7/10 is far too low for this game, but that's only because game reviews seem only to deal in absolutes nowadays. 7/10 is a good score, a good score for a good game. And that's what VIII is: small minor steps back from VII but hardly anything that would make it a bad game. VIII is a good game.… Expand
  13. tsakiym
    May 21, 2015
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. I do not have to say anything. But i need to write one hundred and fifty characters. i think my score can describe it.................................… Expand
  14. BarelyLewd
    Mar 15, 2019
    7
    Not sure this one didn't do it for me, didn't care for the game very much back in the day, I did't care for the story or characters, but everything else was real decent, I can't give this one my seal of approval but most people enjoyed the game, and that's fine, I'm glad they did because they went on to make FF9, and I luv that game so much.
  15. JoseAn13Torres
    Mar 22, 2017
    7
    Un juego que para la época gráficamente era un portento, extenso como todos los Final Fantasy de la época y con uno de los mejores mini juegos de la historia de los videojuegos, lástima que siempre viviese a la sombra de Final Fantasy VII.
  16. auditbadger
    Nov 23, 2020
    7
    I think that this is truly a unique game and I would recommend that if you are a fan of this type of genre then I think you should give this game a try.
  17. Nathandrake240
    Oct 4, 2020
    7
    Good ideas just poorly executed, great ost, decent cast with little development outside squall but the gameplay and story is lacking with a tedious equipment system using magic and even more time consuming is drawing from enemies. The story gets ridiculous by disk 2 and has plot holes. The main villain's backstory and motives behind her goals are also unknown.
  18. Sailnir
    May 13, 2018
    7
    This game was pretty good. It honestly wasn't really good just because the story... well it was far more strange than other final fantasy games and that is saying something. It turned really weird near the end.
  19. Naedeslus
    Feb 18, 2019
    7
    Final Fantasy VIII had a lot to live up to when it came out. It came out of VII’s path since VII is arguably the best in the series, in my opinion, how can it even stand up to it? It does that quite fine.

    The story is a bit of a mess. The first two discs are actually fantastic. Once the second disc ends, it goes from a rather realistic war story to something downright weird. This is    Final Fantasy VIII had a lot to live up to when it came out. It came out of VII’s path since VII is arguably the best in the series, in my opinion, how can it even stand up to it? It does that quite fine.

    The story is a bit of a mess. The first two discs are actually fantastic. Once the second disc ends, it goes from a rather realistic war story to something downright weird. This is Square we’re talking about so that’s to be expected but the twists in the third disc are downright bizarre. They’re legitimate twists I would’ve never seen coming. There are good twists and bad twists with this game and unfortunately, after the second Disc, they’re worse than good.

    The game's ending will leave you confused and it’s not a bad ending, not at all but since the tone of the game changed so much after Disc 2, it keeps up with the overall oddness of the plot.

    What one thing the game does well is the characters. I enjoyed them. They’re an interesting bunch and while the protagonist seems brooding just to be broody he does improve. The development is some of the best I’ve seen in the series and they all are worthwhile. I loved the cast. The villains are also very good. They’re no Kefka, Caius, Kuja, Sin or Sephiroth but they gave the player motivation.

    The music is one of the best OST’s of the series. It’s really good. The sound effects are very well done as well.

    The gameplay, that’s an interesting topic. Some loved it. Some hated it. Some like myself felt it had good and bad points. The gameplay focuses more on drawing magic from the enemies. There are of course other ways to get it, including refining items from a card mini-game but drawing is the easiest I found. This can lead you to spend 10 minutes in a battle getting your stock to 100 to increase your power level. Leveling doesn’t really matter at all and enemies level with you. I found a good technique is to instead, combine a mix of refining with drawing a few spells here and there. It can be a huge pain if you want it to but it also gives the player flexibility.

    This system has drawbacks. It’s tutorial after tutorial and coming from the excellent Esper and Materia systems before it makes it less than ideal. It’s not the worst in the series but it is executed badly and could’ve been explained more. Also, the magic cap at drawing is pretty low. If it would’ve been increased the more you leveled, it would’ve made it more accessible.

    While I liked VII and IX more it’s not a bad RPG or a Final Fantasy game. It won’t be for everyone but if you’re open to trying something new, something more modern and that takes risks with its gameplay and story, give it a shot. You’ll probably find a lot to enjoy.    … Expand
  20. lidwang
    Mar 1, 2019
    7
    This game has a great start and middle. The soundtrack, animations and expansive world that you can explore plus the triple triad card game makes this game and experience to be had, but is a shame that is has to be in company of a clunky story and weird drawing magic system.
  21. togobogo
    Sep 9, 2022
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Everyone dies in the end and the bad guys win its is so bad its pañnful 5/10.1… Expand
  22. fallacies8899
    Jun 19, 2020
    5
    I was too disinterested in the fighting mechanics to learn them enough. Eventually I learned that I should have been using the draw spell more. The card game was what kept me going for so long. But when I realized I missed an opportunity to get a legendary or rare card, I lost motivation to continue. There should be a card game only mode, where you can advance the story just by winningI was too disinterested in the fighting mechanics to learn them enough. Eventually I learned that I should have been using the draw spell more. The card game was what kept me going for so long. But when I realized I missed an opportunity to get a legendary or rare card, I lost motivation to continue. There should be a card game only mode, where you can advance the story just by winning card games. then I'd give this game a 10.… Expand
  23. Elite_Soldier
    May 16, 2022
    6
    The game is okay..................................................................................................
  24. DarkwingSchmuck
    Mar 3, 2022
    7
    After delivering two of the greatest RPGs ever back-to-back with Final Fantasy VI and Final Fantasy VII, it's no surprise Yoshinori Kitase returned to the director's chair one last time with Final Fantasy VIII. Unfortunately, Final Fantasy VIII is bogged down by frustrating inconsistencies, including the tedious Draw System, a lackluster cast of characters, and a messy story. Still,After delivering two of the greatest RPGs ever back-to-back with Final Fantasy VI and Final Fantasy VII, it's no surprise Yoshinori Kitase returned to the director's chair one last time with Final Fantasy VIII. Unfortunately, Final Fantasy VIII is bogged down by frustrating inconsistencies, including the tedious Draw System, a lackluster cast of characters, and a messy story. Still, Final Fantasy VIII is a risky and ambitious entry in the series, and the Junction System gives a lot of freedom for customization for veteran RPG players.… Expand
  25. maintitle
    May 31, 2022
    7
    Questis really out here creeping on her students and nobodies going to say a word, huh?

Awards & Rankings

9
#9 Best PS1 Game of 1999
1
#1 Most Discussed PS1 Game of 1999
3
#3 Most Shared PS1 Game of 1999

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
90

Universal acclaim - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 24
  3. Negative: 1 out of 24
  1. GMR Magazine
    90
    Things were more "real" this time around. [Feb 2003, p.97]
  2. Gamestyle
    80
    Unfortunately while the game is graphically superior to FFVII, in terms of setting, story and controls it lags way behind.
    Read full review
  3. Absolute Playstation
    98
    Spanning four discs, this is a massive RPG. You can try and skate through it in 50 hours but can easily spend over a 100 hours playing if you decide to take on all of the side games, collect all of the Cards and experience all there is to experience from this game.
    Read full review
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