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
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. lizardkingg
    Jul 21, 2023
    8
    Loved the story & characters. Huge graphical upgrade from FFVII, but I can't help to feel like FFVII was so brilliant it made this feel subpar. Still, a really good game.
  2. Squallleon
    Jul 1, 2023
    10
    This is by far my fave game of all time a must play. Has a unique story with well developed characters. A deep and compelling plot. And the game play is awesome with a really good lineup of summons, limit breaks, magics and weapons. Monster designs are awesome too. And by far the best romance done in a video game. This game was so epic for me that it still holds a special place for me.This is by far my fave game of all time a must play. Has a unique story with well developed characters. A deep and compelling plot. And the game play is awesome with a really good lineup of summons, limit breaks, magics and weapons. Monster designs are awesome too. And by far the best romance done in a video game. This game was so epic for me that it still holds a special place for me. Don’t think another game will come close. I used to have hopes that versus 13 would come close but that game just took a whole new direction. This game should get a remake a well done one. That would be the day!!… Expand
  3. Zeon1982
    Jun 15, 2023
    10
    I loved FF8. People who say it's not as good as FF7 are wrong. FF8 has a special place in my heart. The story, characters and the music make this game a work of art.
  4. shydxath
    May 19, 2023
    10
    my fav final fantasy game, the story and the characters are it made me fell so clode to it that even made me cry, should play it
  5. Rafarodfer
    May 18, 2023
    9
    An epic storyline accompanied by incredibly endearing characters, this game features a battle system that may not steal the spotlight but still delivers numerous enjoyable and strategic moments when facing challenging bosses.
  6. AtomosFabian
    May 11, 2023
    10
    Final Fantasy VIII es una gran aventura con muchos giros y una historia increíble, la banda sonora es espectacular, cinemáticas espectaculares y el diseño artístico está impecable, un juego que te marca y guardas en tus recuerdos para toda la vida.
  7. Sha2n
    May 9, 2023
    10
    A unique work, one of the best to date. This game will definitely enter the top, created by a diverse, experienced, versatile and not envious gamer. A legend for a real dreamer. From Gabranth with Love.
  8. THOUSANDEYEKAii
    May 5, 2023
    9
    The first Final Fantasy I ever played on PS1 in 2000. Great game but the worst of the mainline PS1/2 games.
  9. trinovatic
    May 4, 2023
    9
    Juegazo, la historia no es mala, pero pudo estar mejor, el primer cd es brutal pero siento que los últimos dos van un poco en debacle, hay muchos guinazos y coincidencias pero me sacan un poco de onda, pero en general por fumada que este la historia aun asi me encantó, el gameplay no es una basura como muchos dicen, no me molesto lo de extraer magias pero tambien se extraña el sistema deJuegazo, la historia no es mala, pero pudo estar mejor, el primer cd es brutal pero siento que los últimos dos van un poco en debacle, hay muchos guinazos y coincidencias pero me sacan un poco de onda, pero en general por fumada que este la historia aun asi me encantó, el gameplay no es una basura como muchos dicen, no me molesto lo de extraer magias pero tambien se extraña el sistema de materias del 7, de lo que si no fui muy fan fue de enlazar las magias con mis atributos, te obligan a no gastar magias y es un poco molesto, en general es un buen juego, se arriesgaron bastante con los cambios pero eso es lo que se aprecia. Por último quiero destacar la banda sonora, pensé que después del 7 no encontraría algo a la altura y lo esta, tremendos temazos.… Expand
  10. Magical_Viktor
    Apr 30, 2023
    9
    Существуют просто Зло и Большое Зло, а за ними обоими в тени прячется Очень Большое Зло. Очень Большое Зло, Геральт, это такое, которого ты и представить себе не можешь, даже если думаешь, будто уже ничто не в состоянии тебя удивить. И знаешь, Геральт, порой бывает так, что Очень Большое Зло схватит тебя за горло и скажет: «Выбирай, братец, либо я, либо то, которое чуточку поменьше»Существуют просто Зло и Большое Зло, а за ними обоими в тени прячется Очень Большое Зло. Очень Большое Зло, Геральт, это такое, которого ты и представить себе не можешь, даже если думаешь, будто уже ничто не в состоянии тебя удивить. И знаешь, Геральт, порой бывает так, что Очень Большое Зло схватит тебя за горло и скажет: «Выбирай, братец, либо я, либо то, которое чуточку поменьше»
  11. Pmstz
    Jan 30, 2023
    9
    Excellent Final Fantasy.
    Masterpiece.
    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
  12. aaronnmp96
    Jan 30, 2023
    8
    My first Final Fantasy, the only bad thing I can say is the gameplay, but it still has a lot left
  13. Ardalan1
    Jan 26, 2023
    10
    Such an amazing game. The story, characters, world, music, and gameplay. It all works perfectly and I didn't even notice that I have spent 100 hours on this game. 100% recommend it.
  14. Kyweaver16
    Jan 24, 2023
    10
    I could stock magic four hours on end. Nothing is more fun than junctiong Curaga to my health stat.
  15. LastResource
    Jan 14, 2023
    10
    worth it and glad to play this game again. so much memories and nostalgia within this eighth game in the series.
  16. GuiBio
    Dec 29, 2022
    10
    Nostalgic and my first JRPG, played for so many hours. It was before the great internet times.
  17. Mahmoudragheb
    Dec 14, 2022
    10
    My number 1 game The most underrated due to the complexity and beauty of it's story
    Love it in every aspect and wish to see a remake
  18. hector_bcn98
    Oct 31, 2022
    8
    Un sistema de materias y farmeo que arruina lo que podría haber sido una excelente secuela. Se queda en un notable, ya que los personajes tampoco están a la altura de lo que se venía. Que no se me malinterprete, es notable, deseo un remake, pero no es el nivel de VII y IX. La villana es un lolazo de manual.
  19. DavieSl
    Oct 25, 2022
    10
    My favourite Final Fantasy and by far the best.
    Can still get lost in it's story after all these years.
  20. Jattaman
    Sep 30, 2022
    8
    Bellissimo e appassionante JRPG.
    Bella trama, grande longevità, colonna sonora fantastica.
  21. ElObjetivo89
    Aug 17, 2022
    10
    La pieza central de la excelsa etapa de la saga en la primera Playstation. Otra obra maestra que se queda para siempre en el corazón del jugador.
    A nivel jugable cuenta con detalles mejorables, como el quizá excesivo peso de los GF y el tener que ver sus animaciones completas con cada ataque. El sistema de absorción de magias a mí no me gusta demasiado, aunque eso es criterio personal.    La pieza central de la excelsa etapa de la saga en la primera Playstation. Otra obra maestra que se queda para siempre en el corazón del jugador.
    A nivel jugable cuenta con detalles mejorables, como el quizá excesivo peso de los GF y el tener que ver sus animaciones completas con cada ataque. El sistema de absorción de magias a mí no me gusta demasiado, aunque eso es criterio personal.
    Nomura diseña en este juego y demuestra su enorme talento en dicho campo.
    Uematsu es un genio en plena forma.
    Un juego para la historia.    … Expand
  22. Andante
    Jul 7, 2022
    10
    One of the best games ever created by man and possibly my all time favourite game soundtrack. I consider this game a diamond, a piece of genius
  23. Tidu
    May 22, 2022
    9
    A lone wolf, Squall is my man! GFs are fun and graphics took a step forward from VII. Top 5 FF for me. And btw, LOVED the Triple Triad!
  24. Gingercrisis
    May 11, 2022
    9
    One of the best rpg games of all time, it has a great story. I hope you will like. This one is more similar to current rpgs than others of the time.
  25. perrypulus
    Mar 13, 2022
    8
    One of my earliest FF games and I finished it approx. 20 years later. The music is extremely good. The scores are also good. The GFs make the game huge and keep it interesting in battling with enemies
  26. albericegames
    Feb 20, 2022
    10
    Jogo praticamente beira a perfeição!
    Merece levar nota 10 em todas plataformas
    Nesse game você tem vontade de saber da vida de todos personagem, sendo mundo aberto a partir de um tempo podendo explorar onde você quiser.
  27. soahknam
    Feb 19, 2022
    9
    Right now, my review is based on my memories, as I played final fantasy viii when I was 16. at the time this game was spectacular. its gamplay is very good, the visuals and history and its music is the best. you can't die without having played this gem.

    GAMEPLAY: 9
    STORY: 9
    MUSIC: 10+
    VISUALS: 10

    PERSONAL SCORE >> A JEWELL
  28. Gal0_Ninja
    Feb 1, 2022
    8
    O forte do jogo são os seus personagens, todos eles são bem carismáticos e suas interações uns com os outros é divertida e possui uma história de amor muito bonita assim como a trilha sonora. Porém o roteiro é um tanto confuso, e a mecânica dos summons, apesar de ser interessante, sua dependência acaba descaracterizando os personagens mecanicamente e acaba tornando o combate sem graça.
  29. Robert88
    Nov 19, 2021
    9
    Great characters , amazing story , a lot of exploration and customization , the game mechanics are very detailed but can be overwhelming if the tutorial is not read properly though once you get the gist of what you are doing it’s a great system that takes time and patience to understand .(the tutorials in final fantasy 8 are extremely , extremely long .. the junction system you canGreat characters , amazing story , a lot of exploration and customization , the game mechanics are very detailed but can be overwhelming if the tutorial is not read properly though once you get the gist of what you are doing it’s a great system that takes time and patience to understand .(the tutorials in final fantasy 8 are extremely , extremely long .. the junction system you can literally read books about that gameplay mechanic alone ! … it can be overwhelming and complicated but simple when you get the basic idea ..all In all final fantasy 8 is a near perfect game I would give it a 10 .. way too much going on and way too people to fit in one story..… Expand
  30. JimPickens
    Sep 8, 2021
    9
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. After finishing a game I like to see the general consensus, I find it helps to put my own opinions into words, as do these reviews, and I was shocked to find Final Fantasy VIII was a highly controversial game, and while I empathize with many criticism's given, I have to disagree that FF8 is anything but a masterpiece in story telling.

    Final Fantasy VIII tells the story of one loner 17 year old Squall Leonhart, a character full of angst and anxiety, he is a student mercenary at Balamb Garden, a school that teaches children to fight apparently, look FF8 is weird and it's not really about the story, it's about the characters, so if you don't mind, that's what I'LL focus on too. Apart from Squall we have Seifer, Kingdom Hearts fans will recognize him as the loudmouth jock with his two cronies Raijin and Fuujin, and yeah that's about right, he regularly gives out to both Squall and my son, Zell, I love Zell. Along for the ride is also Quistis, the professor with a confusing name, Selphie the character with the poorly aged name, Irvine, my husband, and finally Rinoa, the love interest and central character in terms of the big picture, because she is a sorceress, which is a big thing in FF8. Where the game shines isn't its big bombastic world threatening story like with Final Fantasy 7, or it's large ensemble cast like Final Fantasy 6, its about Squall and his relationships, and I think that's why so many can't get behind this game, they don't relate to Squall or simply don't like him, and if you don't like Squall, admittedly the game has little else to offer you.

    Squall is a difficult person, he's quiet, full of angst, and when he actually does open his mouth, it's usually to dismiss the conversation or to say something spiteful, but throughout the game we get little thought bubbles for Squall, showing us that he's really a deeply troubled young man, rife with anxiety and self doubt. A little ways into the story the characters believe a main character to have died, and while everybody else grieves, Squall sits alone quietly contemplating if they'd grieve for him, or if they'd even care. Later in the story he starts to open up, particularly to Rinoa, it's sweet, I think it's why their relationship works so well, Squall needs somebody to be his anchor, and Rinoa does that for him, they don't even like each other at first, but slowly they realize they're exactly what each other needs, Squall isn't afraid to call Rinoa out when she's acting like a brat and Rinoa keeps Squall grounded, and while it means Zell, Selphie and Irvine take a bit of a back seat, I think it's in service of a love story worth focusing on, which is something I find hard to find in media, video games especially.

    The actual story is... weird, it's about time travel and can be confusing, but what I have surmised is this. There once was an orphanage owned by a man named Cid and his wife Edea, there they housed the main cast we follow in the game, which was later turned into Garden, where the students were trained as SeeD's, the mercenaries that Squall is part of, the reason for this is because Squall went back in time to tell Edea she needs to create SeeD's so Squall can be strong enough to kill the main villain Ultemecia, this is a paradox, Squall can only go back in time to tell Edea to create SeeD's because of SeeD's existence but SeeD's can only exist because Squall went back, but there aren't just plot holes, there's contrivances too. Everybody forgets they grew up together because of the Summons in this game, Guardian Forces, and the GF's drain their memory, but Irvine remembers because he doesn't use GF's, why didn't Irvine say anything? He was embarrassed because he thought he was the only one who remembered... ok sure Irvine. It does give a cool little "OH" moment when you realize Irvine choked when going to shoot Sorceress Edea because he knows she's their old caretaker, but everything else is just weird and contrived. So time travel aside, Squall and Co. have to kill Sorceress Ultemecia to save the world or something, it doesn't matter, they succeed and the final shot is of Squall finally smiling, it's a sweet ending.

    Junction System is weird but just pay attention and it'll click eventually. That's all I wish to say about the Junction System at this moment in time.

    Gun to my head, I can't say FF8 is the best Final Fantasy game, nor the best PS1 era Final Fantasy game, but it's a damn good one, a touching love story, an interpersonal journey of learning to be ok and a pretty fun story if you don't think too hard about the time travel. Overall I love this game, and it's one I highly recommend, even if I'm forced to acknowledge its shortcomings, I love it all the same.    … Expand
prev
Page:

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

All reviews »
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
See all critic reviews »