• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Final Fantasy VIII ® Remastered |OT| Recensored & Still Waiting...

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
finaljhj9s.png

img_20190824_1023090ok8o.png

Out Now!

20190622_013009y4jyv.gif

img_20190902_191642h9jqi.png

img_20190627_23340783gj4f.png

img_20190628_2006083iok1o.png

img_20190627_2334077pmjwi.png

The gunblade was designed by Tetsuya Nomura for Squall’s weapon in Final Fantasy VIII with the aim to make the battles more dynamic, the players needing to press a button at the correct time to deal a critical hit, and to give Squall an iconic weapon.
The weapon’s debut appearance, the gunblade is the weapon of choice for Squall Leonhart and his rival, Seifer Almasy. It is a sword with a firing mechanism, such as a pistol (as with Seifer’s Hyperion), or revolver (as with Squall’s weapons), which serves as the blade’s hilt. Despite its name, it cannot be used as a gun, meaning it does not fire projectiles, and can therefore only be used in melee combat, making it more like a gun supplementing a sword than a blade supplementing a firearm, e.g. a bayonet on a rifle. The firing of the gunblade’s rounds induces a tremor in the blade causing it to deal additional damage to whatever it strikes.

In battle, one must press R1 while the party member is striking to pull the trigger. If successful, the hit will be critical, multiplying the damage by x1.5 (as opposed to x2 for regular criticals). Triggering the gunblade is the only means of performing critical hits for its users. With Seifer, using this technique is slightly more difficult than with Squall because he attacks faster. Squall and Seifer are the only ones who can use a gunblade in combat, while Laguna Loire uses one in a dream sequence minigame, and mentions he trained with one in his early years as a Galbadian soldier.

Gunblades have 255% accuracy, making misses impossible even with the Blind status.

There are seven gunblade models available for Squall plus the model used by Seifer.

img_20190627_2124243owkur.png

The Weapons Monthly Magazine are items in Final Fantasy VIII ® found in various places around the world of Final Fantasy VIII ®
Each magazine contains information about various models of weapons which can be upgraded
. Even though weapons can be upgraded without the magazine in which it is mentioned, it is useful, as it gives the player information on how many items are needed for the upgrade.
Some magazines can be purchased in Esther’s Book Store, but may need the Guardian Force Tonberry Familiar ability to appear in the shop list.
img_20190627_233407622js8.png

img_20190627_220932lgkk2.png

Junction system is a character development system designed by Hiroyuki Ito for Final Fantasy VIII.
By collecting magic from items, draw points and enemies, the player can junction their magic stocks to their attributes via Guardian Forces to grow stronger.
Using the junction system is the superior method of growth to leveling up or weapon-upgrading.

Lore-wise, junctioning allows the user to replicate the powers of a sorceress via the storage and control of magical powers and Guardian Forces.
The system can store 32 different forms of Para-Magic with a stock of 100 units of each. Users filter out magic (known as drawing) from various entities and store it ready to be used or junctioned,
coming to possess near superhuman abilities, such as increased speed and strength, and being able to use magic. Various junction systems are used in the military forces.

img_20190627_21242424ckju.png

img_20190627_233407568jdu.png

Draw is a command ability in Final Fantasy VIII available when a Guardian Force is junctioned to a character.
Every Guardian Force has Draw as a default ability, though it can be removed via Amnesia Greens, and later re-added using the Draw Scroll bought from pet shops.
When a character draws magic from enemies, aquamarine spheres eject out of the enemy into the drawing party member.
Draw is used to siphon magic from enemies. If magic is drawn it can either be stocked or cast.
Draw is used to steal Guardian Forces from certain bosses, such as Eden from Ultima Weapon.
If the GF is drawn from the boss, it is useless in that particular battle, but afterwards can be junctioned.
How many of a spell can be drawn depends on the drawing character’s Magic stat, the spell they are drawing, and whom they are drawing it from.
Thus, high-level spells, like Holy and Meteor, are often only drawn in stocks of three or fewer. Draws can also fail entirely.
Characters with high Magic have a better chance of drawing stronger spells, but no more than nine spells can be drawn at a time
img_20190627_22223018rjm7.png

Guardian Forces (GF) are the summoned creatures of Final Fantasy VIII used by junctioning them to a character.
Conceived and designed by Hiroyuki Ito, the GF govern major stat growth, elemental/status effect offense and defense, and the commands the character may use during battle.
Each GF has a preset list of abilities they can learn, but through certain items can learn additional abilities and forget those that were previously learned. A total of twenty-two abilities can be learned.

img_20190627_21242406kdu.png

The world of Final Fantasy VIII has no known name, being referred to as “earth” and “the planet” in dialogue and the Information section.
It is as diverse as it is large, composed of four large continents and one small continent along with several islands of varying sizes.

The overall architecture was designed with western European themes in mind, and as such many structures can be linked back to modern real-world buildings and locations that are both real and theoretical.
Travel across the world is facilitated mainly by trains and cars. Because of the worldwide radio interference, communications across the world are suppressed, and no worldwide information network exists,
there instead being local networks like the Balamb Garden intranet and the HD cable used by Galbadia. A derelict radio tower from a time before the radio interference engulfed the world remains near Dollet.
The world’s favorite pastime is the trading card game Triple Triad.

The various locales include: the laid-back seaside towns of Balamb and Dollet, the bustling metropoli of Deling City and Esthar City,
the remote and mysterious retreats of Shumi Village and the Deep Sea Research Center, the quiet sanctuaries of Winhill and Edea’s Orphanage,
as well as the composed environments of the scorching Kashkabald Desert, the lush Rosfall Forest, the enigmatic Centra Ruins, and the dark, foreboding soul of Ultimecia Castle.
img_20190831_001919ua7ks4.png

Founded 12 years ago by Cid and Edea Kramer, and funded by NORG,
Balamb Garden was remodeled from an old Centra shelter by Estharian technicians allowing it to transform into a mobile form with the power of limited flight.
Cid was instructed to build the Garden to train SeeDs, an anti-sorceress army, as per a premonition of the future his wife, Edea, had foreseen.

Shortly after its construction, Galbadia Garden and Trabia Garden were created on the Galbadian and Trabian continents, respectively.
Specializing in Guardian Force training and Para-Magic, Balamb Garden is the only Garden authorized to conduct the SeeD field exam, which cadets must pass to join the ranks of SeeD.
Cadets attending other Gardens must transfer to Balamb to complete this final requirement.
img_20190627_23340747dk5k.png

img_20190627_232101f6kzc.png

Character models have been completely remade with updated visuals, replacing the original jagged models.
Added graphical improvements include new hairstyles, faces and additional animations to accessories.
For example, Squall and Rinoa resemble their most recent appearances in Dissidia Final Fantasy NT,
while Laguna resembles his appearance in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.

Weapons also have been visually updated and have more depth;
for example, the barrel on Squall's Revolver Gunblade is fully rendered in 3D as opposed to the original version where all gunblades were flat.
Siren is more covered up by feathers compared to her original model.
Updated animation effects in spells and command actions.
Updated and rescaled backgrounds. Updated font designs for texts.
Significantly improved loading times during area and screen transitions.
For example, entering and exiting an area from the World Map or challenging an NPC to a game of Triple Triad now loads in an instant.
Triple Triad cards have updated appearances featuring new in-game renders of enemies and GF Level 10 Cards retain their illustrated designs.
Improved anti-aliasing.
The music is of the original PlayStation version quality.​
The full motion videos have been enhanced at 1080p, but still display at a 4:3 ratio.
The same goes with the gameplay and menus.
The option to turn off in-game timers during certain events.
The option to multiply in-game movement speed by three.
The option to turn off random encounters.
The option for "Battle Enhancements".
Several battle boosters have been added exclusively for the Steam version
, including the maximum number of gil, cards, stocked magic etc.
The Chocobo World mini-game has been removed.
The exclusive items, however, can still be obtained via Angeli Search,
with the probability to obtain the items made higher and thus easier to acquire.


img_20190627_233407zsky4.png


tnWDtxF.jpg
GiH8zsU.jpg


5svyRe5.jpg
YYx0VM4.jpg
x7LtXsz.jpg


4bJENyF.jpg


Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_03.jpg
Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_02.jpg


Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_11.jpg
Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_10.jpg


Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_06.jpg
Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_01.jpg


Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_25.jpg
Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_24.jpg


Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_17.jpg
Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_16.jpg

Final-Fantasy-VIII-Remastered_20190819_12.jpg




img_20190901_003117hhelk5i.png




img_20190627_2334071xskde.png

Final-Fantasy-8-release-date.jpg


325481.jpg
latest


rinoa.jpg


latest
Final-Fantasy-VIII.jpg


latest


img_20190627_23340728mjch.png

img_20190627_225435u1ji4.png




img_20190903_135215ylj44.png

20190623_192931zdkgq.gif


img_20190627_230319koj20.png
 
Last edited:

Ivellios

Member
Beaultifull OT!

This is the only old FF that i never completed, but maybe i will give it a shot with this remaster now.

I remember reading that the leveling system was really bad, did they change anything on this in this remaster?
 

Ailike

Member
Beaultifull OT!

This is the only old FF that i never completed, but maybe i will give it a shot with this remaster now.

I remember reading that the leveling system was really bad, did they change anything on this in this remaster?
Changing the level system would change the entire structure of the game so I don't see what they could do to it. The actual 'game' part is fairly trivial anyway if you've FF'd before. FF8 was more about the story and the pretty graphics (1999 of course).
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
Beaultifull OT!

This is the only old FF that i never completed, but maybe i will give it a shot with this remaster now.

I remember reading that the leveling system was really bad, did they change anything on this in this remaster?
Nope, but it never bothered me when I first played it.
 

Ivellios

Member
Changing the level system would change the entire structure of the game so I don't see what they could do to it. The actual 'game' part is fairly trivial anyway if you've FF'd before. FF8 was more about the story and the pretty graphics (1999 of course).

I see, i will definetly give it a shot either way, since i really miss turn based RPGs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Isa

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
I see, i will definetly give it a shot either way, since i really miss turn based RPGs.
People hate on it but, honestly?
I got FFVIII due to FFVII, but I own every FF since because of FFVIII.
The game kinda cemented in my love for the series, sadly I don't believe it's was ever matched again
 

lyan

Member
Beaultifull OT!

This is the only old FF that i never completed, but maybe i will give it a shot with this remaster now.

I remember reading that the leveling system was really bad, did they change anything on this in this remaster?
the level system gets exaggerated to spread hate on the game. enemies get a little stronger as you level which really is no different from say skyrim and only slightly affect those who are so fixated on slaughtering countless enemies without ever gearing up yourself.
 

MagnesG

Banned
The junction system.. is a nightmare.
Imo this game severely needs a remake (and recensored but whatever...).
 

Ailike

Member
The junction system.. is a nightmare.
Imo this game severely needs a remake (and recensored but whatever...).
As much as the junction system is time consuming, its very exploitable. Being able to essentially customize your attributes on the fly lets you roflstomp anything if you know what you're getting into. If the game has one flaw its the reliance on GFs and button mashing. I guess that would be something I'd change with a revamp.
 

Zambatoh

Member
For first time players I have some advice you can use while avoiding the cheat system.

#1-- Get used to the card game meta. Very early on in the game, you can unlock Quetz' "Card Mod" skill which can convert cards into items.
If you follow the Disk 1 Lionheart guide (there are many resources on the internet), you can unlock Squall's Ultimate Weapon before even leaving the first island.
During boss fights, if you cast the spell "Aura" on Squall, he can spam his limit break repeatedly. You can also use Aura stones if you have them.
>>>EDIT: Apparently you do need to leave the island at some point to get Adamantine. Either get them from the beach near the 2nd town or Card Mod the Minotaur's Card into one. Dragon Fangs and Pulse Ammo can still be acquired on the first island.
>>>EDIT2: I'd also like to point out that most of Quistis' Limit Breaks can also be unlocked on the first island as well with the Card Modding method.

#2 -- During regular battles, you can use GF's as an easy field clear. They don't cost anything to use so they can be spammed quite often. Great for farming. That being said, if you want to strengthen Squall's STR stat, if may be a good idea to learn how different spells work in the Junction system. And when you've found a spell that you think works, it may be a good idea to farm them from enemies with the "Draw" command.

#3 -- Since enemies do level up with you, you do not have to fight them. You can use your GF's as a temporary shield while running away to save on HP. Make sure to stock up on potions just in case.

#4-- Many GFs can only be obtained from Boss Battles. Make sure to have the draw command ready. In the same vain, many bosses will also have useful spells to draw from too.

If I think of anymore advice to give, I'll add them to this post. Or perhaps others can share advice of their own.
 
Last edited:

Ivellios

Member
For first time players I have some advice you can use while avoiding the cheat system.

#1-- Get used to the card game meta. Very early on in the game, you can unlock Quetz' "Card Mod" skill which can convert cards into items.
If you follow the Disk 1 Lionheart guide (there are many resources on the internet), you can unlock Squall's Ultimate Weapon before even leaving the first island.
During boss fights, if you cast the spell "Aura" on Squall, he can spam his limit break repeatedly. You can also use Aura stones if you have them.

#2 -- During regular battles, you can use GF's as an easy field clear. They don't cost anything to use so they can be spammed quite often. Great for farming. That being said, if you want to strengthen Squall's STR stat, if may be a good idea to learn how different spells work in the Junction system. And when you've found a spell that you think works, it may be a good idea to farm them from enemies with the "Draw" command.

#3 -- Since enemies do level up with you, you do not have to fight them. You can use your GF's as a temporary shield while running away to save on HP. Make sure to stock up on potions just in case.

#4-- Many GFs can only be obtained from Boss Battles. Make sure to have the draw command ready. In the same vain, many bosses will also have useful spells to draw from too.

If I think of anymore advice to give, I'll add them to this post. Or perhaps others can share advice of their own.

Thanks for these!
 

The Shepard

Member
This was the first game I ever got hyped for so definitely in day one.

Played a few hours last night and I am streaming it to the vita, looks great on the little screen.

The card game is still the best side game in the series by some distance.

The none analog hasn't bugged me as much as I thought it would. I noticed it way more in the 9 remaster.

One of my favourite final fantasy and definitely going for the platinum like I did with 7.

Good work OP!
 
Last edited:

Teslerum

Member
Again, if you're getting the game on pc I'd at least wait for mods to be ported.
Otherwise the price isn't worth it compared to the older version.
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
Okay who turn my beautiful OT shitty browny yellow lol 😂
thanks for the gold
 

Shifty

Member
Wow, excellent OP! Kudos for putting in the effort, though it breaks my heart that you'd spoil all of that with censorship whining in the subtitle :messenger_crying:

But Whatever...

I'm really looking forward to this. Never played through it before, but FF8 was my first exposure to Final Fantasy, Anime, and video game CGI all at once when I saw the opening Squall vs Seifer duel round my cousin's house as a kid. It made my SEGA Master System look like a cheap toy by comparison.

I tried to play it via emulation a while back but bounced off at the Elvoret fight (shameful, I know) so I've wanted to go back and really dig into what makes the game tick ever since. From the way people describe it, it sounds like a crazy collection of extremely breakable systems and that interests me greatly.
 
Last edited:

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
If someone can come up with a good subtitle, I'm more then happy for a mod to change it
 

ROMhack

Member
Beautiful OP! I'm playing the original game on my PSP atm so I'll piggyback this thread.

I'm presently on Disc 3, just about to get to the White SeeD ship. Good news is that I've finally figured out how to properly use the junction system, which is pretty nifty.

I had a massive stroke of RnG luck fighting Cerberus the other day. He was kicking my butt until the fifth re-fight where he didn't use Triple until right at the end of the fight. His attacks were taking off half my health and I ended up with Squall and Rinoa dead, and Quistis on around 500 HP. I summoned Shiva as my last available move and took off his last piece of health with what was basically my last attack -- he'd have killed me with another turn. I love when stuff like that happens, especially as I said it was my last try :)

The game is like marmite though. I reckon plenty of people will end up hating it because it's not a traditional PSX era RPG game - it can feel very linear at times.
 
Last edited:

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
I really hope people give this remaster a chance.
These HD remaster come and go with whimper.
I think VIII deserves a relook so maybe people will see why I believe it's the best in the series.
 
Last edited:

Northeastmonk

Gold Member
Back when I had my Dreamcast; I couldn’t put this game down. My parents wondered why I wasn’t playing my new system. I still remember not using a Phoenix Down on the train and later realizing my error.
 
Last edited:

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.

MagnesG

Banned
Not long now, the count down is killing me lol
Been while since I been this exited for a FF game.
Anyway apparently the censorship is across all platforms
SE Ethics Department confirmed.
 

ULTROS!

People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late. I like to eat ice cream and I really enjoy a nice pair of slacks.
You know, I hate the leveling system so I'll just turn on the battle assist the whole time.

Unpopular opinion: I usually replay this game for the story and music.
 
I love this game. So much better than FF 9 (unpopular opinion, I know). The world is just so unique and interesting, the story is nice, the music is out of this world, among Uematsu’s best work. The scenarios are original and interesting, I especially love the dream sequences. The junction/battle system is broken as hell, but it can be very fun. It’s a crazy game.

I dunno about the port though...
 

SLUG_____

Neo Member
As broken as the junction and leveling is I loved this game for what it was, especially back in the day when it was more mysterious how it all worked and was still being figured out. I appreciate what they were trying to do. I only wish there were more ways to break the junction system. Then the game would ascend to some serious heights. Probably won't be playing the remaster for awhile but I actually 100%ed the regular Steam release. Man some of those achievements were wack. They didn't even THINK what 10,000 kills looked like before they put that in. It's hilarious in hindsight but man what a colossally bad achievement. I've got the 100% in both the FF7 and FF8 Steam releases. I wish 5 and 6 had decent releases on there. Might go for FF9 100% though I heard it has some BSSSSSS chievos like 8 did. That'd be the triple hundo for the PS1 3D trilogy.
 
Last edited:

Teslerum

Member
As broken as the junction and leveling is I loved this game for what it was, especially back in the day when it was more mysterious how it all worked and was still being figured out. I appreciate what they were trying to do. I only wish there were more ways to break the junction system. Then the game would ascend to some serious heights. Probably won't be playing the remaster for awhile but I actually 100%ed the regular Steam release. Man some of those achievements were wack. They didn't even THINK what 10,000 kills looked like before they put that in. It's hilarious in hindsight but man what a colossally bad achievement. I've got the 100% in both the FF7 and FF8 Steam releases. I wish 5 and 6 had decent releases on there. Might go for FF9 100% though I heard it has some BSSSSSS chievos like 8 did. That'd be the triple hundo for the PS1 3D trilogy.

At least for 6 might I suggest Project Atmaweapon?


Fixes and replaces the graphics in the entire game. Also lets you choose between different ones, including going full classic or finish the job Square more than half-assed and go full Amano (Sprites based on the original Amano artwork, which look really great if different).
 

ChuyMasta

Member
Does anyone have good links on how to beat the malboros? I dont want ad filled blogs with like a paragraph per page.

Also, I'm looking at magazines for zell locations, weapons and missables in the game.

Finally, tripple triad. I'm going 100% on this mofo.
 
Last edited:

ULTROS!

People seem to like me because I am polite and I am rarely late. I like to eat ice cream and I really enjoy a nice pair of slacks.
Seems like the platinum is gonna be easy, basically: Play a bit of Triple Triad, kill 1000 monsters, do side quests, kill the superboss, get all Timber Maniac issues, and get all the GFs.
 
Last edited:

Airbus Jr

Banned
Dont really care about the cenchorship

This game need a remake like VII not a remaster

Still looking butt ugly even with hd retexture
 
Last edited:

Xaero Gravity

NEXT LEVEL lame™
Do we know if there are any X enhancements? Trying to decide between the Switch and XB1 versions. Normally I'd go with the Switch version since that's where I own FFVII and IX so it'd be cool to have all three there, but since they've actually put some effort into improving the character models I'd go with the X version if it's 4K.
 

jshackles

Gentlemen, we can rebuild it. We have the capability to make the world's first enhanced store. Steam will be that store. Better than it was before.
Do we know if there are any X enhancements? Trying to decide between the Switch and XB1 versions. Normally I'd go with the Switch version since that's where I own FFVII and IX so it'd be cool to have all three there, but since they've actually put some effort into improving the character models I'd go with the X version if it's 4K.
Doesn't look like there are any X enhancements.


They're not listed on the store page, and the game is 2.81GB which is approximately the same size as it is on other consoles.
 
Top Bottom