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[Tiago Rodrigues]

I was introduced to Final Fantasy with FFIX. It was my first JRPG and it's still one of my favorite games ever.
Still, the game was clearly overshadowed by the PS2 releasing soon and it didn't review nearly as great as FFVIII. It also didn't sell nearly as good and i remember it being criticized for the more medieval look as opposite to the more futuristic looks of both FFVII and VIII.

Back then it was seen as the weakest FF from the PS1 era, specially since it was followed by PS2 title Final Fantasy X just a year later. (it still blows my mind but...yeah, FFIX came out in July 2000 and FFX came out in July 2001)

Yet, nowadays it seems that has shifted (and has been happening for quite a while). It seems like FFIX is much more loved than FFVIII while this one is much more criticized then it was back then.

You think that it's because VIII followed VII and it had a bigger hype? Was it a timing thing? Why did that shift happen? We're even hearing rumors about a remake for FFIX and nothing on FFVIII so clearly Square-Enix is aware of this.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

Because 8 was a radical departure from 7 in all respects and people expected FF7-2. The odd Junction system also took some time to learn and disrupted a lot of teens’ power fantasies by discouraging mindless grinding.
8 probably sold more than 9 riding the wave of 7, but disappointed a lot of people.
9 is great, but 8 is too.

 

[demented waffle]

You think that it's because VIII followed VII and it had a bigger hype?

IMO yes. And 9's sales were hurt by 8's reception.

 

[Radical_3d]

Because we played Final Fantasy VIII.
Fucking Hobby Consolas 98/100 my ass. I’ll give it a 4/10 if that day I wake up on the bright side.

 

[Rickyiez]

Basically many 8 haters flocked into 9

 

[darth.shrimp]

Because IX is actually a good game, unlike VIII.

 

[squidilix]

I was introduced to Final Fantasy with FFIX. It was my first JRPG and it's still one of my favorite games ever.
Still, the game was clearly overshadowed by the PS2 releasing soon and it didn't review nearly as great as FFVIII. It also didn't sell nearly as good and i remember it being criticized for the more medieval look as opposite to the more futuristic looks of both FFVII and VIII.

Back then it was seen as the weakest FF from the PS1 era, specially since it was followed by PS2 title Final Fantasy X just a year later. (it still blows my mind but...yeah, FFIX came out in July 2000 and FFX came out in July 2001)

Yet, nowadays it seems that has shifted (and has been happening for quite a while). It seems like FFIX is much more loved than FFVIII while this one is much more criticized then it was back then.

You think that it's because VIII followed VII and it had a bigger hype? Was it a timing thing? Why did that shift happen? We're even hearing rumors about a remake for FFIX and nothing on FFVIII so clearly Square-Enix is aware of this.

Because IX is a better game with better art direction (one of best of the series)

 

[LordOcidax]

Final Fantasy 9 is a more classic Final Fantasy game than the 8, people are expecting that FF is going back to their roots with FF9 Remake (Classic characters, turn based… Etc) + Is a lot better game too.

 

[demented waffle]

Because we played Final Fantasy VIII.
Fucking Hobby Consolas 98/100 my ass. I’ll give it a 4/10 if that day I wake up on the bright side.

What killed 8 for me was the hard level scaling and the inconsistent story. The world was a masterpiece.

 

[T8SC]

Final Fantasy IX was also very late into the PS1's lifecycle as the PS2 was out by then.

 

[Myths]

It’s just a better game bro

 

[Aion002]

VIII has a lot issues which probably contributed to the lower sales of IX.

After VI and VII being master pieces the hype around VIII was huge... Unfortunately VIII ended up far from the quality of VI and VII.

 

[Sub_Level]

I reject the premise. Even in 2025 VIII probably still has more fans overall than IX lol.

 

[PeteBull]

Back when they launched ff7 fellt like undisputed 10/10, ff8 fellt like 9,5/10 that gets boost of sales coz of amazing predecesor, ff9 fellt like 9,8/10 that had lower sales coz ff8 wasnt expected 10/10 game, all 3 are timeless classics and super amazing

 

[Radical_3d]

What killed 8 for me was the hard level scaling and the inconsistent story. The world was a masterpiece.

And what about the unbearable emo characters out of your Walmart K-dorama? The story isn’t just inconsistent is tedious and as interesting as watching the tiling of your bath dry.

Edit: Youngsters, wanna taste the flavour of FFVIII but don’t want to waste time in a subpar game? Watch this. About the same vibes, shorter and better written.

 

[KungFucius]

Sales, in the case of franchises, sometimes are more of an indicator of how well people liked the previous one, not how much people who bought the current one liked it.

I remember being so hyped for VIII and I think I bought some game just for the demo. When I played it, it was very Meh compared to VII. IX on the other hand was so much better than VIII due to exploration and charm. I think it might have also been 3 disks vs 2 which made it feel bigger.

 

[RagnarokIV]

Basically VIII is shit with crap characters and IX is a throwback to classic Final Fantasy in all ways.

 

[Deft Beck]

Final Fantasy VIII is a very polarizing game. While the graphics and music are definitely an upgrade from VII, the story is very unusual and has one of the most infamous twists in the series. Also, as others have said, the Junction system is controversial and many don't like the level scaling.

I like the game a lot, but IX is much easier to love because it's much more straighforward.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

Also, FF9 is one fine example of what happens when devs want to do their own thing instead of following trends.
FF7’s success probably owns a lot to the steampunk vibes of the game’s world and the coolness of the main villain, in an age when the west was really discovering Dragon Ball. After seeing the reception to FF8, Square went back to the series’s medieval fantasy roots instead of course correcting and giving people something more in line with FF7. You would never see a big publisher do something like that today, and even back in the day, this probably kept not a few people away from FF9.

I don’t get the complaints against the emo character and FF8’s cast in general when FFX and its Nomura-unleashed characters designs exist, though. One big reason I never loved FFX is because as soon as it starts you get fucking Tidus.

 

[Cyberpunkd]

You think that it's because VIII followed VII and it had a bigger hype? Was it a timing thing? Why did that shift happen? We're even hearing rumors about a remake for FFIX and nothing on FFVIII so clearly Square-Enix is aware of this.

This + IX was a return to beloved fantasy setting after two sci-fi instalments with VII and VIII.

 

[RoboFu]

The answer should be obvious.
FF8 sold well because 7 was so good.
9 sold less because 8 was crap.

 

[keefged4]

I've fininshed IX numerous times, its the best FF imo. I've started VIII numerous times but always drop it after a couple of hours. It's just cant grip me like other FF games, and I've played most of them.

 

[hinch7]

Junction sytem is arse. FFVIII is teen melodrama, FFIX is more classic FF and reaches a wider audience.

 

[Hudo]

My top 3 FF games of all time:

1) FF VI
2) FF XII: The Zodiac Age
3) FF IX

VIII wasn't bad. But I take it more as a "military academy rom-com" game. Which is, if you think about it, quite the departure for the series. Also, Quistis is clearly the best girl.

 

[Scrawnton]

Final Fantasy VIII is the best game in the series outside of the MMOs.

 

[Generic]

I recall trying to play FF9 20 years ago but there were enormous loading screens before and after every fight.

 

[demented waffle]

I recall trying to play FF9 20 years ago but there were enormous loading screens before and after every fight.

Ya, it was bad on og ps1. The new version fixed that on pc.

 

[Sorcerer]

I don't really see how the level scaling affected anything in 8. I maxed out my characters levels before I left disc 1 because I could. Every 1000 hp was a new level. Very easy to do in a few hours. I never found the game difficult in the least. A near death at the last boss battle, but I made it through unscathed regardless. I found the level scaling pointless unless somehow if favored me, which I imagine it was not supposed to.

 

[StereoVsn]

Ya, it was bad on og ps1. The new version fixed that on pc.

There are also amazing mods for FFIX (and VII) now. They turn the game into a quality remaster level.

 

[bitbydeath]

FF8 trailer/intro brought incredible hype.
People watched this on loop hundreds of times prior to it releasing, it’s still one of the best/the best cinematic ever made in Final Fantasy/any game.



Word of mouth also spread after release.

 

[BacklashWave534]

IX had a much better story and actual likable characters. VIII was forgetable.

 

[sigmaZ]

IX branded itself as a return to form and many people who like classic FF liked it for that. I think it also appeals to people who connect with its whimsical fairytale furriesque aesthetic as well.
It never hit with me though. It feels off after the myst woods and just a slog after that. Also, the vibe wasn't classic FF to me. It was more akin to something like Dark Crystal. Great opening and ending though.

 

[KiteGr]

Without a solid way of knowing if the current game is actually good, games sold relatively to the quality of the previous installment. Especially in games where there's no double dipping.

When it comes to franchises, they can potentially avoid the bad sales of a potential bad installment depending on it's fanbase, but with each failure the franchise gets devalued and it starts to show in the next installment's sales.

Besides that, FF9 released very close to the PS2s release.

 

[sigmaZ]

Junction sytem is arse. FFVIII is teen melodrama, FFIX is more classic FF and reaches a wider audience.

Yeah the junction system could have been really cool but the way they handled it melt amiss. The battles being slow and clunky certainly didn't help much either. Also the dialogue is most spastic dialogue I've ever seen in an RPG. People are constantly just talking over each other and saying random stuff.

 

[NeoIkaruGAF]

This + IX was a return to beloved fantasy setting after two sci-fi instalments with VII and VIII.

Beloved by who? FF was absolutely niche outside Japan until the PS1 era, with 3 episodes never even being translated into English and all of the first 6 games not getting a European release. The fantasy roots of the franchise were literally unknown to the biggest portion of FF7 players.

 

[fatmarco]

People dogging 8 for damaging the sales of 9, are forgetting that the switch of art style from realism to cartoony was a major factor too.

Similar to the controversy over say Windwaker (but obviously far less so than that lol).

I feel like these things get forgotten over time, but there's a reason why every mainline Final Fantasy's artstyle since 9 has been realism.

 

[hinch7]

Yeah the junction system could have been really cool but the way they handled it melt amiss. The battles being slow and clunky certainly didn't help much either. Also the dialogue is most spastic dialogue I've ever seen in an RPG. People are constantly just talking over each other and saying random stuff.

True the writing wasn't exacty great lol. Drawing magic was also boring and broken as hell if you just farmed monsters. It was an odd FF. However it was a special one for me, for the time.

Triple Triad is one of the best card games and minigame in any VG though. Could play that for hours on end.

 

[Killer8]

Neckbeards whining about plotholes and all the questioning of "what makes a Final Fantasy game?" completely ruined the discourse, particularly when it comes to any of the FF games with a modernistic technological setting.

 

[Shifty1897]

8 sold well because 7 was a hit, 9 sold poorly because 8 sucked.

This happened back then with Resident Evil too. RE5 sold better than all the others because 4 was awesome.

Back at release, the general consensus was 7>9>8, because 7 could do no wrong since it was most people's entry point into RPGs. 9 was also just too late to the party in 2000 to get mass market hype, people had their eyes on the next gen with Dreamcast and PS2. I remember people also thought 9 was a graphical downgrade to 8, and it kinda was.

 

[delishcaek]

I remember people hating the switch from Dieselpunk (FF7) and Magitech (FF8) to Medieval High Fantasy with some SciFi elements, especially the new character designs looked bad/a regression from VIII which aimed for a more realistic look. It really wasn't what people were expecting and I saw a lot of back and forth arguing about it on forums.

Why people look back on it fondly I don't know. I never liked it, I always preferred 7 and 8 over it.

 

[Fbh]

Back then we still understood sales and quality don't always correlate.
Though I do remember some of my friends back then didn't like the switch to a more cartoony style for the characters.

 

[cireza]

My guess is that IX was too much of a departure compared to VII and VIII, which is where the series started for pretty much everyone, except in Japan.

I think that VIII was a perfectly fine sequel that gave the people more of VII in a way (= sci-fi RPG), which explains why they bought it.

However IX was medieval-fantasy stuff, and I was the first to skip it. Didn't like the chara-design either, I find it awful actually. And I also strongly dislike the look of the characters in FF VII. Instantly turns me off the adventure. How can you get any sense of drama or tension when you characters look like this ?

Never played IX to this day, and moved on to X, which I really enjoyed.

 

[Wolzard]

Obviously the look was the biggest motivator.

At the time of the PS1, every game had to look more adult, with older characters, with violence, romance, serious themes.

FF9's cartoonish appearance had more of a Nintendo feel.

 

[Interfectum]

FF8 skyrocketed off the back of FF7.

FF9 sales were damaged because FF8 was shit.

 

[Kazdane]

Final Fantasy VIII was back then seen as something innovative. The graphics were a clear step up from FFVII, and the junction system was very well received by reviewers. I don't really remember the reviews in *that* much detail anymore, but I believe some magazines also praised the fact the enemies scaled up to your level (but I may be well making it up, so take it with a grain of salt). If you consider FFVII's enormous reception and popularity and pair it with good reviews, it's not surprising that VIII sold more.

The issue was that once you started playing it and progressed through the game, you got to a point where you realized the flaws of the game. The junction system was a good idea on paper, but having to spend time extracting spells from enemies over and over (and not spending those junctioned because you'd weaken your characters) just didn't feel that much fun.

Final Fantasy IX, meanwhile, reviewed just as well (if I remember correctly) but was presented as mostly a homage to the previous installments, rather than focusing on the story itself in some magazines. However, the game was a massive hit among many people that began playing Final Fantasy with VII (as it was my case), because it was such a different setting and battle system: 4 party members, the trance system, the materia system was back in a way (with the skills you could enable for each character).

VIII is a very fond memory for many, because it was their first FF, but IX was more fun, in the literal sense. The story was more engaging for many (and to be honest, but maybe it's a too personal take, I think Seifer wasn't really as interesting as the villains on VII and IX) and it did many things right (it also did many wrong, the pace of the combat, even in the fastest setting, was very slow unless you casted Haste on your team). It also had a charm that you can't really find in VII or VIII, which has helped it retain that better light on the mind of many. Or at least that's my take on all this

Personally, I'm in the same camp, VII and IX were better than VIII. Although that's not to say VIII was a bad game, it's just some things weren't up to the same standard of the other two.

 

[Brock2621]

The problem was that square announced 9 and X at the same time, and allllll of my friends were talking about wanting a PS2 to play X after seeing it. IX was left in the dust unfortunately because the hype of a new generation of Final Fantasy games suffocated all else.

I actually played 8 again for the first time since I was 14-15 or so when it first released and I turned me around completely. When I was younger I played like 4 hours of 8 and hated it because I thought it was going to be like 7.

Now as a 40 yr old man, I absolutely ADORE 8. So much so that after I finished it this past year I deep dived into analysis videos and ultimania books for a week afterwords.

If you have a PC, mod it with Lunatic Pandora by McIndus.

 

[SenkiDala]

Both are very different games but both are awesome. The thing is that VIII was released during the "golden age" of the PS1, in the middle of the generation. FFIX came out after the release of the PS2.

Also, but it's maybe just an opinion, FFVIII was seen at that time like a very futuristic game, something very new if you think about the game environments, design, etc, something you've never seen in a AAA JRPG. FFIX looked more "traditional" like old school SNES JRPGs but with modern graphics.

 

[Hookshot]

Always found 8 to be a turd of a game, lame characters, lame locations, lame story. Let's leave our bland flying school to have a fun fantasy romp in some sewers!

 

[Unknown?]

Because 8 was a radical departure from 7 in all respects and people expected FF7-2. The odd Junction system also took some time to learn and disrupted a lot of teens’ power fantasies by discouraging mindless grinding.
8 probably sold more than 9 riding the wave of 7, but disappointed a lot of people.
9 is great, but 8 is too.

Also 9 was cut short by PS2. 8 and 7 had more time to sell in the spotlight but once PS2 came out, everyone was looking at that. After that PS1 was only really selling in poor countries where they couldn't afford new consoles.

 

[adamsapple]

double post, sorry.