Probably a Bad Idea, But...Why is Final Fantasy VIII "Bad"?

I really want to know why it's one of the most loathed games in the series. I'd like to see reasons that don't take into account subjective matters, like the plot or the characters or what-have-you. I'm more interested in hearing how it (allegedly) fails as an RPG in terms of functionality and game design. But, go ahead and dish however you want.

I actually still enjoy the game to this day, having installed it on my PS3 and played it to just about 100% completion, so I hope nobody pulls the whole "you only like it cause of nostalgia goggles" thing.

 

Some people get corn in their shit over the fact that you can break the game not three hours in by junctioning crazy magics to your stats, which is pants-on-head retarded because umm have you SEEN Disgaea? Y'all don't know what breaking a game is motherfuckers

They also complain about the draw system which I personally think is mad subjective, 100 casts of any spell may take a long-ass time to build up but it's also way more casts than you'd be allowed by an MP system, and there are multiple ways to immediately stock up on the best spells later on so that becomes a moot point after a while

Best card game in series history, unique enemy level scaling system that attempts to provide a challenge for power-levelers, plus the entire beach mission is fucking amazingly complex and so fun to replay

tl;dr bitches gonna bitch

And yeah I still play it too so suck my chode h8rs

 

That's a big part of any game, though. If you ask for a review of any game, stuff like this is bound to come up. I, personally, am indifferent towards FF8. I never made it far into the game to give a legitimate review on it, but...Squall pissed me off as a main character. I know people hate Lightning from FFXIII, but I found him to be a worse, male version of her (even though he and Cloud inspired her).

 

A lot of people started out the Final Fantasy series with VII and didn't know that each game was a contained story. So they get VIII thinking it's going to be a sequel to VII. Yeah, it's a pathetic reason but it seems to be very common.

I played VIII. It wasn't a terrible game. I mean, I completed it. But for some reason I remember not liking the train level. The characters were kind of...I didn't really like Rinoa and Squall very much. Selphie needed to go away. Irvine was just your generic playboy cowboy. Zell needed to also go away. The only characters I really liked were Edea and Quistis. Seifer was kind of...in the middle. He was just kind of there.

I guess it's a YMMV situation. I know I didn't really enjoy it but other people might consider it a good game. I don't know.

 

Because... because...

People have opinions.

 

...

 

An easily exploitable Junction system seems to be a main reason. People aren't a big fan of it. Enemies level up with you. So you can have a low level and great junctions and make the rest of the game a breeze. Also some people don't like how you may have to grind drawing magic from enemies to boost your magic and junctions.

Squall can arguably be an annoying angsty character early on.

I personally have no issues with the junction system and it's characters. 8 is my favourite after 9.

 

High point of the story: The scene on board the Ragnarok was beautiful man I got choked up

Low point of the story: What the fuck is NORG

And that's all I'll say about the plot if you don't like the characters you have bad taste YA KNOW?

 

http://www.siliconera.com/2013/05/1...s-coming-to-pc-with-high-resolution-graphics/

 

This exactly for me.

I really don't hate the game in my opinion, but a lot of people expected it to be a sequel to VII.

 

Oh. My. God.

Most types of storms require clouds.
A squall is a type of storm which requires clouds.
Lightning often results from storms with many clouds.

Is this what it feels like to have one's mind blown? I hope not. It's kind of underwhelming.

 

I don't hate the game, but it's definitely low on my list. The gameplay is actually pretty fun if you use a guide, and don't mind grinding like crazy at the start. I don't like how magic more or less became useless because of the junction system though (Why would you cast magic when it actively makes you weaker and doesn't actually do as much damage as a physical attack?)
The characters and story I personally thought were unfocused. They couldn't really decide what they wanted to do with any of it, and I think it suffers for it. I'veheard that the main story was put on the back seat so they could focus on making an amazing love story... but that love story is terrible.
Ultemecia and Seifer are massively wasted villains and the game is full of way too much guide dang it
And just how did Squall survive that ice spike the size of his torso being stabbed through him?

 

The only time I want to hear "Seifer" and "wasted" in the same sentence is "Dude Seifer just totally wasted Odin are you fuckin KIDDING ME!? THIS MAN IS UNREAL"

 

That scene was so disproportionately badass though, he never does anything cool enough to justify that scene.
It's also a bad idea to get Gilgamesh, since he interferes with the dog search move

 

It's not nearly as hated as XII, and they were both great games. At least VIII was when I was 9.

 

What do you mean? It doesn't need to be justified, it is what it is. It's the start of justification for what he can do.

Gameplay and story segregation is hardly a new concept, and it affects some otherwise brilliant villains. Hell, I love Seekernort to death, but I don't believe I've ever died in a fight with him. Well... that second bit can be kinda brutal on Proud, but there are variables there. It happens that Squall is stronger than Seifer, but... put it one way, Seifer could probably take any of us in a fight.

That's odd, I didn't think XII was that hated. Just glossed over.

 

Gameplay story segregation, yeah, but this isn't gameplay, not really. It's story that happens to happen during a battle. The implication is that Seifer s so badass he can do a reverse zantetsuken, and I KNOW that Square wanted him to be this badass... but it doesn't come across. He's barely a factor in the story
If FFVIII had a much tighter focus, as opposed to the loose nonsense it currently is, it would probably be the best FF story
Or at least
one of the best

 

VIII takes a lot of heat for being scattered. And y'know what? I agree. I remember the plot as a pile of mush.

You know what other game in the series struck me that way? VI. And it gets nothing but praise. Why's one good and the other is garbage? Where's the justice? What makes Kefka so much better than Seifer, huh!?

YOU HEAR ME FANBOYS

YOUR CLOWN IS SHIT

ONE DAY I'M GONNA TELL HIM ABOUT MY ROMANTIC DREAM[DOUBLEPOST=1369121183][/DOUBLEPOST]

Disagree. Writing has established and effective conventions for a range of emotional expression and evocation, which is as much a part of the gaming experience as the bit where you hit the buttons and spin the sticks. It has rules, and breaking them should not be done lightly. It can be graded. The thing is, there are a lot of poorly written things in the world that are still enjoyable, even in the aspects of storytelling, and calling VIII bad is still a stretch. VIII has problems. But every FF has problems. VIII also does a lot of things right - enough of them that a sizable and fairly vocal part of the fanbase still regards it fondly after all these years.

The thing that most people - non-writers, I notice - don't get is that plot is only one part of a story. It's the part exclusively under the control of the writers. An equally important part, if not moreso in the case of video games, is atmosphere. And Final Fantasy VIII's atmosphere is beautiful. That is helped by the design of the characters, creatures, and setting, as well as a magnificent score with a host of memorable tracks. It also has a fair spread of stellar set pieces that help it along in the rough spots: early ones like the mission in Dollet, some in the mid-way such as the Deling City assassination, and even as far along as Ultimecia's Castle. These areas are fun to explore, the game play conditions are dynamic and unique, and all in all they just stick with you when you're done.

That is all part of the story of a video game. When you judge a game's story, you are looking not only at the work of the writers, who lay the foundation for the world, a plot set therein, and characters to move it along - but at the work of the artists, who bring those characters and settings onto the canvas; at the work of the designers and programmers, who mold the world into a playground for the gamer, a place where she learns to influence the story and becomes invested in it; at the work of the composers, who fill the silence of these wondrous worlds with equally wondrous music. When you understand what truly makes the story of a video game, you understand that Final Fantasy has never truly told a bad story - just one with a few bugs to work out, at worst. XIII being the potential exception-*brick'd*

I have enjoyed bad games before. I know the difference between a game I had fun with and a game I think is well-designed, and no, they do not always go hand-in-hand. But I guarantee you, FFVIII is no Shadow the Hedgehog. If you look at it as a whole, yeah, it looks pretty clunky, and the pieces don't quite go together. But those pieces are so damn great. Nostalgia goggles or no, even the most bright-eyed, naïve little toddler can be turned away from a game out of boredom, and VIII did not do that. Does that mean it's exemplary and should win awards? No. Would I have written it differently? Probably, yeah. Squall would've smiled more, for one, and I might've at least tried to explain where the hell Ellone got her powers. (And the Shumi tribe? Fuggedaboutit) But moment to moment, it is still entertaining; and as far as I'm concerned, that's reason enough to say it's not a bad game.

YEAH I CAN WRITE ESSAYS TOO LIBRE SUCK IT

 

Even though I deleted my post cause I have a terrible way of wording what I think, you've done it well :\

 

Iss gud man I gotchu