Final Fantasy VIII Remastered |OT| You're The Best Looking Remaster Here

[Deleted member 59854]

The character models look good, but no analog movement stings man...

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It does! I mean, your message has it covered: the new models are fantastic, you might love the easy modes for quick replays, and there's virtually no load times now so you can just flyyyy along. But no analogue and no rumble are a major shame, even if the latter is moot for Vita/PSP. You won't notice it a lot, but there you have it.

 

[ZeroX]

So, should I get this or stick with PSX version on Vita/PSP?

The character models look good, but no analog movement stings man...

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It's a tad janky to move around, but you're moving around at 3x the speed. You can decide what's more important to you, but I definitely prefer the latter.

 

[chandoog]

It's a tad janky to move around, but you're moving around at 3x the speed. You can decide what's more important to you, but I definitely prefer the latter.

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Also keep in mind the frame rate inconsistencies which will make limit breaks harder. No more 60 FPS menu's in the remaster. They are capped at 16 FPS.

 

[ZeroX]

Also keep in mind the frame rate inconsistencies which will make limit breaks harder. No more 60 FPS menu's in the remaster. They are capped at 16 FPS.

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I haven't personally noticed any issues in inputting limit breaks.

 

[RpgN]

Also keep in mind the frame rate inconsistencies which will make limit breaks harder. No more 60 FPS menu's in the remaster. They are capped at 16 FPS.

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This is what mostly gets me. I noticed one streamer having trouble with Squall's special. I can get past the rest, but when I read this...it made it really difficult to think of this as a definitive version. The models and 3x speed sound/look great though.

I have the PSN version. I would love to get a Japanese version for practice. I was hoping this would be it. Knowing my curiosity, I will most likely still get this down the line. I don't currently have the means to play it anyway.

 

[ZeroX]

Maybe because I only ever played the game in 50Hz I'm less sensitive to framerate stuff

 

[RpgN]

Hmmmm...then that should apply to me as well living in Europe and all. I really hope so.

 

[Meows]

Renzokuken takes a try or two to get used to it. If you play around with the booster and try it out once or twice, you should get used to it pretty instantly. You just have to press just before instead of right on it.

 

[Wazzy]

I finally got all Steam badges. I can't believe the harder badge to acquire looks horrible in comparison to the max level Griever badge.

This is what you get for all foil card crafting:

This is regular crafting 5 times:

Second one looks so much better. ; ;

Anyway I have almost all icons and wallpapers too. Just missing about 3 and I have everything though the rest doesn't let you craft anything.

 

[chandoog]

Hmmmm...then that should apply to me as well living in Europe and all. I really hope so.

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If you're planning to use the booster liberally, relying too much on limit breaks won't be much of an issue anyway .. so yeah .. give it a go.

Although, if you have a half-decent PC, I would say wait a bit more maybe for some PC mods to start coming through like the brilliant Moguri mod for FFIX.

 

[Wazzy]

https://s.famitsu.com/news/201910/08184683.html

Famitsu did a 20th Anniversary feature for VIII. It has a Nojima interview and I think the voted popular characters. If that is what the one page represents then I'm shocked that anyone would vote Irvine over any other main character especially Selphie.

I hope a translation happens soon. I really want to see what Nojima said.

 

[Linkura]

https://s.famitsu.com/news/201910/08184683.html

Famitsu did a 20th Anniversary feature for VIII. It has a Nojima interview and I think the voted popular characters. If that is what the one page represents then I'm shocked that anyone would vote Irvine over any other main character especially Selphie.

I hope a translation happens soon. I really want to see what Nojima said.

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I thought Selphie was popular in Japan.

 

[oni-link]

I beat the game!

Got the final boss on my 2nd attempt

Great game, but now I need to read up on some of the plot stuff I might have missed

 

[Warrior of Light]

Irvine is definitely the weakest link among the main characters. And I'm counting characters like Seifer, Cid, Edea and Fujin+Raijin.

 

[Meows]

He has a great design and is fun to play as but he's a selfish nothing-burger compared to the rest of the cast tbh.

 

[Wazzy]

Irvine is definitely the weakest link among the main characters. And I'm counting characters like Seifer, Cid, Edea and Fujin+Raijin.

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Yeah. I like Irvine but he is by far my least favorite of the important characters.

I thought Selphie was popular in Japan.

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She technically still is since she ranked number 5 but I never thought I would see Irvine rank above characters like Seifer and Selphie.

It is still possible that is a memorable scene vote rather than character popularity since the images used for each is really weird but I'm taking it as the character voting result until clarified.

 

[Deleted member 59854]

Yeah. I like Irvine but he is by far my least favorite of the important characters.

She technically still is since she ranked number 5 but I never thought I would see Irvine rank above characters like Seifer and Selphie.

It is still possible that is a memorable scene vote rather than character popularity since the images used for each is really weird but I'm taking it as the character voting result until clarified.

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Keep in mind too that having a poll 20 years after the fact, among people that still play/remembers FFVIII and still also happen to be reading and voting in Famitsu, is going to be a pretty different set of perspectives!

Besides, even without voting we all already know that the best character is

Spoiler

Ward. MASSIVE ANCHOR

 

[Her Hero Is Gone]

I find it interesting that the paratrooper fight during the garden clash is so much harder on ps4 than it was on my switch playthrough. I just breezed through it on switch and was wondering why I remembered that part being frustrating. But on ps4, I had to retry it a bunch of times and it all came flooding back.

Similar, but less severe issue with the timber train mission - there was something weird and delayed about the inputs on ps4, while on switch it seemed like I'd have to try pretty hard to fail. It just feels way more responsive on switch.

 

[RpgN]

She technically still is since she ranked number 5 but I never thought I would see Irvine rank above characters like Seifer and Selphie.

It is still possible that is a memorable scene vote rather than character popularity since the images used for each is really weird but I'm taking it as the character voting result until clarified.

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The scans are too low resolution and blurry. The title on that page clearly says most liked character in FFVIII though.

 

[DiipuSurotu]

Irvine is pretty much this game's Amarant or Kimahri. Cool design but forgettable everything else.

 

[Wazzy]

The scans are too low resolution and blurry. The title on that page clearly says most liked character in FFVIII though.

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So it doesn't say most liked character moment? It really surprises me(less than Irvine) that they would use the Galbadia Garden for Rinoa since it's not something I would ever associate as memorable for her nor would I think to use that for her ranking second. Irvine would make sense since the assassination is obviously his most defining moment but even Squall and Selphie using FMV's for the screenshot just seems off with the lack of consistency.

I shouldn't be that surprised since I do think it's the favourite character vote but some parts of it is what made me question if that's actually the results being shown since there was multiple questions asked in the servey about memorable moments.

Keep in mind too that having a poll 20 years after the fact, among people that still play/remembers FFVIII and still also happen to be reading and voting in Famitsu, is going to be a pretty different set of perspectives!

Besides, even without voting we all already know that the best character is

Spoiler

Ward. MASSIVE ANCHOR

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I think it's more that my experience with VIII characters and who is popular generally didn't have Irvine ranking high. :P

It was always common to see Squall, Rinoa, Seifer and Selphie. Edea was also generally well liked but maybe not peoples favourite.

Also true best character is Seifer. I'll quote the list until the day I die.

 

[Warrior of Light]

Laguna is the best character in my opinion, followed by Rinoa and Squall.

 

[Deleted member 59854]

Yeah, so the article will feature famous scenes, famous lines, character popularity ranking, intro of all Triple Triad cards, and other works where Squall has appeared. In ranking number 1, that's uh, Squall's face blurred out from the Dollet raid cinema. Rinoa in Galbadia makes sense as a photo since it's the exchange of their promise ring, of sorts. The field at the orphanage would've been better, but I get it. Most text besides readers' comments on what they loved about the game are, unsurpisingly, too blurry to read in the preview.

Also true best character is Seifer. I'll quote the list until the day I die.

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"...! Raijin! Add Wazzy to the 'List.'"

You're right, of course. Though I remember being disappointed that he wasn't as "cool" as he seemed like he would be from the demo and his outfit. I wasn't expecting such a vulnerable character...though that ended up being more interesting, at least!

Spoiler

Will we ever know whether it was an enemies list or a list of people impressive enough to sass Seifer and thus be worthy of respect?!

 

[RpgN]

So it doesn't say most liked character moment? It really surprises me(less than Irvine) that they would use the Galbadia Garden for Rinoa since it's not something I would ever associate as memorable for her nor would I think to use that for her ranking second. Irvine would make sense since the assassination is obviously his most defining moment but even Squall and Selphie using FMV's for the screenshot just seems off with the lack of consistency.

I shouldn't be that surprised since I do think it's the favourite character vote but some parts of it is what made me question if that's actually the results being shown since there was multiple questions asked in the servey about memorable moments.

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I can definitely understand the confusion. The left page has quotes from the fans, what they like about the game. In a sense, they are talking about their memories and what impressed them so much. The right page title underneath the big FFVIII says what I mentioned. But there is a big blurry paragraph next to the big FFVIII. Also the rankings are divided in a short text and a separate blue square with more text. There might be more to the list than a simple popularity ranking. It's just impossible to read with how most of it is blurry.

 

[Gradon]

These card games in

Spoiler: late disc 3

space

are literally ruining my life.
I need to get that

Spoiler: late disc 3 card

Laguna card

so badly. After the

Spoiler: late disc 3 card

Alexander card took me an hour to get.

fuck random.

 

[HeRinger]

So, it's been years since I last played FFVIII, but everybody knows how easy it is to break it by using Quetz card ability and remaining low level the whole game.

But I don't want to do that. What I want is a playthrough that gives me some challenge and some sense of progression and customization for my characters. I also want to play Triple Triad as much as I can without breaking the game.

So, any tips to make this possible? I'm considering just never using the card ability, and only refining magic from cards I win through triple triad. I also don't intend to keep running away from battles to avoid gaining xp. I might even farm a little for AP, but gaining exp in the process (since I won't be carding enemies).

Also, any other tips regarding Triple Triad? I don't remember much of the game, so any suggestion to make it more enjoyable is welcome.

 

[Deleted member 59854]

It's Inktober, and an old friend made a highly-relevant picture that captures the most hilarious move in the game with Rinoa. Meanwhile:

What I want is a playthrough that gives me some challenge and some sense of progression and customization for my characters. I also want to play Triple Triad as much as I can without breaking the game.

Also, any other tips regarding Triple Triad? I don't remember much of the game, so any suggestion to make it more enjoyable is welcome.

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Stick to the corners! Ifrit's card lets you beat everyone around Balamb Garden. If you can get a set of three Molbors or Evil Oscars or whatever, you can build out from the bottom-left, and control from the right with Ifrit, till you start getting better stuff. Your biggest threat will be random, per Gradon above. (I'm pretty sure you can get those cards from the escape pod later, man!) Best to spread Balamb's good rules and reset until a game starting with mixed rules eliminates random.

You can actually have a good, challenging time in the game by keeping Squall healthy so monsters level up, winning cards but seldom refining them, and not drawing much. If you do this without looking up how to get really crazy items needed for everyone's strongest weapons, the game balances pretty well. It's also a ton of fun to rush through the game without stopping on any obscure side-quests while still learning some fun abilities as you go.

 

[HeRinger]

Best to spread Balamb's good rules and reset until a game starting with mixed rules eliminates random.

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Could you elaborate on that? I've heard something like it before but I don't know what's that about. When I played FFVIII years ago I completely ignored Triple Triad.

 

[Her Hero Is Gone]

These card games in

Spoiler: late disc 3

space

are literally ruining my life.
I need to get that

Spoiler: late disc 3 card

Laguna card

so badly. After the

Spoiler: late disc 3 card

Alexander card took me an hour to get.

fuck random.

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I have bad memories of Random at that part of the game from years ago so I feel your pain. I learned this time around that Lunar's rules can be altered by playing one of the guards before leaving, abolishing a rule, picking up esthars rules again, and going back to play him until another rule abolishes. But since you're up there already, if you're having a really bad time, try to refine all the cards you don't want to be selected for you and hoping for the best.

If it's still terrible, just know that if you complete the cc quest in Balamb Garden, you can win anything you missed in the endgame (except for the unique lvl 5 card from a sidequest which can't be replaced if refined). Just make sure to complete cc club quest if you decide to do that so that the player will be available in the last part of the game.

Spoiler: Regarding endgame card rule preparations before point of no return

On Ragnarok, Diamond girl on the left plays unique cards reliably. She uses Trabia's rules in that point of the game. So if you would like to do that, make sure to adjust Trabia's rules to something you can live with, and ensure the local trade rule isn't "direct" or "all" before passing the point of no return.

 

[Deleted member 59854]

Could you elaborate on that? I've heard something like it before but I don't know what's that about. When I played FFVIII years ago I completely ignored Triple Triad.

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There are some seriously scientific guides on gamefaqs and Steam, but my understanding was always pretty straightforward and worked well enough for me to get the little star icon beside the Card entry on the menu for every card (not coincidentally, this was the last time I ever went for a perfect game on any game, ever).

Basically, when you go to a new region, they'll ask you to mix rules a certain number of times, or if you refuse enough, you'll start playing by their rules. Either way, I think you "pick up" this new rule set and affect other regions when you move. This means if you take a good set of regional rules like Balamb's over to Dollet where they have random and other annoyances, you have a chance of the mixed rules eliminating ones you don't want. You can just load the mixed game, quit, see what has spread locally, and reset if you didn't like it. Or if you refuse mixing enough to just play on their rules, I recall those become yours...so Balamb is a good place to "reset" the rules you are carrying.

The Card Queen also appears here and there and can be paid to spread or eliminate rules. You'll also be well-equipped if you just play a ton in Balamb Garden and finish the Card Club quest there. Then, it's mostly just a matter of needing to play a few key characters/NPCs in various regions who have the character and boss cards that don't appear in Balamb. There's a lot more science to it than this, but this has served me well enough!

 

[Talax]

There's Always Hope!!!

 

[Linkura]

No thanks, don't want modern-day Square Enix anywhere near this game.

 

[Pokiehl]

I wonder if anyone can answer a question I have regarding the mechanics of Time Compression.

The Junction Machine Ellone allows Ultimecia to transfer her conscious to the past. But the machine has a limit, apparently to the present game era, so she wants to use Ellone to send her further back.

I would have thought Ultimecia would want to go a lot further into the past, but instead it seems she only gets sent back a couple of decades as Rinoa describes seeing a "young Adele."

My question is do we know why Ultimecia had to go back to an unspecified "young Adele's" time? I'm just trying to understand what was so special about that moment in time that allowed Time Compression to initiate.

 

[Her Hero Is Gone]

Could you elaborate on that? I've heard something like it before but I don't know what's that about. When I played FFVIII years ago I completely ignored Triple Triad.

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As Temzin said, you're carrying the rules of the last region you played in. If you're carrying at least one rule that's foreign to the region you're in, the NPC you challenge will comment on it and suggest mixing rules before the yes/no confirmation comes up. Mixed rule games are how you to add/abolish rules. You can accept the challenge and then quit from the screen showing the rules list to immediately see the result of mixing without playing.

Spoiler: More on adding and removing rules

Possible outcomes of agreeing to a mixed rule game:

1. Nothing happens. If this is the case, you can challenge the same npc again and see if something changes. If they are still offering to mix rules before going to challenge confirmation, you are still carrying foreign rules and can try for outcome 2 or 3. If they don't offer, I noticed on 3x speed on PS4, sometimes messages weren't coming up - so check if a rule got added/removed without your noticing if they don't prompt to mix anymore.
2. Message: "[Rule you are carrying] has spread." You're now carrying the current region's rules that you have modified.
3. Message: "[Rule of the current region] has been abolished." You're now carrying the current region's rules that you have modified.

You can spread favorable rules or abolish bad ones with some trial and error, or by RNG manipulation. Save before a mixed game, load the save, and then agree to mix and quit the match from the rules screen. Results are consistent, so you can change the outcome by reloading and doing something different - for instance, checking full drawpoints a few times before challenging can change it, as can talking to npcs, moving between screens, etc. Spreading rules is more likely to happen than abolishing. At any rate, spreading Open everywhere is easy and worthwhile.

On another note, the music of this game is so good (making it even sadder when the midi version of the Landing plays... lol). I enjoy pieces in unusual meter, so I love that the battle theme is in quintuple time.

This medley arrangement is great, performed by Royal Stockholm Philharmonic: https://www.konserthuset.se/en/play/uematsu-final-fantasy-viii--mono-no-aware/

When it transitions into the Oath and the B-Garden motif, the interspersed layers of different themes really beautiful.

 

[Gradon]

Temzin Her Hero Is Gone i swear you both gave me good luck because I finally got the card!! 😭🤣 thank you both for the comments. I was totally stuck with the rules too as I had already saved up there and my previous save was a few hours before that.

And I did do the CC Club quest! but I didn't realise they would come back, and so handy too, that's good to know! (And probably would've saved me some time lol.)

in regards to the story so far..

Spoiler: Late disc 3

I shed a few tears during the cockpit scene in the ragnarok. Gosh I love Rinoa so much. Eyes on me is so good too. I really don't remember anything from this disc and onwards (a part from the final dungeon) so I'm really enjoying it.

the aliens were super easy, I remember my brother having a lot of trouble with them 20 years ago lol.

Oh and for fucks sake 🤣

Spoiler: late disc 3

You'd think if it was so catastrophic that Adel not be released they'd put better security features on their mainframe computer lmao

 

[BrandoBoySP]

In case anyone's interested...
Kazushige Nojima Talks About Early Internet Criticism On FF7 That Influenced Final Fantasy VIII

Spoiler: Article text

Final Fantasy VIII writer Kazushige Nojima talked about his first time browsing the Internet to see what people had to say about his work and how it influenced parts of Final Fantasy VIII. The writer also shared some behind-the-scenes talk about Final Fantasy VIII in this week's issue of Famitsu magazine. [Thanks, Ryokutya2089.]



Here are some highlights from the interview with Kazushige Nojima:

• (Before working on Final Fantasy VIII's story) "I used my bonus to purchase a PC and started using the Internet. I got my expectations up a bit while checking the message boards on the Internet to see what they were saying about the games I worked on… only to have my heart torn to pieces. [laughs]"
• (What they said about Final Fantasy VII) "That it was the lowest of its kind for using that tragedy to try making them cry, that it relied too much on flashbacks, and so forth."
• "That reflected in Final Fantasy VIII as well since I went with a story that didn't kill off any of the main characters. We also didn't go all-out with the flashbacks."
• "Actually, for Laguna's part, we first thought Laguna's side would cover the first half of the entire story."
• "It ended up being smaller due to various reasons and we had a map made just for it that we didn't get to use much. I still feel too embarrassed to look at the faces of the original staff…"
• "We completely focused on what the male staff thought was 'cute' for Rinoa. Meanwhile, the female staff gave us an earful about how there was no way that a girl wearing a miniskirt could move like that. Didn't think I'd get scolded that much [laughs]."
• "When it comes to love, we should've had more female staff in the mix instead of just men."
• "Final Fantasy is a major series but it is indie at heart. I believe Nomura-san (Tetsuya Nomura) should feel the same.
• "Final Fantasy VIII is fine as it was. I didn't start thinking that until recently."
• "If we were add a new episode, I'd want it to be about Laguna's life."

On that note, it's kind of interesting to think that Final Fantasy VIII's story could've been something similar to Metal Gear Solid 2 which started out with Snakes's part of the story followed by Raiden's.

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

Y'all PLEASEEEEE tell me this has a CG Movie gallery like how the IX Remaster does :(

 

[Deleted member 1102]

Y'all PLEASEEEEE tell me this has a CG Movie gallery like how the IX Remaster does :(

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It doesn't unfortunately

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

It doesn't unfortunately

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Not even after you beat the game??

 

[Deleted member 1102]

Not even after you beat the game??

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Nope. It's a real missed opportunity for sure.

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

Nope. It's a real missed opportunity for sure.

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Yo what the FUCK

gr8 I'll probably have to make like 15 different save files

Oh well

 

[Linkura]

Yo what the FUCK

gr8 I'll probably have to make like 15 different save files

Oh well

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Youtube exists.

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

Youtube exists.

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It does? Wow i didnt know

Obviously I like seeing it on my actual TV screen

 

[Linkura]

It does? Wow i didnt know

Obviously I like seeing it on my actual TV screen

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You can play YT on an actual TV screen.

 

[pleaseinsertdisctwo]

You can play YT on an actual TV screen.

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Fair enough, but I like access to the cutscenes via the game itself

 

[Gradon]

Sooooo I'm on Disc 4 and omg where do I begin

Spoiler: disc 4

How the hell does FUJIN just start randomly belting out paragraphs of dialogue after saying ONE WORD ANSWERS AND RESPONSES to everything. 🤣🤣🤣

The texturing of the sky during Odins death was really bad, the scaling / tiling was messed up for some reason. I remember that scene so well, my brother was astounded when it happened lol. In retrospect it feels really clunky as it just freezes every time Gilgamesh says something, but what a nice surprise for those who weren't expecting it.

Omg and holy fuck I remember so vividly Adels hand thrusting through her goop jail. I got chills. Everything after that is just insane; Adel was the hardest boss I had faced so far until the nightmare fuel Sorceress not even 10 minutes later!! The melting battles are seriously so creepy and such a good set piece with the time compression concept.

I'm finally up to Ultimecias Castle, I have every card and every GF; I wasn't even expecting to hunt every card down but here I am.

A lot of the game I just have not remembered until I got to certain scenes again, it hit me so hard and it's been such a huge nostalgia hit. I've only ever watched my brother complete the whole game 20 years ago and I only ever made it to disc 3 on my own, I'm really sad it's coming to an end.

 

[Deleted member 59854]

Sooooo I'm on Disc 4 and omg where do I begin

Spoiler: disc 4

How the hell does FUJIN just start randomly belting out paragraphs of dialogue after saying ONE WORD ANSWERS AND RESPONSES to everything. 🤣🤣🤣

Omg and holy fuck I remember so vividly Adels hand thrusting through her goop jail. I got chills. Everything after that is just insane; Adel was the hardest boss I had faced so far until the nightmare fuel Sorceress not even 10 minutes later!! The melting battles are seriously so creepy and such a good set piece with the time compression concept.

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Adel is frightening, both there and in space! Disc 4 is short but such a wild ride. My young self never thought there would be a last dungeon nearly as good as in FFVI and Lunar~Eternal Blue (MCD), but here it is.

As for Fuujin:

Spoiler

It's meant to be a dramatic point that she manages to break through whatever causes her kanji-only speech pattern into regular, more heartfelt dialogue, based on how upset she is with Seifer. I guess the effect is slightly stranger in English.

 

[Gradon]

Adel is frightening, both there and in space! Disc 4 is short but such a wild ride. My young self never thought there would be a last dungeon nearly as good as in FFVI and Lunar~Eternal Blue (MCD), but here it is.

As for Fuujin:

Spoiler

It's meant to be a dramatic point that she manages to break through whatever causes her kanji-only speech pattern into regular, more heartfelt dialogue, based on how upset she is with Seifer. I guess the effect is slightly stranger in English.

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Oh I'm very excited to get into the final dungeon. I remember a few things from it but not everything.

And yeah I thought that was the case, it just fell a bit flat for me sadly lol.

Spoiler

Maybe I'd of not had such a reaction to her heartfelt dialogue if all of her speech for it was also in capitals, or maybe breaking down from capitals into a regular speech pattern. As if she was struggling to break through it but getting there in the end.

 

[Wazzy]

Some interviews with Kitase, Naora and Hashimoto about the development of VIII:




Switch playthrough update: I only just started a little bit to see if any slowdowns happened in the same areas as PS4 and Steam but so far I haven't experienced a single one while running around Garden. It's possible the update fixed them but I need to play more to double check.

 

[Gradon]

Switch playthrough update: I only just started a little bit to see if any slowdowns happened in the same areas as PS4 and Steam but so far I haven't experienced a single one while running around Garden. It's possible the update fixed them but I need to play more to double check.

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I get a lot of slowdown whilst flying around, especially over Esthar.