FF8 has the unfortunate curse of being the next in line after FF7.  That means it had a lot of hype to live up to.  I suspect that's why some people will hate this game-- it just isn't FF7.  However, even though this game isn't FF7, it's an extremely good RPG that stands on its own merits.  It's one of my favorite games of all time (just as good as FF7, although my absolute favorite game is FF9).  Well, let's jump right into the review!

Graphics (score 10/10): The graphics were superb when this game came out, and are still excellent, in my opinion.  I still find them pleasing to the eye.  Of course, I'm not nearly as picky as some people, and obviously, I recognize that it's graphics are older now, but they were magnificent for their time.

Music (score 10/10): Wow.  When I first heard the opening song (Liberi Fatali), I was blown away.  The rest of the game's music doesn't dissapoint either.  Be it exciting songs or mellow tunes, FF8 delivers.  I actually went and bought the soundtrack, which I still listen to, to this day.

Characters (score 10/10): Who doesn't love Squall? He's quite likeable in a grumpy anti-social sort of way....  Plus he's an excellent case study in avoidant-attachment disorder.  Ha ha... Seriously, though, the characters are very well-developed.  I love having unique introspection into the psyche of a main character.  The rest of the characters are excellent, too.  Everyone has a distinctive personality and a role to play in the story; no one feels like they were tacked on at the last minute just to increase the party size (a problem with some other RPGs I've played; I'm looking at you, FF12!).  The characters are portrayed very well and you will become attached to them very quickly.

Story (score 10/10): The story, too, is excellent.  I was thoroughly engaged by it; it has just the right balance of character development and intriguing plot points to keep you entertained. I've played this game at least six times now over the years and I'm still not sick of it.

Battle System (score 9/10): Combat is turn-based like most Final Fantasies.  You draw magic out of enemies to cast directly on enemies, or to equip as stat buffers.  It's fairly easy to learn this system. However, drawing magic over and over again and re-equiping it constantly (and also re-equiping GFs) can get rather tedious; that's what knocks the point off the score.  Other than that, the battle system is fine.  I especially like the ability to pull the trigger on the gunblade using the R1 button; it adds a level of fun interactiveness to the battles.

Gameplay (score 10/10): This is a bit of a catch-all category for me.  Let's see, the first thing of note that comes to mind is the fact that enemies level up at the same rate as Squall.  That means that power-leveling is no longer desirable.  This might be disappointing to some, but I found it to be quite nice because the game isn't overly hard, and I didn't have to waste time power-leveling.  Another point of interest is that you eventually get a way to avoid random battles, which is awesome.  Another point is that there are plenty of mini-games and side-quests of sufficient variety available to enjoy (my favorite is the card game).  So, there should be plenty features here to please everyone.

Overall (score 10/10): NOTE this score is not an average, it's my subjective overall score.  I might have given this game a "8" instead of a "10" if I had reviewed it when I first bought it, but now that I've played so many different RPGs over the years I realize what a treasure I really have in FF8.  This game really is awesome and I recommend it to all fans of RPGs.
FF8 has the unfortunate curse of being the next in line after FF7. That means it had a lot of hype to live up to. I suspect that's why some people will hate this game-- it just isn't FF7. However, even though this game isn't FF7, it's an extremely good RPG that stands on its own merits. It's one of my favorite games of all time (just as good as FF7, although my absolute favorite game is FF9). Well, let's jump right into the review! Graphics (score 10/10): The graphics were superb when this game came out, and are still excellent, in my opinion. I still find them pleasing to the eye. Of course, I'm not nearly as picky as some people, and obviously, I recognize that it's graphics are older now, but they were magnificent for their time. Music (score 10/10): Wow. When I first heard the opening song (Liberi Fatali), I was blown away. The rest of the game's music doesn't dissapoint either. Be it exciting songs or mellow tunes, FF8 delivers. I actually went and bought the soundtrack, which I still listen to, to this day. Characters (score 10/10): Who doesn't love Squall? He's quite likeable in a grumpy anti-social sort of way.... Plus he's an excellent case study in avoidant-attachment disorder. Ha ha... Seriously, though, the characters are very well-developed. I love having unique introspection into the psyche of a main character. The rest of the characters are excellent, too. Everyone has a distinctive personality and a role to play in the story; no one feels like they were tacked on at the last minute just to increase the party size (a problem with some other RPGs I've played; I'm looking at you, FF12! ). The characters are portrayed very well and you will become attached to them very quickly. Story (score 10/10): The story, too, is excellent. I was thoroughly engaged by it; it has just the right balance of character development and intriguing plot points to keep you entertained. I've played this game at least six times now over the years and I'm still not sick of it. Battle System (score 9/10): Combat is turn-based like most Final Fantasies. You draw magic out of enemies to cast directly on enemies, or to equip as stat buffers. It's fairly easy to learn this system. However, drawing magic over and over again and re-equiping it constantly (and also re-equiping GFs) can get rather tedious; that's what knocks the point off the score. Other than that, the battle system is fine. I especially like the ability to pull the trigger on the gunblade using the R1 button; it adds a level of fun interactiveness to the battles. Gameplay (score 10/10): This is a bit of a catch-all category for me. Let's see, the first thing of note that comes to mind is the fact that enemies level up at the same rate as Squall. That means that power-leveling is no longer desirable. This might be disappointing to some, but I found it to be quite nice because the game isn't overly hard, and I didn't have to waste time power-leveling. Another point of interest is that you eventually get a way to avoid random battles, which is awesome. Another point is that there are plenty of mini-games and side-quests of sufficient variety available to enjoy (my favorite is the card game). So, there should be plenty features here to please everyone. Overall (score 10/10): NOTE this score is not an average, it's my subjective overall score. I might have given this game a "8" instead of a "10" if I had reviewed it when I first bought it, but now that I've played so many different RPGs over the years I realize what a treasure I really have in FF8. This game really is awesome and I recommend it to all fans of RPGs.