I bought this game thinking that it was going to be the best game ever.  Gone are the cartoon and deformed bodys of Cloud and co. and with new  graphics which are absolutly amazing, but really it's just characters  moving on an oil painting background. I'd seen screenshots and heard  various new systems and controls about the game and differences from it's  predecesor. The graphics are fantastic, gameplay exceptional and the  storyline is also quite good. The addition of renting a car along with the  staying in hotels are present and give the game a realistic feel. You can  pick up various magazines around the world with different info in them. The  game is a worthy challenge for any gamer and there are plenty of secrets to  uncover and GF's to find aswell as non-ability GF's and cards to collect.  There are plenty of hard bosses including the formidable Ultima and Omega  weapons, the latter providing an exceptionally hard challenge indeed. The  story is spread over four discs and you get sucked in and addicted easily.  It is a fantastic effort by Squaresoft. You've probably by now heard all  the great stuff about the game from other reviewers. However, I, and some  of my mates, feel that this game dosn't have the same atmosphere as Final  Fantasy VII. First of all, there are only six characters and all are met in  the first disc which takes away the oppurtunity to explore and discover  secret characters (like Yuffie & Vincent in FFVII). Also, all the  characters are humans whereas in FFVII you had a dog, a mog and other  characters who all had different backgrounds unlike the characters in  FFVIII who are all SeeD's, except Rinoa. Some might say that the draw  system is better and in a way it is, as is junctioning magic. However, you  don't manage to pick up new abilities like you did with the materia such as  final attack and mime etc. FFVII drew me in more and I was more tempted to  play it that with this one. The atmosphere of Wutai, the slums, the  forgotten city, Cosmo Canyon and the Icicle area are gone and you have to  deal with second rate places such as Shumi Village and Edea's house.  Esthar, Deling, Dollet and Balamb keep the interesting adventure feel up  for a while but Timber, Winhill and the previously mentioned places let the  side down. Midgar was massive. You spent about 2-4 hours in there at the  start of FFVII yet you most you really need to spend in anyone place in  this game is about an hour. There is no new armour to buy or any  accessories to obtain in crates hidden in caves and the sub quests are very  little rewarding. There is no more raising, breeding and racing the  chocobos. The card game is an excellent and well thought up addition but  there are no other sub games such as bike chases and snow boarding.  Overall, this game is one of the best games ever. I suppose it's just a  matter of opinion. Some people will prefer FFVII and some will prefer  FFVIII. I have given this title 5 stars but it's more of a case of FFVII  getting 5 stars and FFVIII getting 4.7 stars. Compared to the rest of the  video games out there, this just blows away the competiton. But I don't  think that the gameplay is quite up to the standard of Final Fantasy VII.  Fans'll love it though.