"I want to stay true to everything I've stood for."

Here you can read my experiences with the game. The real in-depth scoop on bosses, Guardian Forces, characters, and everything else that makes the Final Fantasy world great. So hang onto to your gunblade, cause here we go!

A WORD ABOUT MYSELF AS A PLAYER
* * * * * *
I'm a very good video game player, if I do say so myself. I've been playing your standard action/adventure games since I was six, and own every Nintendo system. Needless to say, I am not an expert with the Playstation (although it's grown on me) nor am I am I a Final Fantasy (FF for short) veteran. At first I put off trying FF8, because I was not a huge fan of past RPGs (anyone remember the original Link for the first Nintendo? That game still gives me nightmares.). Also, I was quite happy just playing Donkey Kong 64 (there's another great game for you!). But then a problem arose. I had beaten every video game in the house, and had no money for a new one. My only option was FF8. I really didn't want to, but my video game deprivation became severe, and I had to play something! So I picked it up, put it in, and the rest is history. I fell in a love/hate relationship with this game. (Don't worry, it's more love than hate. You'll read about why I hate it later on, if you don't get bored and head somewhere else first.)

HOW I PLAYED FF8
* * * * * *
Ok, I'll admit it. I used a strategy book to get me through the game. Even though the book was a little vague in many sections, it is still a necessity, especially for first time FF players. In this game there are many, many things you would have never thought are there, so the book at least tells you that much. Unless you are a complete FF junkie and insist on beating the game fairly (hey, who wants to do that!) you'll want the book. Hey, it's not technically cheating. I mean, it's still your fingers on the controls, and you're not using Game Shark, right? (darn...if only I had the money for it....). Anyway, I used the book, but no Game Shark. If you want to use Game Shark be my guest! It will help you greatly. (Trust me, I read the codes. They're good.)

MY PROBLEMS WITH THE GAME
* * * * * *
Hey, nothing's perfect, and although FF8 is a great game, I have some problems with it. First of all, the instructions are terrible. They might as well say "good-bye and good luck" because they are basically useless. Could they be any more vague? Also, the explanations of junctioning at the beginning of the game are extremely confusing. Your best bet is to figure it out on your own. It's not as difficult as it seems. My advice? Screw the instructions and go with the flow. You'll get the hang of it.
Also, I am warning you now. This game is extremely frustrating. It may be the most frustrating game I've played in my whole life. You WILL yell at the screen. You WILL bitch at family members about the game, even though they haven't a clue what you're talking about. You WILL want to break the controller and possibly the tv set as well. My advice is to just keep on trying. Besides, if you break the tv set, how are you going to play any of your other games?

A WORD ABOUT THE CARD GAME
* * * * * *
Yeah, that's right. You can play cards in FF8. Too bad that there isn't a good explanation on how to play anywhere and if you play it's pretty much luck. The strategy guide thinks you're going to want to collect every card in the game. I believe I played 2 games of cards (I lost both) before I realized it wasn't worth it. I could do much better things by converting my cards into items (more on that later). So, should you play cards? If you figure out how to play and have a talent for it, sure. You'll be able to get some rare items. Otherwise, don't bother, and save your cards for later. You'll pick up some cards without playing.

**Warning: This is Full of Spoilers. I'm assuming you don't want to be surprised.**

THE CHARACTERS


Squall's your main character, so you'll be using him almost constantly.  That means you better like him, or it's gonna be a long four discs.  I'm a big fan of Squall myself.  He's an interesting character: quiet, moody--he's a guy who keeps mostly to himself.
His weapon is, in my humble opinion, the best of the bunch. It's called a gunblade, and if you press R1 just when you hear the swipe, you increase the damage. You'll know you did it right when you hear a bang and see a ball of fire appear on the enemy. His weapon causes the most damage by far.
His limit break is a great one, definitely useful in my opinion. It's called Renzokuken, and I recommend using it at every opportunity. When you pick it, be prepared to press R1 like crazy. There's a random ending attack which depends on the kind of weapon Squall has at the time: Rough Divide, Fated Circle, Blasting Zone, and, the most powerful, Lion Heart. During the game Squall can purchase a total of 7 different weapons, starting with the Revolver .


Rinoa's your main female character, and my favorite of the girl's. She's an emotional person who tends to say what's on her mind. I use Rinoa fairly often.
Her weapon's called a Blaster Edge, and it's pretty cool. She wears it on her arm and it shoots out at the enemy. Well, the first one does anyway....
Rinoa has two kinds of limit break, one involves her dog, Angelo, and the other her sorceress powers, which she doesn't get until disc three. Angelo comes to her rescue in times of trouble and performs various tricks which can cause damage to the enemy or aid your party. Angelo can learn new tricks when you read Pet Pals magazines. (More on that later.) This is a great limit break. Take advantage of it. Angelo's attacks can cause major damage. Sometimes he even pops out of nowhere after Rinoa has been attacked. Her other limit break, Angel Wing, causes you to lose control of Rinoa for the rest of the battle as she casts random spells on the enemy. I haven't used this yet, because I don't know what kind of magic she will be casting, and Angelo has always been great.


Quistis used to be the youngest instructor at Balamb garden before she gave that up to simply be a See-D. Her many admirers haven even formed a fan club. I like Quistis alright....she's kind of annoying at the beginning of the game. I have to admit though, that I rarely use her.
Quistis uses a chain whip, which is a fairly effective weapon.
Quistis has a terrific limit break called blue magic. During the game you can collect various items dropped by enemies to teach her different kinds of blue magic. You should always take advantage of this limit break, and teach Quistis as many types of blue magic as possible. In my opinion, this is one of the best limit breaks, if not the best.


Zell has some temper--and some mouth. Nevertheless, he's my second favorite character, and almost constantly in my party. Zell's an overall great guy, full of energy, but never one to cause others problems. I love Zell. He's one of my favorites
Zell's weapon--his fists. And you'd be surprised what kind of damage they can do.
Zell's limit break is only useful if you can press a lot of buttons really fast. It's called Duel, and it involves Zell using his fists in custom fighting techniques. The attacks are really powerful, if you can push the required buttons very quickly and without any mistakes. I'm not that talented, so I don't usually take advantage of his limit break. Kind of like Angelo, Zell can learn new moves by reading "Combat King" magazines.


Ok, I'll be blunt. I'm not really much of a Selphie fan, but every time I play I like her more, but still,  she's too perky and cheerful for me. Thus, I only use her when she's forced into my party.
Selphie's weapon is called Nunchaku, and it's about as good as Quistis' whip.
I may not like Selphie, but I like her limit break a lot. It's called Slot, and she gets a choice to cast spells on the enemy. If you don't like the initial spell you can choose "do over" and try to get a better spell. If you're lucky you'll get a very rare spell called "The End" which kills the enemy. Definitely take advantage of this limit break.


Irvine is my favorite character in my game. He's my cowboy :) He pretends to be a bigshot, but he's really a big softie. And a ladies man at that. He flirts with every girl in sight. I can't stress enough how much I love this guy. He's always in my party, unless they make me choose someone else.
Irvine's an expert marksmen, thus he uses a gun. The strength of the shot varies actually, and it can be pretty powerful.
I know I've said Irvine's limit is bad...but I didn't know what I was talking about! It's called Shot and it involves special ammunition and lots of shooting. Irvine has a choice of eight different kind of ammunition, and some of it is pretty rare. Normal Ammo and Shotgun Ammo are the most common types, and they're not too powerful. But you can easily make demolition ammo out of cactaur thorns and AP ammo out of chefs knices. But, if you thought you had to pump that R1 during Squall's limit break, you'll really have to hit it now if you want to cause any major damage--the timer on it is ridiculously short.

Those are all the major characters in FF8-- the ones you will most frequently have in your party. However, there are five other characters you will sometimes have in your party: Seifer Almasy, Laguna Loire, Kiros Seagill, Ward Zabac and Edea. Here are some brief explanations about them.

Seifer Almasy

You'll be in control of Seifer during the See-D exam at the beginning of the game. You have no choice--he's the squad leader. He's a show-off, and a snob who does not get along well with Squall and Zell. Seifer uses a gunblade like Squall does, so the R1 trick works here as well. His limit break is called Fire Cross, and it's pretty good (yes, I've actually used it--twice.) I recommend taking advantage of it in the short time you have Seifer.

Laguna Loire

You'll have control of Laguna, as well as his comrades Kiros and Ward, during several "dream sequences" throughout the game. He's a caring guy--very sweet, even if he's kinda klutzy. I like him. He uses a machine gun. I've never used his limit break, which is called Desperado and involves ammo and a hand grenade.

Kiros Seagill

Kiros is also a member of the "dram sequence" gang. His weapon is called a Katal, which are two long blades worn on his arms. His limit break, which I have never used, is called Blood Pain, and involves quick attacks using his weapon.


Ward Zabac

Ward is the last member of the "dream sequence" gang. He uses a Harpoon, and his limit break is called heavy anchor. I've never used his limit break either.


Edea

Confused yet? Isn't she the villian? The answer is yes and no. You'll control Edea on disc three for a short time. She is forced into your party for a very short time, but you can choose to use her for longer. She doesn't have a weapon, and attacks with spells. (She is a sorceress.) Her limit break is called Ice Strike, in which is hurls a huge chunk of ice into the enemy. I haven't used this...but I have seen it....


six TIPS TO REMEMBER
There are SIX main things you need to remember when playing this game:

1) Rotate Your Characters

Yeah, yeah. I'm a hypocrite. I don't use my characters evenly at all. The point I'm trying to make is that you definitely should. By the end it would be great if everyone is on the same level. Not some on level 50, some on level 35 and some on level 10 (like in my game *cough cough*) No matter how much you love one character, remember that everyone is going to be fighting in the last battle whether they're strong or not. So rotate your characters. Do you want to beat this game or not?

2) Favor GF's Equally

This may sound stupid, but it's important. If you never use a GF the compatibility rating with the junctioned character will go down. This is not good. Then, when you actually need to use the GF, it takes an eternity to arrive. This happened to me (everything bad has happened to me.). I actually had a GF junctioned to Squall, and went I went to check the GF's compatibility I found out the compatibility with Squall was a big, fat ZERO because I never used it! Needless to say I had to junction the GF to someone else. Try to use each GF whenever you can.

3) Remodel Weapons Frequently

Oh boy. I cannot stress this enough. If you have the Doomtrain GF (more on that later) you won't have to worry about it so much, but if you're like me listen carefully: DO NOT FLY INTO LUNATIC PANDORA UNTIL YOU REMODELED ALL YOUR WEAPONS!! That last sentence may be Greek to you, so I will explain. At the end of disc three you will be told you have to fly into Lunatic Pandora to keep the plot going. Once you fly into it, you won't be getting out until disc four. Once your on disc four you can't go into any more towns. That's it. No more shopping for you. The only way to shop is through two GF's: Tonberry and Doomtrain. You can go through previous item shops you have visited using Tonberry and you can go to junk shops using Doomtrain. To get Doomtrain you must summon him (more on that later) using 3 different objects. You need 6 Malboro tentacles as part of the package. I  wandered around Esthar where the Malboro's are supposed to be for hours and did not run into a single one.(more on how to actually find them later.) I also flew into Lunatic Pandora before I upgraded my weapons. Thus I was stuck with the 1st or 2nd weapon in everyone's repertoire for a very long time. THIS IS NOT A GOOD THING!! So search the world for the objects to update your weapons (more on that later) and update whenever you have the chance. Otherwise you'll regret it.

4) Make Sure Angelo Is Always Learning A New Trick

As was previously mentioned, Angelo is Rinoa's dog, who learns tricks from the Pet Pals magazines. Angelo learns his tricks as Rinoa walks around in the game. To learn a trick, simply select a Pet Pals magazine in your item inventory and then go to Rinoa's status page. By pressing the left control pad twice you should come to a page with a bunch of bars with the names of tricks next to them. Some bars will be filled in red--these tricks have been learned. To have Angelo learn a new trick, simply select a trick that has not yet been learned and walk around with Rinoa for awhile. Check back from time to time to see how Angelo is doing. When he's done learning a trick, read the next Pet Pals magazine and repeat the process. You want to have Angelo learn all the tricks he can. Trust me--he's a very helpful dog.

5) Teach Your GF's Boost First, Then The Summagic, Then Their Useful Abilities

The game does a pretty good job of explaining how to teach your GF new tricks, so I won't bother. What I will tell you is that your GF should learn the trick "boost" first. (Keep in mind some GF's don't have this ability because they don't need it. If this trick is not on the list of a particular GF that means you boosting isn't necessary for that GF) Boost is a great thing. It allows you to increase the damage caused by a GF--up to 9999. The GF's lowest boost is 75, the highest 250. Don't be thinking you can press one button and set a GF's boost to 250. If it were that easy, I don't think they would bother with the 75. When a GF is through being summoned and is actually gearing up to attack the enemy, quickly press and hold select. Then tap the SQUARE button like your character's  life depends on it (sometimes it probably does anyway...) until you see a red X appear over the hand. Then stop, but keep holding down select. When the X disappears resume tapping SQUARE like a mad man (or woman). Stop every time that X appears or you're back at 75. I've never been able to boost a Gf anywhere past about 170, but I heard it's easier to boost with a turbo controller. Boost is great, and the best part is that it takes only a mere 10 AP (ability points--you get them after defeating enemies) to learn. It shortens the battles considerably in some cases. I order you to use it. The summagic abilites 10, 20 and 30% are possessed by every GF (to my knowledge anyway) and they build up the initial attack power. Also, nearly every GF has some original useful ability that's a great help in your quest. More on that later. There are a few exceptions to this rule, which I will mention.

6) Save Your Items

I'm not talking about potions and remedies, I'm talking about that stuff you obtain from enemies, either by stealing, or when they drop things after you destroy them. Stuff like Regen Rings, Star Fragments, and, most importantly, Malboro Tentacles. You'll need all these things, plus lots of other crap, to upgrade your weapons, make better ammo for Irvine's limit breaks, teach Quistis blue magic, and obtain high level magic. HOWEVER, don't go turning everything in magic or ammo. Make sure you have enough of each of the items you need to update your weapons. The last thing you want to do is to go into a junk shop and find out you're one dragon fang short of obtaining Squall's best weapon.


AND NOW, THE GUARDIAN FORCES

If I didn't have these guys to rely on, I would have given up on this game long ago. The Guardian Forces (GF's) give the See-D's strength (and also suck out their memories, but that's only a rumor) and aid them during battle, and while it's not always necessary to use them fighting the little piddling crap hanging out by the road in Balamb, you'll definitely need them during boss fights....unless you're not going anywhere for a long, long while....
There are a total of 16 GF's in the game. I have them all. The higher the compatibility with a character, the faster the GF will come when called.  Some are more useful than others. I'll give you the full scoop on the attack, boosting, usefulness in general, helpful abilities and how to get them. Also, I'll let you know who the GF is junctioned to in my game. Keep in mind that I almost constantly use Squall (duh), Irvine (of course) and Zell. Sometimes I substitute Rinoa for Zell, but I'm basing this on the FF8 guys only.

Quezecotl

Attack Name:        Thunder Storm
  Elemental:              Thunder
That means you should not use it against enemies who absorb thunder magic.
What It Looks Like:        A Bird
How To Obtain It:   This is one of the two GF's you start the game with. (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: Extremely useful. Because you get Quezecotl (try saying that five times fast) so early in the game, it's not hard to have 1000 compatibility with a character. It should be used against creatures weak against thunder. I use it often.
Who Has It In My Game:   Squall
Boosting: It's attack animation is painfully short. I've never been able to get it higher than about 130, and most of the time it only reaches to about 123-125.
Useful Abilities: This GF has a few useful abilities: CARD MOD, which allows you to refine items from cards, CARD, which lets you turn enemies into cards, T MAG-RF, which refines thunder magic from an item, and finally Mid MAG-RF, which lets you refine low level magic (like thunder) into mid level magic (like thundara). The most useful is CARD MOD, especially if you collect a lot of cards.


Shiva

Attack Name:          Diamond Dust
Elemental:                        Ice
That means you should not use it against enemies who absorb ice magic
What It Looks Like:   A elfin-like woman (wearing hardly any clothes)
How To Obtain It:   This is one of the two GF's you start the game with.    (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: Extremely useful. Like Quezecotl, you get Shiva early on, so it's extremely compatible with your character early on. She should be used on enemies weak against water and ice magic. I use her often.
Who Has It In My Game:  Irvine
Boosting: It's very short attack animation does not allow for much boosting. I can usually get Shiva up between 130 and 136 at the most.
Useful Abilities: Shiva has the I MAG-RF ability, which lets you refine ice magic from items.


Ifrit

Attack Name:  Hell Fire
Elemental: Fire
That means you should not use it against enemies who absorb fire magic.
What It Looks Like:  A big, burly monster with horns coming out of his head.
How To Obtain It:You have to fight Ifrit in the fire cave at the beginning of the game. Don't worry, it's a very easy battle. (More on that later.) (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: I'm not a big fan of Ifrit. Even though he's obtained at the beginning of the game, he never really got used to any of my characters. He's not a very powerful GF at all. He should mainly be used only against enemies weak against fire. I don't use him too often.
Who Has It In My Game:  Zell
Boosting: Ifrit's animation is not long, nor is it short. Boosting up to 140 is possible.
Useful Abilities: Ifrit has F MAG-RF, which refines fire magic from items. He also has AMMO-RF which refines ammunition from an item. This is a must have for later in the game when you get Irvine. You'll have to refine good ammo for him to use during his limit break.


Siren

Attack Name: Silent Voice
Elemental: None
What It Looks Like: A barely clothed woman
How To Obtain It: She must be drawn out of Elovert during the See-D exam. The fight can be difficult if you don't go about it right. More on that later. (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: Siren cannot be used in any situation. She is only effective against enemies who cast magic, as she prevents them from casting magic on you. She should not be used during boss fights, as that would only be a waste of time. Thus, Siren is not an extremely useful GF, but she comes in handy from time to time.
Who Has It In My Game:  Squall
Boosting: To about 150, 160.
Useful Abilities: Siren has MOVE-FIND, which is very useful. With it you can find hidden draw and save points. Another extremely useful ability is TREATMENT, which cures any abnormal status attacks. Even though you may not use Siren much, just having these abilities is worth getting the GF.Siren also has several abilities that convert items into tools and magic.


Brothers

Attack Name:  Brotherly Love
Elemental: Earth
That means you should not use it against enemies immune to Earth
What It Looks Like: 2 purple bulls, one large and one small. (Named Sacred and Minator)
How To Obtain It: You'll have to fight the brothers in the Tomb of the Unknown King near Deling City. You'll have to go there anyway to get something else, but the fight is optional. The fight is a breeze if you do it right, even though it's sort of a hassle to get to it. (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: I love the brothers. You'd have to be a fool not to get this terrific GF. They are obtained early enough in the game that they become extremely compatible with your character. I use the brothers all the time. Plus the attack animation is pretty amusing.
Who Has It In My Game: Zell
Boosting: The animation is fairly long, so you can usually get the level up to between 135 and 150 without a problem.
Useful Abilities: The brothers have three great abilities: HP+20%, HP+40%, and HP+80%, which ups your HP by a whooping 140% if all three are junctioned.


Diablos

Attack Name: Dark Messenger
Elemental: None
But many enemies are immune to Diablo's attack
What It Looks Like: A flying demon
How To Obtain It: Before you leave for Timber, Cid will give you a magic lamp. A battle with Diablos is initiated when you access the lamp. The battle is extremely difficult, but as long as you stock up on cure you'll be alright. More on that later. (Can be obtained any time)
Usefulness In General: Diablos is essential. He's one of my favorite GF's. He's very powerful, when he actually works. And if you access the lamp at the beginning of the game, Diablos will be compatible with your character in no time. Warning though, his attack starts out really crappy. Expect it to cause less than 100 pts of damage. Just be patient though, and Diablos will prove himself as indispensable. Plus, his attack animation is really cool. I use Diablos wherever he produces results.
Who Has It In My Game: Squall
Boosting: Diablos does not require boosting.
Useful Abilities: MUG is one of the most useful abilities. It allows you to steal from enemies as you attack. Teach Diablos this as soon as you get him, because it takes 200 AP to learn. Diablos also has the ENC-HALF and ENC-NONE abilities which counter the encounter rate in half or entirely. These come in handy when you're fed up of getting stopped every two seconds, or you're being timed and can't afford to be stopped.


Carbuncle

Attack Name: Ruby Light
Elemental: None
What It Looks Like: Some kind of cat/mouse
How To Obtain It: Carbuncle must be drawn out of the Iguions. The fight is easy if you know what you're doing. More on that later (Disc 1)
Usefulness In General: I think I've used Carbuncle twice, during a couple of boss fights. Carbuncle casts reflect on your party, which protects them from magic by having it reflected it back onto the magic casters. However, it also prevents you from casting any magic, such as cure, on your characters. Also, some magic passes right through reflect.
Who Has It In My Game: Zell
Boosting: Carbuncle does not require boosting.
Useful Abilities: Like Siren, although Carbuncle is not used much, it's worth having just for the abilities is possesses. Carbuncle has the HP+20% and HP+40% abilities, which are essential for raising a characters HP (hit points). Counter is also a great ability that allows a character to physically attack the enemy after being attacked.


Leviathan

Attack Name: Tsunami
Elemental: Water
That means it should  not be used against enemies immune to water
What It Looks Like: A snake made of water
How To Obtain It: Leviathan must be drawn out of NORG. The battle is not difficult, even if you screw up. (Disc 2)
Usefulness In General: Leviathan is pretty useful, as most enemies aren't immune to water. I use it sometimes.
Who Has It In My Game: Irvine
Boosting: Leviathan has long attack animation, so boosting as high as 170 is possible if you have quick fingers.
Useful Abilities: Leviathan has the RECOVER ability--another one of the most useful in the game. This ability allows you to completely heal a character without any magic. It also has the AUTO-POTION ability, which allows a character to automatically use potions when hit with significant damage.


Pandemona

Attack Name: Tornado Zone
Elemental: Wind
That means it should not be used against enemies immune to wind.
What It Looks Like: A hand with feet--yeah, it's pretty bizarre.
How To Obtain It: Pandemona must be drawn out of Fujin when you fight her and Raijin at Balamb. This fight is very difficult if you are not well prepared. (Disc Two)
Usefulness In General: Pandemona is pretty useful. I use it fairly often.
Who Has It In My Game: Squall
Boosting: Pandemona has really long attack animation, so boosting as high as 165 is possible.
Useful Abilities: Pandemona has one really useful ability--initative, which allows the junctioned character to start attacking right away. Absorb is another command which allows the character to absorb some of the enemy's HP.


Cerberus

Attack Name: Counter Rockets
Elemental: None
What It Looks Like: A freakish 3-headed dog
How To Obtain It: You can challenge Ceberus when you invade Galbadia Garden (Disc 2). The battle isn't hard, if don't screw up.
Usefulness In General: Ceberus does not attack the enemy, instead he casts Double and Triple magic on everyone in your party. Pretty good, and definitely worth the use during the boss fights.
Who Has It In My Game: Irvine
Boosting: Boosting isn't necessary
Useful Abilities: Ceberus has several useful junctioning abilities: Str-J, Mag-J, Spr-J, Spd-J and Hit-J. It also possesses several other abilities to make a character ready to attack very fast. It also has the ALERT ability, which prevents back attack.

Alexander

Attack Name: Holy Judgment
Elemental: Holy
That means you shouldn't use him against creatures immune to Holy
What It Looks Like: A walking machine
How To Obtain It: You must draw Alexander out of Edea the second time you battle her (In Galbadia Garden, disc 2). The battle isn't hard if you're prepared.
Usefulness In General: I'm a big Alexander fan. I use him all the time, since most creatures aren't immune to Holy.
Who Has It In My Game: Zell
Boosting: Alexander's animation is long, so you can boost him as high as 160 without much difficulty.
Useful Abilities: Alexander has another one of the game's best abilities: REVIVE, which allows you to bring a character back to life without magic. This comes in very handy during tough boss fights. You'll need the MED LV UP ability if you want to use the Solomon Ring (trust me, you do.)


Doomtrain

Attack Name: Runaway Train
Elemental: Poison
You probably think that means you shouldn't use him against creatures immune to poison, but actually he casts abnormal status effects on the enemy, so it doesn't matter.
What It Looks Like: A scary train
How To Obtain It: Getting Doomtrain is a pain in the @$$. You must pick up the Soloman Ring at Tear's Point, then you must summon him with 6 Remedy +'s (you'll need Alexander for this), 6 Steel Pipes (stolen from Wendigos which hang around Timber) and finally, 6 freakin' Malboro tentacles, which are a pain to get. (I just managed to get them, so Doomtrain is new to me.)
Usefulness In General: I am completely serious when I say that you will need Doomtrain to beat the game. All the strategy guides highly recommend that you summon Doomtrain on every boss in Ultimecia's Castle. Plus, he has several important abilities.
Who Has It In My Game: Irvine
Boosting: I can boost it up to about 140-150
Useful Abilities: JUNK SHOP, JUNK SHOP, JUNK SHOP. You will need this on Disc 4 because you can't go into any towns to remodel weapons. Doomtrain also has AUTO-SHELL, which automatically casts Shell magic on each party member, and FORBID MED-RF, which allows you to refine forbidden medicine from an item.


Bahamut

Attack Name: Mega Flare
Elemental: Nope
What It Looks Like:A bat/flying dragon
How To Obtain It: You have to fight Bahamut in the core at the Deep Sea Research Center. The battle itself is not hard, but uh....getting there is a pain and so is getting to the actual battle with Bahamut.
Usefulness In General: I LOVE this GF to death. It's great, because it's not elemental, and cause about 7,000 to 8,000 pts of damage to an enemy. This GF is seriously underrated
What Has It In My Game: Irvine
Boosting: I can get this GF up to around 170.
Useful Abilities: This GF has the MUG ability, as well as AUTO-PROTECT, which casts protect (duh), and FORBID MAG-RF, which refines forbidden magic from items. It also has MOVE-HP UP, which restores HP by walking, and EXPENDX2-1, which allows you to use only 1 spell under double.


Jumbo Cactuar

Attack Name: 1,000 needles
Elemental: Nope
What It Looks Like: Just like what the name says: a giant cactus, and I am SO not kidding.
How To Obtain It: There is a small island off the coast of Esthar, right past the desert. You can only get there with the Ragnarok, cause you have to land on it. On the island you'll see a cactus like structure pop up out of the sands, and then disappear again to pop up somewhere new. You'll have to run into this giant cactus and defeat it to get the GF. If you have Leviathan and you know how to boost, you shouldn't have a problem, but do be wary, it can run away. More on that later.
Usefulness In General: I like this GF. It's non elemental attack inflicts major damage.
Who Has It In My Game: It switches between Squall and Irvine
Boosting: Isn't necessary
Useful Abilities: Luck-J, I don't think there are any other GF's that junction magic to luck. Also MOVE-HP UP restores your HP by walking.


Tonberry King

Attack Name: Chef's Knife
Elemental: No
What It Looks Like: A little green guy with a cloak and a lantern.
How to Obtain It: I'm warning you now, this takes forever. You'll have to kill 18-22 Tonberry's in the Centra Ruins to lure out the king. Then you have to defeat him to get the GF. Details later.
Usefulness In General: Not my favorite GF attack wise.
Who Has It In My Game: Zell
Boosting: I can get it up to 130
Useful Abilities: CALL SHOP is a MUST for disc four. HAGGLE and FAMILIAR are great shopping abilities too. AUTO-POTION is great too, because it allows a character to use a potion automatically when injured.


Eden

Attack Name: Eternal Breath
Elemental: No
What It Looks Like: Did you ever see the first episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation? If so, it looks kind of like those creatures that they thought were ships. If not, Eden looks like a living UFO.
How to Obtain It: You have to defeat Ultima Weapon at the very bottom of the Deep Sea Research center, and draw Eden from it. It takes forever. Details later.
Usefulness In General: Best GF in the game. No questions asked.
Who Has It In My Game: Squall
Boosting: The attack animation on this GF lasts for like 5 minutes, and I am not exaggerating. Boosting up to 250 is a breeze. Is that great, or what?!
Useful Abilities: DEVOUR is kinda funny, afterall you get to eat enemies....although you don't exactly get to watch it. Anyway, who needs useful abilities when you can boost the most powerful GF to 250?
Added thing on Eden, if you're too lazy to go to the bottom of the deep sea reasearch center, you can always draw it out of Timat in Ultimecia's castle.


Most Useless GF Abilities
Hey, you can't have everything, and some GF abilities are pretty much downright useless.
Here are the most useless GF abilities:

Darkside: Triples damage by attack, but the character loses HP. Is it really worth it?
Kamikaze: Inflicts major damage, but knocks the character out for the rest of the battle. Why would you want to do that? Someone told me it's worth it for the amount of damage it causes, but I would never try it.
Mad Rush: Casts Haste, Protect and Berserk on all party members. Haste and Protect are nice, but Berserk!? That's a bad thing! Why would you want that?

What I'm Trying To Do Here
I'm trying to give you the real scoop on the game. In all the books they give you the a lot of crap. If you want to fully enjoy the game and milk the most you can out of it without having to go too insane, keep reading. It took me 62 hours to beat the game, and it's well-worth every second. I'm going to tell you how to beat the bosses, get the stuff and get everything the lazy way.

Ok, In case you're wondering: yeah. I beat the game. It took me 64 hours over the course of about a month and a half. But don't be scared. Based on experience the bosses in this game are more bark than bite. I guarantee that once you get the hang of this game, you'll never see "game over" again. I got the hang of it by disc two, and never saw game over after that. Any video game takes skill, but this one also takes thinking and strategy. Don't forget that.
Also, talk to everyone until they start repeating themselves. That's what I do. You can get a lot of back info this way.


FF8 Basic Tips


The Walkthrough


Character Stats


Irvine, Irvine, Irvine!!


Too Lazy To Beat The Game? Here's What Happens....


FAQ


FF Weapons


Final Fantasy Character Index


Hike Over To FF7


Back To Final Fantasy Freaks


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