SOUL CALIBUR
SOUL REAVER
TOMB RAIDER III

Final Fantasy VIII
Farewell Cloud...
Welcome Squall!
  Asked the simple question slightly over a year ago your Playstation Mr Average would claim that most of his gaming experience was taken up with sessions of button bashing Tekken characters, performing handstands with Lara and blasting Zombies limbs completely from their torso.

Mention the 'F' word and the voice would quickly deepen amidst claims that they were no longer sad and lonely acne rid teenagers who passed their spare time reading encyclopedias and playing Role Playing Games. The Final Fantasy series seemed to be unfashionable to anyone who was not deemed to be a closet nerd. Playing RPG's was something only done in private.

Then after much hype and pre-publicity the seventh in the SquareSoft series finally arrived on Playstation format. All prejudices were dissolved overnight. It suddenly became fashionable to chat about the solid crystalline form of the mysterious Makoh energies and whether Cloud Strife could face up to the mighty Shinra corporation.

Changing Times..!
 
      With FFVII selling over 3.5 million copies in Japan alone the producer of the sequel, Sakaguchi Hironobu, assesses that FFVIII could easily double that figure.

Following in the Final Fantasy tradition it appears that FFVIII is undergoing massive changes. When Tomb Raider III finally arrives you can bet your bottom dollar that Lara Croft will be the star character. Similarly Crash 3 wouldn't be the same game without your favorite orange Bandicoot. However, if there's one thing that makes the Final Fantasy series stand out from the rest of the crowd it would be that as each chapter ends the decks are completely cleared. Gone are your favorite characters from the seventh as Tifa, Barrett, Cloud and his gang have been set to graze on pastures old.

Also the 'wide eyed, big head and tiny body' animation of the last game have been returned to correct proportions. The characters now take on an appearance more suited to a high-res beat-em-up. Smooth gouraud-shaded figures have been replaced by all-round texture mapped characters that blend superbly into the pre-rendered environments. As a result the characters now look more realistic.

The scenery has also changed dramatically. Gone are those futuristic factories and the technological hell of the city of Midgard to be replaced by rather quaint old English style dwellings that give the scenery a slight Victorian feel. In fact the visuals bring both Resident Evil 2 and Parasite Eve to mind.

The enemies will be bigger and badder while the weapons special effects cannot fail to impress. There will also be plenty of familiar monsters to summon such as Bahamaut, Leviathan and Shirva. Also expect to see jet fighters, battleships and an almighty airship.

Fear not as the gameplay remains adheres to the popular RPG style with turn based battles taking the forefront. Each character has an attack, magic, and item menu, but gone is the materia system. Instead there is a move which, if successful, can absorb a given power from an enemy. The game music has once again been supplied by Noubuo Uematsu.

The Characters...
 
      It is expected there will be a love story behind the game. A few characters will make a come back like Tetsuya Nomura the father of the super intelligent and remarkably eloquent Red XIII , the cool and mysterious Vincent Valentine and a few others, only this time more grown up. It is also possible that the Mog and Chocobo will still have a place in this game.

Squall Leonhart is the main character for Final Fantasy VIII. He described as an expressionless, heartless and an uncaring distant 17-year-old teenager (sound familiar?). He is very much a loner and seems happier in his own company rather than mixing with others. Apparently, these character traits translate into a carelessness for himself and others. Squall fights with the use of a GunBlade, which uses both the abilities of a sword and a gun. Looks quite cool.

The GunBlade is basically a sword with a revolver fitted to the handle. It is held in both hands but strangely doesn't actually fire a projectile. Instead during a battle a big hit may be used. To do this you simply press the trigger and the damage will increase dramatically. On the blade of the weapons there is a similar marking to that on the neck of Squall. Hmmm, interesting?

Laguna Loire is the supporting character in Final Fantasy VIII. By appearance I am not quite sure whether 'it' is a boy or girl character. The information suggests that 'it' is a he, although I would suggest a little less eye liner and face-paint is in order. Why are the Japanese so fond of these androgynous people? Laguna is a friendly and outgoing 27-year-old, who has earned the respect of those around him. Originally a solider, Laguna changed professions and became a London journalist. He has a generous, but righteous streak, and is not afraid to stand up and fight for what he believes in. Laguna is a good friend of Squall, which just goes to show that opposites attract.
Not a great deal is know about the mohawked Zell yet but it appears that he fights with his bare fists and seems to be a firm friend of Squall. He looks remarkably similar to Cloud and apparently was once a boxer.

Idia the Witch is the games truly evil character while very little is known about Seifer Almasy who appears to be the leader of the operation. He shouts orders and everybody listens and never protest.

Rinoa Heartily is Squall's lady friend in the game. She's a well-dressed young lady who attacks with a boomerang blade and is the only character with a Guardian Force; Levitan. This probably means that her strength is magic. Also, Biggs and Wedge will make cameo appearances in the game. Originally it was thought that they wouldn't show up, but Square seems to have had a change of heart.
 

What's it all about..?
 
      The story begins with Jet fighters screaming across the sky leading their trail over the horizon. A fleet of huge ships slowly move through the sea. Standing on the deck of one of the ships, is one of the game's two main characters, the 17-year-old Squall Leonhart. The game once again moves songlessly from FMV to in-game animation.

Landing on the beach the boats open to reveal Squall, Zell, and Rinoa. Seifer, who is wearing a white over coat, barks commands at the other characters. Their mission is to reach the antenna building. Several battles take place before the team appear to reach safety in the tower but suddenly a large dragon attacks. After a massive struggling battle the dragon is defeated only to find a large spider robot waiting to attack. Several rounds later the team realize that the robot spider is much too strong to kill therefore their only option is to take heel and run for it. You have 15 minutes to make it to the shore.

The Garden is a military school where 6 to 19 year-old youngsters gather to learn military skills while enduring communal living. Each country in the world decided that graduates of the Garden would form a private group, independent of any government or army. Assignment to any army was compulsory for Garden graduates depending on whether negotiations were made between the Garden's staff and a certain country's army. Graduates could become commanders of a foreign army, but couldn't pick their place of duty.

Passing the intense final exams at the Garden were necessary to attain this lofty prize, however, SeeD is a special forces group dispatched by the Garden. Each member has exceptionally high abilities, but widely differs in battle capabilities. Garden cadets may opt to take the SeeD Entrance Exam instead of taking Final Exams, but passing the test is extremely difficult.

The duty of a SeeD member ranges from guarding to riot suppression, regardless of every possible battle condition. Squall Leonhart apparently has a past with SeeD. It's not known whether he was part of SeeD from the beginning of the game, or developed some sort of relationship along the way. What is known is that he was once part of Garden. Garden graduates are exceptional people and possess the ability to use magic. However, normal people cannot use magic, and there are no magic shops at all in Final Fantasy VIII.

The Guardian force are expected to be the Summon Monsters of Final Fantasy VIII. It is believed that the monsters you summon have the ability to gather experience, and with this, gain more strength. Monsters are bred then called upon for battle. Once summoned it can absorb damage and perform helpful tasks, but beware as your Guardian's hit points are at a high level. To use the Guardian Force your characters do not need Materia.
 

When Can You Expect...
 
      A playable demo has already shipped with Square's release of Brave Fencer Musashiden. The real game is expected to hit Japan before Christmas but could well slip back into early 1999. Although promises have been quoted that the time lag that usually plagues the translation of these games into English will be much shorter than ever before we assess that Final Fantasy VIII will hit both US and Europe around the third quarter of 1999.