So much better than Final Fantasy VII. It more than atones for the mistake Square made when they thought it up. Squall alone is much better than his spiky-haired beach blonde "ancestor." He actually has REASONS for wanting to keep away from people. Although it seems he is very cold, it is because the pain of a previous loss was just too much for him, and he doesn't want anything like that to happen again for fear of facing that hurt once more. Unlike Cloud, whose convuluted story was force fed to people at an unstopping rate, Squall's past is taken in at a much slower pace. This alone gives me a much easier time to sympathize with him. On to the battle system, it has much more strategy than just putting rocks in your armbands or whatever they were to increase strength and let you do extra abilities that aren't even needed. Junctioning, though it takes a few seconds to figure out, is of utmost importance, depending on how wisely you use your strategy, you can wind up having your character a total powerhouse. As for the infamous summons, I personally barely use them. If people keep complaining about why the summons are too long, try using another tactic, 'kay? And the story is much more engrossing. It reveals more and more of the grand picture bit by bit, enough for you to make conclusions, but never actually gives you every single detail until near the end. And the plot twists, UNLIKE FF7, are NOT cheap revelations that make me want to throw the game in the trash. I could go on and on about this game, but I don't want to waste time(mainly I have work to be doing). Simply put, Final Fantasy VIII is an excellent RPG, and more than makes up for what Square was thinking when the created Final Fantasy VII.
Review of Final Fantasy VIII
