The story of Final Fantasy VIII follows the exploits of Squall Leonhart, the game’s protagonist and a young gunblade wielder who is currently training to become a SeeD at Balamb Garden. After taking his field exam and encountering the aggression of the Galbadian Empire, Squall and his fellow SeeDs are sent to aid a rebel leader fighting against the Galbadians. As the struggle intensifies, Squall will uncover the power instigating Galbadia’s aggression, a dark secrets about the Gardens, the true purpose of SeeD and ultimately encounter a foe that threatens the very flow of time itself. Along the way Squall will also have to come to terms with the toll the source of SeeD’s power - Guardian Forces - impose on their masters, a forgotten past, a love interest with a hidden power and an implacable rival.

Final Fantasy VIII released twenty years ago this year, following on the heels of the incredibly successful Final Fantasy VII, the next entry in the Final Fantasy series had big shoes to fill. Attempting to reinvent the wheel as much as possible, Final Fantasy VIII kept the Active Time Battle system familiar from previous games, but tweaked the Limit Break system, tied enemy strength to the party’s advancement, abolished Magic Points in favor of the draw-and-stock system, and refreshed the summon system somewhat by replacing them with Guardian Forces and junctions that provided stat boosts, abilities and passive effects. Most memorably, perhaps, Final Fantasy VIII also had one of the best minigames in Final Fantasy history - Triple Triad.

This guide includes a full beginning-to-end walkthrough that will provide enough power-gamey information to satisfy hardcore min-max gamers, but not be insistent upon such strategies and grinding so as to drive away more casual gamers. In addition the walkthrough will include the obligatory enemy information, boss strategies, directions and instructions necessary to complete the game.

Other features of this guide include:

– How to win every Triple Triad card in the game.
– How to manipulate Triple Triad rules, potent items and magics that can be obtained via Card Mod.
– How to acquire every ultimate weapon and limit break in the game.
– Strategies for defeating the game’s superbosses.
– Where to find every Guardian Force and how to prioritize their abilities.
– How to keep from leveling up as much as possible to gain an advantage over your foes.
– Information on min-maxing stats.