The time has finally come for the heavily anticipated remaster of Final Fantasy 8. This fondly regarded classic was a radical entry in the legendary series and was driven by its outlandish plot, memorable characters, and underrated soundtrack. Since it's been over 20 years since its release, revisiting the world from the cockpit of the Ragnarok has never looked better.

There are plenty of things for first-time players or series veterans can take from this to enhance their experience in reliving this generational classic. Here are some things we wish we knew before starting Final Fantasy 8 Remastered.

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Updated on September, 30, 2021, By Christian Angeles: Final Fantasy 8 Remastered still remains as one of Square Enix's most popular re-releases. With updated graphics and a brand new fast-forward feature, we've updated this list to let you know about all the enhanced ways to further your gameplay. Helping you get the most out of your playthrough whether you're reliving some classical Final Fantasy nostalgia or if it's your first playthrough.

10 Draw Everything

Final Fantasy 8 Elastoid Fight
Fighting an Elastoid in Final Fantasy 8

Unlike previous Final Fantasy games, magic is no longer purchased at stores, but rather stolen from enemies in the game’s many encounters, drawn from draw points, or created using GF Junction skills. Magic is only used for its traditional purpose but also is used to boost each character’s individual stats making them more formidable as more magic is drawn.

While it's a grind, it should be a priority to draw as much magic as possible during random encounters and later junction that magic as soon as the battle ends to make the rest of the game that much easier. Thankfully, for the Final Fantasy 8 Remastered edition, the game has actually added in a fast-forward function during combat, making these long-winded grinding sessions go by much faster.

9 Increasing The SeeD Rank

ff8 squall battle victory

Following the epic mission in Dollet, Squall will be assigned a SeeD ranking that determines how much Gil he pockets upon payments. The higher his level, the more he gets paid. It's possible to take tests from the in-game tutorial menu to rank up Squall's SeeD level, and upon completion of all 30 tests, increase Squall’s payouts to 20,000 Gil per pay cycle.

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However, there is also a secret SeeD ranking bonus assigned to Squall depending on early decisions made at the beginning of the game. This includes having efficient time performances at both Ifrit's fire cavern trial and the Dollet mission. There's also a huge ranking bonus for completely destroying the X-ATM092 spider-robot in battle.

8 Forcing a Limit Break

FF8 Aura squall in dark room surrounded by screens facing camera and weapon posed up wrapped in golden spell aura

Final Fantasy 8’s limit break system is different from many of the traditional games with a few exploits that can trigger powerful attacks well before they should be used. By rapidly opening and closing the battle menu, there is a chance that a limit break will make itself available and lead to some devastating damage to the benefit of the party.

Later in the game, the Aura spell can also trigger party members to have limit breaks outside of critical damage as well, and for reasons that will be detailed shortly, this can best utilize the game’s heaviest hitters in Zell and Irvine.

7 Zell = Easy Mode

Zell From Final Fantasy 8

If you're looking for the easiest way to go about Final Fantasy 8, having Zell in the party at all times is the way to go. Zell’s limit break is a series of inputs on a timer, but by quickly inputting the commands for the Punch Rush, Booya, and Heel Drop in repeated fashion is usually enough to kill even boss characters in one go.

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It would be wise to boost Zell’s strength, speed, and luck as high as possible via junctions and Guardian Forces because he is far and away the hardest-hitting character in the game.

6 Quantity Over Quality

Irvine Kinneas from FF VIII with a cowboy hat

Another limit break trick involves the sharpshooter Irvine, who needs to either purchase ammo or have it refined via Ifrit’s Refine-RF ability. Stronger ammo types will require harder-to-find materials and items and take more time to shoot in his timed limit break, so for max damage, keep it simple.

Fast ammo is the easiest to refine and will do more damage than even the stronger pulse ammo acquired near the end of the game.

5 All Aboard the Doomtrain

FF8 Doomtrain far shot of giant train moving through space on tracks made of fire

Upon entering Tear’s Point for the first time, players will get an item called the Solomon Ring. Useless on its own, it is the first step in a fetch quest that will earn Doomtrain. To get this powerful GF, players must get six Marlboro Tentacles, Steel Pipes, and Remedy+ before selecting the Solomon Ring in battle and summoning Doomtrain.

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Doomtrain is a hard-hitting Guardian Force that inflicts big damage and numerous status effects, making it an absolute must as the story progresses and for the easier EXP grind in the game.

4 The Islands Closest to Hell And Heaven

Final Fantasy 8 Malboro Fight

Conventional wisdom dictates that one would not want to fight level 100 monsters in random encounters, which is what is to be found in the unmarked Islands closest to Hell and Heaven. These islands boast some of the strongest hidden draw points in the game and are an easy EXP grind if the party has Doomtrain or access to Quistis’s Degenerator limit break.

With Ragnarok, head to the western-most island on the map that is shaped like an ominous “H,” to find the Island closest to Hell. These monsters are all primarily strength-focused, so be ready to take on serious damage. To the northeast-most island on the map, is the Island closest to Heaven, which has many detrimental status-inducing monsters including the infamous Marlboro that can wipe out your party with Bad Breath if unprepared.

3 Cactuar Island

jumbo cactaur fight

Whereas the previous island is an excellent place to grind for EXP and magic, Cactuar Island is the place to go to level up precious AP for Guardian Forces. Each Cactuar kill yields a whopping 20 AP for each, meaning killing ten of these elusive creatures should unlock all the Guardian Forces abilities.

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A mustachioed Jumbo Cactuar will eventually emerge to battle the party and can be challenging for low-level squads but defeating it will give the party the Cactuar Guardian Force. This Guardian Force is one of the best in the game, as it features some of the rarest junction abilities and is the only GF that has every level-up stat bonus +1 ability.

2 No Guardian’s Left Behind

FF8 Diablos giant red and black devil like creature ready to charge an attack

While characters can swap magic between each other at any time, and some experience will be picked up by absent party members, it is critical that all Guardian Forces are equipped at once. Idle Guardian Forces do not gain AP and with the above-mentioned exploits will be wasted if some are not equipped.

Once a new Guardian Force is earned, such as Diablo from the magic lamp, add it to a party member right away to ensure they all gain AP.

1 The Infinite Gil Trick

Squall from Final Fantasy 8 in his remastered appearance

After acquiring Carbuncle during the battle with the Iguions, it should be an immediate priority to learn the Recov Med-RF skill to take advantage of an exploit that leads to infinite Gil. After acquiring the skill, four tents can be refined into one mega potion that can be sold for 5000 Gil, so stocking up on tents can yield massive profits as the game progresses.

When combined with Tonberry’s multiple abilities to boost sold items and lower prices for all shops, this exploit can turn a massive profit in short order and leave nothing to chance when it comes to money.

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