Final Fantasy VIII Hints

General Combat Tips

• Basically you will need to use the same technique to defeat all of your opponents -- near constant casting of Guardian Forces.  Purists may balk at this, but later opponents have ridiculously high numbers of hit points and devastating attacks.
  
  Each Guardian Force offers a different type of attack -- for example, Ifrit inflicts Fire damage and Alexander launches a gigantic ball of Holy energy.  It is wise to have as many as possible -- fire attacks against a giant ball of flame are totally ineffective and may even give the enemy health instead of taking it away.  Equally important is the speed of casting -- the more that you use a GF, the faster it will be cast in future.  A good technique is to assign each character a 'principal' GF which you will use in most fights, along with at least one backup that fires a different type of attack.  As an example, in my game I Junctioned Ifrit, Shiva and Leviathan to Squall and Pandemonia, Siren and Diablos to Rinoa.
  
  Later enemies have instant kill attacks -- always have at least one character with plenty of Phoenix Down (i.e,. you have assigned them the Item skill) and another with a magic based regenerator.  Keep hit-points topped up whenever possible -- I had one character who specialised in healing the rest of the party when required.
  
  At the start of every new section, check that you have GFs junctioned to each character.  Even if you don't plan to use one of them, if a character is lacking a GF, they will be unable to do anything but straight attacks.
  
  In boss fights you will usually be up against more than one enemy at a time, whether multiple enemies or different parts of the same creature.   If the game offers you any tips about which part to destroy first, follow it.  If it is left open, it is usually worth destroying any smaller enemies first -- robotic pods, guards and so forth -- because they are usually equipped with Heal spells.  Often a quick cast of a GF will destroy them before they have a chance to distract you.  In situations with more than one powerful character, concentrate your attacks on one at a time.  Generally one will deal out the attacks, the other will cast the Heal spells.  Both will have a lot of hitpoints.
  
  If a Limit Break becomes available, use it immediately.  Selphie has the most powerful in the game, but only at high levels.  Renzoruken is the most powerful against single enemies earlier on and you should take advantage of it.  Remember that if you time your button presses correctly, Squall will finish the Break with a stylish spinning movement and inflict far more damage.
  
  Most of the regular magic spells are not very effective, although they are a good backup.  Specials such as Double and Triple (cast the spell two or three times at once) and exceptionally useful in boss fights and Level 3 spells (e.g., Quake 3 and Unreal Tour... no -- wait) are devastatingly powerful, but earlier ones are ineffective.
  
  Finally, don't forget that you can retreat.  Later in the game the random monsters are sometimes harder to defeat than the bosses.
  

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