Dissidia [duodecim] 012: Character Predictions (FINAL FANTASY VIII)
Internet is still out. Can you believe I had like 18 mails just after one day of not checking my mail?
In Dissidia news, Famitsu has apparently confirm as a playable Chaos Storyline (!!!!!!YES PLZ), DLC and a possible simultaneous worldwide release date.
Today we look at the succession of witches choices for Final Fantasy VIII.
Like the last couple of games this one is a no-brainier.
Seifer Almasy and Rinoa Heartily
Seifer is a very popular character who served as a major antagonist in the original game. He has a very close connection with both Squall and Ultimecia as well. Seifer was originally considered for the first Dissidia, but was dropped in favor of Ultimecia due to her more important role in FF8 as well as the lack of female characters in the game. Some people have complained and said that having Seifer would be like having a clone of Squall which I think is complete nonsense.
In the original game, Squall uses his sword in a style that somewhat resembles Kendo, while Seifer uses his in a style reminiscent of fencing. Squall, noticeably, uses a two-handed style in the original game before switching to a one-handed in the spin-offs (Kingdom Hearts and Dissidia). Still, Seifer’s fighting style emphasizes thrusting (heh heh) and speed over power. In Dissidia, Squall is a Brave combo master who is able to lay his attacks on thick to his enemies. I really don’t see many issues with creating a moveset for Seifer, even with Squall taking some of his niche points.
Seifer could also have some fire attacks. For his Exmode he could ‘Equip ***** Weapon!’ or ‘Became Sorceress Knight!’ or something and use ‘No Mercy’ as his burst. Seifer could be a risky character who leaves himself very vulnerable when he attacks, but when his attack connect he is able to stun and combo enemies into oblivion. He could function better on the ground while Squall fought better in the air. These are all just possibilities, of course, and the point is to show that there are plenty of routes Square-Enix can take to differentiate our two gun blade users.
Seifer’s alt would be his tattered outfit, leaving a third alt possibly based on his Amano art (without his badass coat.)
Seifer has the popularity and the reasoning to be in the game, and I think plenty of yaoi fans fans would love to see Seifer sex up battle Squall.
The other character I think most likely for Dissida is Rinoa Heartily. Of course, just mentioning her name among FF fans often causes tremors of anger and dislike, but I think Rinoa would make an excellent addition to the Dissidia series. Rinoa hasn’t made a spin off appearance YET, despite being the female lead of FF8, and the lover of one of the series most popular characters. She is apparently fun enough to cosplay, but not put in games. Go figure.
So what does Rinoa add to the roster? Well, she is an important character in FF8 and very important to both Squall and Ultimecia. Squall is her lover, and Ultimecia possesses her to achieve her Time Compression. Some people would argue the importance of Ultimecia’s relationship with Rinoa (without resorting to bashing or praising the R = U theory), but Ultimecia only interacts with a select few characters in the game. Squall, Edea, Seifer (through Edea), Adel (via possession) and Rinoa (via possession- twice!). Her interaction with Rinoa also leads to Rinoa maturing and losing some of her lighthearted spark towards the end of the game. Rinoa has more interaction with Ultimecia than Onion Knight did with Cloud of Darkness, or Firion had with the Emperor! I mean, c’mon!
The same haters also claim she would be useless in combat. I completely disagree. There are several things Rinoa has going for her, and they are: Her Blaster Edge is a unique weapon that could be used for quick melee punts or long range boomerang action! She could use it at a distance to simply hit enemies, hit them and bring them closer to her so she can initiate a melee attack, or distract the enemy. I imagine it’s use being something like Shanttoto’s staff throwy attack, but with a longer range.
Rinoa also has access to Angelo who could be implemented in various ways. One interesting theory I had read over at GameFAQS was to have Angelo run around the stages as an NPC and whenever Rinoa used a Blaster Edge-related attack if Angelo was close enough to her, then she would assist her master in the attack. So, for example, let’s say Rinoa had an attack that shot her Blaster Edge straight in front of her and knocked the enemy back. Well, if Angelo was far away from Rinoa it would do so, albeit it would be rather weak. If Angelo was close to Rinoa, however, the attack could cause an explosion and throw the enemy farther back and do more damage. This is just one possibility of many.
Lastly, Rinoa is a freaking Sorceress. She has access to powerful and primal magic! Give her some magics to make her an interesting hybrid character who has melee and magic. Make her magic attacks very slow but highly damaging, and her melee quicker but weaker. Combing her weapon, Angelo and magical ability gives her tons of possibilities for a unique moveset.
Rinoa’s EXMode would be Angel Wing and would probably grant her gliding and more powerful magic. (Or she could copy Shantoto or Terra’s unique abilities, but I would prefer something unique to her as well) Her alternate outfit would be her cute little white dress from the SeeD ball.
Both Seifer and Rinoa have good plotline reasons to be in a Dissidia game. Seifer is Squall’s rival, he works as Ultimecia’s Knight, and he could be a bit of an anti-villian antagonist. Rinoa is Squall’s love, and could be used as a pawn by Ultimecia or something.
This is a case like FF6 where I really want both characters. Rinoa and Seifer are my favorite FF8 characters, and they are so close to getting in I can taste it. While they both have good chances I think Seifer has a slightly more likely chance due to popularity, and his possible inclusion in the past game. I, honestly, would prefer Rinoa a little more though. She’s never made an appearance outside of FF8, and she is my favorite FF female character. I would love to see more girls make it into the game anyways, and I would like to see more Squall/Rinoa scenes because I liked that pairing. And I think she has great potential for a moveset.
Either way, I will still be happy with who we get (and mourn who we don’t), but these are the two I think with the most chance. Thoughts?
Fun tidbit: My spellcheck for Ultimecia changes her name to ‘Multimedia’. There was lulz while writing this.
In Dissidia news, Famitsu has apparently confirm as a playable Chaos Storyline (!!!!!!YES PLZ), DLC and a possible simultaneous worldwide release date.
Today we look at the succession of witches choices for Final Fantasy VIII.
Like the last couple of games this one is a no-brainier.
Seifer Almasy and Rinoa Heartily
Seifer is a very popular character who served as a major antagonist in the original game. He has a very close connection with both Squall and Ultimecia as well. Seifer was originally considered for the first Dissidia, but was dropped in favor of Ultimecia due to her more important role in FF8 as well as the lack of female characters in the game. Some people have complained and said that having Seifer would be like having a clone of Squall which I think is complete nonsense.
In the original game, Squall uses his sword in a style that somewhat resembles Kendo, while Seifer uses his in a style reminiscent of fencing. Squall, noticeably, uses a two-handed style in the original game before switching to a one-handed in the spin-offs (Kingdom Hearts and Dissidia). Still, Seifer’s fighting style emphasizes thrusting (heh heh) and speed over power. In Dissidia, Squall is a Brave combo master who is able to lay his attacks on thick to his enemies. I really don’t see many issues with creating a moveset for Seifer, even with Squall taking some of his niche points.
Seifer could also have some fire attacks. For his Exmode he could ‘Equip ***** Weapon!’ or ‘Became Sorceress Knight!’ or something and use ‘No Mercy’ as his burst. Seifer could be a risky character who leaves himself very vulnerable when he attacks, but when his attack connect he is able to stun and combo enemies into oblivion. He could function better on the ground while Squall fought better in the air. These are all just possibilities, of course, and the point is to show that there are plenty of routes Square-Enix can take to differentiate our two gun blade users.
Seifer’s alt would be his tattered outfit, leaving a third alt possibly based on his Amano art (without his badass coat.)
Seifer has the popularity and the reasoning to be in the game, and I think plenty of yaoi fans fans would love to see Seifer sex up battle Squall.
The other character I think most likely for Dissida is Rinoa Heartily. Of course, just mentioning her name among FF fans often causes tremors of anger and dislike, but I think Rinoa would make an excellent addition to the Dissidia series. Rinoa hasn’t made a spin off appearance YET, despite being the female lead of FF8, and the lover of one of the series most popular characters. She is apparently fun enough to cosplay, but not put in games. Go figure.
So what does Rinoa add to the roster? Well, she is an important character in FF8 and very important to both Squall and Ultimecia. Squall is her lover, and Ultimecia possesses her to achieve her Time Compression. Some people would argue the importance of Ultimecia’s relationship with Rinoa (without resorting to bashing or praising the R = U theory), but Ultimecia only interacts with a select few characters in the game. Squall, Edea, Seifer (through Edea), Adel (via possession) and Rinoa (via possession- twice!). Her interaction with Rinoa also leads to Rinoa maturing and losing some of her lighthearted spark towards the end of the game. Rinoa has more interaction with Ultimecia than Onion Knight did with Cloud of Darkness, or Firion had with the Emperor! I mean, c’mon!
The same haters also claim she would be useless in combat. I completely disagree. There are several things Rinoa has going for her, and they are: Her Blaster Edge is a unique weapon that could be used for quick melee punts or long range boomerang action! She could use it at a distance to simply hit enemies, hit them and bring them closer to her so she can initiate a melee attack, or distract the enemy. I imagine it’s use being something like Shanttoto’s staff throwy attack, but with a longer range.
Rinoa also has access to Angelo who could be implemented in various ways. One interesting theory I had read over at GameFAQS was to have Angelo run around the stages as an NPC and whenever Rinoa used a Blaster Edge-related attack if Angelo was close enough to her, then she would assist her master in the attack. So, for example, let’s say Rinoa had an attack that shot her Blaster Edge straight in front of her and knocked the enemy back. Well, if Angelo was far away from Rinoa it would do so, albeit it would be rather weak. If Angelo was close to Rinoa, however, the attack could cause an explosion and throw the enemy farther back and do more damage. This is just one possibility of many.
Lastly, Rinoa is a freaking Sorceress. She has access to powerful and primal magic! Give her some magics to make her an interesting hybrid character who has melee and magic. Make her magic attacks very slow but highly damaging, and her melee quicker but weaker. Combing her weapon, Angelo and magical ability gives her tons of possibilities for a unique moveset.
Rinoa’s EXMode would be Angel Wing and would probably grant her gliding and more powerful magic. (Or she could copy Shantoto or Terra’s unique abilities, but I would prefer something unique to her as well) Her alternate outfit would be her cute little white dress from the SeeD ball.
Both Seifer and Rinoa have good plotline reasons to be in a Dissidia game. Seifer is Squall’s rival, he works as Ultimecia’s Knight, and he could be a bit of an anti-villian antagonist. Rinoa is Squall’s love, and could be used as a pawn by Ultimecia or something.
This is a case like FF6 where I really want both characters. Rinoa and Seifer are my favorite FF8 characters, and they are so close to getting in I can taste it. While they both have good chances I think Seifer has a slightly more likely chance due to popularity, and his possible inclusion in the past game. I, honestly, would prefer Rinoa a little more though. She’s never made an appearance outside of FF8, and she is my favorite FF female character. I would love to see more girls make it into the game anyways, and I would like to see more Squall/Rinoa scenes because I liked that pairing. And I think she has great potential for a moveset.
Either way, I will still be happy with who we get (and mourn who we don’t), but these are the two I think with the most chance. Thoughts?
Fun tidbit: My spellcheck for Ultimecia changes her name to ‘Multimedia’. There was lulz while writing this.