Final Fantasy VIII has always been a little controversial, both among franchise fans and beyond. With the fact that grinding levels can actually put you at a disadvantage (enemies level with you and gain much more significant stat boosts for doing so) and the easily-manipulated Junction system, the developers made some decisions that certain fans could never quite get behind.
Regardless, though, it’s a Final Fantasy title through and through, and we all know what that means: an expansive overworld, optional locations, and all manner of secrets and rewards for those willing to venture out of their way. Let’s take a look at some of the best side quests Final Fantasy VIII Remastered has to offer.
10 Catching Chocobos
Compared to other entries in the series, those iconic feathered friends the Chocobos don’t feature very prominently in Final Fantasy VIII Remastered. In fact, you may have played the game to completion without ever finding them. Even in this installment’s futuristic world, though, there’s still a place for them (and their super cute babies, Chicobos).
Dotted around the world map, you’ll notice oddly circular patches of forest. These are Chocobo Forests, each housing a progressively more difficult puzzle. They all revolve around Squall using the ChocoSonar and ChocoZiner whistles, to locate the hidden Chicobos and catch them respectively. To solve each puzzle, you must summon the mother Chocobo, which will then locate valuable items in each forest for you (and can be ridden, of course).
9 Repairing The Vase In Winhill
On the surface, no, that doesn’t sound like the most interesting side quest a video game would have to offer. Finding the pieces of a broken vase that have been scattered around a sleepy town isn’t exactly battling a huge, furious superboss, is it?
The thing is, though, not all side quests have to be that way. Winhill is an idyllic little place that has been touched by tragedy. We first visit the town as Laguna over the course of the story, but it’s also accessible as Squall later. Winhill is a hugely significant and often-overlooked town in Final Fantasy VIII Remastered, and it’s nice to take part in the side quest so as to explore and get to know it.
8 The UFO Mystery
The curious UFO side quest is another one that you could easily miss entirely if you’re racing through the story. If you take the time to look around, talk to people and read the magazines you’re collecting along the way (Occult Fan, in this case), You’ll discover there’s much more hidden in this game than you may have thought.
The adorable little alien PuPu and his UFO can be encountered in four different areas: Mandy Beach, Heath Peninsula, Winhill Bluffs and Kashkabald Desert. You only get a brief glimpse of it each time, though. Having completed these four encounters, you can then attack it in Grandidi Forest, destroying it. With this done, you’ll find PuPu himself near Balamb Garden’s original location. Depending on whether you choose to help or kill PuPu, your reward will be the PuPu card or an Accelerator.
7 Acquiring Odin
The Centra Ruins is an entirely optional dungeon located on the (you guessed it) Centra continent. It’s an odd-looking structure that is home to all manner of similarly odd-looking enemies.
An eerie, gothic place that looks like it’d be completely at home in Bloodborne, the Centra Ruins is actually the domain of Odin. You’ll have to reach the throne room to encounter him, then defeat him in battle to earn his allegiance (he can’t be Junctioned as a Guardian Force, but will appear at random to smite your enemies at the beginning of battles). Just one caveat, though: all of this has to be done within a time limit.
6 Exploring The Deep Sea Research Center
Our next side quest is one that can’t be attempted until the late game. You need the Ragnarok to enter the Deep Sea Research Center, which is (as is Final Fantasy tradition) invisible on the world map and located way out in one corner of it.
On first entering, you’ll discover Bahamut here, who will test you before deeming you worthy to battle him. After beating and obtaining him as a Guardian Force, you’ll be able to descend deeper into the Research Center. Manage your steam units carefully enough to reach the bottom and the superboss Ultima Weapon awaits.
5 Completing The Laguna Statue
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered isn’t an RPG that thrusts the entirety of its lore upon the player. Yes, there’s a super complicated main story to follow (or not follow, as the case may be), but a lot of extra details are hidden away for the player to seek if they wish to.
Shumi Village is another optional location, found up in the snowy north of the world map. As with Winhill, it holds special significance for Laguna, as he once stayed here while recovering from an injury. When the player visits as Squall, they find that the Shumi are working on erecting a statue in Laguna’s honor, but claim to need some help finishing it. One fetch quest around the town later, one of the Shumi people confesses that they didn’t need the items you’d gathered at all, they simply wanted you to journey around and appreciate their town. As with Winhill, this was an oddly touching moment that made the player appreciate the world-building that is often taken for granted in RPGs.
4 The Mystery Of Obel Lake
As we’ve probably made clear already, Final Fantasy VIII Remastered is a game that isn’t afraid to try something different with the traditional side quests of the RPG genre. Perhaps the game’s quirkiest can be found by interacting with an entirely ordinary feature on the world map you probably wouldn’t ever think to check: Obel Lake.
Obel Lake is near Timber, and landing here will see a prompt appear. Opt to ‘try humming’ and a strange unseen being will arise and talk to the player. This ‘shadow’ will direct you to various places on the world map through a series of riddles.
3 An Audience With The Tonberry King
While you were seeking Odin in the Centra Ruins, you might have also noticed a Tonberry or two popping up. You won’t find these super cute yet terrifying icons of the series anywhere else in the game, and they’re the key to another side quest: unlocking the Tonberry Guardian Force.
Put simply, you just need to defeat Tonberries in battle. Then… keep defeating them. After defeating enough of them (between 20 to 50, depending on a little RNG) the angry Tonberry King will instantly appear to challenge you. Beat him and the handy Tonberry Guardian Force is yours.
2 The CC Group Quest
Balamb Garden is such an iconic location in the series. The interesting thing is that it’s home to yet another side quest that you might easily have passed over.
The Garden is home to the Card Club, expert Triple Triad players who are always looking for opponents worthy of their time. They have a strict hierarchy from Jack to King; you can only challenge the next member after defeating the previous one. While it can be a pain to search the whole place to find each member, it’s definitely worth it: they hold all manner of rare cards that can’t be obtained any other way.
1 Collecting Every Triple Triad Card
However you may feel about Final Fantasy VIII’s eccentricities and shortcomings, it’s hard to deny that Triple Triad is an excellent minigame. Some fans prefer Final Fantasy IX’s Tetra Master, while others find that card game too RNG-heavy.
If you’re in the Triple Triad camp and dedicated enough to collect a full deck, you’ve got a heck of a task ahead of you. Not only does this requiring challenges many, many players all over the world, you’ve got to be sure not to spread undesirable rules and engage in a lot of other side quests to obtain special cards (such as PuPu’s).