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About this mod
This is a full script overhaul, dramatically improving the story and the characters.
- Permissions and credits
“I think it will be a shame if we won’t be able to cry as we play our own games.” – Nobuo Uematsu
If you can create an HD remaster of the graphics, can you create an HD remaster of the story?
Yes, you can. And in honor of this game’s 20th anniversary...that's exactly what I've done.
- How to use this Mod -
This mod requires the steam version of Final Fantasy 8. It may also work for the older PC version of the
game, but I have not tried it for myself. To use this mod, simply copy the three files, field.fi, field.fl, and
field.fs to your FF8 steam folder:
data>lang en.
Replace the original field files with the ones from the mod. And I always recommend making a backup.
That’s it!
- About FF8: Succession –
This is not a gameplay mod, this is a story mod. This mod is designed to be the companion piece to my
gameplay mod, Martial Law.
The goal of this mod was to enhance the overall quality of the game’s dialogue, by improving on the English
localization, and enriching the characterization of the main cast. Beyond that, this mod seeks to improve
both the plot of the game and how that plot is told.
This mod is not a fan fiction, or a way to insert speculative theories into the narrative. Instead, it is an
attempt to enhance the story that already exists. The approach taken in making this mod has been that of
a script doctor, and has resulted in a COMPREHENSIVE SCRIPT OVERHAUL. Any changes to the story have
been made primarily for one of three reasons: to clarify the characters’ motivations for their actions, to
eliminate apparent inconsistencies in the plot, or to enhance the themes already present in the original
story. The aim was to change as little as possible of the story, while changing as much as necessary to how
that story is conveyed.
With that said, almost every line of dialogue in the main story line has been altered to some extent. Most of
the changes are small, but a few of the changes have been massive. The greatest change is in the effects of
the Guardian Forces. Let me be clear: in this story, none of the characters have AMNESIA. Many people will
be happy to hear that, and I agree with them. But a change as large as that does have ripple effects in the
story, and a number of other things have had to change as a result.
Beyond removing amnesia, TIME COMPRESSION has also been removed. It is a plot contrivance that most
will admit was poorly explained and poorly executed. But it is also more necessary to the main plot than
the amnesia, and so removing it has had greater implications on the story as a whole. That means that a
more comprehensive change to the plot was necessary to resolve this issue. I am very confident, however,
that the alternate explanation I have provided is less contrived and more coherent, and also has a more
personal and meaningful impact on the main characters.
There are several other similar, but lesser changes that have been made, and each of these comes with its
own ripple effects. I have done my best to weave these changes together in a way that is both believable
and compelling, while sacrificing as little of the original as possible.
The integrity of the characters, both their characterization and disposition, has been maintained, for the
most part. The characters subjected to the most change have been Seifer, Rinoa, and Headmaster Cid. Each
of these characters have had their motivations refined. As a result, their presence in the story is more
pronounced, and their effects on the protagonist carry more weight.
My hope for this mod is that it will improve the quality of the game, without taking away anything that
made it good in the first place. For anyone who loved the original game, this should only make you love it
more. And for those of you who took issue with the original game due to its story, this mod is definitely a
reason to give the game a second chance.
This mod was inspired by the desire to have a story worthy of its OST.
- Text Boxes -
Another aspect of the game that this mod seeks to address was the placement of the text boxes. In the
original, there were many times when the dialogue box obstructed something crucial to the scene. This
was usually some action taken by the characters, or the faces of those speaking. This issue is present in
nearly every scene in the game. It can be incredibly distracting, and makes it more challenging to connect
with both the events taking place and the emotion of the characters.
It is possible that this was not as much of a problem in the original Japanese, since the length of the text will
ultimately determine how much of the screen it obstructs. It is very likely that none of the boxes were changed
following any language translation. But along with edited text, most of the text boxes in this mod have been
edited as well, solving most of these issues.
This change is the sort of quality of life improvement that I believe would make this mod worth having if only
just for that.
Original Succession
- Mod Progress -
This mod is now officially complete. I have rewritten every major scene in the entire game. And while it may not meet
all of my lofty hopes, I am very satisfied with the result.
The original script for this game is around 75,000+ words, and that only includes the main story. That is the size of a
small novel. I have not had a chance to tabulate the total length of this rewrite, but I would not be surprised if it is well
over 80,000 words.
With that said, I do not have a proofreader, and so there are bound to be some minor typos throughout the work, and I
will likely release more than one small update to correct anything brought to my attention. It may not yet be perfect, but
it is eminently readable, and is almost as error-free as most first edition books released today.
For a sample of the improvements made, check out the video playlist.
- Acknowledgements -
This mod would not have been possible without the work of the community of modders on the Qhimm Forums,
at forums.qhimm.com. The amount and quality of resources (as well as other mods) available there is truly
staggering, and I recommend it for anyone interested in modding Final Fantasy games.
I used only one program in making this mod, and I would like to highlight its creator for the quality job they've
done.
Deling Text and Script Editor - by myst6re
- A Word to Other Modders -
If you have already played through this game multiple times, like me, and the original narrative is becoming stale,
this is definitely the mod for you. It will provide you with an interesting and refreshing take on a story already
familiar to you.
If your goal is speed, and you tend to mash through the text as fast as possible to get to the battles, then this
mod is definitely not for you. Due to the many changes in dialogue, the script is roughly 10% longer than the
original, and will take a bit more time to get through. (Though I would still recommend experiencing it at least once.)
The changes in this mod are no longer 100% text only. I have taken the risk of breaking my own rule to create a
few changes to the musical directing in the game. There are currently less than a dozen moments in the story where
I have replaced the original track that played with one I considered to be more appropriate for that scene. These
tracks are from the OST, they are just a different song from the original one in that scene. If my instincts on these changes
are correct, then very few people will notice, and even the most die-hard fan will not disagree.
No other changes have been made to alter the game's code. My hope was to minimize any compatibility
issues with other mods.
- A Woolsey Visitation -
So, why did I create this mod? That’s a good question, and it requires a long explanation…
Some time ago, I had a dream. In that dream I was visited by the great Ted Woolsey himself. With an air both
sober and somber, he offered me a gift. He extended his hands, and in them were four Super Nintendo cartridges.
Woolsey informed me that on these cartridges was inscribed the script for Final Fantasy 8. But this script was
like none other. It was an English localization of the original Japanese, translated and localized personally…by him.
He had worked on it in his spare time, a time between being praised for Chrono Trigger and producing Shadow
Madness. He entrusted the four cartridges to me, one for each of the four discs of Final Fantasy 8. Then he
commanded that I present the script to the people, so that they might know of his original interpretation of
Kazushige Nojima’s Great Work.
As I awoke from the dream, I vowed that I would honor Woolsey’s wishes. This mod, my friends, is the very
script contained within those cartridges, or as close as I could manage after the format conversion to 32 bits…
And that is why, with great excitement and humility, I present to you, Final Fantasy 8: Succession.
If you can create an HD remaster of the graphics, can you create an HD remaster of the story?
Yes, you can. And in honor of this game’s 20th anniversary...that's exactly what I've done.
- How to use this Mod -
This mod requires the steam version of Final Fantasy 8. It may also work for the older PC version of the
game, but I have not tried it for myself. To use this mod, simply copy the three files, field.fi, field.fl, and
field.fs to your FF8 steam folder:
data>lang en.
Replace the original field files with the ones from the mod. And I always recommend making a backup.
That’s it!
- About FF8: Succession –
This is not a gameplay mod, this is a story mod. This mod is designed to be the companion piece to my
gameplay mod, Martial Law.
The goal of this mod was to enhance the overall quality of the game’s dialogue, by improving on the English
localization, and enriching the characterization of the main cast. Beyond that, this mod seeks to improve
both the plot of the game and how that plot is told.
This mod is not a fan fiction, or a way to insert speculative theories into the narrative. Instead, it is an
attempt to enhance the story that already exists. The approach taken in making this mod has been that of
a script doctor, and has resulted in a COMPREHENSIVE SCRIPT OVERHAUL. Any changes to the story have
been made primarily for one of three reasons: to clarify the characters’ motivations for their actions, to
eliminate apparent inconsistencies in the plot, or to enhance the themes already present in the original
story. The aim was to change as little as possible of the story, while changing as much as necessary to how
that story is conveyed.
With that said, almost every line of dialogue in the main story line has been altered to some extent. Most of
the changes are small, but a few of the changes have been massive. The greatest change is in the effects of
the Guardian Forces. Let me be clear: in this story, none of the characters have AMNESIA. Many people will
be happy to hear that, and I agree with them. But a change as large as that does have ripple effects in the
story, and a number of other things have had to change as a result.
Beyond removing amnesia, TIME COMPRESSION has also been removed. It is a plot contrivance that most
will admit was poorly explained and poorly executed. But it is also more necessary to the main plot than
the amnesia, and so removing it has had greater implications on the story as a whole. That means that a
more comprehensive change to the plot was necessary to resolve this issue. I am very confident, however,
that the alternate explanation I have provided is less contrived and more coherent, and also has a more
personal and meaningful impact on the main characters.
There are several other similar, but lesser changes that have been made, and each of these comes with its
own ripple effects. I have done my best to weave these changes together in a way that is both believable
and compelling, while sacrificing as little of the original as possible.
The integrity of the characters, both their characterization and disposition, has been maintained, for the
most part. The characters subjected to the most change have been Seifer, Rinoa, and Headmaster Cid. Each
of these characters have had their motivations refined. As a result, their presence in the story is more
pronounced, and their effects on the protagonist carry more weight.
My hope for this mod is that it will improve the quality of the game, without taking away anything that
made it good in the first place. For anyone who loved the original game, this should only make you love it
more. And for those of you who took issue with the original game due to its story, this mod is definitely a
reason to give the game a second chance.
This mod was inspired by the desire to have a story worthy of its OST.
- Text Boxes -
Another aspect of the game that this mod seeks to address was the placement of the text boxes. In the
original, there were many times when the dialogue box obstructed something crucial to the scene. This
was usually some action taken by the characters, or the faces of those speaking. This issue is present in
nearly every scene in the game. It can be incredibly distracting, and makes it more challenging to connect
with both the events taking place and the emotion of the characters.
It is possible that this was not as much of a problem in the original Japanese, since the length of the text will
ultimately determine how much of the screen it obstructs. It is very likely that none of the boxes were changed
following any language translation. But along with edited text, most of the text boxes in this mod have been
edited as well, solving most of these issues.
This change is the sort of quality of life improvement that I believe would make this mod worth having if only
just for that.
Original Succession
- Mod Progress -
This mod is now officially complete. I have rewritten every major scene in the entire game. And while it may not meet
all of my lofty hopes, I am very satisfied with the result.
The original script for this game is around 75,000+ words, and that only includes the main story. That is the size of a
small novel. I have not had a chance to tabulate the total length of this rewrite, but I would not be surprised if it is well
over 80,000 words.
With that said, I do not have a proofreader, and so there are bound to be some minor typos throughout the work, and I
will likely release more than one small update to correct anything brought to my attention. It may not yet be perfect, but
it is eminently readable, and is almost as error-free as most first edition books released today.
For a sample of the improvements made, check out the video playlist.
- Acknowledgements -
This mod would not have been possible without the work of the community of modders on the Qhimm Forums,
at forums.qhimm.com. The amount and quality of resources (as well as other mods) available there is truly
staggering, and I recommend it for anyone interested in modding Final Fantasy games.
I used only one program in making this mod, and I would like to highlight its creator for the quality job they've
done.
Deling Text and Script Editor - by myst6re
- A Word to Other Modders -
If you have already played through this game multiple times, like me, and the original narrative is becoming stale,
this is definitely the mod for you. It will provide you with an interesting and refreshing take on a story already
familiar to you.
If your goal is speed, and you tend to mash through the text as fast as possible to get to the battles, then this
mod is definitely not for you. Due to the many changes in dialogue, the script is roughly 10% longer than the
original, and will take a bit more time to get through. (Though I would still recommend experiencing it at least once.)
The changes in this mod are no longer 100% text only. I have taken the risk of breaking my own rule to create a
few changes to the musical directing in the game. There are currently less than a dozen moments in the story where
I have replaced the original track that played with one I considered to be more appropriate for that scene. These
tracks are from the OST, they are just a different song from the original one in that scene. If my instincts on these changes
are correct, then very few people will notice, and even the most die-hard fan will not disagree.
No other changes have been made to alter the game's code. My hope was to minimize any compatibility
issues with other mods.
- A Woolsey Visitation -
So, why did I create this mod? That’s a good question, and it requires a long explanation…
Some time ago, I had a dream. In that dream I was visited by the great Ted Woolsey himself. With an air both
sober and somber, he offered me a gift. He extended his hands, and in them were four Super Nintendo cartridges.
Woolsey informed me that on these cartridges was inscribed the script for Final Fantasy 8. But this script was
like none other. It was an English localization of the original Japanese, translated and localized personally…by him.
He had worked on it in his spare time, a time between being praised for Chrono Trigger and producing Shadow
Madness. He entrusted the four cartridges to me, one for each of the four discs of Final Fantasy 8. Then he
commanded that I present the script to the people, so that they might know of his original interpretation of
Kazushige Nojima’s Great Work.
As I awoke from the dream, I vowed that I would honor Woolsey’s wishes. This mod, my friends, is the very
script contained within those cartridges, or as close as I could manage after the format conversion to 32 bits…
And that is why, with great excitement and humility, I present to you, Final Fantasy 8: Succession.