haters may hate but this is the best Uematsu soundtrack that exists and Tetsuya Nomura channeling art nouveau/euro sci-fi makes for one of the most peculiar and special worlds in the series. Genuinely think the bildungsromance-y mutual character growth between Squall and Rinoa is sweet, wry, and generally excellent, although its a bummer the rest of the (endearing! good!) cast largely loses relevance to the central conflict and hardly chimes in or develops much after Trabia Garden or so. The plot as a whole ends up in some bonkers places (which I actually enjoy despite the inanity; there's a touching sort of emotional honesty to the gestural teen melodrama chrono-existential pathos of it alll) but Edea is definitely the most imposing and seductive villain in the whole franchise--for the first disc at least. The FMVs in this game still floor me, and the borderline postmodern combat/leveling systems are fascinating in concept and super easy to exploit and render meaningless if you hate them and just want to get through the story. Not my favorite, but theres a ton to love here if you just chill out and approach the game on its own terms.

also laguna is a total hottie and can get it