With its tremendous success, it's not surprising that Squaresoft and Electronic Arts have ported the mammoth Sony PlayStation role-playing game, Final Fantasy 8, to the personal computer. However, current personal-computer hardware obliterates the PlayStation's capabilities; although Final Fantasy 8 offers hours and hours of addictive role playing, its game-play graphics and sound effects aren't up to par with the PC's best. Gamers dive into the role of Squall, a scruffy cadet of SeeD, which is an elite military unit formed to fight the war brought on by a nefarious sorceress. The game opens in The Garden, a collection of training communities for SeeD members, where Squall must perform several tasks before completing his enrollment. Squall encounters dozens of unique nonplayer characters during his journey (some of whom join Squall in combat), and while the dialogue sequences are mostly brief, the characters exude personality through posture and animation. Despite Final Fantasy 8 's inconsiste Minimize