[FF8PC - Steam] Succession Mod (v.1.0)

[sweetken]

This mod looks super interesting to me, and I'm curious as to how it would play out. Is this compatible with the 2019 Remaster? I'm hoping to use it in conjunction with McIndus' Project Angelwing Ultima graphics overhaul pack when that releases.

Also, I've been watching Resonant Arc's podcast where they are dissecting FFVIII, and I actually am finding through their observations that the characterization in FFVIII is a lot better than I realized. I also never really had any problem with the localization. I'm not asking you to watch any of these 2+ hour long videos, but maybe anyone who is a RA fan can tell me if this mod lived up to (or surpassed) the characterization in the original?

[Percival]

@sweetken

   Yes, I have a lot of respect for Mike and Casen, and I greatly enjoyed their analysis. Every point they discussed was one that I am already intimately familiar with (as well as many they didn't mention), and I have attempted to address them in some way with my mod.
   For example, I have given special attention to the messaging (or lack of messaging) in the intro cinematic, and have developed a more coherent theme throughout the story, one that focuses on the conflict between Squall and Seifer, and between Edea and Rinoa. I have also provided numerous call-backs to the dialogue in the intro, in order to provide greater context and significance of those words as they related to Squall and Rinoa's relationship.

  Regarding the characterization, I agree, in the original the characters are very well realized (with the possible exception of Irvine, who was poorly introduced). The unique personalities of the main cast was possibly the most enjoyable thing about creating this mod, and I have done my best to retain and elevate that aspect.
  The main problem with this story was never its characters in general, but how disconnected they were from the plot and setting (a point that Resonant Arc drove home). And that is perhaps the greatest thing I have improved. The motivation of the characters from scene to scene is now far more natural, and the decisions they make have far more justification, set-up, and payoff.

  Beyond that, I have also raise the apparent maturity level of every single character in the game. While the original felt a bit like a story about teenagers, aimed at adolescents, my version feels more like a story about exceptional and surprisingly mature late teenagers, aimed at 20+ year-olds. The best way to harmonize the setting with the characters was to assume that the main cast were gifted children, and nowhere near 'typical teenagers', with the possible exception of Rinoa. This results in the tone of the entire story feeling closer to college level rather than adolescent level.

  But, be warned that I have made several strident changes to a select few characters. Seifer, Rinoa, and Cid have been altered the most from their vanilla characters. I have very good reasons for this, however. And so far, it seems that everyone who has played this mod highly approves of those changes.

[Percival]

I gotta tell ya, I actually shelled out another ten bucks for the 2013 Steam release just so I play the game with your script!
Back in '99, I always felt there was a decent story somewhere in this game and that it just wasn't being told quite right. 

  Thank you so much!  I had the same feeling when I first played it, as well. It surprised me, especially after playing games like FF7 and FFT. I had come to expect more, and I didn't quite know what to think.
  This mod was an attempt to act on those feelings, and to see if I could bring out the best in this game's potential, without breaking the original entirely.

[Percival]

Oh man, just saw this, right the field.fs files. Would it be a big undertaking for the creator of Ragnarok to insert your dialogue in their mod and compile the field files?

  Yes.
  As far as I am aware, I would have to copy and paste all of my dialogue into the Ragnarok file, or copy and paste all of Ragnarok's altered code into my file. Either way, I can't currently justify the time. At least, not until I do the same thing for the Remaster.

[sakamdi]

Hi Percival!

After playing through FF7's Beacause retranslation mod, I grew interested.
Like you, and likely countless others, the amnesia storyline hit me like a punch to the gut.

*MOD SPOILERS FOLLOW*
I'm currently returning to Balamb, and I'm delighted that NORG has been alluded to in the past and I won't just get chucked in with Squall's epic dialogue "What a surprise" on learning of NORG.
As a long playing fan I'm really happy to see Sorceresses mentioned in texts previously, to see a recognition that everybody WENT TO THE SAME ORPHANAGE, along with reasonable explanations that many seeds were originally orphans.

I'm greatly enjoying your work. I look forward to seeing what kind of turns and clear motives are next.

[gunner_1207]

hello Mr. Percival just smashed through another playthrough of the love of my life( don't tell the wife) . And your mod breathed new life into it , thank you it must of been a massive undertaking, as you would imagine i have questions an some other stuff. I'll put it in a spoiler
And for all interested i ran this mod with seed reborn latest version
rebirth flame
horizon pack
battlefield pack
project angelwing giggapixel test

Spoiler: show

these should be in order from me playing the game.
In Dollet the seed mission why change the squad ranks? ,selphie now a mechanic
After the seed inauguration party in the training centre after helping ellone, you called the white seeds 'exotic soldier' why?
Couple of typo's first one on the sorceress assassination  mission when going through the plan in carraways house he calls rinoa his daugher forgot the T.
After the garden fight talking with edea and cid at the orphanage, when talking about lunatic pandora , the sentence reads " Its the weapon they used to destroyed trabia city" shouldn't it be destroy?.
last one i noticed in a dream sequence when laguna is trying to free ellone from odine's lab , trying to open the door with the computer, gets a flashing error on the screen , kiros says "did it just locked you out?" shouldn't it be lock?.
There was soo many little things i enjoyed, i loved squalls pet/nickname for rinoa ,and i wanted ,more of it .
The mayor of FH negotiating payment for the damages done with fixing garden, i thought this brought a much more real feel to it .In the original i never liked the whole 'Oh you've smashed up our town, lets not mention that again oh and btw we will fix you garden for free!.
Loved Loved the orphanage scene in trabia garden. The kids all leaving at different ages. more embellished history for all , i particularly liked quistis an selphie's.
And the added complexity on squall and seifer's relationship was fascinating, as well the cid edea  fight was a brilliant addition. All together those things i felt gave that part much more body more texture.
Gotta give a special mention to Headmaster cid love the new backbone you gave him , dudes a proper boss now , like when squall is promoted he shouts at cid for not telling him about ellone, an cid slaps him down.
but also i like how squall references and remembers lessons/things cid has said to squall over the years , like a father figure another layer to the new cid.

sorry if this is a bit long but i enjoyed playing with your mod soo much i had to tell you, Thank you
 

[Percival]

Gunner!
  It's great to hear from you. I'm so glad to see how much you liked it!  It was indeed a massive undertaking. I have spent so much more time on this than I would have wanted when I first started. But the result is also so much better than I would have ever imagined. And all of the feedback I have received has been invaluable.
  I'm about to release another update, so I will make sure to include your typos/corrections.
  And about your questions...

In Dollet the seed mission why change the squad ranks? ,selphie now a mechanic

Spoiler: show

  For Selphie, the primary reason why I wanted her to be a mechanic was to give her a justifiable excuse for suddenly being able to fly the Ragnarok. I would have made her a pilot, but we already had Nida. So I wanted some other way to give her some technological skill. I thought about calling her an engineer, but that sounded a bit too lofty. There is also the scene after they escape the D-District Prison where she is gets into one of the cars and is suddenly able to start it up without any problems. I originally wanted to imply that she had the ability to hot-wire it.
  In my original notes I had generated a lot of depth for each of the main characters that never made it into the game. For Selphie in particular, I had wanted to make her into a bit of a manic, autistic savant. The idea was that, even though she was socially awkward, a little crazy, and often sounded and acted like a silly girl, she was actually a technological and mathematical wizard.
  I had hoped to make this clear during the missile base mission. When we got a chance to hear her inner thoughts, I wanted to dramatically contrast her thoughts with how she spoke. Even though all her spoken conclusions would make her sound wildly eccentric, the way she would arrive at those conclusions would be through the inner monologue of a genius.
  I thought it was a hilarious idea, but as you can see, the construction of the dialogue in the missile base didn't ultimately allow me to execute it effectively.
  Beyond that, Selphie loves trains. And I've never met anyone who loves trains that wasn't also an autistic savant.

After the seed inauguration party in the training centre after helping ellone, you called the white seeds 'exotic soldier' why?

Spoiler: show

  The reason why I eliminated the White SeeDs is connected to some of the changes I made to Edea's backstory, and the removal of Time Compression.
  In my mod, Time Compression is no longer a thing, and Edea never meets Squall in the past. Without meeting Squall, there is no good reason why Edea would ever strive to create an army to defeat her, especially given the changes I made to her backstory with Cid and the orphanage. I didn't intend this. It was just one of several unintended consequences of removing Time Compression. But it meant that I also had to change where Ellone's protectors came from. The name 'Exotic Soldier' was just a way to provide a sense of mystery about them.

[gunner_1207]

  utterly fascinating , you sir have a gift for writing and clearly have a massive brain    thank you

[Percival]

@gunner_1207  Ha!  You're too kind.

[Percival]

I'm currently returning to Balamb, and I'm delighted that NORG has been alluded to in the past and I won't just get chucked in with Squall's epic dialogue "What a surprise" on learning of NORG.
As a long playing fan I'm really happy to see Sorceresses mentioned in texts previously, to see a recognition that everybody WENT TO THE SAME ORPHANAGE, along with reasonable explanations that many seeds were originally orphans.

  Thanks!  As you can tell, I went to great lengths to construct a logical progression of events throughout the story. Often times, the original would provide what should have been a very strong payoff, but it didn't deliver, because it lacked the necessary set-up (like the amnesia).
  I did my best to provide effective set-ups for every significant payoff throughout the story. I also tried to put a little extra thought into the world, and how the setting might color the perspectives of the main cast.

[Percival]

*NEW VERSION 1.05 UPDATE!*

  Odine's end game exposition has finally been updated!  For all of you who recognized how cramped and convoluted that dialogue felt, I have improved it for you. I've simplified my explanation of the Succession, as well as the nature of Ultimecia. And I reduced the number of words for Odine by about 2/3, making it much more digestible.

  I have also removed all description of Ultimecia from Odine and given it back to Edea, where it belongs. I was able to find the perfect place to add extra dialogue for her. I have re-written the optional scene where Edea discusses the idea of a Sorceress' Knight with Rinoa. Now instead she uses that time to tell Rinoa about Ultimecia and the Succession. This lays the groundwork for the discussion with Odine, so that he can focus on telling the team what they need to do next.

  It now feels far more straightforward, if perhaps also more simplistic. I think you will all find this to be an improvement in pacing, as well as a clever use of a scene that is otherwise often overlooked.

[McEvil]

Is this compatible or partially compatible with the Crystal gameplay mod? Would love to try the combination out.

[Percival]

Is this compatible or partially compatible with the Crystal gameplay mod? Would love to try the combination out.

  Yes, partially. It won't be compatible with any features that alter the field.fs files. This would include new side quests, new item and card locations, altered drawpoints, and extra bosses. Just about everything else will be fine.
  Just follow the install instructions for the Crystal mod, then drop in the Succession files at the end.

[Rikku]

With no compatible ... you mean one mod doesn`t touch the other or it will freeze the game???
 

[Percival]

@Rikku There is absolutely no reason why your game should freeze as long as you installed everything correctly.
  If you use my mod with any other, the only thing that will happen is that you will miss out on any features from that mod that are a result of editing the field.fs files, which are the only files that I have changed to create my mod.
  Thankfully, so far, no gameplay or graphical mods drastically edit the field.fs files, so Succession is MOSTLY compatible with them all.

[heretic667]

Hi there, forgive my ignorance, I just wanted clarification that Martial Law and Succession are compatible?  Martial Law tackling the gameplay tweaks while Succession remastering the story - sounds perfect for another playthrough after not playing it since the PS1 days.

[AbsoLootAaron]

Keep up the great work, Percival!

[Kandy_Man]

Just wondering if there is any progress on getting this working with the remaster?

[AbsoLootAaron]

Hope you're doing okay fam. Just wanted to check up on Qhimm for the month. lol

[AbsoLootAaron]

Dang, I haven't been on Qhimm in several months...

[Kandy_Man]

No more updates coming to this mod?

[orkund]

Just wondering if there is any progress on getting this working with the remaster?

This doesn't work with the remastered version?!

[AbsoLootAaron]

Real life is probably busy for them atm.
But i still have hope that this will continue to be updated eventually in the future! lol

[Venturer]

I haven't read all the comments earlier so I apologize if this has been asked before, I didn't want to spoil myself on anything, but I was curious if this was a straight up retranslation that's accurate to the original Japanese script or the original translation rewritten with your own flavor to it?

[lycancowboy1989]

Just a quick question in regards to compatibility with ragnarok:

You mention several times to install ragnarok and then overwrite with your "field.fs files"

would this be ONLY field.fs, or all three of field.fs, field.fi, and field.fl that would be needed for the overwrite?