Final Fantasy VIII/Fanfic Recs

Proof that the remaining 10% is worth dying for here:

These are recommendations made by Tropers for Fan Fics, all of which have been signed. After a few samples, you will be able to judge whether you might be interested in the 'fic, based on who recommended it. No-name recommendations will be Zapped. Nobody would back up the rec. Discussion of the recommendation is welcome on the discussion page. As such discussion is important, do remember to add the discussion page to the watchlist, if need be.

Do warn when a fanfic may head into homosexual or non-canon territory. Some people just don't like it, and as we all know, Shipping is Serious Business.

Authors, and Websites
Ronin-ai
 * Recommended by bluedragonx
 * This author has written 8 stories and going onto a 9th one, ranging from lemony and fluffy to serious to humourous, all of which excel at well written and compelling Character Development. A great series of writing for any FF8 fans.

DB2020
 * Recommended by Mismoree
 * All of the FF8 stories by this author are incredibly well-written and engrossing. The majority are M-rated Seifer/Squall fics, yet most of them are easy to picture happening in the game. Protecting the Lion remains my favorite FF8 story to date.

General Fics
''Stories focused on the family and the friendly relationships of the cast. Plot-focused stories or light day-in-the-life stories. Pretty much anything that isn't focused on romance.''

Final Fantasy VIII: The Altimate Rewrite by Albert (TVTropes entry can be found here.)
 * Recommended by User:Sky Blue, User:Chaotic Brain
 * Synopsis: A retelling of the game's main plot, with changes to characterization that range from minor to significant.
 * Comments: As of now when I'm writing this recommendation, the rewrite is only up to the start of disc two (the game came on four discs, though it's more like three and a half since the fourth is pretty short), but the writing has been of consistently high quality so far. For anyone who thought FF8's plot had potential but was spoiled by bad writing, this is what FF8 should have been. Even if you liked FF8 as is, it's still worth reading.
 * Be forewarned, this is a very Love It or Hate It adaptation due to the extensive changes to setting, backstory, characterization, plot details, and even the main character's name. Some readers enjoy these changes very much, while others don't. See the archived discussion for further details.
 * Lately a really good reason for the name change is revealed. Anyway, the amount of work and dedication the author puts into it really shines through, with him slipping in information about how the wider culture works, as well as setting up plan upon plan from every direction. While the characterization has turned some readers off, it nevertheless stands as a proud achievement for the FFVIII fandom.

Penultima by magistrate
 * Recommended by User:Joie De Combat
 * Synopsis: Sometimes, the only way to save something is to destroy yourself. A look at the ramifications of fighting the climactic battle in a place where time is no longer exactly linear.
 * Comments: Magistrate presents a scenario in which Squall's team loses the battle against Ultimecia, and Squall must deal with that fact and try to work out a way to salvage the situation. His solution is both in character and horrifying, and the story makes an impressive exploration into Squall's thought processes and the nature of time compression.

Sowing the SeeDs by Greenbeans
 * Recommended by Xshu
 * Synopsis: Before they were SeeDs, they were students. Before they were cadets, they were children. The story begins 8 years before the events of Final Fantasy VIII, primarily from Xu's point of view.
 * Comments: A look at the life of minor character Xu, as she finds herself the mentor of ten year old child prodigy Quistis Trepe. It continues from this point on to right before the events of the game. The longest Final Fantasy VIII fanfic out there. Contains a homosexual character.

The Gunblade Saga by Peptuck
 * Recommended by Piekage, corin
 * Synopsis: Fate's game has ended. A hero has risen to save existence, and now only the future lies ahead of him and his comrades. A complete, written chronicle of Final Fantasy VIII.
 * Comments: The author takes everything good about Final Fantasy VIII and makes it better. The character development for all the characters is top notch, the action is intense and never dull, and the amount of detail is incredible, especially the description of the gunblade itself. There are quite a few changes, which are for the better in my opinion. For example, Squall, Rinoa , and the Dollet Dukedom . And of course, Squall/Rinoa is a given. It should also be noted that the author also wrote Tiberium Wars, so anyone familiar with it knows what to expect as far as quality.
 * corin: Its worth pointing out that this is actually one of the first fanfics the author wrote seriously, and as a result the quality is lower than that of his more recent works. The author actually considers it something of an Old Shame and started writing an aborted reboot of the story, even if the general consensus is that it is better most other FFVIII fanfiction.

Retribution by Undeniable Mystique
 * Recommended by User:The Girl Red
 * Synopsis: A different spin on the whole OC gets sucked into the game. I don't want to give too much away, but the OC gets body swapped with someone who already exists in the game universe. This story is in the beginning stages still, but is quite intriguing.
 * Warnings: OC, but the author has avoided the Mary Sue pitfall wonderfully so far.

The Stalker's Log by Traingham
 * Recommended by @/Firemagnet
 * Pairings: N/A (or every woman for herself with Squall)
 * Synopsis: The hilarious and absolutely self-effacing tale of what takes place after FFVIII ends; "The Stalker's Log" is the tale of Fuujin as she scales walls, hides under beds, and fights off hordes of female ninjas,people who have been stabbed through the stomach and others, all just to get her love to notice her.
 * Comments: A very good story, with plenty of well placed humor, mostly derived from other games by Squaresoft/Square Enix. Traingham is also a master of using plot holes from the original game for situational humor (such as the character named "Zell's girlfriend"). All in all, I'd give this a 9/10, with the 10 dropped because of his ludicrously slow update rate (roughly once every 4-5 months).

Mercenaries by Pied Flycatcher
 * Recommended by The Tambourine Man
 * Pairings: Squall/Rinoa, Seifer/Yuffie, Cloud/Tifa, Onesided Wedge/Tifa
 * Synopsis: A crossover with VII. Cloud finds himself in a new world with a hard choice: kill Rinoa Heartilly, or Tifa dies.
 * Comments: A very good story with an engrossing plot. The characterisation is mostly good, though Seifer gets the leather pants treatment.

Story by DK
 * Recommended by User:Lavanya Six
 * Synopsis: The old man is full of stories, but the ones he won't tell are the most important of all...
 * Comments: The author, DK, writes fanfiction for Final Fantasy VIII that deconstructs a lot of the background of the game, parsing out the story threads of what it means for Garden to be a mercenary company and for them to be raising child soldiers. Never is this more tragically done than in Story, which shows Zell in the twilight of his life as he tells a young girl censored stories of the horrors of his life after the end of the game.

That Which Devours by DK
 * Recommended by User:Razor Smile
 * Synopsis: To regain the life he once knew, Squall Leonhart must face a foe impossibly alien... and as familiar as the back of his hand. Parodies don't always have to be funny.
 * Comments: To describe this story in any more detail than the synopsis does would ruin the surprise. Suffice it to say it is a horror take on a type of fic usually played for laughs or played painfully seriously and is really really excellent.

Not Dead But Dying Slowly by Hojo
 * Recommended by User:Joie De Combat
 * Synopsis: After sending the SeeDs to kill the sorceress, Cid considers his actions.
 * Comments: This fic provides a look into the thought processes of a character not ordinarily given much attention, showing the situation from his point of view and filling in a bit of what his relationship with Edea might have been like.

Shipping Fics
Stories focused on the romantic relationships between the cast.

Frozen by Chendzeea Li
 * Recommended by Xshu and User:Alexlayer
 * Synopsis: A Yuri romance drama, focusing on Quistis and Fujin, with the other major characters getting full time also. Along with the stated content, the story also contains a mix of horror, action and humor.
 * Comments: Contains homosexuality and non-canon. While the writing in the first half is generally regarded as sub-par, those who have finished this story generally agree that its sheer charm is well worth the light beating English takes every so often. At 423,488 words, it is the second longest Final Fantasy VIII fic out there.
 * The Author is currently in rewriting this at Frozen Remastered

Crimson Lies by Ashbear
 * Recommended by Leonhart and Xshu
 * Synopsis: Squall/Rinoa, Seifer/Quistis. Set 5 years after the events of the game. Rinoa fled from Garden 2 years ago, charged with Ellone's murder and of treason to Garden. Squall, now Quistis' parody of a "husband", has the task of hunting and killing the sorceress he still loves. Seifer, his rival, will help him in his quest for truth and redemption.
 * Comments: Full of romance and angst... Not usually my taste in fiction, but this one made me feel for the characters and has a good plot. Not for the faint of heart.

Crossover Fics
Stories that mix two different universes.

A World of Difference and its sequels Worldly Secrets and Worldly Prisoners
 * Recommended by Milarqui
 * Crossover with Harry Potter
 * Synopsis: Harry Potter is a 5 year old kid that, after his Aunt insults him, runs away from home and wishes to be sent to some other place. An eclipse happens in that moment, and he is whisked away to a new world, where he will become a great soldier.
 * Comments: Follows the storylines of both the Harry Potter (up to Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban) and Final Fantasy VIII. Odin appears as a sort of wizard that travels between worlds. Harry becomes a warrior that is able to use both FFVIII magic and wizard magic. It features a very interesting story, one that even adds to the game.
 * Sadly, it has been declared dead/discontinued, the author citing "lack of inspiration" - though what is up is surprisingly good. Said author also currently has a very active Bleach fanfic updating as well.