In all seriousness, Squall/Magus is actually worrying me a little. We've never actually seen new Square vs old Square tested in a high profile match (not counting Crono/Kefka), and though Squall is hated, you have to remember that this match is taking place in the second round when Squall gets his hotty face pic that all the girl love. Magus.... doesn't perform too well when he gets the close-up Vegita mug.

1) Well, that IS 5%...but I doubt The Girl Factor is gonna be enough, heh.
2) That Vegita mug was enough to beat Ganon.
3) I do think it being the lead of a new-Square game VS the "villain" of an old-Square game could make this interesting, even if CT > FF8.
4) "No kidding Crono/Kefka doesn't count. They're both old Square." --Leonhart


FFVII/CT?

That's not proven to have SFF/a generational advantage in FF7's favor or not yet...I would think that, adding the two factors together, that there would be a minimal (though worthy of being noted) amount that should be accounted for.


[RPGuy's novel about Luigi] =P

Good analysis; I enjoyed reading that. However, I'm not entirely buying that Bowser was as strong in 2k3 as he was this Spring, nor do I buy Aeris > Tifa. I'm stickin' with Tifa, but it may end up bein' a lil' closer than I once thought (assuming Luigi beats KOS-MOS).


FFVII seems to overperform on stuff on the PS1. FFVII crushed Suikoden II, MGS, and Xenogears in the Games contest, Sephiroth pounded Liquid like he never should've, and Sephiroth also overperformed on Alucard.

Let's not forget how horrible Sephiroth made Gabe Logan look (who, admittedly, probably deserved to suck as bad as he did), as well as Crash (who gained from 2k2 to 2k3, even if you consider there not being any WDF). Can't really say anything about Aeris or Cloud though in these comparisons though (well, besides Cloud/Squall...but there's obvious SFF in that already, so that's hard to measure).

Well-made theory.
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

RPGuy, that was a nice analysis about Squall/Magus, but all that stuff was dealing with Squall of 2003...remember that Squall got only 55% on Kirby, and 65% on Bomberman the next year. You could almost compare Squall to Alucard in that case.

Well, you could argue that Alucard is even more underrated than before...I would love that.

On a side note, if you assume Luigi '03 was correct and constant, and same with Bowser and Yoshni, and you extrapolated Yoshi/Luigi and Bowser/Yoshi from there, Bowser is expected to receive 31.75% against an equal of '03 Link.

---
"Ah, a party! We haven't had one of those. It could be fun! So...what is a party?"
"Well, you drink punch and eat CAKE! ...I think."

If KHF is truly wearing off and the Square characters are slowly returning to their 2002 values

Nothing suggests that... at all.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

I personally don't like FF8, but think Squall's a pretty good character. Certainly I can't be the only one that thinks this.

Squall has to be liked by the FF8 fanbase... he's like the only good character in the game!
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

he's like the only good character in the game!

I'm going to pray you forgot about Laguna.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

Laguna would be the Vivi of FFVIII, the guy even the haters like. I think he could do decently if he ever got in.

Still, there's little doubt that Kingdom Hearts helped Squall out a lot, and a recurring role in the sequel (if it's more involved anyway) could help him some more.
---
It's just not the same without this name.
Faithful supporter of Squall Leonhart in SC2K5

I would be very pleased if Laguna was present in KH2 and then made the contest and performed near Dante's 2004 level in 2006. <3

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

I never really saw Laguna as anything special. But uh... maybe he gets really cool in Disc 3 to counterbalance Squall getting really suck. I never finished that game... I will some day... heh heh.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

I never really saw Laguna as anything special.

Laguna is all sorts of special, especially in his position later on. But, uh, you haven't got there yet so I won't say anything.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

Squall getting really suck

Does not compute.
---
Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (7) Geno

I wish KH2 came out before this contest, so that Auron would likely beat Ganondorf. :[

Now, that theory dealing with Sephiroth overperfoming against PSX characters...I heard that earlier, but kinda passed it off as a coincidence. That's some really good evidence, though...it seems Sephiroth overperformed every time against a PSX character. He also crushed Raziel worse than what he probably should have.

Hm...but if Sephiroth is like that, do you think Cloud would behave the same? Let's see...Cloud faced Alucard and...I guess that's it besides SFF matches. Inconclusive there.

---
"Ah, a party! We haven't had one of those. It could be fun! So...what is a party?"
"Well, you drink punch and eat CAKE! ...I think."

You can pretty well guess where I stopped FF8...

*FF8 spoilers*

Rinoa: Squall... I love you so much.
Squall: ... whatever.
*insert space scene*
Rinoa: Squall... you complete me!
Squall: I love you too! *huggle snuggles*
*Rinoa gets kidnapped*
Squall: We HAVE TO SAVE RINOA!
Lopen: ... whatever. *shuts game off*
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

You skipped a ton of important details that lead up to that, you know.
---
Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (7) Geno

I still believe that Squall did not have a sudden change that couldn't be seen coming. There were things to suggest he was changing toward the end of Disc 2.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

There are things that suggest that Squall is fascinated with Rinoa in disc 1. You just kinda have to be looking for them to catch them.
---
Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (7) Geno

Cheh, if that game had affection levels we wouldn't be having this problem. Squall would be all like... "Zell, you complete me!". And I'd laugh my ass off and keep playing.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

I can't say I caught those, but whenever I replay it, I'll look to see.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

Squall has to be liked by the FF8 fanbase... he's like the only good character in the game!

Actually, Rinoa was the only good character in the game.
---
SpC2K5 First Vote Champion
Congrats to yoblazer, the Guru contest winner!

Some of us seem to keep forgetting Mr. Loire.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

Some of us seem to keep forgetting Mr. Loire.

And Zell.

...What? I liked him.
---
Squall Leonhart's Road to the Summer Contest 2005 Championship
Round 1: (7) Geno

*still hasn't played past the first half of Disc 1 of FFVIII for a long time*
---
The King of all Cosmos' route to summer victory:
Round 1: (4) Tidus... LET ME DREAM :

Hey, I liked Zell too... kinda. It was no coincidence that I chose him as Squall's "soul mate" in my example. Heh heh.

But Rinoa? Aeris times 12? No I don't think so. I didn't even like Aeris * 1.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

Heh, Squall and Rinoa are OK.

I really don't like Zell though, he's got absolutely nothing but brawn.

---
Posts without a sig looks ugly, so I guess I need something here.

For what it's worth, Squall is the best character in the game. Though given his competition, I'm not impressed. Woohoo, he's a god among ants.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

How dare you insult Jumbo Cactuar.

You know, I had been wondering where a good place to put Raiden at in this bracket would be for a lil' bit, and I think replacing Wesker with Raiden would be the best choice; since Lloyd is surely going to lose to Zero, why not give Lloyd a better first-round opponent than WESKER and try to have something interesting in that four-pack. Other spots I thought of include:

--King of all Cosmos, in case Raiden really is a bust; we wouldn't know until later in the contest, and that'd make Tidus look pretty impressive for his upcoming matches.
--Sam Fisher, because DK loves to make for some controversy; we still talk about DK/Aya, DK/Vercetti, DK/DH, and DK/Vivi (while not close, LOTS of people argued about it and missed that first-round match). DK has lost the faith of alot of people in contest settings, and Raiden undoubtedly suffered SFF against Solid Snake. Could it be enough to make for a good match, or at least a match with lots of arguin'?
--Kefka, because I would love to see the board ***** about Vercetti or Raiding HAVING to win.
--Leon Kennedy, because losing to Tifa Armstrong isn't enough for the board to recite GFNW sometimes.
--Laharl, since gettin' 40% on Vyse doesn't make you deserve ****.
--Pac-Man...I don't know about anybody else, but a Revolver/Raiden match would be sweet to see.
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

For what it's worth, Squall is the best character in the game. Though given his competition, I'm not impressed. Woohoo, he's a god among ants.

Nah, I think Laguna is much better.

Squall is the most developed, but not the best.

---
Posts without a sig looks ugly, so I guess I need something here.

I absolutely detest Laguna. He needs to go away.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

I absolutely detest Laguna. He needs to go away.

I don't understand how you could hate such a great character. =p

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

I told you why on AIM once.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

I absolutely detest Laguna. He needs to go away.

Heh, what's wrong with him?
He's the only non-weird main in FF VIII...

The one I hate most is probably Zell, I've always been wondering what's an idiot like him doing in SEED.

---
Posts without a sig looks ugly, so I guess I need something here.

I told you why on AIM once.

Fair enough. I may not agree, but you did give your reasoning.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

To sum it up.... Laguna is a [kitty cat >^..^<]. Seriously. And I hate [kitty cats >^..^<].

Not the animal, mind you. Those are the best. I detest the human variety.

Not the actual thing, mind you. Because that's the best. I refer to the slang variety. And Laguna is a biiiiiiiig one of those.

~*ST*~
---
Winner of the Spring 2004 "Best. Game. Ever." Contest
"If my fate is to be destroyed... I must simply laugh!" -Magus

Raiden taking Yoshi's place would be where I'd most like to see him. Of course that wouldn't make sense, but I'd like to see him in a non SFFable first round (he'd obviously have no problems with Laharl) followed by a second round face off with Ocelot, to see how well he'd hold up against non Snake Metal Gear opponents.

Obviously we'd move Yoshi somewhere else and ax Agent 47 or something, but yeah.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

Laguna trying to impress Julia made him a cool character to me. That's before all of the stuff he does after Disc 1.

---
2nd Place, Spring Contest 2005
My Video Game World Records: http://www.twingalaxies.com/index.aspx?c=22&p=35289

I know SEED (SeeD, I think it's supposed to be?) has to do with FF8...but could somebody spoil me on what that is?
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

I didn't wanna switch more than one character with my list, but I wouldn't be opposed to him taking Yoshi's spot.
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

You ask for it: SPOILER
-
-
-
It's just a name for an elite group of private army/mercenaries.

Squall and co. are part of this elite private army group.

Nothing much beyond that, really.
-
-
-
END OF SPOILER

---
Posts without a sig looks ugly, so I guess I need something here.

Well I do want to see him against Ocelot or a non Snake character, but not in round 1. That wouldn't settle anything. Unless he won of course. Heh heh heh.

If only one could be moved, I'd put him in Agent 47's slot. Seriously, how did that guy get in?
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

47 got in for being awesome.
~~~
"[Zelos] clearly should be writing in his book of dark poetry and slitting his wrists with a cruxis crystal - meisnewbie

To sum it up.... Laguna is a [kitty cat >^..^<].

Yes, he's a normal person with human flaws and a rather optimistic figure who prefers to not fight. That is someone to hate all right. <.<

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

47 got in for being awesome.

That's irrelevant for someone as obscure as him.

He still shouldn't have been in.

---
Posts without a sig looks ugly, so I guess I need something here.

I'm thinkin' Neo-Tanner > Manny, actually. Suggesting to replace Manny with Raiden, however, will get you shot in the heart.
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

I know SEED (SeeD, I think it's supposed to be?) has to do with FF8...but could somebody spoil me on what that is?

I'm sure you know of SOLDIER in FFVII, correct? It's much the same. You start off in Balamb Garden -- dedicated to training SeeDs with a purpose I won't spoil. Unlike FFVII, the whole idea of SeeDs, and being one, is there throughout the entire game.

---
“Yeah, sure. I always see it. But… who cares? I speak with passion, from the heart! That’s what matters most.”
Laguna Loire

That game is kind of amusing. Running around garroting people. And there were like... three ways to do the first mission, (at least I think it was the first... you could be the flower delivery guy, deliver groceries, or just guns a blazin it) that's gotta count for something.

Yeah, scratch that, take out known fodder Laharl as my second choice. The poor Hitman dude deserves a chance more than Laharl. Heh heh.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

Well, I've always supported the idea of his real name being Manny Tanner, Danny's brother. I bet 47 will do better, too.
---
Raiden fact of the contest: Alucard is a plagiarist, this year Raiden will prove it!

47 lives in a monastary, and is a Hitman. Also, the Hitman games are VERY open ended, you can do anything.
~~~
"[Zelos] clearly should be writing in his book of dark poetry and slitting his wrists with a cruxis crystal - meisnewbie

That's crazy.
---
VOTE*~*~Lloyd Irving, Diablo, Vincent Valentine and Alucard in the Sc2k5!~*~*

Tifa > Vincent >>>>> Laguuuuuuuuuuuuuna. *pokes at HM*

Appreciate the info, you two, on SeeD.
---
Serious Reminder: Vote for Knuckles
Serious Reminder: Vote for Tifa Lockheart, too

Sephiroth is going down. To Samus!

http://www.mechadrake.com/metroidmanga.html

---
2nd Place, Spring Contest 2005
My Video Game World Records: http://www.twingalaxies.com/index.aspx?c=22&p=35289