=============================================================================== Final Fantasy VIII PocketStation FAQ Version 2.8 Updated January 11, 2000 author: Michael Johnson - The Dark Eternal - (darketrnl@aol.com) =============================================================================== Author's Note: This FAQ provides general information on the Sony PocketStation memory card peripheral, as well as detailed information concerning the US Final Fantasy VIII PocketStation mini-RPG, Chocobo World. Subsequent revisions to this FAQ can be found at GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com). If you need more information on the PocketStation, I suggest you read Zane Merritt's PocketStation FAQ, which can also be found at GameFAQs. I hope this guide answers all your questions and helps you get the most out of this interesting little mini-RPG. Enjoy! *** IMPORTANT NOTE: There seems to be a little confusion over names. My name is Michael Johnson, otherwise known as The Dark Eternal (darketrnl@aol.com). One of the contributors to the FAQ is also named Michael Johnson (mike111885@aol.com). I wrote this FAQ, so please don't bug him with questions intended for me! ================ Revision History ================ Version 2.8 - 1/11/00 Happy new year! Hope everyone survived the horrid Y2K fiasco. ;) I haven't been playing CW lately, but people have still been emailing me about it. To deal with all of these emails, I've added a Frequently Asked Questions section. Please read it thoroughly before sending me an email! For the record, I've also updated the Rumors & Speculation section and the Strange and Unusual Events section. Lots of great new info to consider, but no one has yet reported finishing the game, so let's keep at it! Version 2.7 - 11/23/99 I recently received lots of emails asking for help finishing the game, and also a few suggesting ways to accomplish this. I've posted this info in a new section, Rumors and Speculation. Thanks to Mike111885 and Scott Ocken for their theories on how to complete Chocobo World. Once we figure out how to finish the game I will post big version 3.0. I also put together the Strange and Unusual Events section to cover various weirdness that readers have reported. Enjoy! Version 2.6 - 11/10/99 I've received a flood of emails lately from people who can't finish the game. I'm in the same situation! I have not "finished" Chocobo World, and I can't figure out how to do so. (Plus my battery is about to die. Noooo!) If anyone has any info, please email me! As for updates, I corrected the infinite item trick, thanks to Jimmy Wijaya. Version 2.5 - 11/5/99 Corrected information on Moomba's GF attack in battle. Still trying to figure out how to finish the game - sorry! Also added a nifty trick that lets you collect an infinite amount of items with the PocketStation. The FAQ now has 2 contributors! Thanks go out to both Thom and Oboe (see Credits seciton). Keep it coming! Version 2.0 - 10/20/99 A very large revision, including updates on fighting the Demon King and finishing Chocobo World. Also added info on summoning MiniMog and Moomba Guardian Forces in battle, as well as character and story data. I also corrected the information concerning Boko's Attack Level as a GF summon in FFVIII. Finally, I added a new Advanced Data section to cover some of the more obscure aspects of the game. Whew! Version 1.0 - 10/13/99 First version of the FAQ, written primarily from memory during a slow work day. ================= Table of Contents ================= Part 1 : PocketStation FAQ 1.1 What is the PocketStation? 1.2 Where can I get a PocketStation? 1.3 What games work in conjunction with the PocketStation? 1.4 Should I buy a PocketStation? Is it worth it? 1.5 What else can I do with a PocketStation? Part 2 : Chocobo World Walkthrough 2.1 Obtaining Chocobo World 2.2 Starting Up Chocobo World 2.2.1 Story 2.2.2 Characters 2.2.3 Enemies 2.3 Playing Chocobo World 2.3.1 Walking Screen 2.3.2 Menu Screen 2.3.3 Event Screen 2.3.4 Special Events 2.4 Finishing Chocobo World 2.4.1 Rumors and Speculation 2.5 Advanced Data 2.5.1 Level and Grade Data 2.5.2 Item Class Data 2.5.3 PocketStation-Exclusive Items 2.5.4 Powering Up Boko's GF attack in FFVIII 2.5.5 Strange and Unusual Events 2.6 Miscellaneous Information Part 3 : Frequently Asked Questions Part 4 : Credits 4.1 References 4.2 Contributors =============================================================================== PART 1 - PocketStation FAQ =============================================================================== 1.1 What is the PocketStation? ------------------------------ The PocketStation is a memory card device for the Sony PlayStation. It holds the standard 15 blocks of saved game data and can be used as a normal memory card. It has a 32x32 pixel LCD screen on the front, as well as 5 buttons (left, right, up, down and enter). The section housing the buttons flips up so that the device can be inserted into the memory card slot of the PlayStation. The device comes with a strap that attaches to the unit, so that you can wear it as a necklace (I guess?). It runs on a CR2032 lithium battery, a standard watch battery. 1.2 Where can I get a PocketStation? ------------------------------------ Sony released the PocketStation in Japan last December, but has officially cancelled a US release. (Boo!) The only way to obtain one is to purchase it through a console import shop. If you're interested in purchasing a PocketStation, I suggest National Console Support (www.ncsx.com). They've got excellent customer service and very fast shipping. NCS sells PocketStations for $50 each, and they're available in either white or crystal (transparent). 1.3 What games work in conjunction with the PocketStation? ---------------------------------------------------------- There are a few US releases that work with the PocketStation. Final Fantasy VIII contains a mini-RPG called Chocobo World that allows you to collect items and power-up certain Guardian Forces. Street Fighter Alpha 3 contains a PocketStation game that allows you to train your fighters and teach them new skills (although this feature requires a GameShark to unlock). Ridge Racer Type4 also uses the PocketStation, but only to transfer cars between PocketStations (I believe). New US releases probably won't support PocketStation mini-games, but there may be solid support for it in Japan. For instance, the japanese version of MGS: Integral supports the PocketStation, but don't expect that functionality in the US release. :( 1.4 Should I buy a PocketStation? Is it worth it? ------------------------------------------------- This is a tough one, but I'll try to help you out. The cheapest you can get a PocketStation is $50 through NCS (see question #2 above). That's quite pricey in my book, especially since future US games will likely not support it. I bought one solely to use with FFVIII, and I don't regret it. With the PocketStation, you can acquire all sorts of items for use by characters and GFs. You can increase the strength of your Chocobo GF 3 times in the PocketStation, making him a much more useful GF than he'd be otherwise. The game has some cute graphics, and it gives you something FF-related to do on your way to school or work. Personally, I found a lot of Blue Magic items for Quistis in Chocobo World. These points may or may not offset the cost in your mind. Chocobo World doesn't have much depth. There are only a handful of events that can happen, most of which are battles. The items you get aren't that rare, although a few can only be obtained through Chocobo World. In all honesty, the whole thing gets to be a little boring after a while. If you've got the cash to spend, then pick one up. I can't really recommend the PocketStation for casual gamers, but for hardcore fans who love FFVIII, I'd say just buy the damned thing. ;) 1.5 What else can I do with a PocketStation? -------------------------------------------- Are you kidding? There's literally tons of things you do with your PocketStation! ;) Just kidding. First of all, it keeps track of the current date and time, although it appears in the Japanese format (24 hour clock and y/m/d date). It has an alarm clock that you can set, although I'm not sure it would wake me up. It has a feature to adjust the sound level, including the ability to turn the sound off. That may not sound like much, but it's a nice feature. That's about it for basic features. I've heard rumors that you can download a universal remote program (via the DexDrive) and use your PocketStation as a remote control. That would be super-cool, although it probably wouldn't be as practical as a normal television remote. It's still a cool concept though! =============================================================================== PART 2 - Chocobo World Walkthrough =============================================================================== 2.1 Obtaining Chocobo World --------------------------- Final Fantasy VIII will not let you download Chocobo World onto your PocketStation until you have visited a Chocobo Forest. You won't be able to get to a Chocobo Forest until Disc 2, when you obtain a floating transport. (I don't want to mention what that transport is, for those who want to be surprised.) Note: If you need help locating a Chocobo Forest or catching a chocobo, please refer to Cephiroth's outstanding FFVIII FAQ, An Unofficial Final Fantasy VIII Walkthrough, which can be found at GameFAQs. Once you've captured your first large chocobo, you'll be able to ride it out of the forest. Before that happens, the ChocoBoy will present you with a chicobo (baby chocobo) as a present. Name him (Boko is the default name), and you'll be able to download him to the PocketStation. Just follow the instructions on the screen and you'll be fine. 2.2 Starting up Chocobo World ----------------------------- Once Chocobo World is downloaded onto the PocketStation, you need to start the game. Do this by selecting from the main FFVIII menu, and choosing in either Slot 1 or 2. You'll be shown the Chocobo World interface menu, which has 4 options: World: Sends Boko into Chocobo World on the PocketStation Home: Brings Boko back into the FFVIII world Do Over: Lets you send Boko to another PocketStation How to Play: Gives you brief directions on playing the game Whenever you want to send items and data to FFVIII from the PocketStation, you must select . When you do this, you'll see the data for Boko and MiniMog (if you've found him). You'll see Boko's attack power, level, HP and GF bonuses (more on this later). An item window will appear listing all of the items that Boko has acquired on his journey. Pressing will transfer those items into your inventory. Once you're through transferring items, you need to send Boko back into Chocobo World. Do this by selecting . Boko then resumes his adventure on the PocketStation. When you attempt to exit the save screen, FFVIII recommends that you save your data. I suggest you do so. Once that's taken care of, you can remove the PocketStation from the memory card slot and start playing. WARK!!! Note: You can summon Boko in battle even if you've sent him to the PocketStation, but MiniMog will be unavailable until you bring him into FFVIII with the command. 2.2.1 Story ----------- The story is amazingly simplistic, but still has some cutesy appeal to it. Here is the basic story, taken from the in-game instruction screen. Mog, a MiniMog, wants to go treasure hunting with his friends. But the treasure is in the 'Scary Mountain'. Everybody tells Mog, "We're not going! It's too scary!" But Mog wants to go so badly. No one can stop him now! Mog finally decided to go by himself. Then... Two days passed... Three days passed. Mog did not come home. Moomba and Cactuar imagined Mog being barbecued by the Demon King. "We have to go help Mog with Chicobo!" Moomba said, "I'll find weapons!" Cactuar said, "I'll find treasures!" What's Chicobo doing with a TV and fishing pole? There you have it! Square is really working the Pokemon craze into this mini-RPG by including it's coolest/cutest characters in a virtual pet-style world. (Though I'm really upset that Tonberry (Pug) doesn't make an appearance!) 2.2.2 Characters ---------------- While not a fully-featured RPG, Chocobo World nonetheless has a cast of cute Pokemon-style characters. Here they are, in order of appearance. Boko A plucky young male chicobo and the star of Chocobo World Cactuar A trusted friend who finds items on Scary Mountain Moomba Another buddy who finds weapons for Boko MiniMog The fearless little Moogle who gets lost on Scary Mountain Koko A pretty young female chicobo to whom Boko takes a liking 2.2.3 Enemies ------------- Most of the bad guys are based on enemies from FFVIII, except for the dastardly Demon King, who has no equal! Creeps A shadow-like enemy with a maniacal grin. Found on levels 1 - 100 Red Bat Big, ugly, flying bat. Appears on levels 10 - 100 Blobra A large, surprisingly quick blob with stubby little arms. Found on levels 30 - 100 Wendigo Large, headless ape who attacks with power and speed. Appears on levels 70 - 100 Demon King The evil menace who kidnaps Koko! He's quick, has 99 HP and appears on level 100 2.3 Playing Chocobo World ------------------------- Your goal in Chocobo World is to venture to the top of Scary Mountain in search of your lost friend, MiniMog. Your friends Cactuar and Moomba travel with you and aide you in your search. Playing Chocobo World is fairly straightforward, though there are a number of different screens to become familiar with, each with different controls. Note: You can exit Chocobo World at any time (excluding battles) by holding down the enter button. After a few seconds you'll be given the option to or . Choosing Continue, well, continues with the adventure. Choosing Exit closes the game and returns you to the PocketStation system screen. 2.3.1 Walking Screen -------------------- This is where Boko spends most of his adventure. He automatically walks around a randomly-generated map in one of four directions. The controls are: Left Button: makes Boko walk west (left) Right Button: makes Boko walk east (right) Up Button: makes Boko walk north (up) Down Button: makes Boko walk south (down) Enter Button: brings up Menu screen Pressing one of the directional buttons will change the direction Boko is walking. Holding down a directional button will make him run quickly in that direction. Pressing the Enter button will bring up the Menu screen. 2.3.2 Menu Screen ----------------- There are a series of menus screens where you can check your stats, look at a map and adjust gameplay parameters. Once you're on the first Menu Screen (the map screen), you can press the left or right directional buttons to scroll from screen to screen. Going in order to the right, the screens are: [ Map Screen ] The map screen displays a map of the current level in the upper-left corner. Boko's location is indicated by a blinking dot, while the solid dots represent events. The map layout changes after each level up. The arrow to the right of the map indicates which direction Boko is currently travelling. This can be changed here by pressing up or down. ____________ | .. | | . . | /|__ | . . .| / | | | \ __| | . . | \| | . | |____________| Below the map is the Map Level indicator, which simply tells you which map you're on (1 - 100). Below that is the system time you've set in the PocketStation. Each time you clear an event, a new event dot will appear on the map in some random place. [ Status Screen ] Here you can check Boko's stats. The top element is a series of 4 boxes, each containing a number (0 - 9). This is Boko's weapon. ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | |___|___|___|___| This represents Boko's attack power. In battle, the amount of damage you do each turn is randomly selected from this series of numbers. Using the above figure as an example, Boko can inflict either 2, 4, 0 or 1 points of damage each attack turn. There is a roughly equal chance (25%) of each number being selected. You generally want to avoid having a 0 in your attack pattern. Next you see Boko's current level. You start out at Level 1, and raise your level (up to 100) by winning battles. Following that is Boko's Hit Points (HP). Maximum HP increases by winning battles. The maximum is 31 HP for the first time you play through the game. At the very bottom of the screen is your Boko's unique ID number, which is used in conjunction with the IR Link feature (discussed below). [ Treasure Screen ] This screen shows you the items you've collected on your adventure. You'll see a treasure bag, and below it four letters: A 0 B 2 C 5 D 27 The number after the letter indicates how much of each item you've collected (0 - 99). These letters represent real items in FFVIII, but you can't see what they are until you upload them back into FFVIII. And no, there aren't just 4 items in the game. The letters correspond to the value of the item. Item Class A is the best class to be found and usually contains rare and valuable items. Item Class D is the least valuable, and usually contains common items (like Potions). Expect to see Item D many, many, many times. ;) [ PocketStation IR Link Screen ] This screen allows you to Link with another PocketStation. Pressing up or down while there is no other pocketstation around causes an Error! message. You can interface 2 PocketStations using the IR port on the top of the unit. Using this function, you can battle your Boko against someone else's Boko, provided they have a PocketStation. If you win, you can take their ID number and choose it like a weapon. I will never be able to verify this, since I don't know anyone with a PSX, FFVIII and a PocketStation. :( Also, it's not clear what advantage this would have. I assume that if you win an ID from an opponent with a higher grade (lower ID number), then you can take it and instantly be at a higher grade (see section 2.5.1 below for a further discussion). [ Event Wait Screen ] This option lets you select whether the game waits for you when you encounter an event. Selecting ensures that the game will wait for your input when an event is triggered. Selecting will allow events to occur even when you're not paying attention to the PocketStation. I always leave mine on , since I like don't like to miss events. If the game becomes too boring for you, just set Event wait to to have Boko play automatically. You'll still have to "wake up" the game occasionally, but you may like this setup more since it requires less input. [ MiniMog Status Screen ] Once you've rescued MiniMog, he'll show up in his very own menu screen. There's not much you can do here. You can set him to , where he's awake and ready for action. If you die in a battle, MiniMog will attempt to win for you by attacking once (with Boko's attack power). If he defeats the monster, you win. If his attack isn't enough to win, then Boko will pass out and MiniMog will be lost. You'll have to find him again, but it's usually within the next few events. You can also set him to , where he'll stay safe and sound, but will be unable to help you. I always leave MiniMog awake, 'cuz he makes me laugh. [ Move Screen ] This screen lets you adjust the range of Boko's movement, since he moves on his own. You can set the Move parameter from 1 - 6, with 6 being the highest. At Move 1, Boko will move in a straight line and will not seek out nearby events, but he will cover ground more quickly. With Move 6, Boko will go out of his way to find out-of-the-way events, but he'll travel a lot slower. Since I like to control most of the action, I leave mine on Move 1. 2.3.3 Event Screen ------------------ While Boko is walking around, he may encounter events. These are represented by solid dots on the map screen. When an event is triggered, a screen will pop up saying "Event!". Pressing enter will then take you to the event. There are several different events waiting for Boko on his journey. [ Battle ] The most common event is battle. Here you'll have to fight against any of 4 different enemies (Creeps, Red Bat, Blobra and Wendigo), whose HP increases along with Boko's. Below the graphics of Boko and the enemy, you'll see a bar with 4 sets of numbers. _________________ | | | | | | 27 | 7 | 5 | 15 | | |___|___| | a b c d a: Enemy HP b: Enemy ATB Timer c: Boko's ATB Timer d: Boko's HP The battle system uses a variant of the ATB system from Final Fantasy. Letters b and c represent the enemy's and Boko's ATB counter, respectively. When the counter reaches 0, an attack is made. You can speed up the counter by alternately tapping the left and right directional buttons rapidly. Only one attack can be made by either character per round, so if your enemy attacks Boko, your counter will reset and you'll have to wait until it reaches 0 again to attempt an attack. The Battle is lost if Boko's HP reaches 0. He'll then fall unconscious, slowly regaining his HP. Battle is won when you reduce an enemy's HP to 0. When that happens, you'll see a 3x3 grid with an orb moving rapidly among them. This is a version of tic-tac-toe you can play. You can only level up when 3 orbs line up in a straight or diagonal line. [ Sleep Screen ] If Boko's HP falls to 0 in battle, or if he's just tired, then he'll enter a sleep screen. Here he'll fall asleep (usually) in an effort to regain his HP. You can wake him up by pressing the enter button, but you should let him sleep until his HP is full. There are other screens where Boko can recover his HP. Occasionally you may see him watching his TV, fishing, eating a pie, huddling around a campfire with Moomba, or gazing at the stars with Cactuar. In all these screens Boko will regain HP just like if he was sleeping. [ Moomba Screen ] Occasionally Boko will encounter Moomba, one of his friends. Moomba finds weapons for Boko to use, which are simply a string of attack numbers. When Moomba appears, you'll be presented with a choice of 2 attack patterns. ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | |___|___|___|___| C H O I C E ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | |___|___|___|___| Pressing up will select the upper choice (the new weapon Moomba just found), while pressing down will select the lower choice (your current weapon). It's generally better to have a well-balanced attack than a lopsided one. Using the example above, I would choose to stick with the current weapon (lower choice), since it's more balanced and doesn't have a 0. Note: If you set the Event Wait to , then the game will automatically pick the best weapon when presented with the Moomba screen. You'll encounter Moomba an average of 1 time every other map level. [ Cactuar Screen ] Cactuar is another of Boko's friends. He randomly shows up and presents you with an item that he's found. Most of the time you'll get item D, which is the lowest class of item. I've occasionally gotten a few Bs and Cs, but I've never received an A. >:< (see section 2.5.2 for more info.) You can't see what the items are, due to the PocketStation's limited resolution (32x32 px). Once you upload them into FFVIII, you'll be able to see what you've acquired. I've received lots of Ammo and Blue Magic items (Barrier, Power Generator), as well as a few GF ability items. You'll encounter Cactuar an average of 1.5 times per map level. [ MiniMog Screen ] Once you find MiniMog, he'll be able to help you in your adventure. Occasionally he will find an orb to help you level up faster. He can also fight for you in battle, as a sort of desperation attack (it's no Renzokuken, though. ;P). 2.3.4 Special Events -------------------- On certain levels, Boko will trigger a special event not covered by the preceeding sections. [ Level 20 - Meet Koko ] Koko strolls by a stunned Boko, who is immediately smitten with the sultry young lass. (Submitted by nevhr.c@talk21.com) [ Level 25 - Find MiniMog ] Once you reach Level 25, you'll find MiniMog, and from then on he'll be able to help you. Your quest is far from over though, so keep playing! Note: You will obtain Mog's Amulet when you rescure MiniMog. [ Level 50 - Rescue Koko ] A random event will occur on Level 50. You'll enter a screen to find that someone is shouting for help. Boko pulls out his trusty fishing pole and casts it into the pond next to him. He then rescues Koko, who rewards him with a power up for Boko's GF attack in FFVIII!!! [ Level 75 - Hurry Up! ] Upon reaching Level 75, you're treated to a nice little animation. It features a zoom-in effect on Moomba, Cactuar and MiniMog, all telling you to hurry up. Hurry up where??? [ Level 100 - Abducted! ] Once you reach Level 100, you will stop leveling up. You'll also trigger an event that depicts Koko being abducted by an obviously evil hooded wizard, the Demon King. Oh no!!! [ Level 100 - Defeat the Demon King ] Set your Move statistic to 1, and manually naviagate Boko towards an event dot. You'll have a high probability of encountering the Demon King. Defeat him to rescue Koko. (Thanks to Thom for this information.) [ Level 100 - A Kiss from Koko ] After figthting approximately 100 battles on Level 100, manually navigate towards an event dot, where Boko will again meet Koko, who smooches him and presents him with the second of 3 GF attack power ups. 2.4 Finishing Chocobo World --------------------------- I'm sorry to say that I still haven't finished Chocobo World. I'd estimate that it will take about 8 - 10 hours of gameplay to be completely finished with it. :/ The following, though, I know for fact. Once you reach Level 100, set your Move parameter to 1. Manually navigate to an event dot to meet the Demon King. He has 99 HP and is very fast. Just keep slamming on the buttons, and you're sure to beat him. Upon defeating the Demon King, you'll rescue Koko. She'll thank you, and you can continue on your journey collecting items and fighting battles. Win 100 battles and manually navigate to an event dot. You'll meet Koko again. She'll give Boko a kiss for saving her from the Demon King, and present you with the second of the 3 Guardian Force power ups. I'm still trying to figure this out. If anyone has any information, please email me! 2.4.1 Rumors and Speculation ---------------------------- I know all of you are going to love this section. Since no one knows for sure how to finish Chocobo World, I'm going to post a collection of theories and ideas from contributors. Hopefully this will fuel our creative thought processes and get us all thinking in new directions on this problem. If you have any worthwhile suggestions, please pass them along and I may just post them for everyone to read! This first theory comes from Thomas Ashby (dashby@ctlnet.com). He suggests that you need to gain all 3 Attack Level power-ups before the game will allow you to finish. Sounds good, but many players have reported getting all 3 power-ups and still not being able to finish the game. Scott Ocken (jarlaxle@iastate.edu) has also provided some interesting suggestions. He thinks that you may need to win x number of battles, and any losses subtract from that total. I personally think that you may need to win x number of consecutive battles, and any losses reset your battle count to 0. This seems more plausible, since I lose a battle occasionally (usually to Wendigo) and the battles seem to go on forever. Another suggestion is that you may need to win x number of battles against Wendigo (the rock monster). This argument could hold some weight, as I win about as much as I lose against Wendigo. Scott also suggests that MiniMog may need to be awake or asleep for certain key events. The next (and most plausible) theory comes from Michael Johnson (mike111885@aol.com). He suggests that Chocobo World can be finished by challenging another PocketStation user and winning a battle. This method makes sense for Japanese players, since the PocketStation is so popular in Japan. This would be a nightmare for US players, for obvious reasons! This theory is supported by George Babcock IV (da_boo@juno.com). He claims that he spoke with a Square employee on their 900 number. He/she informed George that the only way to get Item A is to get a "better" ID number. Better, in this case, means "lower", and the only way to do that is to "beat" the game. Again, this would suck for US players, since physically meeting someone with both a PocketStation and FFVIII is next to impossible. tomheil (tomheilman@hotmail.com) provides the most overwhelming support of this theory. He says he spoke with Square of Japan on the subject. Here is a direct quote of his email to me: "According to Square, in order to "beat" Chocobo World you have to defeat the end boss (which is in your FAQ). Then, to get the "ending" you have to fight 100 more battles and see the cinema (which you also have explained how to do). After this, the game continues to run forever without future events in order to let people gain more items and continue to play. You have a chart of how to get better items, but the way in which you improve your ID is not by beating the game... "The way that Square said it works is that each new FFVIII game is given a random ID number (I don't know if this means starting a new game in FFVIII, or buying a whole new copy of FFVIII). Some games are given the good, lower numbers while others are given the poor, high numbers. In order to get a better ID (and thus have a better chance of getting good items), you have to battle someone else's chicobo and win (if you win you can steal their ID# and give them your's). This is kind of hard to do here in the U.S., so if you have a poor number, you're better off buying a gameshark and creating the items you need (but this is cheating, which I won't do). "Square used this method because they said the extreme popularity of the Pocketstation in Japan would insure that at least one person in every community would get a good number. Then, the people would constantly be playing to get the good number and would thus be having fun (hence the name of the rare "A" item -FRIENDSHIP-). It's not so fun for us over here, though, but were not supposed to have Pocketstations yet so I guess we'll just have to wait. I have a 1% chance with my number and I'm determined to play until I get a Friendship item. Hope this helps clear things up, and I hope this doesn't depress everyone, but it's just the way it is. Only the most diehard U.S. fans will get a friendship item, so in a way this separates the diehard fans from the hardcore fans (who had enough love to buy the pocketstation, but not get friendship)." tomheil's argument is very sound, making this theory the most supported so far. It also makes a lot of sense, given the extremely popular nature of handheld devices in Japan. This method could be verified if 2 CW players got together and battled. That's highly unlikely, though, and I'm doubtful that Sony will ever officially release the PocketStation in the US. In any event, it may be the case that Chocobo World is "impossible" to beat for your average gamer in America. Grrr... Nev (nevhr.c@talk21.com) has a different idea that also makes a lot of sense. He suggests that Chocobo World cannot be finished, since the "ending" part of the code wasn't included in the US and European releases of Final Fantasy VIII. This completely explains why no one can "finish" the game - it's impossible to finish! I have only one problem with this idea. When Square released FFVIII in the US, it was under the impression that Sony was going to release the PocketStation in the US. There's even a whole 3 pages devoted to the PocketStation in the instruction manual. I don't understand why they would release an incomplete version of Chocobo World if they thought people would have PocketStations. It may turn out to be true that Chocobo World simply cannot be finished, but I don't believe it's due to incomplete coding. These are all good suggestions, and I won't discount any of them until this mystery is solved. It looks like we may be getting close to a solution. My PocketStation battery has died, so I won't be playing Chocobo World for a while (besides, it gets kinda boring). Thanks for all the great suggestions so far, and I'm counting on everyone to help me out with keeping on top of this quest. 2.5 Advanced Data ----------------- Yes, believe it or not, there are advanced secrets in Chocobo World to discuss! 2.5.1 Level and Grade Data -------------------------- Note: Much of the information in this section is paraphrased from J.T.Kauffman's Chocobo World guide (Final Fantasy VIII: Chocobo's World FAQ v0.87), which can be found at GameFAQs. Completely finishing Chocobo World once will allow you to play through again at a different "grade". The first time you play through Chocobo World, Boko is ranked as Grade 7. On your subsequent trip through the game, you'll be ranked Grade 6, and so on. Playing through 7 straight times will allow you to play through as Grade 1, the highest and best grade. At higher grades, you're much more likely to find Item A (discussed in the following section) and receive better weapons (like the coveted 9999 attack pattern). Your HP bonuses and unique ID also change depending on your grade. You will still receive +1 HP for every 4 levels you gain, but your starting HP will be higher at higher grades. At Grade 7, you begin with 6 HP, but at Grade 1 you'll start with 16 HP, which increases to a maximum of 41 at Level 100. Your ID will change to a lower number based on your grade, which simply tells you what grade Boko is. 2.5.2 Item Class Data --------------------- Note: Much of the information in this section is paraphrased from J.T.Kauffman's Chocobo World guide (Final Fantasy VIII: Chocobo's World FAQ v0.87), which can be found at GameFAQs. Which items you acquire from Cactuar depend directly on Boko's grade, as can be seen in the following chart. Grade: 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 --- --- --- --- --- --- --- Item A 0% 1% 2% 3% 4% 5% 25% Item B 5 5 10 10 10 35 25 Item C 15 24 28 37 46 30 25 Item D 80 70 60 50 40 30 25 You can see quite clearly that your chance of getting an Item A on Grade 7 is zero. You'll need to play through at least one more time (on Grade 6) to ever obtain an Item A. And to get Item A on a regular basis, you'll have to get all the way up to Grade 1. Personally, I don't know if I have the patience to play through more than once. The entire Chocobo World game is quite long, and I'd question the sobriety of anyone who plays through more than once. ^_^ If you need rare items, it's more efficient (not to mention convenient) just to use a GameShark. Sure, that's cheating, but if you've played through the game once already, then sharking in some hard-to-get items should be no big deal. Or, for you anti-cheating types, simply obtain all the rare cards and Card Mod them into rare items. (!) Trick But for those who want to cheat without actually cheating, here's a trick that will allow you to obtain an infinite supply of items you collect with the PocketStation. I recommend you play through the entire Chocobo World game and collect as many of each item as you can. Then copy the 7 memory blocks of Chocobo World to a standard memory card using the PlayStation's internal memory manager. Upload Boko into FFVIII using the command, transfer all the items you've found, then send Boko back to the PocketStation using . Save your FFVIII game, then turn the game off. Unplug the PocketStation and exit the Chocobo World on your PocketStation. Then plug it back into one of the memory slots. Note: If you don't do this step, you will not be able to erase the Chocobo World by using the internal PlayStation's memory card manager. (This step is valid for every mini game downloaded from PlayStation). You must exit the mini game before you can delete it. The PlayStation will automatically prevent you from deleting the mini game if you forget to do this. (Thanks to Jimmy Wijaya for the corrections.) Now go back to the internal memory manager and copy the Chocobo World (which still has all the items) from the standard memory card onto the PocketStation (replacing the Chocobo World that has no more items). Start FFVIII and upload Boko again. You should have another set of items to transfer, effectively giving you infinite items. (The items will be different each time you perform the trick, by the way.) Now, if I could only get a few Item As... Disclaimer: I have tested this method myself and it does work 100% of the time. I believe it is completely safe, but I take no responsibility if you lose game data because of performing this trick. Use it at your own risk! IMPORTANT NOTE: Jimmy Wijaya reports that he experienced problems using a third-party memory card. So just to be safe, always use a standard Sony brand memory card! 2.5.3 PocketStation-Exclusive Items --------------------------------- There are a few items in FFVIII that can only be acquired through playing the Chocobo World mini-RPG. These items are: Mog's Amulet: Allows GF to learn MiniMog Ability The MiniMog ability is a GF menu command that you must equip (like Draw or Magic). It allows you to summon MiniMog (who performs his hilarious Moogle Dance) to partially refill the HP of all Guardian Forces during battle. This is more useful than using single-use items (like G-Potions), plus MiniMog is really cute! The amount of HP that MiniMog refills is dependant on his current level; at higher levels, he'll restore more GF HP. Also take note that using the MiniMog ability will cost you some Gil. The amount of Gil lost is equal to the average level of your 3 characters multiplied by 100. (For instance, if your characters are at level 47, 29 and 32, then the amount of Gil spent will be 36 x 100 = 3600 Gil. Trust me, it won't break your bank account.) Friendship: Summons Moomba during battle The Friendship is a one-shot item like the Phoenix Pinion. It summons Moomba to fight for you, just like Chocobo or Phoenix. When called, Moomba will perform his MoombaMoomba attack, which reduces a single target's HP to 1. If the enemy has more than 10,000 HP, then the attack will do 9999 damage. (Thanks to Oboe for this information.) Moomba cannot be powered up using the PocketStation like MiniMog and Boko can. His attack power depends entirely on the target's HP; he's much more useful against stronger adversaries. 2.5.4 Powering Up Boko's GF attack in FFVIII -------------------------------------------- Upon summoning the Boko GF (using the Gyshal Greens), you may notice that his initial attack (ChocoFire) is rather weak, only inflicting 500-800 points of damage. Boko is the only GF (aside from MiniMog) that cannot be raised in the normal FFVIII game. His attack can only be increased by playing Chocobo World. Here is a summary of Boko's attack development. Attack Level 0 ChocoFire Fire-elemental attack that damages all targets (weak, 500-800 damage) Attack Level 1 ChocoFlare Fire-elemental attack that damages all targets (medium, 5000-9000 damage) Attack Level 2 ChocoMeteor Type-less attack that damages all targets (strong, 9999 damage) Attack Level 3 ChocoBuckle Type-less attack that damages all targets (very strong, 9999+ damage) So how do you upgrade Boko's attack? By playing Chocobo World, off course! (Yes, the misspelling is intentional. ;P) The simple act of leveling up Boko in Chocobo World will increase his attack power in FFVIII. Receiving bonafide Attack Level power ups, however, requires that certain events occur in Chocobo World. When Boko reaches Level 50, you will receive the first power up. Once this happens, you'll see a star (*) next to your attack rating on the Status Screen in Chocobo World. ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | * | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | |___|___|___|___| Once you upload this data into FFVIII, your Chocobo GF will be at Attack Level 1, and he'll be able to use ChocoFlare. After 100 battles on Level 100 (see section 2.3.4 above) you'll receive the second of the 3 power ups, upgrading Boko to Attack Level 2. This will enable him to use ChocoMeteor once you send him back to FFVIII. Your Chocobo World status screen then should have 2 stars next to your attack power: ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | * | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | * |___|___|___|___| After 200 battles on Level 100, you'll receive the last of the 3 power ups, and Boko will be upgraded to Attack Level 3. He can then use ChocoBuckle in FFVIII, his most powerful attack. Your status screen should have 3 stars next to your attack rating: ___ ___ ___ ___ | | | | | * | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | * |___|___|___|___| * After this happens, Boko will be a true GF powerhouse, able to severely cripple an entire battlefield of enemies with little cost and a quick animation. How many GFs can claim that? I think it's well worth the time and effort to raise Boko on the PocketStation, and I suggest you do the same, if possible. (FYI - I was _greatly_ unprepared for my battle with Ultimecia, but plucky little Boko saved the day for me, dishing out lots of damage from an underpowered character. Go Boko!) 2.5.5 Strange and Unusual Events -------------------------------- I've decided to add a section covering undocumented events that have happened to some players. I've never experienced such events personally, but if anyone else has, then please email me. In the meantime, I'll post some of these unusual events. Benjamin Briggs (schwa@mail.utexas.edu) reports a strange glitch that prevented him from gaining the first Attack Level power-up. Somewhere between levels 30 and 40 he encountered a special event in which Boko encountered a hole and jumped into it. This skipped him ahead about 25 levels, raising his HP in the process. But he didn't get the AL1 power-up, which is normally gained at Level 50. To me, this is a really bizarre occurrence. I can't understand why the game would sabotage a player by preventing him/her from receiving a rare and valuable item. Many other people have reported similar experiences, in which they were prevented from gaining the first power-up. Most people report that their Event Wait parameter was set to OFF when these events happened. Matt (iamcool@optonline.net) reports another oddity. After a period of not paying attention, he glanced down to see Boko sleeping on the extreme left of the screen with only his head showing. Sounds like a random glitch to me. Remember, American players are NOT supposed to be playing Chocobo World right now! So it's not unbelievable that the game would have a few bugs (like not being able to finish it. ^_^). Jeremy George (melty111@hotmail.com) claims that he received all three power-ups before Level 100! After falling in the hole at Level 50, he received the first power-up, the second at Level 76 and the third at Level 87. This leads me to believe that certain events in the game are somewhat random, and may vary for different players. 2.6 Miscellaneous Information ------------------------------- Here are some interesting observations I've made about Chocobo World and its interaction with Final Fantasy VIII. You may solely use the memory card space on the PocketStation for Chocobo World, but I suggest you transfer a few FFVIII save files onto it as well. Why? To enter Chocobo World, you usually just need to press left or right at the main system screen. Instead, turn on the PocketStation and press the enter button. Hold down for a few seconds. This highlights the memory card saved game viewer (the icon in the lower left corner of the second system screen). You should now see the Chocobo World splash screen. Press up or down to view your other saved game data on the PocketStation. If you have FFVIII saves on there, then each save will be represented by a character from FFVIII. Only they're super-deformed Final Fantasy I-style graphics! They all have big eyes, no noses and no mouths. Ah, the good ol' days... This is a really cool treat and I suggest you check it out! =============================================================================== PART 3 - Frequently Asked Questions =============================================================================== I feel this section is necessary at this point due to the high volume of email I receive asking the same handful of questions. So please read this section thoroughly before you send me an email asking how to do something. Now, on with the questions! Q1. Will the Japanese PocketStation work with the US Final Fantasy VIII and other American games? Will the words on the screen be in Japanese or English? A1. Yes! If you buy an imported PocketStation from Japan, it will be 100% compatible with US games that have mini-games in them. The Japanese PocketStation is 100% compatible with the US Final Fantasy VIII game and the US Chocobo World mini-game. The words on the screen will be 100% English, because they came from an English game. Trust me! Q2. I can't upload my Chocobo World data into Final Fantasy VIII. The command is greyed out in the Chocobo World main menu screen. A2. Many people report this problem. The most likely reason this occurs is that you've exited the Chocobo World main menu screen in FFVIII without saving the changes. You MUST save your FFVIII data immediately after exiting the Chocobo World main menu, or you won't be able to upload your CW data again. Once this happens, there is NO WAY to get your Chocobo World data into Final Fantasy VIII. If this does happen, however, you can try uploading your CW data into an earlier FFVIII save file.(This method assumes that you keep multiple FFVIII save files on your memory card.) This worked for me. I had to redo some events in FFVIII, but it allowed me to keep using the CW data. Q3. I can't lower my Grade/ID. I've defeated the Demon King, received all the power-ups and now I can't finish the game. A3. As of right now, there is no way to "finish" the game. Defeating the Demon King and receiving all 3 power-ups are the only attainable end goals in the game. There is no reported way to get a traditional "ending" to complete the game. Similarly, there is no way to lower Grade/ID, and thus, no way to start collecting Item A in subsequent games. (See the above discussion in Rumors & Speculation for more on this issue.) Q4. The infinite item trick doesn't work. A4. It actually does work. ^_^ First, make a copy of your PocketStation data using the PSX internal memory card manager on another card. (You access this by turning on the power on your PlayStation with no CD in the tray.) Load the PocketStation copy of the data into FFVIII, upload the items, then quit and save your changes. Remove the PocketStation from the PSX and quit CW. Turn off the PSX, turn it on again and go back to the memory card manager. Delete the CW data from the PocketStation and copy the set of CW data on your other card onto the PocketStation. Turn on FFVIII and upload this newly copied data into FFVIII. You should be able to upload your items again. Repeat as desired. NOTE: Again, I have gotten this trick to work, but many people complain that it doesn't work. Use it at your own risk! 
===============================================================================
PART 4 - Credits
===============================================================================

4.1 References
--------------

I would like to acknowledge the work of the following people. I have read their
FAQs and have used little bits of their information in writing this FAQ.

1.  Zane Merritt (inverse@ignmail.com)
    Pocketstation FAQ v.99

2.  Cephiroth (cephiroth@yahoo.com)
    An Unofficial Final Fantasy VIII Walkthrough v2.0

3.  Vercingetorix (vercingetorix@chatpr.com)
    Final Fantasy VIII (US) Items Guide v1.73

4.  J.T.Kauffman (stormwalker@hotmail.com)
    Final Fantasy VIII: Chocobo's World FAQ v0.87
   
5.  Greg Werner (dbzinfo@goes.com)
    Final Fantasy 8 Pocketstation FAQ
    
4.2 Contributors
----------------

Contributions to this FAQ are welcomed and appreciated. You will receive the
appropriate recognition for your help in the completing this FAQ. The
following individuals have made contributions so far.

1.  Thom (thom@heartthrob.com)
    Information on how to encounter the Demon King on Level 100
    
2.  Oboe (oboe@jhu.edu)
    Information on Moomba's attack damage in battle
    
3.  Jimmy Wijaya (b168ag@yahoo.com)
    Correct information on infinite item trick
    
4.  Michael Johnson (mike111885@aol.com)
    Suggestions on how to finish Chocobo World
    
5.  Scott Ocken (jarlaxle@iastate.edu)
    Suggestions on how to finish Chocobo World

6.  Benjamin Briggs (schwa@mail.utexas.edu)
    Strange/undocumented events   
    
7.  Matt (iamcool@optonline.net)
    Strange/undocumented events

8.  Thomas Ashby (dashby@ctlnet.com)
    Suggestions on how to finish Chocobo World

9.  Jeremy George (melty111@hotmail.com)
    Strange/undocumented events
    
10. George Babcock IV (da_boo@juno.com)
    Suggestions on how to finish Chocobo World
    
11. tomheil (tomheilman@hotmail.com)
    Suggestions on how to finish Chocobo World
    
12. Nev (nevhr.c@talk21.com)
    Information on possibility of endless Chocobo World
    
==============================================================================
Copyright © 1999 Michael Johnson. You may cite information from this FAQ as
long as it remains unaltered and you give explicit credit to Michael Johnson.
Reproduction of any information from this FAQ for profit is strictly
prohibited.
==============================================================================

Pocketstation and Playstation are trademarks of Sony Computer Entertainment,
Inc. Chocobo World, Final Fantasy VIII and all characters therefrom are
trademarks of SquareSoft. Street Fighter Alpha 3 is a trademark of Capcom.
Ridge Racer Type4 is a trademark of Namco. Metal Gear Solid is a trademark of
Konami. DexDrive and GameShark are trademarks of InterAct. Pokemon is a
trademark of Nintendo.