The idea of "fate" as a relation to time...

[Gert]

So, I am sure that fate has been exhaustively discussed in regards to FFVIII on these forums, haha... But this thought has occurred to me in the past and I figured I'd share it.

Being pretty agnostic or atheist or somewhere in the middle, I don't generally like the idea of "fate" or prophecy within fantasy series or games. It can sometimes come off as a lazy way to tie things together (not saying that's what they all are...because these devices can work a lot of the time). Still, I would rather have things make analytical sense.

Putting aside all of the orphanage coincidences (haha), I like that there is fate in FFVIII simply because of time. Okay, here's where I'm going to get annoying into the whole time thing:

Spoiler

I consider the game to be at a point where we are playing the past, basically. I think the current present is Ultimecia's future...like, after she is defeated by Squall and his party, then time is as of yet unwritten. So, the only reason that there is any semblance of destiny for Squall and the SeeDs is because it has already happened. They have already defeated the sorceress, Squall went back in time and gave Edea the idea for Garden, she and Cid started it, Squall was born and joined, then defeated Ultimecia, then went back in time...so on, the time-loop, as we all know. Cid will always put Squall in charge of Garden because he knows from Edea that Squall was the leader of the SeeD who defeated Ultimecia. So, Squall's fate is sealed within this time-loop.

For some reason, that makes me feel better than the idea of some unknown force influencing everyone's lives.

Any thoughts?

 

[Guernsey]

I like your post and I also enjoy that they created their own fate as opposed to just some force manipulating all the events in the story. Although it can also both ways as Squall meeting Edes and Cid and convincing them to start SeeD had always been destined to happen or else none this would even be possible.

 

[Stoic Hero]

What's funny is even though religion is a deep part of Final Fantasy, almost every single one has the heroes of the story defeating the great being and writing their own history. It's a very negative look on religion as a whole, but a very positive look on the human spirit and initiative to overcome adversity through perseverance and working together as a team.

I'm a Christian myself, but I don't necessarily believe in fate. I believe both free will and fate work together to create who we are. Like, we choose our path from a set of predestined paths. And all of those paths are within "God's will," so we can be free to choose our lives while God is still ultimately in control.

To get to Final Fantasy VIII, I don't know about the time loop. I see where you're going with it, but I see it as them finally defeating "time" itself and writing their own history from there on out. I don't think there is a "god" in Final Fantasy VIII, I think the humans are alone now that Ultimecia is defeated. This is a reoccurring theme in the Final Fantasy games. For example:

Final Fantasy I: Endless time loop until the 4 heroes defeat Chaos, the "god" of the game.
Final Fantasy II: Not an endless loop, but the team beats the emperor, who is the immortal god of the game.
Final Fantasy III: Defeat the "Cloud of Darkness" who is the god of the game and bring the world out of the endless "dark vs light" struggle, with light as the winner.
Final Fantasy IV: Somewhat of an oddball. Moon people. Not really any god in this game.
Final Fantasy V: Defeat time and give the power to the humans.
Final Fantasy VI: Kefka becomes a god and you defeat him and give the power back to the humans.
Final Fantasy VII: No "god" but the life force represents the higher power that everyone must succumb to at the end of their life. No real gods, except Sephiroth and Aerith, who can both control the life force and manipulate it. But this is another oddball of sorts because you don't really kill any god.
Final Fantasy VIII: Ultimecia is the god of the game. Defeat her, and the time loop ends and the humans are free to choose their destiny.
Final Fantasy IX: Necron is the "darkness of eternity." The heroes defeat him and gain control over their own destinies.
Final Fantasy X: This is the biggest yet. Fully focuses on religion, makes numerous references to Judaism/Christianity/Islam, and the heroes defeat Yevon (Yaweh) and gain control over their own destinies, defeating sin once and for all.
Final Fantasy XII: Vayne/The Undying are the gods of the game. The heroes defeat them and gain control over their own destinies.
Final Fantasy XIII: Haven't beaten it, but I bet you I can tell you the ending...lol.

Sorry for the tl;dr but I hope you do read it and see that this is a reoccurring theme in the games, not exclusive to Final Fantasy VIII. I'd like to hear your thoughts.