^ that.

Junction system

This new system revolves around summonable monsters, called Guardian Forces (GFs). A character must have a GF assigned to them ("junctioned") before he or she can use several standard Final Fantasy battle command abilities, such as "Magic" and "Item"; only "Attack" can be performed otherwise. While previous Final Fantasy titles used a pool of magic points (MP) consumed by each spell to limit magic use, in Final Fantasy VIII, spells are "drawn" from enemies and special Draw Points distributed throughout the game's environments. Spells are stocked as quantified inventory and consumed one at a time when used. GFs also allow characters to "junction" these spells to their own statistics — such as "Strength" and "Vitality" — for various bonuses.

Because of the flexibility and depth of this system — combined with the capability to draw unlimited quantities of a spell from a single enemy — it is possible to build one's character party up to significant levels of power fairly early into the game and allow them to — in most cases—inflict much more damage than the GFs themselves are capable of rendering. This alternative use of GFs was a significant departure for the series, as summoned creatures were previously used almost exclusively to deliver a single devastating attack. Other notable changes were present, as well, in that "stat junctioning" replaced the equippable weapons and armor of previous Final Fantasies, and while each character does retain a specialized weapon, that weapon cannot be unequipped, unlike in previous games. However, a limited number of upgrades can be performed on each character's weapon throughout the game, increasing its power and efficiency, as well as altering its appearance.