Final Fantasy VIII Foreshadowed the Demise of SD TV Broadcasts
In Final Fantasy VIII, Squall foresees the obsolescence of SD television transmitted via radio waves and anticipates the emergence of IPTV, an astonishing prediction made six years ahead of Youtube’s existence. While not entirely precise, as discussions about high-definition digital signals were not novel, the game introduced the concept of “HD cable” as a crucial plot element in an early mission back in 1999. The provided screenshot reveals a radio communication tower, once dormant, planning to reintroduce analog broadcasts, a technology unused for 17 years in the game’s universe. Prior to this mission, Online HD cable stood as the sole method of signal transmission.