8. Final Fantasy VIII (PlayStation)

Moogles and chocobos may be the animal stars of the Final Fantasy series, but Final Fantasy VIII earns a spot in our list because it calls attention to the large collection of unsung heroes deserving of adoration: the monster summons. For far too long have mighty Bahamut, faithful Odin, and the icy Shiva toiled in thankless service to a rag-tag group of adventurers.

These summoned creatures used to be nothing more than high-powered spells with fancy animations. Bahamut is an impressive-looking dragon, but you could easily replace him with a few sprite effects in older Final Fantasy games since his summon was equivalent to a powerful fire spell. Final Fantasy VIII gave the summoned creatures new powers and intertwined their abilities with character development.

Summoned monsters could earn experience points, level up, and learn new abilities just like party members. Additionally, the new "compatibility" setting required characters to lavish attention on their summoned creatures to keep them happy and performing at top levels. It was a huge step forward toward equality for all summoned-kind. In light of these changes, the creatures discarded the subservient shackles associated with the "summoned" moniker and took on the title of "guardian forces" to shed the decidedly unflattering enslaved-pet image and promote its new benevolent protector status.

Emboldened with new powers, the guardian forces in Final Fantasy VIII dominated fight sequences with majestic entrances and devastating attacks. Behold the power of Shiva's Diamond Dust attack.

Squall and Rinoa? Pssh. It's all about summons.

When Squall calls on Shiva to help in battle, four green spheres rotate around Squall's head and fly off out of the picture. Then four blue spheres come back into view and spiral down together leaving trails and sparkles in their wake. The spheres coalesce and penetrate the ground to create an icy patch upon the earth. A giant ice crystal rises violently out of the spot, and we see Shiva encased in the crystal--eyes closed, arms crossed downward over her chest.

She opens her eyes and breaks out of the ice just by tossing her hair. The camera rotates around the scantily-clad Shiva; her strategically placed coverings could be mistaken for body paint or variations in skin color. Distracted players fail to notice her gathering energy as she arches her back while raising her hands over her head. She then throws her hands forward to unleash the cold energy blast that transforms the ground beneath the enemy into a frozen landscape that shatters and sends shards of diamond-dust shrapnel into the unsuspecting enemy. If the enemy survives, Squall can call on Shiva again and treat us to another spectacular guardian-force animation sequence.