Sector 8

Sector 8 is one of the 8 Sectors that divide up the city of Midgar in Final Fantasy VII. Sector 8 is the main entertainment area in Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-. LOVELESS Avenue is its main area of business and art. There the Genesis Fanclub meets and performances of the ancient epic LOVELESS take place. The only Sector that can be explored above the Plate, Sector 8 gives the only glimpse of life in Midgar that those who escape the poverty of the Slums can enjoy. As a traditional training mission, all rookie Turks are sent to patrol Sector 8.

Before Crisis -Final Fantasy VII-
In the first Episode of Before Crisis, the player's Turk is sent on the traditional patrol Turk mission through Sector 8. It just so happens that the forces of the first AVALANCHE, an eco-terrorist group, is attacking Sector 8 to bring Shinra down. Their plan is to the destroy the Sector 8 Reactor and take the entire sector with it. Tseng, who is monitoring the mission, orders the Turk to find out more about this AVALANCHE.

The Turk fights his or her way through the enemy ranks and into the Reactor to stop them. Once the fighting gets intense, Reno, a fellow Turk, helps out as support. Inside the Reactor, Reno and the Turk split up. While the Turk diffuses the bomb, Reno charges in to fight the enemy leader, a man named Shears who knows about the Turks and their skills. Shears is very powerful, and beats Reno. The Turk goes in to fight Shears next, but is also beaten. Despite the defeat, AVALANCHE moves to Junon, to attack President Shinra.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Sector 8 is the Sector just outside of Shinra Headquarters in Crisis Core. It leads to the Sector 1 Station, where travelers can go down into the Slums of Sector 5. It has two notable areas, the LOVELESS Avenue and the Fountain Place. Zack Fair can join the Genesis Fanclub here on his first visit.

The Genesis Army attacks Midgar later on in the game, and Zack must fight them through Sector 8. Along the way he runs into Reno and Cissnei of the Turks. Though Reno acts rude and territorial, Cissnei is thankful to Zack for saving her life.

Later on, Zack goes through Sector 8 on a hunt for parts for a flower wagon for his girlfriend, Aerith Gainsborough. He gets wheels from a man's car on LOVELESS Avenue in exchange for a piece of the profits from the flower venture. When Zack is sent to his mission in Nibelheim, he never can return to Midgar or Sector 8.

Final Fantasy VII
Four years later, Aerith can be seen selling flowers in Sector 8 in the opening FMV of Final Fantasy VII.

Cloud Strife runs through Sector 8 while fleeing from the forces of Shinra after blowing up the Sector 1 Reactor. Along the way, Cloud meets Aeris, who offers him some flowers. However, Shinra guards soon chase after him, and Cloud cuts the meeting short. Just as the Shinra forces surround him, Cloud jumps off the side of a bridge onto an oncoming train. He joins the rest of AVALANCHE on their way to their secret base in the Sector 7 Slums.

After the defeat of Diamond Weapon, Cloud and company parachute into Midgar, landing in Sector 8. Upon arriving at the same street Cloud escaped from the Shinra guards earlier, Cloud is forced into battle with the Proud Clod which is being controlled by the Shinra executives, Scarlet and Heidegger. Once the battle is over, the machine is destroyed and the two Executives seem to have died. The party travels up the Sister Ray support beam that was recently placed in the middle of the train tracks.

Sector 8 is completely destroyed along with most of Midgar when Meteor falls onto the city. No remnant of it survived the calamity.

Dirge of Cerberus -Final Fantasy VII-
In the beginning flash-back sequence of the game, Vincent Valentine can be seen in Midgar during Meteorfall. He proceeds to travel up a flight of stairs to face Professor Hojo on the Sister Ray. It can be assumed that this is the same path Cloud utilized in Sector 8.

Rubble
The rubble is accessed from Sector 1 - Outside Reactor, after the reactor is destroyed. It is a small tunnel featuring debris from the explosion, visited very briefly as AVALANCHE blow a hole to allow them to enter the surrounding area.

Outside Sector 1
Briefly accessed, this area features debris in the background left from the reactor explosion. Stairs at the back lead up left to Loveless Avenue.

Loveless Avenue
This area features advertisements for LOVELESS, and was previously seen in the opening sequence. Upon arrival, non-player characters are found fleeing the area, and "Flower Girl" is encountered. The player can interact with her, and buy a flower for 1 gil. Heading south from here leads to the Fountain.

Fountain
Upon first arrival, the area features many non-player characters frantically fleeing the area. A Potion is featured southwest of the fountain. Heading below will lead to the bridge.

Upon return to Midgar later in the game, infrastructure for the Sister Ray covers this area, blocking off the area behind the fountain. Two chests at the bottom of the screen on the right of the path, the lower one containing an Elixir, and the upper one contains a Mystile. A save point appears on the left side of the fountain.

Cait Sith waits at the top of the stairs if he is not in the party. If he is in the party then he does not appear, but at the point where he stands he will exit from Cloud. At this point he says "this way" and runs up a flight of stairs. If he is in the party Cloud follows him and then Cait Sith rejoins, while if he is not in the party he continues up to the top Up the stairs and off screen.

The exit at the top of the screen leads to higher parts of the cannon infrastructure.

Bridge
This area features many houses close together, in a typical street with lamp lights and a stone pavement. When first visited, Cloud will encounter soldiers. After the encounter, Cloud will enter Train - Cargo Room.

Upon return to Midgar later in the game the area is accssed, from Sector 8 Tunnel - Fork 8. Proud Clod boss battle.

Underground
One of the pipes says "GHIJKL41254325".

Sector 8 Tunnel
The tunnels feature two types of areas, tunnels and forks. Tunnels are linear paths, though they curve right. Every tunnel has "16" written on the wall, with the exception of Tunnel 7, the room the party enters in, and the Sector 0 End which has the ladder in its place.

Forks start off as a single path on the bottom but then lead in two different directions. Forks are numbered on the wall in front of the fork. The right path always leads to a tunnel, while the left path leads to special areas. In most cases the left path is inaccessible. In the below names, the numbered tunnels are the right path of the numbered forks, e.g. "Tunnel 1" is the right path above the "Fork 1".

Farthest down one can go. Attempting to head further down will have Cloud say "Dead end." At the bottom of the screen on the left is a Save point, and on the right is the W-Item Materia. If this Materia is not picked up it can still be excavated from Bone Village.

The left path is blocked off. Between the fork, on the left is a Magic Source and on the right is a Mind Source.

Leads to Fork 2.

Red XIII appears at the bottom of the screen if not in the party. He tells Cloud the cannon is not in this direction then runs down the right path. The left path is blocked off. A chest between the fork contains a Guard Source.

Leads to Fork 3.

The left path is blocked off. On the left hand side of the path is a chest containing a Power Source.

Leads to Fork 4.

The left path is blocked off.

Leads to Fork 5.

The left path is blocked off.

Leads to Fork 6.

The left path is blocked off.

Barret is here if he is not in the party. He tells Cloud to leave it to him and asks he hurries to the cannon before going into an offensive stance while staring down the tunnel. If talked to, he will not be there after exiting and reentering.

Leads to Fork 7.

The left path is blocked off.

A ladder climbs into the duct linking the tunnel with the underground. Traveling upwards triggers the entrance of the Turks.

Leads to Fork 8.

Yuffie appears by the right path if recruited and not in the player's current party. Talking with her will make her no longer present when reentering.

The left path leads to the tunnel beneath the Bridge.

Tifa appears on the right if not in the player's current party. When speaking to her, she will respond to say she's fine and instructs Cloud to go to the cannon. After speaking to her, upon reentering, she will no longer be present.

Cid stands by the fork if not in the player's current party. When speaking to him, he will wonder which way the cannon is. After speaking to him, upon reentering, he will no longer be present.

This path is a dead end going upward, though a ladder on the left takes the player to Sector 0 and its path to Shinra Bulding. This route can be taken to get various items from the Shinra Building, including missable ones.

The North End is Tunnel 0, the right path of Fork 0. A wall appears in front of the player.

Cannon Infrastructure
If Vincent is recruited and not in the current party, he stands in the top-right corner of the lower platform and curses Hojo when talked to.

If Barret is in the current party a chest appears on the right side of the second platform and contains Missing Score, his ultimate weapon. The weapon is missable and after engaging Hojo by the control panel, the chest and its weapon are no longer available.

On the top platform the exit to the right leads into the cannon control panel.

Cannon Control Panel
The cannon control panel area is at the top of the infrastructure for the Sister Ray. Hojo hits buttons at the control panel. Approaching him begins a scene where he brags about his evil deeds and begins a boss battle against him.

The area is seen in a cutscene after the player defeats Diamond Weapon. Hojo fires the cannon at the North Crater and removes the barrier. During this scene one has control of the invisible player for a brief period, and can run toward Hojo and trigger the earlier mentioned scene and boss battle. This is a glitch that bypasses the Rain on Midgar scenario.

Purchasing a flower
In LOVELESS Avenure, Cloud meets "Flower Girl". After interacting with her, in order to purchase a flower, the following dialog options must be chosen:

After choosing correctly and not rejecting her, Cloud will obtain a flower. This can be useful for date mechanics involving either Tifa or Barret in 7th Heaven.

Battling the soldiers
When on the Bridge, two soldiers will confront Cloud. The player has two options, either to fight them or run. If the player chooses to fight them, they will fight two MPs, while if not, they will simply run. After this, Cloud will be confronted by three MPs, which the player can choose again to run from or fight. Finally, the player will be confronted by more guards, and if choosing to fight, Cloud will fight a two-sided battle with two MPs in front and one behind.

Return to fight Hojo
When returning to fight Professor Hojo, Sector 8 is accessed from the underground. When reaching the Bridge once again, the party must fight Cloud Prod. After this, the player must progress through to the Fountain, where they will be able to climb the Sister Ray to defeat him.

Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- shops can only be visited from the menu. Sector 8 Materia Shop is available after completing Mission 6-2-1.

Enemies
All featured in Final Fantasy VII.

Sector 8

 * MP x2 (Boss)
 * MP x3 (Boss)
 * MP x3 (Boss) (Ambush)

Sector 8 Underground (Upper)

 * Cromwell x2
 * Manhole x3 [Battle diagonal mode]
 * Manhole x3 [Battle broadside mode]
 * Behemoth
 * Crazy Saw x2
 * Crazy Saw, Cromwell
 * Cromwell (Back attack)
 * Cromwell x2 (Back attack)
 * Cromwell x2 (Ambush)

Sector 8 Underground (Lower)

 * Cromwell x3
 * Manhole x3 [Battle diagonal mode]
 * Manhole x3 [Battle broadside mode]
 * Behemoth
 * Crazy Saw x2
 * Crazy Saw, Cromwell
 * Cromwell (Back attack)
 * Cromwell x2 (Back attack)
 * Cromwell x2 (Ambush)

Train Tunnel Segments (All screens)

 * Crazy Saw
 * Shadow Maker x2
 * Shadow Maker x3
 * Shadow Maker x2, Crazy Saw
 * Shadow Maker x2 (Back attack)
 * Crazy Saw (Back attack)
 * Turks:Reno, Turks:Rude, Turks:Elena (Boss) (only in initial segment)

Train Tunnel Junctions (All screens)

 * Crazy Saw
 * Shadow Maker x2
 * Shadow Maker x3
 * Shadow Maker x2, Crazy Saw
 * Shadow Maker x2 (Back attack)
 * Crazy Saw (Back attack)

Musical themes
In Final Fantasy VII, the background music that plays in Sector 8 after the Sector 1 Reactor explosion is "Heart of Anxiety", also known as "Anxious Heart", while the background music that plays during AVALANCHE's infiltration on Midgar after the defeat of Diamond WEAPON changes to "Opening - Bombing Mission" , which also plays in the underground area.

In Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-, the background music that plays in Sector 8 is called "The Mako City".

Trivia

 * In Final Fantasy VII, a poster (visible towards the right side of the picture above) mentions Mt. Kolts, a location from Final Fantasy VI.