That FF8 Icon Warrants More Adoration

The Final Fantasy series boasts many unforgettable settings. From Elfheim in the very first Final Fantasy, Midgar in Final Fantasy 7, to Limsa Lominsa in Final Fantasy 14, each has earned a special place in fans' hearts, who love the distinctive quirks that make these locales so special. But, when it comes to one setting that merits more recognition than the others, it is definitely Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not just because of its elegant design, but also for being a absolutely bizarre school.

The Absolute Movie Moment

Before, we must highlight the obvious. Balamb Garden morphing into an airship and fleeing from a missile attack was pure cinema. This location was not just intended to be a training camp for mercenaries. It is a moving base that permits them to create new strategies and move, based on the requirements of those in control. I readily view it as one of the best airship creations in the series, alongside Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and some of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

This conversion of Balamb Garden into an airship remains one of the most iconic moments in gaming history.

The Initial Look of a Gloomy Home

As we begin playing Final Fantasy 8 and see Quistis leading Squall out of the infirmary, we get our initial glimpse of the environment this gloomy-looking teenager calls home. A panoramic shot starts from the ground of the school and ascends to focus on the awe-inspiring magnitude of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that makes it feel futuristic, but also heavenly. The rounded structures recall a distinctly late ‘90s concept of how the tomorrow would look. Conversely, because of the golden accents on the building and the extended trails of light emanating from the enormous glowing halo on top of the school, Balamb Garden looks like a massive angel. It was designed to be a tranquil place — excessively peaceful for an establishment that transforms teenagers into mercenaries.

The Unforgettable Theme Song

Matching the tranquility that the design of Balamb Garden suggests, we have the school’s soundtrack. One of the most cherished memories I have from my youth is strolling around the main area of Balamb Garden, watching those fish statues spurting water, and listening to the lullaby-ish theme song. The catch is that it keeps playing in your head forever. Once it returns to my mind, I’m forced to look up on YouTube for a 3-hour-long “Balamb Garden” song video. The sole way to end playing inside my head is to overdose of it.

• Soothing melody that lingers in your mind
• Main hub with fountain features
• Nostalgic feelings for many players

The Intriguing School

Balamb Garden is fascinating as a location as well as an organization. First, it accepts kids from 5 to fifteen years old to turn them into mercenaries, but it looks like a massive church. There are many military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but none look less militaristic than Balamb Garden.

The Ironic Motto

When you access the Balamb Garden Network using one of the game terminals, you discover that the credo of the academy is “Work hard, study hard, and play hard.” Apologies, but I didn't have the feeling that those teenagers training to be mercenaries are “playing hard” — except for Zell. But, given that the facility, where students encounter real monsters they can kill, is the sole place in the whole school available at all hours during the day, maybe that’s what they mean by “playing.” While combat preparation is the primary aspect of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their nutrition is awful, since students are eating so many hot dogs that the personnel have no other response to say besides “No more hot dogs today.”

Rigid Policies

Students are controlled by a tight set of rules, which, for one, we should expect from a military school, but conversely seems weirdly humorous. First, there’s not a dress code in the school, but they are not allowed to leave their dorms in the nights, except it’s for training. A student may be dismissed if they lag in their curriculum, for aggressive acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It may not seem like it, but Balamb Garden is genuinely concerned about its students’ romantic activities. The school formally suggests that students “take time to think things through before starting a relationship.” (After all, the true risk of being a student of Balamb Garden is love affairs, not battling with weapons and cutting each other's faces like Squall and Seifer were doing in the intro cutscene.)

Greater Than Just Appearance

Starting with the refined advanced design of the building to the contradictions and questionable practices of the institution, there are many features of Balamb Garden to appreciate. Many of us like to tease Squall, but Balamb Garden serves to remind us that there’s more to Final Fantasy 8 than simply aesthetics.