🔗 Share this article

This FF franchise features numerous iconic settings. Starting with Elfheim in the very first Final Fantasy, Midgar in Final Fantasy 7, to Limsa Lominsa in Final Fantasy 14, each has secured a cherished place in fans' hearts, who love the unique idiosyncrasies that make these locales so unique. But, when it comes to one place that deserves greater attention than the rest, it is definitely Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not only because of its stunning design, but also for being a incredibly weird school.

The Pure Blockbuster Scene

First, let's mention the elephant in the room. Balamb Garden morphing into an flying vessel and escaping from a rocket attack was pure cinema. This location was not only intended to be a academy for mercenaries. It is a traveling base that permits them to create new tactics and move, based on the demands of those in charge. Many easily regard it as one of the coolest airship concepts in the franchise, alongside Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and several of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

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

A First Look of a Brooding Sanctuary

As we begin playing Final Fantasy 8 and see Quistis leading Squall out of the infirmary, we get our first view of the location this sullen-looking teenager calls home. A panoramic shot starts from the ground of the school and rises to focus on the staggering magnitude of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that appears futuristic, but also somehow heavenly. The curvy structures recall a specifically late ‘90s idea of how the tomorrow would look. On the other hand, because of the gilded details on the building and the long trails of light coming from the immense glowing ring on top of the school, Balamb Garden resembles a massive angel. It was created to be a serene place — excessively peaceful for an institution that turns teenagers into mercenaries.

The Catchy Theme Song

Complementing the tranquility that the aesthetic of Balamb Garden portrays, we have the school’s soundtrack. One of the fondest memories I have from being a kid is strolling around the main area of Balamb Garden, watching those aquatic statues spraying water, and listening to the lullaby-ish theme song. The catch is that it continues playing in your head forever. Whenever it comes back to my mind, I’m forced to look up on YouTube for a extended “Balamb Garden” song video. The only way to get it out of playing inside my head is to overdose of it.

• Gentle melody that sticks in your mind
• Central area with water features
• Nostalgic feelings for many players

A Intriguing Academy

Balamb Garden is fascinating as a setting and also an organization. First, it accepts kids from 5 to fifteen years old to mold them into mercenaries, but it looks like a enormous church. There are a lot of military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but not one look less like a militaristic than Balamb Garden.

The Paradoxical Motto

When you access the Balamb Garden Network via one of the game terminals, you find out that the credo of the school is “Work hard, study hard, and play hard.” Apologies, but I never have the feeling that those teenagers training to be mercenaries are “playing hard” — only Zell. But, considering that the training area, where students find real monsters they can kill, is the sole place in the entire school available at all hours during the day, perhaps that’s what they mean by “playing.” While training is the primary aspect of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their diet is poor, since students are eating so many frankfurters that the staff have nothing else to say besides “No more hot dogs today.”

Rigid Policies

Students are controlled by a strict set of rules, which, on one hand, we should anticipate from a military school, but on the other seems strangely funny. First, there’s not a dress code in the school, but they are not allowed to leave their dorms in the evenings, unless it’s for training. A student may be dismissed if they fall behind in their studies, for aggressive acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It might not seem like it, but Balamb Garden is really concerned about its students’ romantic activities. The school officially advises that students “take time to think things through before starting a relationship.” (After all, the real threat of being a student of Balamb Garden is romantic relationships, not fighting with weapons and slashing each other's faces like Squall and Seifer were doing in the opening cutscene.)

Greater Than Only Aesthetics

From the delicate futuristic design of the building to the ironies and questionable actions of the academy, there are countless aspects of Balamb Garden to celebrate. We all like to joke about Squall, but Balamb Garden serves to remind us that there’s more to Final Fantasy 8 than only good looks.