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The FF series boasts many memorable locations. From Elfheim in the very first Final Fantasy, Midgar in Final Fantasy 7, all the way to Limsa Lominsa in Final Fantasy 14, every one has secured a cherished place in players' hearts, who celebrate the unique quirks that make these locales so remarkable. However, if one place that warrants more attention than the rest, it is certainly Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not only because of its beautiful design, but also for being a incredibly strange school.

An Absolute Cinematic Scene

Before, we must mention the elephant in the room. Balamb Garden morphing into an flying vessel and fleeing from a rocket attack was absolute cinema. This place was not just designed to be a academy for mercenaries. It is a moving base that permits them to establish new plans and relocate, based on the requirements of those in command. I easily view it as one of the coolest airship designs in the franchise, along with Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and several of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

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

The Initial Glimpse of a Gloomy Home

When we start playing Final Fantasy 8 and see Quistis escorting Squall out of the medical wing, we get our initial look of the location this gloomy-looking teenager calls home. A sweeping shot begins from the floor of the school and rises to focus on the impressive size of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that makes it feel futuristic, but also divine. The curvy structures recall a specifically late ‘90s idea of how the tomorrow would look. Conversely, because of the golden features on the building and the extended beams of light coming from the massive glowing ring on top of the school, Balamb Garden evokes a massive angel. It was designed to be a peaceful place — excessively peaceful for an academy that transforms teenagers into mercenaries.

The Unforgettable Soundtrack

Matching the tranquility that the appearance of Balamb Garden portrays, we have the school’s theme song. One of the dearest recollections I have from childhood is walking around the main area of Balamb Garden, seeing those fish statues spraying water, and hearing to the soothing theme song. The catch is that it keeps playing in your head forever. Whenever it comes back to my mind, I’m compelled to search 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.

• Soothing melody that sticks in your mind
• Central area with fountain features
• Sentimental memories for many players

A Intriguing Academy

Balamb Garden is compelling as a setting as well as an institution. First, it accepts kids from 5 to fifteen years old to turn them into mercenaries, but it looks like a massive church. There are a lot of military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but not one look less militaristic than Balamb Garden.

A Ironic Slogan

If you access the Balamb Garden Network via one of the in-game terminals, you find out that the motto 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 center, where students encounter living monsters they can defeat, is the only place in the whole school accessible at all hours during the day, maybe that’s what they intend by “playing.” While combat preparation is the primary part of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their food is poor, since students are devouring so many frankfurters that the staff have nothing else to say except “No more hot dogs today.”

Tight Rules

Students are controlled by a tight set of rules, which, for one, we would expect from a combat school, but on the other seems strangely amusing. For example, there’s no dress code in the school, but they can’t leave their rooms in the nights, except it’s for training. A student can be dismissed if they lag in their curriculum, for violent acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It might not look like it, but Balamb Garden is really concerned about its students’ sex life. The school officially recommends that students “take time to think things through before starting a relationship.” (After all, the true danger of being a student of Balamb Garden is love affairs, not battling with weapons and slashing each other's faces like Squall and Seifer were doing in the intro cutscene.)

More Than Just Appearance

From the elegant futuristic design of the building to the ironies and dubious actions of the academy, there are many features of Balamb Garden to appreciate. Many of us like to joke about Squall, but Balamb Garden reminds us that there’s more to Final Fantasy 8 than simply aesthetics.