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The FF series includes many memorable places. Starting with Elfheim in the very first Final Fantasy, Midgar in Final Fantasy 7, all the way to Limsa Lominsa in Final Fantasy 14, each has found a special place in fans' hearts, who admire the unique quirks that make these areas so special. But, when it comes to one setting that deserves greater praise than the rest, it is undoubtedly Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not only because of its beautiful design, but additionally for being a incredibly weird school.

The Pure Cinematic Scene

Before, let's highlight the obvious. Balamb Garden morphing into an flying vessel and escaping from a missile attack was absolute cinema. This place was not just intended to be a academy for mercenaries. It is a moving base that permits them to develop new plans and relocate, based on the needs of those in charge. I easily view it as one of the coolest airship concepts in the franchise, alongside Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and some of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

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

The First View of a Brooding Home

When we start playing Final Fantasy 8 and see Quistis escorting Squall out of the infirmary, we get our initial glimpse of the location this sullen-looking teenager calls home. A panoramic shot begins from the ground of the school and ascends to focus on the impressive magnitude of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that feels advanced, but also angelic. The flowing structures bring to mind a distinctly late ‘90s concept of how the tomorrow would look. Conversely, because of the gilded accents on the building and the long trails of light emanating from the immense glowing ring on top of the school, Balamb Garden resembles a giant angel. It was designed to be a peaceful place — too peaceful for an academy that transforms teenagers into mercenaries.

An Unforgettable Soundtrack

Complementing the tranquility that the aesthetic of Balamb Garden conveys, we have the school’s soundtrack. One of the dearest memories I have from being a kid is walking around the main area of Balamb Garden, watching those fish statues spouting water, and hearing to the soothing theme song. The catch is that it continues playing in your head constantly. Once it comes back 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 listen to it repeatedly of it.

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

A Compelling School

Balamb Garden is compelling as a location as well as an establishment. First, it accepts kids from five to 15 years old to mold them into mercenaries, but it looks like a enormous church. There are many military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but not one look less like a militaristic than Balamb Garden.

The Contradictory Motto

When you access the Balamb Garden Network using one of the game terminals, you learn that the credo of the academy is “Work hard, study hard, and play hard.” Apologies, but I never have the impression that those teenagers training to be mercenaries are “playing hard” — except for Zell. However, given that the training center, where students encounter real monsters they can battle, is the sole place in the whole school accessible at any time during the day, perhaps that’s what they mean by “playing.” While combat preparation is the most important part of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their diet is poor, since students are consuming so many frankfurters that the staff have no other response to say besides “No more hot dogs today.”

Strict Rules

Students are controlled by a strict set of rules, which, on one hand, we would anticipate from a military school, but on the other seems oddly humorous. For example, there’s not a dress code in the school, but they are not allowed to leave their rooms in the nights, except it’s for training. A student can be expelled if they lag in their curriculum, for aggressive acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It may not look like it, but Balamb Garden is genuinely worried about its students’ relationships. The school officially advises that students “take time to think things through before starting a relationship.” (After all, the true threat of being a student of Balamb Garden is love affairs, not fighting with weapons and cutting each other's faces like Squall and Seifer were doing in the intro cutscene.)

Greater Than Only Aesthetics

Starting with the refined futuristic design of the building to the contradictions and debatable decisions of the institution, there are countless aspects of Balamb Garden to appreciate. We all like to joke about Squall, but Balamb Garden serves to remind us that there’s more to Final Fantasy 8 than only aesthetics.