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This Final Fantasy franchise includes many memorable locations. From Elfheim in the very first Final Fantasy, Midgar in Final Fantasy 7, to Limsa Lominsa in Final Fantasy 14, every one has secured a special place in fans' hearts, and they love the unique details that make these areas so remarkable. However, if one place that warrants greater attention than the rest, it is definitely Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not only because of its beautiful design, but also for being a incredibly bizarre school.

An Pure Movie Scene

First, let's highlight the obvious. Balamb Garden transforming into an airship and fleeing from a rocket attack was pure cinema. This place was not just intended to be a academy for mercenaries. It is a traveling base that allows them to create new tactics and move, depending on the needs of those in charge. Many easily regard it as one of the coolest airship concepts in the series, together with Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and some of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

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

A First Look of a Gloomy Home

As we begin playing Final Fantasy 8 and see Quistis leading Squall out of the medical wing, we get our initial look of the place this gloomy-looking teenager calls home. A panoramic shot starts from the ground of the school and rises to focus on the staggering size of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that feels futuristic, but also somehow heavenly. The curvy structures recall a specifically late ‘90s vision of how the future would look. On the other hand, because of the golden details on the building and the extended trails of light emanating from the immense glowing halo on top of the school, Balamb Garden looks like a massive angel. It was designed to be a tranquil place — too peaceful for an institution that turns teenagers into mercenaries.

The Catchy Soundtrack

Complementing the calmness that the aesthetic of Balamb Garden conveys, we have the school’s theme song. One of the fondest memories I have from childhood is strolling around the main area of Balamb Garden, seeing those aquatic statues spurting water, and listening to the soothing theme song. The issue is that it keeps playing in your head forever. Whenever it comes back to my mind, I’m forced to search on YouTube for a extended “Balamb Garden” song video. The sole way to make it stop playing inside my head is to listen to it repeatedly of it.

• Soothing music that lingers in your mind
• Central hub with water features
• Nostalgic associations for countless players

A Fascinating School

Balamb Garden is compelling as a setting as well as an institution. For starters, it accepts kids from five to 15 years old to transform them into mercenaries, but it appears like a giant church. There are a lot of military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but none look less like a militaristic than Balamb Garden.

The Paradoxical Slogan

If you use the Balamb Garden Network using one of the game terminals, you learn that the slogan of the school is “Work hard, study hard, and play hard.” I’m sorry, but I didn't have the feeling that those teenagers preparing to be mercenaries are “playing hard” — only Zell. But, considering that the training area, where students encounter living monsters they can battle, is the sole place in the whole school available at all hours during the day, maybe that’s what they intend by “playing.” While training is the key aspect of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their diet is poor, since students are devouring so many hot dogs that the staff have no other response to say besides “No more hot dogs today.”

Strict Regulations

Students are controlled by a tight set of rules, which, for one, we should anticipate from a military school, but on the other seems weirdly funny. First, there’s not a dress code in the school, but they can’t leave their dorms in the evenings, unless it’s for training. A student may be dismissed if they lag in their studies, for aggressive acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It might not seem like it, but Balamb Garden is truly concerned about its students’ relationships. The school formally suggests that students “take time to think things through before starting a relationship.” (After all, the real danger 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.)

More Than Only Aesthetics

Starting with the refined futuristic design of the building to the ironies and dubious actions of the academy, there are many features of Balamb Garden to celebrate. Many of us like to make fun of Squall, but Balamb Garden serves to remind us that there’s more to Final Fantasy 8 than only good looks.