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This Final Fantasy franchise features countless memorable locations. From 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 distinctive quirks that make these areas so remarkable. But, when it comes to one place that merits greater attention than the others, it is undoubtedly Balamb Garden from Final Fantasy 8, not only because of its stunning design, but also for being a truly weird school.

An Pure Cinematic Scene

First, we must address the obvious. Balamb Garden morphing into an airship and escaping from a missile attack was absolute cinema. This institution was not only designed to be a training camp for mercenaries. It is a mobile base that allows them to develop new strategies and reposition, based on the requirements of those in control. Many readily regard it as one of the most impressive airship concepts in the franchise, together with Final Fantasy 10's Fahrenheit and several of the Final Fantasy 12 military airships.

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

A First Glimpse of a Brooding Home

As we start playing Final Fantasy 8 and watch Quistis leading Squall out of the medical wing, we get our first look of the place this sullen-looking teenager calls home. A panoramic shot starts from the ground of the school and ascends to focus on the impressive scale of the building. Balamb Garden has a design that appears futuristic, but also divine. The curvy structures recall a specifically late ‘90s vision of how the tomorrow would look. On the other hand, because of the gilded accents on the building and the extended beams of light emanating from the immense glowing ring on top of the school, Balamb Garden evokes a massive angel. It was designed to be a serene place — excessively peaceful for an establishment that transforms teenagers into mercenaries.

An Memorable Theme Song

Matching the calmness that the appearance of Balamb Garden suggests, we have the school’s soundtrack. One of the fondest memories I have from childhood is walking around the main area of Balamb Garden, seeing those fish statues spraying water, and hearing to the lullaby-ish theme song. The catch is that it keeps playing in your head forever. Whenever it comes back to my mind, I’m compelled 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 have enough of it.

• Lullaby melody that remains in your mind
• Main hub with water features
• Sentimental memories for countless players

A Fascinating Academy

Balamb Garden is intriguing as a location and also an organization. For starters, it accepts kids from 5 to 15 years old to transform them into mercenaries, but it looks like a massive church. There are numerous military schools in RPGs, like in Trails of Cold Steel, but none look less like a militaristic than Balamb Garden.

The Ironic Slogan

When you use the Balamb Garden Network using 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 didn't have the feeling that those teenagers preparing to be mercenaries are “playing hard” — only Zell. But, considering that the training center, where students find living monsters they can kill, is the only place in the entire school available at all hours during the day, maybe that’s what they intend by “playing.” While training is the key part of a student’s life in Balamb Garden, their food is poor, since students are eating so many hot dogs that the staff have no other response to say besides “No more hot dogs today.”

Tight Rules

Students are governed by a strict set of rules, which, for one, we would expect from a combat school, but on the other seems oddly humorous. First, there’s not a dress code in the school, but they can’t leave their rooms in the evenings, except it’s for training. A student can be expelled if they lag in their studies, for violent acts, and for… “sexual promiscuity.” It might not look like it, but Balamb Garden is genuinely concerned about its students’ sex life. The school officially 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 romantic relationships, not battling with gunblades and slashing each other's faces like Squall and Seifer were doing in the intro cutscene.)

Greater Than Only Aesthetics

From the delicate advanced design of the building to the paradoxes and questionable decisions of the school, there are numerous features of Balamb Garden to celebrate. We all like to tease Squall, but Balamb Garden serves to remind us that there’s greater depth to Final Fantasy 8 than simply good looks.