"Right and wrong are not what separate us and our enemies. It's our different standpoints, our perspectives that separate us."
A skilled soldier who acts as the main character. Though he is one of SeeD's most accomplished students, his cold and professional demeanor ostracizes him from everyone else. He has a friendly rivalry with Seifer, and specialises in the notoriously awkward gunblade.
Above Good and Evil: See his quote. Much more of the Nietzschean variety than the watered-down and definitely villainous version that currently constitutes the actual trope.
Badass: Pretty much every SeeD qualifies, but Squall stands out among SeeDs even as a trainee.
Beneath the Mask: His "cold, unfriendly loner" persona is a mask he developed as a child in order to deal with the pain of losing his "sister" Ellone. If you look at his entire persona, it's very much like how a child would think a "tough adult" would act; beneath it, he is insecure and emotionally immature, and more caring than he likes to let on.
Squall's reserved nature contrasts with many other characters; he can easily be seen as the Blue Oni to Zell, Laguna, and Rinoa in addition to Seifer.
Broken Ace: Much of the student body of Balamb looks up to and admires Squall due to his incredible fighting skills and calm professionalism despite his lone wolf attitude. This tends to confound the emotionally stunted Squall who created his cold-hearted and powerful persona to be strong enough to not have to deal with other people.
Cannot Spit It Out: His feelings towards Rinoa. This is because for the majority of the game, he's simply not emotionally mature enough to understand his feelings towards her, or how to reciprocate.
Can't Stand Them, Can't Live Without Them: Squall spends the first two discs of the game grimly resisting Rinoa's efforts to get him to open up to her, but gradually giving way. When she falls into a coma at the end of disc two, however, he realizes how much he doesn't want to lose her, and she becomes his main priority.
Cool Sword: His gunblade, be it Revolver or the upgrades of it.
BFS: Revolver doesn't quite cut it, but the later models, specially Lionheart, sure does. Blasting Zone, his third Finishing Move, puts it into a whole new level.
Blade Spam (standard-type): Renzokuken, especially when ended with Lion Heart.
Determinator: Pretty much the entire third disc involves Squall turning into one of these to heal Rinoa. And then there's that time he jumps down several stories in order to save Zell.
Dueling Scar: He receives a scar over his face from dueling with his nemesis (who receives a matching but flipped scar, making their scars a literal case of "Dueling Scars").
Dynamic Entry: Squall makes a couple of impressive gunblade-first leaping entrances, the most notable of which is the Determinator moment mentioned above.
Everyone Can See It: Interestingly even Squall can see that everyone can see it, but he doesn't realize how much he loves Rinoa until she becomes a Sorceress and goes comatose.
Heroic BSOD: An epic one in the end FMV. One could argue that he also has one during the D-District Prison sequence or during Rinoa's coma on Disc 3, but really, with Squall, how can you tell? He really is basically a walking Heroic BSOD in progress that just happens to come to a head in the final FMV.
Hidden Depths: It's pretty easy at first glance to write Squall off as an annoying emo whiner, but as some of the other tropes listed here will demonstrate, it isn't quite that simple.
I Can't Dance: In the ballroom scene. Turns out to be a lie, at least once Rinoa gets him to loosen up a little.
Make sense since he went to a military academy. Note that the dance is specifically a formal ballroom dance that he can do. A strong example of Shown Their Work on the writer's part. Double points since he has to wear a dress uniform.
Inner Monologue: Squall does more of this than he does actual talking. A source of humor with pretty much anyone who gets to know him.
Ironic Echo: Near the beginning of the game, he tells Quistis that he's not interested in listening to her and tells her to go talk to a wall. Half a game later, after Rinoa falls into a coma, Squall realises he loves her and begs her to talk to him. Frustrated by her silence, he notes it's like talking to a wall.
Jerkass Façade: Squall is perfectly aware he comes off as cold, unfriendly and professional. He acts this way on purpose to keep from getting close to people because he doesn't want to have to experience the pain of losing them as he did with Ellone. In his (initial) opinion, being alone makes life easier for him as opposed to relying on others.
Lady and Knight: vows to become Rinoa's knight in Disc 3. Whether he's the Bright or Dark variety is irrelevant to him. All that matters is Rinoa's safety.
Loners Are Freaks: He catches this kind of attitude from many other characters in the game.
Love Triangle: Between Squall, Rinoa, and Seifer. It doesn't actually come up very much, as Rinoa was only with Seifer for the previous summer, and there's no hint of jealousy or real competition.
Magic Knight: While all of the PCs can use both weapons and magic, most of them favor one or the other; Squall is strong with both.
Never Be Hurt Again: The reason for his cold, detached demeanor is because his fellow orphan and sister, Ellone, left him alone as a child and he developed abandonment issues. He feels that, eventually, all friends and family die or go away, and the only way to avoid the pain from that is to never let anyone in again.
The Stoic: It's interesting to note that the exact qualities that make him a good soldier (quiet, emotionless, obedient) make him a poor human being because he forced himself to become an adult as a child to cope with the loss of Ellone. Contrast this with Laguna, who is both a competent soldier and a complete dork because he matured at a natural pace.
Stoic Woobie: A great deal of the tension between Squall and his teammates throughout the game is he refuses to open up to them about and problems he may be suffering. It does lead to a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming when he finally does open up to Rinoa, of course she was unconscious at time.
Not So Stoic: His stoicism increasingly breaks down as his coping mechanisms are tested and proved wanting. Disc 3 provides the best example, but instances occur as early as disc 1, starting with the mini-meltdown he has over the way people talk about Seifer after Seifer's supposed death.
You Are in Command Now: But he doesn't want it, and doesn't enjoy it. Even though he does well in it.
Rinoa Heartilly
"Look into my eyes... You're-going-to-like-me... You're-going-to-like-me... Did it work?"
A member of the Timber resistance group "Forest Owls". Her outgoing and happy-go-lucky attitude contrasts sharply with Squall, as does her lack of actual battlefield experience. She strikes up a relationship with Squall and becomes determined to crack his shell. She wields a boomerang-esque weapon called a Blaster Edge.
Distressed Damsel: Justified as she lived a comfortable middle-class life, unlike the others. Rinoa requires rescuing four times over the course of the game (once per disc!) and is unplayable for a good amount of the third disc thanks to being variously comatose, possessed by Ultimecia, or imprisoned by Esthar. This makes her a Damsel Scrappy to many players, at least until she becomes a sorceress.
Everything's Better with Princesses: Rinoa is not a princess, but the resistance calls her that as a nickname, most likely because she's the daughter of the occupying state's military commander.
Feather Motif: Beginning with her turning a flower petal into a feather in the opening sequence. Her limit break Angel Wing and her Infinity Plus One Blaster Edge also share an angel wing/feather theme.
Manic Pixie Dream Girl: Subverted. She acts like it around Squall in Disc 1 - and gets told off for it. She shapes up in Disc 2 after nearly getting killed by Edea. Played more straight in the emotional aspects when her persistence to getting to know Squall and for him to open up and rely on her that initiates his Character Development.
Motif: She is often associated with angels and shooting stars. She has a pair of stylized angelic wings printed on her clothes.
Muscles Are Meaningless: At level 100, the playable character with the highest unmodified strength stat in the game isn't Squall, Seifer, or Ward. It's Rinoa.
Nom De Mom: Her father's family name is Caraway. Rinoa goes by her mother Julia's surname, either as a form of protest against her father or just because being obviously related to a Galbadian general would hurt her credibility with the various factions of the Timber resistance.
Not What It Looks Like: Rinoa claims she doesn't want to ask Squall to see his ring (so Zell can make a replica of it) because people would get the wrong idea.
Raven Hair, Ivory Skin: The heroine with the palest skin and darkest hair of the three women.
Rebel Leader: She leads the Forest Owls, the only active resistance group in Timber.
Rebellious Princess: At least stylistically. She's not an actual princess, but the Forest Owls call her that.
Security Cling: Rinoa does this three times to Squall. First, after being rescued from the Iguions, she grabs onto him and doesn't want to let go. Later, while on the Ragnarok, after the intense sequence of events that's just occurred, she takes advantage of the gravity being turned off to float down into Squall's lap and puts her arms around him, telling him that it makes her feel safe. The third time is when she hugs him after he rescues her from the sorceress memorial.
Woman in White: When she wears her white (or ivory) dress during the SeeD ceremony and during the FH event.
Zell Dincht
"Why don't you try to show a little more passion...? You know, like me!"
A fellow SeeD who works alongside Squall and Selphie. Though he appears to be a comic-relief goof at first, he is actually a highly competent soldier with a deep knowledge of world history and a lot of integrity. He uses no weapon in battle, preferring instead to use martial arts.
Idiot Hero: He's said to be designed to resemble a shonen manga hero.
I Know Mortal Kombat: Learns his limit breaks from fighting magazines, which can easily be mistaken for a fan list of attacks from shonen manga and anime.
It's All My Fault: He has a moment of this, after he inadvertently said that Seifer belongs to the Garden right in front of the Galbadian President (who was being threatened by Seifer on live TV at the time). Fortunately, Quistis later reassures him that his recklessness didn't cause repercussions at all for their Garden.
Lightning Bruiser: His stat growth lends him naturally to becoming absurdly fast and strong.
Mr. Exposition: "Thank you very much, Mr. Know-It-All Zell."
Mr. Fixit: Subtly implied in the game that he has a love of machinery, and bringing him to the Bonus Dungeon makes it easier to complete it.
Depends on your interpretation of easy. If you completed the puzzle as it was supposed to be done, the player can move through the next section with Enc-None. If you use Zell for it, you can bypass the guessing game, but you have to fight some tough battles on your way down there. Battles which Enc-None doesn't work in.
Ramming Always Works: His strongest limit break has him dash with a punch towards, and then beyond the enemy to run one lap around the world before finally punching. The enemies will be damaged by the sonic boom, or something...
Shout Out: Possibly to Marty McFly. He's dressed in a red jacket, is very Hot Blooded compared to the rest of the cast, and for no particular reason two easy-to-ignore/miss cutscenes involve him riding a hoverboard. Then there's the whole thing involving his relations with Dr. Odine and the timed mission in Esthar...
Say what you will about Zell, but he's certainly no Chicken-Wuss.
His facial tattoo is apparently based off of something the developers saw on MTV.
Trademark Favorite Food: A kind of bread in the original Japanese; hot dogs in the English translation. Unfortunately for him it seems that they're everybody'sTrademark Favorite Food and the cafeteria is always sold out whenever he tries to get one. (This makes for a minor Dub Induced Plot Hole in the ending FMV, where Zell is seen stuffing his face with said flavored bread.)
A transfer student to Balamb Garden who ends up working alongside Squall and Zell. She is surprisingly perky and upbeat for a soldier, but behind her smiling face lies a psychotic, destructive streak that surfaces during times of stress. She is one of the more observant and practical members of the party. Also, she likes trains.
Confusion Fu: The basis of her Limit Break. You either get lucky and roll a Triple Meteor or The End within three turns, or you end up getting yourself killed because nothing but Pain and Esuna pop up. (Unless, of course, you exploit the PS1 cheat.)
"You know, the boys often choke on this test when I come with them."
Squall's instructor at Balamb Garden. Beautiful and intelligent, she is adored by the student base to the point where she has a fan club. However, behind her perfect appearance lies an insecure human who struggles to control her own emotions, and who has unrequited feelings for Squall.
Cool Big Sis: Subverted. She's initially set up and subconsciously acts as one of these, but as the game progresses, we see her making several irrational and immature decisions, the same as the rest of the cast.
Like Brother and Sister: She initially thought her feelings for Squall were love but later came to realize they were this.
Mega Manning: Her Limit Break revolves around Blue Magic. Unlike in the other games in the series, she learns new enemy skills from using special items, rather than getting hit by the attack.
Ship Sinking: Has an interest in Squall, but gives up as the story continues. Justified as she lost interest after remembering that she grew up with him, which is a product of the Westermarck effect.
Teacher/Student Romance —> Loving a Shadow: Quistis realizes that her "feelings" for Squall were actually sisterly affection rather than romantic affection.
Teen Genius: She's only a year older than Squall, but she's an instructor at the school at the start of the game.
"Thanks for the support, but I never miss my target."
An expert SeeD sniper who joins the Balamb Garden party on an assignment. He likes to style himself as a cool, unflappable gunman and complete ladies' man. However, this is just a façade so he can cope with the suffocating pressures of his job. His true personality is much more shy and dorky.
Gentle Giant: Despite what he would like others to believe, he's the kind of guy who wouldn't hurt a butterfly that landed on him.
The Heart: He has a bit of a rocky start, but from the visit to Fisherman's Horizon onward Irvine makes the most active and consistent efforts to keep the party pulled together and emotionally centered.
Obfuscating Stupidity: He feigns nervousness when he has the opportunity to assassinate Edea because he's the only party member to remember that she raised them.
"I've always gotta be doing somethin' big! I don't wanna stop. I'm gonna keep running! I've come this far... I'm gonna make it to the end, to the goal!"
One of Balamb Garden's top students, and Squall's rival. Though he is just as competent as Squall, he lacks the detachment necessary for a soldier and frequently disobeys orders when his temperament flares up. Though he is outgoing and honest, his single-minded pursuit of his dreams leads to him failing the SeeD examination, and further disaster.
Ascended Fanboy: The Ultimania guide reveals that he was influenced by seeing the movie in which Laguna played a knight, and that he based his gunblade stance on the one Laguna used during the film.
Brainwashed and Crazy: There is extensive fan debate as to how willingly Seifer served Edea as her Knight but certainly in the final battle with him he falls into this trope and is being used by Ultimecia. He even admits that he doesn't care, just wanting to impress Squall and prove he was right.
Cutscene Power to the Max: Unless you send your characters into battle with him without junctions, Seifer as a boss is unlikely to give you a lot of trouble. But during an automated sequence just before the final battle with him, he goes Odin on Odin by reversing his Zantetsuken to verticallybisect him...with no effort at all (In fairness, when Odin appears as a boss in the series, he generally lacks Contractual Boss Immunity to make up for his time limit). Even Squall is shocked. Of course, this sets up the stage for the appearance of Gilgamesh a few turns later, who proceeds to utterly defeat him in your place.
Delinquent: Ironically, he's the head of the disciplinary committee.
Evil Counterpart: To Squall. Their designs also make this very obvious—Squall is brunette, Seifer is blond; Squall wears black, Seifer wears white; Squall has more feminine features, Seifer has a very strong jaw; and they have opposite scars.
"One of these days, I'm gonna tell ya 'bout my ROMANTIC dream!"
Of course, in that context, Seifer is referring to the concept of Romanticism rather than actual romance.
Notice how in the second fight with Seifer, when he's about to whip out Demon Slice, he quips, "Ready to die, Squall?". He's only targeting Squall.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: A subtle variation; the scar that Seifer acquires in the opening FMV would be a hero scar on its own, but it's a mirror-image inverse of Squall's, making it more of a villain scar in context.
Karma Houdini: He never pulls any sort of act of redemption, and yet he never has to face any real consequences for his actions. In the ending cinematic, he is seen fishing with Raijin and Fujin, while Balamb Garden flies by. To be fair, he didn't actually do anything particularly evil, he just acted as Edea's and later Ultimecia's bodyguard. Still avoids any consequences for throwing in with an Obviously Evil sorceress, though.
Ki Attacks: The manual says that the fire magic used in Seifer's Limit Break is produced by chi and not Para-Magic.
Never Speak Ill of the Dead: When the party thinks he is dead, they remember him in a fonder light—much to the frustration of Squall who isn't willing to sugarcoat that Seifer was a bully and a Jerkass.
Pet the Dog: He has a few Pet the Dog moments when it comes to Rinoa... but his many Kick the Dog moments tend to overshadow it... and we never see those moments since they occur before the game.
Playing with Fire: Loves fire magic almost as much as his gunblade, and even uses it as part of his Limit Break.
Psychopathic Manchild: A type C case, In contrast to Squall, who is more emotionally withdrawn, Seifer is more emotionally stunted; incredibly impulsive, violent and bully that jumps at the chance to serve by Edea to fulfill his childhood dream and ending up getting Brainwashed and Crazy as a result.
"I speak with passion, from the heart! That's what matters most."
A Galbadian soldier who dreams of becoming a world-renowned journalist. His dorky and excitable demeanour obscures his extensive combat experience and natural courage. He uses a machine gun in battle and is the main character in the flashback sequences that Squall's party experiences throughout the game.
Luke, I Am Your Father: The Reveal regarding Laguna being Squall's father never actually happens. The closest you get to a confirmation are a few vague comments from Laguna and Kiros.
Retired Badass: He, Kiros, and Ward can still kick ass even after leaving the Galbadian army.
Screw the War, We're Partying: This seems to be Laguna's attitude in the first flashback sequence when he leaves Timber and goes to Deling City to see Julia peform.
Tall, Dark and Handsome: Again, two out of three; Laguna is average height at about 5'9". Although the Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania has amended his height to 181cm (5'11"), so he fits all three now.
A Galbadian soldier and the third member of Laguna's unit. His intimidating appearance on the battlefield contrasts sharply with his caring demeanour outside of it. He is rendered mute after suffering a serious injury to his throat during battle.
"You must fight to the end! Even though it may bring tragedy to others!"
A vain and power-hungry Sorceress who uses her brainwashing magic to seize control of Galbadia. SeeD is assigned the task of assassinating her. She is the wife of Cid Kramer, and has become possessed by the malevolent Sorceress Ultimecia.
Kill The Ones You Love: He's fully prepared to send his and Edea's kids to kill her, because he knows he's not capable of it himself, but it all works out in the end. And, depending on your perception of the Timey Wimey Ball, he might have known it would anyway.
"You cannot change the past, but seeing it once more is enough."
A mysterious girl who shares a connection with Squall, Laguna and SeeD. She is hunted by various factions during the game, most notably by Sorceress Edea. She possesses a supernatural ability that allows her to send a person's consciousness into the past, and is the source of the mysterious flashbacks that Squall's party has been experiencing.
Chekhov's Gunman: First appearance is her visiting Squall in the infirmary after his duel with Seifer in the FMV. She also later appears in the Training Center where she's rescued by Squall and Quistis, and she calls Quistis by her childhood nickname.
"Hey, jus' like Fujin said, ya know!? We're with Seifer. Always have, always will."
Seifer's partners-in-crime. Raijin often slurs his speech and ends his sentences with "y'know", while Fujin speaks in monotone. Along with Seifer, they make up the self-proclaimed Balamb Garden Disciplinary Committee.
Partially averted in the French localization, where she speaks sentences more often. Most of them are still very short, but they're sentences nonetheless.
An evil Sorceress who once used her powers to rule Esthar with an iron fist. She was overthrown by a resistance movement led by Laguna, and sealed into a technological tomb which was then launched into space.
Brawn Hilda: Some people may not even realize she's a she.
Unusually Uninteresting Sight: Don't be confused. That is indeed a Sorceress. She just happens to be a 15ft tall, masculine-looking, purple woman with an overtly muscular frame. Yet nobody ever comments on her appearance. This, combined with the appearance of other sorceresses such as Ultimecia, has led to the Fanon theory that the Sorceress Power causes unknown physical side-effects on each woman which varies from subject to subject.
Ultimecia is an evil, all-powerful Sorceress from the future. She seeks to cast the almighty Time Compression magic, which would combine the worlds of the past, present and future into a single point and enable her to rule over all of time itself.
All There in the Manual: The aptly-named Ultimania guidebook greatly elaborates on her character and explains her history and motivations, such as her Start of Darkness.
Jossed: The popular fan theory that Ultimecia is Rinoa from a Bad Future was shot down by the official strategy guide. Her powers might be Rinoa's, since sorceresses have to pass down their powers to others, but she herself clearly isn't Rinoa.
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy: Word Of God states that there are two tiers of this. First, Ultimecia's Start of Darkness was brought about when she was persecuted for the crimes she was going to commit, which became common knowledge thanks to the Time Travel antics of her future self (as depicted in the game). Second, Ultimecia's motivation was to use Time Compression to control time and thwart her destined defeat at the hands of the "legendary SeeD". But not only do her efforts to cast Time Compression paint a big bullseye on her chest for SeeD, but her use of the Time Compression spell allows Squall's party to travel to the future and defeat her directly.
Spell My Name with an S: Some localizations call her Artemisia, which is pronounced the same way than Ultimecia in Japanese and also creates an interesting link with the moon, one of the recurring motives of the game.
An optional, unjunctionable G-Force encountered in the Centra Ruins. After you obtain him, he can sometimes show up right at the beginning of a fight to One-Hit Kill your enemies before anybody has a chance to do anything. If you obtained him before completing Disc 3, he will show up at the start of the fight with Seifer, and get cut clean in half. Fortunately, Gilgamesh replaces him.
Call Back: His entire appearance is one huge one to Final Fantasy V: Gilgamesh refers to the Dimensional Interval (i.e. the Interdimensional Rift that houses the Void he was banished to) and in the Japanese version, he nearly name drops Bartz, The Hero of V and his Worthy Opponent.
Multi-Armed and Dangerous: If you look closely though, the arms on his cape are cardboard cutouts, with his real arms on his right side under it and holding his cape.
