LogFAQs > #927008027

You know, I kind of wish there was an option to wear their SeeD uniforms because those things are pretty slick.

The guy at the front gate talks about how he enjoys scolding troublemakers every year, and it just makes me want to own him in Triple Triad and take all his cards.

There's a big foreshadowing moment here that you can pick up from a couple of NPCs talking about how Galbadia's real target in Dollet was getting the communication tower up and running. However, they say that broadcasts using radio waves is useless because there's a worldwide signal interference, which started without warning 17 years ago. They only briefly touch on this later, but what actually caused it was Adel's tomb's seal. The jamming signal keeping her sealed was so strong that it actually affected signals on the planet's surface. It's weird to think that FFVIII's world is incapable of live broadcasts despite their technological advancements, although I suppose that problem is fixed once they take care of Adel for good.

When you get back, Cid will ask Squall what he thought about his first real action, and if you choose the classic "Whatever" response, he'll find it hilarious. Then when you talk to Seifer, he says they could have been heroes if it hadn't been for the order to withdraw. Once again, you see Seifer's dream of being a hero (specifically a sorceress's knight, but more on that later). Xu chides Seifer for acting like he was taking the best action as a captain because he'll never be a SeeD. It's rare to see something actually bother Seifer, but that comment definitely does. Then Cid comes along and tells him that he'll be disciplined for his irresponsible behavior, but at the same time, he's not without sympathy for him because he doesn't want them all to become mindless machines. He wants them to be able to think and act for themselves. It's the conundrum of the spirit of the law versus the letter of the law. As an academic and military institution, it's hard for them to deviate from the letter of the law because once they start making exceptions, it just leads to chaos. There has to be an objective standard to measure everyone against.

Cid is about to say more, but a faculty member informs him that he has some business in his office (likely related to the SeeD exam), and so he doesn't get to finish what he was about to say. If you talk to the faculty member afterwards, he says that SeeD will not act beyond the exact wording of a contract because they are not a non-profit organization. You can already see the conflict between Cid's vision for Garden and NORG's (via the faculty members who represent him) even this early on.

I like that they actually make you wait in the hallway for about a minute before the faculty member comes by and announces who passed. It provides an extra bit of tension as you wait for the results (even though you can probably guess that Squall passed). Then we cut to four students in the headmaster's office, and Cid starts to give a speech about how SeeD is Balamb Garden's elite mercenary force, but that's only one aspect of them. He begins to say, "When the time comes..." but the faculty member interrupts him again. We learn later on that SeeD's ultimate goal is the defeat the sorceress, but that vision got lost in the shuffle over time.

If you talk to the faculty member after the inauguration ceremony, he tells you to ignore the GF criticism you hear from other Gardens or military forces, so there's more foreshadowing...! If you talk to Cid, he'll give you a Battle Meter that tracks various battle statistics. You can actually upgrade it on a couple different opportunities throughout the game if you talk to the right people.
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