Origin of the Deep Sea Research Center

[celtcknight]

Where did it come from? Who had control of it?

How did it end up out in the middle of the ocean? B

Basically what is the story behind it, let alone Zells small vague summary?

Did it find and excavate Lunatic Pandora or what??

How long was it sitting out there...etc. The questions can go on.

Would anyone like to give it a stab, and expand?

[Big D]

Some of this is assumption, some is based on Irvine and Zell's accounts.
The research centre was built by an independent group, perhaps FFVIII's equivalent of an NGO, to research other ways of enabling normal people (i.e. not sorceresses) to use para-magic. Garden fighters use GF and junctioning; this is the most powerful system, better than whatever the Galbadian and Esthar military has. The centre was looking for deposits of high-energy materials, and the ocean, unexplored and uninhabited, seemed a natural place to look. "Battleship Island", as the centre is also known, travelled and probed and searched. At some point, they captured the GF Bahamut for their experiments. They then found a very high-energy site, and started to dig. What they uncovered were the undersea ruins, and Ultima Weapon, a menace so powerful that they decided to seal the facility and leave, maybe in the hope that everyone would forget about it and not go snooping around. So Squall and co. had to go snooping around... and somehow, three adolescents manage to destroy an ancient, powerful menace with two heads and a sword bigger than a longboard.

I don't think the research centre had anything to do with the Lunatic Pandora... but maybe that was part of their search, too - there were probably rumours going around about how Esthar sank the Crystal Pillar; the Pillar is an awesomely powerful source of magical energy, so it could've been relevant to their research.

[celtcknight]

The only reason i thought there was some connection is that when the monsters fall form the sky, lunatic pandora (the crystal pillar)begins to glow. The same happened down in the deep sea deposit. Right before Ultima weapon appeared, Squall comments on the rocks "resonating."

Thanx for that description

[Iceglow]

the rocks may be of the same type of those in lunatic pandora and tears point to be fair but the thing is they might be able to summon monsters therefore the rocks would naturally of been there to summon ultima. Be honest did you expect to find a rock only in one location?

[DJZen]

Calling Lunatic Pandora "a rock" is like calling the Death Star "a small moon".

[DocFrance]

Calling Lunatic Pandora "a rock" is like calling the Death Star "a small moon".That's no moon...

Anyway, what's all this about Zell and Irvine? What do they have to do with any of this?

[Big D]

When the party first goes blundering into the Research Centre, either Zell or Irvine spout off their very limited knowledge of what the place is about, depending on who's in the party - or Squall, if the other two are absent.

[TasteyPies]

Why would they leave the base behind? why not just drift/fly/float away?

[DocFrance]

When the party first goes blundering into the Research Centre, either Zell or Irvine spout off their very limited knowledge of what the place is about, depending on who's in the party - or Squall, if the other two are absent.
And why do they know anything about... oh, wait, it's FF8 - the game of a million plot holes.

[Big D]

And why do they know anything about... oh, wait, it's FF8 - the game of a million plot holes.'News' is a rare commodity in FFVIII's world, but not a completely alien concept. The research centre was hardly a big conspiratorial secret, so it'd make sense that some people would know about the work they're doing. Just like Zell knows a little about Odine items. The cast of FFVIII are certainly ignorant where some things are concerned, but they're not universally moronic. I don't think it's a plot-hole for them to know those things.Why would they leave the base behind? why not just drift/fly/float away?They dug down to Ultima Weapon's cavern, there was a pretty solid series of supports and structures connecting it to the surface; according to the logs, the research at that site took a few years... once they uncovered Ultima Weapon, they just sealed everything in a hurry and left. They'd have had to do a lot of work to cut loose from the ocean ruins if they wanted to sail off, and that kind of delay could've cost them their lives.

[DocFrance]

The cast of FFVIII are certainly ignorant where some things are concerned, but they're not universally moronic.
That's arguable.

[Iceglow]

hmm well being SeeDs they have a full education and a lot of military or scientific / magical knowledge as part of their job maybe they covered it in their lessons at one stage?

[DocFrance]

Actually, I think it's a moot point, really. Just like most other discussions... does it change the game at all if R=U really is true? Nope. Same for this thing about the Underwater Research Center.

[celtcknight]

You "think" its a "moot" point. And hey, It might not change the game but may add some elaboration to it. And hell, it may lead to support R=U, who knows, that why were discussing.

I simply found it to be conversation to bring up an element in the game that may be overlooked. I am interested to how the deep sea deposit is so much like Lunatic Pandora (that was the first discussion) and anything else that we come up with with such a mysterious abandonned place.

Overall, we may find there are no plot holes in the game but need to disect it in order to fill these so called holes. It wont change the game but may make it better understood. The thought of R=U makes the game better for me.

Is there anything special to where the deep sea research center is located? It sits perfectly in the middle of the ocean, and opposite of FH (where the big cereal bowl is) Is there some relation there?

[GrimmReaper]

i never really thought about the deep sea reasearch center... I've always wondered why FH looks like a giant satallite intercepter to cut the boundaries between the 2 continents. but now that I think about it, I suppose the deep sea research center has some hidden plot to it. As to what it did, I never got that far in it.

[DocFrance]

Undersea Research Center: it's located on all four corners of the world map because Round Island was located there in FF7, as well as Chocobo Paradise in FF9. It's sort of the "secret location" for all three games.

Fisherman's Horizon: It's built like a satellite because they get all their energy from the sun, hence the whole city is a giant solar array.

[celtcknight]

Thats a good explanation, solar panels. But if so, what the heck are the windmills for? For such a neutral fishing oriented city, they have a lot of energy.

What I meant by the line up with DRC and FH is that their at opposite poles. Wierd ehh. And yea square has a habit of throwing islands out in the middle of the ocean for us to find by accident.

[Big D]

FH was founded by engineers and scientists cast out of Esthar; they probably use all that energy for their continuing research. The water there is said to be horribly polluted, and there are plenty of factories, supporting the idea that large-scale industrial processes are ongoing.
The Research Centre is a mobile place; it's location (aside from being well-hidden on the world map) would've been to do with the researchers' clues and whims.

[Iceglow]

someone has to produce all the things necessarry having the second best engineers in the world they probably work a lot (I say second as Esthar is the best by far) to make things for dollet and Balamd heck even gabaldia they helped make Garden they have massive cranes and stuff to repair things. They may even supply power to other continents hence the large solar pannels (which they most certainly are it says so several times and look at the scene where Squall and Rinoa are talking at the concert you can clearly see it.) and the windmills

[Besimudo]

This is starting to resemble "the mysterious hole in Trabia".

I say that the deep sea research centre is located in a hard to reach area of the map, out in the ocean, at a time when the player would like to remain engrossed in the story.

The way square programmed the section of the game was intentionally vague - There were very little clues about it! Anyhow, for a good plot take the professionals advice below.


less is more
- Alfred Hitchcock.

[Big D]

Yep... a little bit of mystery never hurt anyone. It wouldn't make a whole lot of sense for the SeeD team to know everything about everything... and it wouldn't allow for so many engrossing discussions like this one and the mighty R=U...

[Iceglow]

as for the crater in trabia that can be explained in a Laguna flash back the one where he plays the sorceresses knight in the movie. in the background clearly visible is the Lunatic Pandora we all know that a Lunar cry was responsible for the "Shatterred" effect of the Centra continent (hence powerful monsters) the Trabia crater is another one only smaller caused by Lunatic Pandora.