Insomnia

Insomnia is a location in the Final Fantasy XV Universe and the capital of the kingdom of Lucis. The main setting of the feature film Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV, it also appears at the beginning and end of Final Fantasy XV, and is known as the "crown city." Insomnia hosts Lucis's seat of power, and it contains a large Crystal within its walls. A modern metropolis stacked with skyscrapers, the crown city contains lush areas but is surrounded by a wasteland.

Story
The capital city of Lucis, Insomnia is isolated from the rest of Eos by a magical barrier maintained by its reigning monarch, King Regis. Knowing Niflheim is sure to invade the Crown City in an attempt to steal its Crystal, Regis sends his son Noctis to wed Lady Lunafreya Nox Fleuret in Altissia. Noctis leaves the city with Gladiolus, Ignis, and Prompto as his accompaniment, but the city falls and becomes occupied by the empire of Niflheim in their absence. King Regis, Noctis, and Luna are all reported as having died in the invasion. Though Regis was killed in his defense of Insomnia, it is confirmed later that Luna survived and is still performing her duties as Oracle while holding the Ring of the Lucii in her possession for safekeeping.

After the Starscourge has ravaged Eos for ten years, Noctis and his friends return to Insomnia with the intent to stop Ardyn Izunia and bring light back to the world. Insomnia is infested with powerful daemons and Ardyn awaits the party in the throne room of Insomnia's Citadel. The party battles Ifrit, the astral that brought the Starscourge to the world, with the help of the other astrals. Noctis duels Ardyn one-on-one and emerges victorious. As daemons spawn all around the Citadel, Noctis sends his friends away before sitting on the throne of Lucis and fulfilling his destiny as the True King. As Noctis sacrifices himself, the sun rises and the world is saved.

Creation and development
Insomnia was planned to appear in Final Fantasy Versus XIII, although its name was not revealed until the game was rebranded "Final Fantasy XV." Based on the real-world location, Insomnia's royal Citadel was modeled after the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building. Since the Citadel is a palace, developers added traffic circles for cars near its entrance, as well as a red carpet for ceremonies. To get Insomnia's lighting correct, Yusuke Naora, one of the art directors of Final Fantasy XV, painted over real pictures of Tokyo.

In Final Fantasy Versus XIII, it was originally planned for Noctis to be at a party in Insomnia with Stella Nox Fleuret, the princess of Tenebrae. They were to be present for Niflheim's invasion of the city, but this was removed from the final version of Final Fantasy XV when it was decided Noctis and his friends would be out of Insomnia before it occurs. Despite this change, Hajime Tabata promised players would still be able to fight in Insomnia.

After Final Fantasy Versus XIII was rebranded "Final Fantasy XV," developers decided which elements of their original concepts they could maintain to create a unique gaming experience. The scale of their project was so massive that they eventually chose to depict Insomnia's invasion and downfall through a feature film, Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV.

Gallery

 * Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV

Trivia

 * There is a poster in Insomnia in Final Fantasy XV that depicts an empty chair and the text "The Palace of Lucis". The chair is the one Noctis was seen sitting upon in.
 * The "green man" symbols on pedestrian crossings in the city are a silhouette of a Cactuar.