Laguna Loire

Laguna Loire is a temporarily playable character in Final Fantasy VIII. For most of the game the player experiences Laguna through playable flashbacks that are explained to the player as the main characters' dreams. Laguna is the father of Ellone and Squall Leonhart, and his weapon of choice is the machine gun.

Appearance and Personality
Laguna is described throughout the story as a man with many faces and even more talents. He has shoulder-length black hair and green eyes. He is cheerful, generous, kind-hearted, and though he hates fighting, he becomes a Galbadian soldier. He is well respected among his comrades, Kiros Seagill and Ward Zabac, who scorn him sometimes for his impulsive attitude, but ultimately rely on him for guidance and direction when push comes to shove. Laguna is courageous in the face of danger and most especially when his friends are in trouble, but when given time to think about the danger he is truly in, he usually becomes a little more hesitant. However, he is always willing to put his life on the line for the sake of justice.

Laguna is known for making up his own phrases on the fly whenever he does not know the real words to the phrase, or occasionally he just gets it wrong altogether. For example: he tells Kiros and Ward that "the unfamiliar always happens" and they have to correct him and say that it is the "unexpected" that always happens. They playfully laugh at him for his mistakes to which Laguna usually becomes embarrassed and abruptly ends the conversation. He is also well known for his inability to talk to women, though he exclaims it is only "beautiful women" he gets nervous around, and when he does, his left leg cramps up. He eventually overcomes this, however, when one night he has a full conversation with Julia Heartilly in Deling City. Laguna's dream is to become a traveling journalist so that he can write all about his adventures with his friends and give others the inspiration the world has given him. When the player first meets Laguna he wears his Galbadian soldier uniform, albeit without the helmet. Laguna's normal attire consists of a medium blue jacket with white studs and grooves, white undershirt, brown pants, black boots and his dog tags from his time in the war against Timber's rebellion. As he ages though, he adopts an even more casual appearance, wearing simply a baby blue button-up shirt with khaki slacks and sandals with his hair tied back. He still sports his dog tags even in his older age.

Story
Laguna is said to have been born in Deling City, though most of his childhood and early adulthood remain a mystery. During his twenties, Laguna joins the Galbadian Army, and participates in the effort to invade Timber. His real dream, however, is to become a traveling journalist, acquiring information about the world and writing about his experiences. In the army Laguna meets Kiros Seagill and Ward Zabac. The three are thrown into a platoon together where they make quick friends and share each other's dreams and ambitions, Laguna's being the only one mentioned in the game. Throughout their time and adventures together, the three frequently fall victim to Laguna's clumsy nature, though somehow always manage to complete their mission. In this time, Laguna falls in love with Deling City's most famous lounge pianist, Julia Heartilly. She feels the same way about him, but all of their interactions together end awkwardly thanks to Laguna's nervousness. One night, at the behest of Kiros and Ward, Laguna manages the nerve to walk up to Julia's piano while she is playing, and though his leg cramps up and he is forced to retreat, Julia decides to invite him up to her room to talk. He follows and the two share their life dreams with each other before confessing they have always watched each other from afar. Julia eventually writes the song "Eyes on Me" as dedication to their love. Their romance is cut short, however, when Laguna, Kiros and Ward are called away, and after losing their way, ending upon Centra and fighting for their lives against Esthar soldiers.

Laguna and his friends are severely injured while fighting off hordes of enemy forces. With no other options left, Laguna tosses the tired Kiros and Ward off the side of a cliff into the ocean before following after them himself. Laguna does not make the jump gracefully, plummeting to the ocean waters, unconscious. The three are separated by the sea and Laguna drifts until he washes up shore in a little village called Winhill where a woman named Raine finds him and together with her adopted daughter, Ellone, look after him. For the next six months Laguna is bed-ridden due to his injuries. Raine nurses him back to health and he forms a close bond with her and Ellone, who refers to him as "Uncle Laguna". All the working men in Winhill have been sent off to the war and so Laguna eventually becomes the self-appointed "Monster Hunter of Winhill". He declares Raine to be his commander and Ellone to be the assistant-commander, but never lets either of them go out with him on his hunting. After another six months roll by; Kiros, who has been searching for Laguna ever since he recovered eleven months ago, finally finds him and tells him what has been going on with Ward and Julia. Ward has permanently lost his voice and become a janitor at the D-District Prison (which Laguna has trouble believing) while Julia's become a famous singer/songwriter and married a General Caraway from the Galbadian army after her "true love" never returned from war.

Laguna takes Kiros out on a monster hunting mission where he declares him his Assistant, and the two talk about Laguna's plans of still becoming a journalist. Upon arriving back at the house, the two eavesdrop on a conversation between Raine and Ellone about Raine marrying Laguna, to which Raine responds that they are two entirely different people, and that there are things about Laguna that are just too tentative. Afterward, Laguna gives Raine the report of how many monsters were killed and decides to rest. He hopes and prays that when he wakes up, he is not anywhere but where he is right now, so that he can see Ellone and Raine again. Kiros responds that Laguna's changed a lot since they last met. Over the next couple of months, Laguna and Raine eventually fall in love. Laguna proposes to her in the middle of a field not far from Winhill and the two marry shortly after. One day, however, Sorceress Adel's forces come and kidnap Ellone to Esthar, while Laguna is away with Kiros getting his first article published in the Timber Maniacs magazine. Laguna promises Raine he will bring Ellone back to Winhill, and an unknowingly pregnant Raine promises she will be waiting for him. Laguna and Kiros recruit their old friend Ward and the search for Ellone begins.

Along the way, the three encounter many difficulties in finding Ellone and actually getting into Esthar. They participate in a movie deal to raise money for their travels where Laguna is forced to fight a Ruby Dragon with a gunblade, a weapon he hadn't used since his training at the military academy. With the help of Kiros and Ward, they are able to escape from the dragons' nest hidden on the mountainside. At one point, Laguna meets with Edea Kramer in her orphanage and asks her to keep an eye out for Ellone, as well as Sorceress Adel, as she's looking for a successor for her Sorceress Power. Laguna eventually becomes separated from Kiros and Ward and once again becomes injured, this time winding up in Shumi Village where he repays the Shumi's kindness and befriends the Moombas, attempting to teach them to speak. The Moombas learn only a single word, "Laguna", which they exclaim whenever they see him. Eventually, Laguna reunites with Kiros and Ward and they finally find a way into Esthar by walking across the Horizon Bridge, but are captured and become imprisoned inside the Lunatic Pandora Laboratory, where they join the Resistance against Sorceress Adel. Laguna is appointed their leader after displaying his kindness to one of the Moombas, and immediately afterwards stages a jailbreak. After escaping, Laguna and the others finally find Ellone, who has been kept safe the entire time by Dr. Odine who wants to study her power to send a person's consciousness back in time. To come up with a plan for capturing Sorceress Adel the Resistance end up at the Sorceress Memorial, and as part of their plan to seal away the evil Sorceress, they construct an armored cryo-capsule, placing it inside the Memorial. They craft a simulacrum image of Ellone, whom Adel was desperately searching to continue her reign of terror through her successor, and use it as a bait. Once Adel is informed Ellone is being held inside the newly constructed building, the Sorceress transports herself there at once. Inside the Memorial, Adel sees the fake Ellone, but before she can act Laguna pushes her into the cryo-tomb (later known as Adel's Tomb) where she is trapped and immediately flash-frozen.

Because of his bravery and wisdom, the people of Esthar appoint Laguna the new President, replacing Adel's former reign. Laguna sends Ellone back to Winhill where she stays with Raine as she gives birth to Laguna's child; she names him Squall in Laguna's absence. The new mother then dies due to complications during childbirth and Ellone and Squall are sent to Edea's Orphanage on Centra. Laguna later hears Raine has died and Ellone has been taken to an orphanage, but never learns that he has a son. Laguna remains the President of Esthar for the next seventeen years and because of his duties to uphold a policy of seclusion and neutrality for his nation, he cannot get away to see Ellone. He is mortified of having heard of Raine's death, but never knows of Squall, until Ellone seeks him out years later and tells him. Towards the end of the game, Laguna finally meets his son as well as his comrades, and with Dr. Odine's help comes up with a plan to rid of the world of Sorceress Ultimecia's threat. Laguna aids Squall's party in infiltrating Lunatic Pandora, a fortress-like structure excavated from the ruined civilization of Centra, where Adel, being possessed by Ultimecia, is being held after her Tomb falls due to the recent Lunar Cry incident. When Ellone sends Ultimecia's consciousness back in time in triggers the Time Compression, which lets Squall and his friends travel to the future and defeat her once and for all. In the end Laguna visits Raine's grave in Winhill and is joined by Ellone, Kiros and Ward, while Balamb Garden soars overhead.

Weapons
Machine Gun – Laguna’s premier weapon of choice – is a standard Galbadian assault rifle machine gun he wields with devastating accuracy. While not a sharpshooter by nature, he can still outshoot most opponents with ease.

Limit Break
 Desperado gkO2sjmC0jw Desperado – Laguna's Limit Break – damages all enemies at once. He first pulls out a hand-grenade, arms and tosses it into the middle of his opponents, then shoots a grappling hook above him and, as he swings from side to side on his grapple, he fires multiple rounds with his machine gun down upon his enemies. He then jumps off the rope and lands with his back towards the foes as the grenade explodes, dealing massive damage to all enemies. It has a base attack power of 140.

Creation and Development
Kazushige Nojima planned for the two playable parties featured in the game — Squall Leonhart's present day group and Laguna Loire's group of twenty years in the past — to highly contrast with one another. On one hand, Laguna's group consisted of characters in their late twenties who had a lot of combat experience. They were also close friends who had fought together for a long time and trusted one another. On the other hand, Squall's party was young and inexperienced, and Squall himself did not initially understand the value of friendship.

The concept of two main characters was planned since the beginning of the game's development. Nomura tried to create a contrast between Laguna's and Squall's occupations; thus, Laguna became a soldier and Squall became a mercenary student. The designers intended Laguna to be more similar to the previous protagonists in the Final Fantasy series to complement Squall, who was different from previous main characters.

Though it is never directly stated, it is heavily implied that Laguna is Squall's father. When Laguna left Winhill Raine was pregnant, and both the baby and Ellone were taken to Edea's orphanage, which is where Squall grew up. Additionally, it is stated that Moombas can recognize people forever after having tasted or licked their blood - Squall being Laguna's son would explain why the Moombas in the prison chant "Laguna" upon meeting him. Laguna also always shares Squall's stats during the flashback sequences, and also carries Squall's Triple Triad card. Ward and Kiros seem to be aware of their relationship: if they are spoken to aboard the Ragnarok at the end of the game, Ward tells Squall he should be glad he does not resemble his father, and Kiros states he resembles his mother, indicating the two of them know Squall's parents. Interestingly, various examples of unused backgrounds and gifs hint that Laguna may have possessed a lime-green convertible truck during his time in Winhill and used it during Ellone's second abduction. Laguna's black-and-white intro picture also depicts him of driving the said car. Also, the artisan in Shumi Village has a miniature model of the car. The car, however, was never used as Laguna's car in the final game.

Musical Themes
Laguna's theme is "The Man with the Machine Gun," which is used as the battle theme for the scenes in which the player controls Laguna's party.

Pocket Station Memorycard Icons
An icon sprite of Laguna appears in the Pocket Station memorycard file manager.

Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy


Laguna appears in Dissidia 012 as a new warrior fighting for Cosmos. He acts as a brother-like figure to the other warriors, mediating them and offering advice, but is at odds with Lightning and Squall, who dislike his carefree and friendly attitude. Laguna and Vaan travel together but are separated shortly before Laguna meets the Cloud of Darkness. Denying his attraction to her and admitting he fights only to return home and not out of a personal interest in Cosmos's victory, the Cloud of Darkness is intrigued by him and tells him where the Manikins are coming from, desiring to see if he will seek them out knowing it is a suicide mission. Laguna relays this information to the other Warriors of Cosmos, and six of the survivors find the portal the manikins are coming from and sacrifice themselves to close it, Laguna among them.

Though Laguna interacts with Squall in the Reports, neither is aware of their true connection.

Laguna's first alternate outfit is his Galbadian soldier uniform, giving him a blue outfit with grey armor on the arms and torso. His second alternate outfit is his attire while President of Esthar, a light blue shirt with khaki pants. As a bonus fourth outfit available for download, Laguna dons his Sorceress Knight armor from his film, a full suit of plate armor with a purple skirt-like covering over the thighs.

Etymology
Laguna is the Romanian, Czech, Hungarian, Italian, Polish, Filipino and Spanish word for "lagoon", a shallow body of salt water separated from larger seas by small sandbanks or coral reefs. This is fitting as both his wife and son share a name linking to water. However, Laguna is a feminine noun in each language. His surname, Loire, may come from a French river.

Additionally, "Laguna" is a Spanish term for a "mental blackout"; periods where one loses consciousness and is unable to remember what happened during that time when one wakes up. This somewhat resembles how Squall and his party lose consciousness every time they are entering a Laguna flashback.

Trivia

 * The film Laguna and his friends were in while raising money, would directly inspire the dream of Squall's rival, Seifer Almasy. After seeing the film, Seifer became inspired to become a Sorceress Knight like the character Laguna played, who, according to the Final Fantasy VIII Ultimania, was named "Zefer", similar to "Seifer". This is why, if one looks closely, Seifer has the same battle stance as Laguna did when playing in the film - Seifer copied his stance from Laguna's portrayal.
 * When approaching his office within the Presidential Palace in Esthar, a detailed portrait of Downtown Winhill is placed just above the doors.
 * In the Debug Menu, amongst the FMVs listed for disc 2, are ones called Laguna/Squall watching the moon. When played, they show scenes from the Clash of the Gardens - indicating these FMVs were dummied out for some reason, most likely lack of disc space. The Laguna scene sounds like it could have been a movie of him proposing to Raine, like in the ending. Squall's moon scene may have been him watching the moon during the concert at Fishermans Horizon. However, there is also promotional CG artwork that depicts Squall and Laguna looking at the night sky, which may have been part of this FMV at one point.
 * Laguna's Limit Break, Desperado, is the Japanese name of Sazh Katzroy's Full ATB Skill in Final Fantasy XIII. The name was changed in the English releases.
 * In Dissidia Final Fantasy, a Ghost Card bearing Laguna's name can be fought. The Laguna ghost is a Level 24 Squall, equipped with Mythril equipment and the Machine Gun weapon, a reference to Laguna's signature artillery. The accessories White Gem and Occult Fan can be won from the ghost via Battlegen. The quote on the card "Just for that, you're gettin' the Cuchi-cuchi treatment" is what Laguna said to Ward during their escape from Esthar soldiers in Centra Excavation Site. The Occult Fan is in reference to the magazine that can be collected in the Estharian Presidential Palace.
 * Laguna was originally planned to appear in Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep, and a scenario was planned where he would be the one in charge of the Mirage Arena. However, due to his inclusion in Dissidia 012, he was left out.
 * Laguna's name in Japanese, "ラグナ, Raguna" is spelled the same as the first three characters in the name of the Ragnarok, "ラグナロク, Ragunaroku". This is noted in-game when Laguna says, "I always wanted to ride that thing. Plus the name sounds so cool!".