Squall is a poker-faced, short-spoken man who carries a unique sword known as the "Gunblade." That is, unless the subject at hand is one he's interestesd in, at which point he's known to become quite lively and outspoken. He's a bit of a loner (according to Square he has "little sense of comradship for the people around him"), and he wears a necklace that bares a strange griffon-like symbol (the same one that can be seen near the barrel on the Gunblade). According to character designer Tetsuya Nomura, he wanted the characters name to have the meaning of a passing shower, which is how he came up with the name Squall. His last name, Leonhart, was the name of one of the main characters from an earlier 8-Bit Final Fantasy (for the Famicom) which never came to the United States. This isn't the first time Square has brought back names from earlier games in the series.
Seifer is the mysterious man who is apparently the leader of Squad B (the SeeD candidate squad in which Squall belongs). Though he's talented, he's regarded as problematic because of his short-tempered attitude and Inability to properly follow orders. Still, there's something dignified in his bearing that nobody else has. Because he realizes Squall is gifted, he considers him to be his rival, but could the two be linked in more ways than we've seen so far?
Rinoa is a cheerful girl with an overwhelming amount of tenderness and unyielding spirt. She too is very honest and has no problems speaking her mind and being very straitforward with others. On the other hand though, she's a bit shy, so sometimes she has mixed or confused feelings. Her weapon is a cool boomerang-like projectile called the Blaster Edge. We won't be sure until the remaining characters are unveiled, but so far it looks like she's the girl in the background of the games logo (the guy is most likely Squall, unless someone else comes along with the same coat he has).
It is said that Irvine is not a student of the Garden, but evidently, he has something to do with the Garden. He dresses like a cowboy and uses a shotgun as his weapon. Unfortunatly this is all we know about Irvine right now but we should have more information soon with the release of the game.
Zell joined Garden when he was 13 in order to train himself to be a great soldier like his grandfather, who he admires very much. He's an honest fighter, and he's very straitforward; he fits inot the military stereotype perfectly. He often loses his temper, but that doesn't seem to concern him very much. An all-around honest man, Zell grew up in a wealthy family. Because of this, he lacks seriousness (this is all according to offical Square materials). He's a quick and lethal fighter, and martial arts master.
Unlike Squall, Laguna is a man of heart. He knows love and respects his duties. According to Square, he's an optimistic and vigorous person who enjoys the confidence bestowed in him. Not much esle is known about him yet, but we do know that he's a former soldier who works as a journalist. Apparently, Languna and Squall, while both main characters, reside on different worlds. How their paths will cross hasn't yet been revealed, but the idea of possibly playing with two entirely different characters from the outset is quite attractive. Whatever the case, we'll know more on this as it develops. According to Nomura-san, the inspiration for the name Languna came from none other than Laguna Beach, Calif., as well as the powerful sword Ragnarok (which, when broken down phonetically in Japanese sounds a bit like "la-gu-na-ro-k")
Selfie was recommended for SeeD. She is a good fighter with a child-like heart. Squall and Selphie are just classmates and they have no romantic relationship at all. More information coming.
At 18 years of age, Quistis Trepe is already a teacher at Balamb Garden - Called "Trepe Teacher" by her pupils. With here amazing fighting skills, she enroled in garden at age of 10, and entered SeeD at the age of 15.
Edea has an image of a witch in the occidental culture. She is an enemy for Squall and his fellows. But what does her existence in the world, where Squall and his friends live, mean? Fundementally witches have been the only women that have powerful magics. Though they have existed since ancient time, the reason why they exist is unknown. They are not immortal but have the fatal thread like humans. A witch can pass her power as a witch on to the person she chooses. It is said that witch's power does not run in the blood, so a person chosen by a witch suddenly gets a tremendous magical power, and sometimes such a person's life would be changed dramatically.