The ruling family of Port Korra, from whom its name derived, long maintained an isolationist attitude toward trade with other cities. About twelve years before the game, a man named Benivalle gained power among young members of the upper class, whose economic ambitions left them increasingly discontent. Leveraging their support, Benivalle secretly but forcefully drove the Korra family from the city. On being told that their rulers had abandoned them, citizens embraced Benivalle as their new ruler and renamed the city Beniport in his honor.

While the new trade policies took hold and clearly improved the city's economic growth, a growing number of citizens found the new taxes and tariffs burdensome. Daily life was utterly transformed. The pace of the port industry brought new and often extreme demands to the workforce and families of Beniport, leading some to feel as if they were better off before Benivalle came to power.