Despite the bizarre premise of Final Fantasy characters exploring worlds based on Disney movies Kingdom Hearts takes itself seriously enough to keep you invested while not taking itself too seriously. The games know how to balance dramatic and comedic moments for the majority of the playtime. Yet strip away the convoluted details on how they work, the story boils down to light side vs dark side and the kids caught in the middle. Scratch that. It does not need to boil down. It IS light vs dark with kids involved. Our heroes lose their home and the player Sora seeks to save his friends while facing impossible odds and whose childish trust convinces the coldest enemy to change sides to the light. And if it sounds like your favorite anime, that's because it IS the story of an anime series, just given interactivity. I do not believe the simplicity of the story takes away from the player experience, many games have similarly barebones plots. I merely find the moments the game stresses a cavalcade of complications as a "plot twist" silly at best and wasteful at worst.
Thankfully games live on their gameplay which KH gives in abundance. From StarFox to Pokemon to collectathons to speedrunning, the games allow you to play how you want and have just enough depth in the optional side modes for you to enjoy when vacationing from the main gameplay. Each game features the same basic action RPG smash them in the face for XP gameplay, while giving unique twists and gimmicks for each entry in the series to prevent stagnation and boredom. Some of the secondary gimmicks spice up the game to make replaying said entry fun, varied, and addictive. Others through forceful integration or breaking the flow of gameplay make those games a complete chore to finish, let alone complete.
Playing as Sora, Donald, and Goofy three quarters of the time probably doesn't help either. Despite my enjoyment of their shared antics and development in the first game, through mishandled plot writing and Sora remaining a simple character, we get the same three story and character beats of KH I throughout 5 of the 9 games (when he's the main character of 6 of those 9 games!).
Bosses in every game, even discounting secret bosses,
range from the simply enjoyable to the frustratingly impossible. Plus
they enjoy stacking at least 3 bosses for every games' finale to squeeze
every ounce of sweat and satisfaction from the last hour of gameplay.
Overall the fun comes from your own investment and execution of the insane combat and magic system. Finding the combos and strategies that work for you makes both pursuing the story or leveling up varied and entertaining. Restricting the Disney characters to their separate worlds or magic summon attacks does drain the coolness of the crossover greatly, yet I appreciate the effort that went into the distinct looks of each world drawn up to look and feel exactly as if you stepped into the movie and the help you provide bringing everyone's path to their happily ever after.
Ignoring the strange turns the story
takes with the details, the same story and gameplay of the first remains
strong in the sequels, allowing anyone to jump in at any game. Yet
they've also taken risks with the additions to gameplay that make each
entry unique and a new experience on a first try or a revisit. The solid
foundation remains the same and thankfully they honed those core
elements, learning and growing with each sequel. Yet the gimmicky nature
of some gameplay and the overused story and character beats make some
entries not worth revisiting no matter how important you think the
timeline is.
The value and esteem Kingdom Hearts holds comes from the whole hearted commitment to the absurd premise, the exploration of alternative options for both primary and secondary game modes, and both story and gameplay putting as much entertainment out as you put interest in.
--Rozlynd
Images and characters belong to Disney and Square Enix.
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