Kingdom Hearts I : I ONE to like this series

Although I played KH in story order as opposed to release order, I feel it will work best to analyze the first game first as nearly all the foundation of story and gameplay extend out from this entry, for better or worse.

Kingdom Hearts more than any other game, relies on its charisma. Not plot, not gameplay, but sheer personality. The game flings you down the rabbit hole and never looks back. Instead, it brushes you off from the fall they caused, puts on the most absurd hat, hands you tea, and offers a massage. Abrupt, yes, but nonetheless effective.

Our bubbly and trusting Sora and company feature designs that mimic Disney roundness and color alongside the impractical zippers and belts of Final Fantasy characters. The action RPG gameplay feels frantic, flowing, and flighty. Sora uses a giant key as a weapon and goes to Disney worlds in a Lego block ship called the gummi ship. The game is nothing if not stylish, and the designers' commitment to that style throughout makes the game enthralling fun despite its age.

The commitment to the charming style shines through the characters and story which feel ripped from a Shonen Jump anime, complete with paragon friendship is ultimate magic character Sora, dark lancer rival who gets a last second redemption Riku, guys who start cynical and become better friends because of Sora like Donald, and token romantic interest Kairi. Yet for how cliche these characters are for anime, they work in the game thanks to the setup of their island being destroyed and having to discover themselves while tossed around by the new strange universe beyond their comfortable normal lives.

Yet for how well the setup works for these characters, it does not make the story any less cliche. Hero's journey, light vs dark, altruism conquering selfishness, power boosting by faith in friends, everything you've seen before. They may do it well, but they do it no differently. Much like Sora's giant key, it may look different from other fantasy weapons, but it functions exactly the same.

Beating enemies with a giant key while throwing them into the sky with magic fire gives new meaning to the common game trope of a power fantasy, yet the amount of enemies and choice of difficulty, along with the grueling boss battles, balance the game. Yet the same cannot be said for the exploration and platforming. Although changes in gameplay can provide welcome variety, platforming in KH I never feels welcome.

Rozlynd