Next to games like Final Fantasy XV and The Last Guardian (both of which saw release last year), one other has had its fanbase go nuts in terms of wondering when in the world would it release. Kingdom Hearts 3 has been kept in solid secrecy for a near decade after KH2 was released. In the meantime, scant details have been revealed and Square Enix is also churning out its current of games for HD remasters. Kingdom Hearts 1.5 and 2.5 have seen releases on the PS3 and are also next to be released for the PS4 this coming March. Enter in this current installment: Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue. Aside from its ridiculous naming convention, it's the closest we'll get as far as what the plot to the 3rd entry will be. Like the previous 2 releases, 2.8 is a collection of items from the franchise. Mainly consisting of 1 full game, a half or quarter of another and a full movie.
I figured I'd start with the easy part which will take up the bulk of this review. Included is a full HD Remake of Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance which was first released as a 3DS exclusive a few years back. As expected, the graphics are updated to look much cleaner as does the interface. Chronologically taking place after KH2, Sora and Riku meet with Master Yen Sid to partake in their Mark of Mastery exam. This is done to prepare them for the upcoming battle between Xehanort who's amassing his forces to be reborn again. You play as both Sora and Riku all on a timer as you "drop" into the other character. You're also without your typical party members (Donald and Goofy) and instead befriend creatures known as Dream Eaters. The ones that fight you are known as Nightmares whereas the ones by your side are Spirits.
Battles are A LOT more fast paced than in past entries. I expect that has to do with the new element known as Flowmotion. Basically through rolling or dashing into a wall, pole, or certain enemies, you glow and can do all sorts of acrobatics to deal massive damage. Through defeating Nightmares you can gain items needed to construct new Spirits. This is done through either recipes found or bought, or just mixing 2 together and hope for something rad. Both Sora and Riku have distinct play styles themselves. This can be seen through linking up with your Spirits. Sora can do goofy attacks with them such as bouncing on top of a cat, or using one as a flame wheel to control. Riku on the other hand uses the spirits to take on a Keyblade fighting style which is similar to a mechanic found back in Birth By Sleep.
Your moves and magic are designated through filling out a Command Deck which was seen also in BBS and I believe 358/2 Days. Some moves are reserved only for one character, and others take up more than 1 slot in the deck. Each move has a recharge rate too. Before you enter a world, you're put through a sequence known as a "dive" which I found to be highly annoying as the story progressed on. The last remaining boss fights were also a pain in the butt. I forgot how frustrated/angry the KH games can make me XD. Another element of the game involves caring for your Spirits, which is very similar to what the recent Pokemon games have been doing. Feeding your spirits as well as providing TLC can advance their stats so they can perform better in battle. They also gain Ability points which you can use to unlock abilities, passive effects and moves for yourself.
Kingdom Hearts overall had a god dang mess of a story and honestly even I was confused at certain points. No doubt you'll have to Wiki some stuff in order to fully understand it. Some of the worlds you visited I very much enjoy though. Traveling back to the Grid with events from Tron Legacy, Traverse Town being inhabited by characters from The World Ends with You, and even a soundless world off of Fantasia with nothing but the music (just like the movie). Out of all of this, I enjoyed the combat immensely and how much faster everything was.
The next item on the list is Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep .2: A Fragmentary Passage. Here is basically what Kingdom Hearts 3 will play like. You play as Aqua having become a full fledged master yet stuck in the realm of Darkness. The story starts you off at a pretty high level with access to the 3rd tier level of element spells and healing. The graphical output is outstanding as you revisit worlds from Birth By Sleep all lost to the darkness. You mainly fight heartless and as you do so, you can unlock what's known as situational commands. These range from incredibly powerful spells to transforming into a new fighting style much like Riku did in Dream Drop Distance. Aqua moves a lot graceful and can unleash some devastating hits! Chronologically, this takes place shortly after BBS and weirdly matches up towards the end of the first game. If you play through it you'll see what I mean.
A Fragmentary Passage is relatively short and can be cleared in less than 3 hours. Despite the length, there's some replay ability here mainly in the Objectives. These range from killing "X" amount of a type of heartless to using magic a certain amount of times. The rewards gained are cosmetic changes which you can use to decorate Aqua which I actually enjoyed. I hope that feature is carried over into KH3! Also making a return is the ShotLock from BBS. Here you switch to a first person view, hover over as many heartless as you can until the meter runs out, and unleash a multi shot attack that can be devastating. Though I found myself not using it too much.
This only made me even more excited for the eventual third entry if it's going to look as good as this did! The final piece of this collection is a movie showcasing an untold part to the game Kingdom Hearts Unchained X which is currently being played by many as a mobile game. Detailing the events of the Foretellers and their Master leaving them as well as the fall out some of them witness in an effort for finding out who the traitor is. All deemed so in the Book of Prophecies. I at first thought this would be all the cutscenes from the mobile game (even those not yet released as the story is still being told) but not much was answered and I was left kinda disappointed. The acting was pretty amazing though and each character had their own distinct personality! See, told you it was a short description!
Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue sets things up real nice for the one game every fan wants. The final confrontation is at hand and now our main heroes have to round everybody up for the 7 wielders of light against the 13 of darkness.
Should You Play this Game?
I'd say yes even if you had played the 3DS game already. It's worth the inclusion of A Fragmentary Passage and the movie even if the latter is underwhelming. Square Enix is letting everyone experience each title either again or for the first time with the HD ports. The games will always be magical and this should hold you over before the 1.5 + 2.5 bundles hits in March!
