It's about time I give my update. I'll be honest on why I haven't been on the internet that much. By the way, I wrote all this because I feel upset and I just need some of you guys to hear me out. First off the move to New York went successfully, but the last two weeks before leaving Florida was very hard. My sister Lisa (28) who flew from Florida to New York came to help me move back to New York. My parents moved to Florida with me in August 2008, because of retirement plans. I decided that I wanted to have senior year back in New York. I also had plans to go to college here and see my family, best friend and etc. Overall, I just felt alone in Florida. Two weeks before leaving, my sister found fleas on our two cats. For those two weeks we sprayed the house and everything. The two cats and dog got a bunch of baths, but it didn't matter. It went back and forth from the animals to the house. So, my mom went crazy and we had to bring the animals to the shelter for good. I was totally upset, but we believed that the animals would be adopted by good people. My flight was taken off in two days. After spending 1500 dollars, I finally got myself out of Florida. I've been back and it's great. I'm finally back in my old town and with my family. I'm seeing my best friend and I'll be a senior in a month. This includes being a mentor and getting into TV productions. So, everything was alright, but from this day on I still have no connection. I've been back in New York for a month and two weeks. For some reason, we don't have luck with the wireless connection. As of now, I'm using my sister's computer. It's been hell and I can't continue the Days production, my website and KHV like this. It's very hard, but I've been trying to get on as much as possible. Well if that wasn't bad enough, today I found out that my cat died in the shelter. My cat (Scratty), only two years old died. I've been devastated and I'm just out of it. On top of that, I found out that my mom was trying to surprise me and bring all the animals back, so she could take care of them, but one ended up dead before she could take her home. Just letting you guys know production will be in gear as soon as connection works in this house. In the mean time, updates will be up whenever I use someone's computer, like now. In the mean time, I've been trying to communicate with members in the spam zone, but guess it's not for me. I can't manage to keep up and I just make myself look like an idiot. So, I'm pretty much done with it. Sorry if I try to hard or I'm just generally negative and taking things serious. It's what mostly got me in trouble during the past. Any tips on handling a death of a pet?
Here's a fun game. RATE THE SUBJECT (MIKE'S EDITION) The object of the game is to add an image that you think is hot. For an example, I will add an image below. Rate what you think from 1-10 and then add an image you think is hot. This will repeat from member to member. You can add anything. If you think a car, city, video game character, cartoon, or woman/male model is hot, make sure you add it. No porn images. Seriously, do not take this thread out of control.
I'm serious. Who the hell would make something like this. It's just disgusting. xD
Summer is boring. I'm ready for school. I'm dead serious.
Alright, Kenni-Chan and I have been married for weeks now and we haven't talked. Any tips that you can give?
Hey, what's going on?
A new interview with Nomura has been added, thanks to 1up. In the interview it was asked how Kingdom Hearts was first created and the reactions to the game as it was in production. The information below is very interesting and for the most part wasn't mentioned before. The reaction to what Nomura said when he first showed the sketched weapons from Kingdom Hearts to Disney was priceless. It couldn't get better then that. Enjoy. How did the concept behind Kingdom Hearts, one of Square Enix's most successful new concepts in recent years, come about? "I don't remember the details, but I was talking with [current Square Enix corporate executive] Shinji Hashimoto and Hironobu Sakaguchi," producer Tetsuya Nomura told Famitsu magazine in an interview. "The topic came up that it'd be nice if we could make a game with Disney. I had been wanting to make an original action RPG by that time, and I had had the basic game system for KH in my mind for a while by that point. I thought it'd be a good opportunity for me, so I raised my hand and told them to let me handle it." The three sides didn't see eye-to-eye on everything, of course. "Square wanted to make a game starring Mickey Mouse, and Disney wanted a Donald Duck title. Meanwhile, I wanted neither," Nomura said with a laugh. "So I built a project plan for KH and began negotiating with both sides. That plan was largely what you see now; a game featuring lots of characters without focusing on any particular one." People often have the impression that Nomura, given his artistic background, designs games based off story and characters ahead of gameplay. "That's not really the case," he notes. "I thought of the Keyblade in KH from the beginning, and that made 'keys' an integral keyword in the story." "Actually," he continues, "the first weapon I showed Disney was a chainsaw. It was this chainsaw-like weapon that I had a rough sketch of when I first showed my concepts to Disney. Everyone got this scrunched-up look on their face and nobody said a word in the entire room. Dead silence. And I thought 'No, I guess this wouldn't work, huh?'" Nowadays Nomura is occupied with the DS's Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, out now in Japan and due for a September release in America. The game's been a remarkable sales success in Japan, with Famitsu and other publications calling the title the furthest the DS has ever been pushed technically. "I have my doubts about how the world is turning toward 'serious' titles [such as Brain Age]," Nomura said. "I don't think that can be the industry's main focus. I'm here to make games, obviously, and that attitude played a major part in [358/2 Days] development. A lot of gamers don't play anything except the really big names, like Dragon Quest and FF. Look at it another way, though, and as long as you can grab their interest, they'll play your game. That's the userbase I want to attract here. You have to, or else you'll never challenge yourself. I'm not here to analyze the game industry or anything. All I believe is that if you make a fun game, people will play it." ------------------------------------------------------------ Main Source: 1up Second Source: KHN & Gamefaqs' tofudude ------------------------------------------------
Let's go guys. Upload your videos and keep it going! I think this was a great idea. Who knows...you may even see me on it. I'm just kidding about that last part. I can't moon walk for my life. http://www.eternalmoonwalk.com/
Alright, testing/testing 1...2...3 MEOWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW WARNING This is what happens when a cat sings. It's scary, but sexy. Keep the cats away from the microphones.
KINGDOM HEARTS: II Manga (VOLUME 5) Hey everyone, here's an update on Kingdom Hearts manga. Apparently the new volume for Kingdom Hearts: II will be releasing on August 22nd 2009. In my opinion, it's been awhile since the 4th one was released. This volume will now be the fifth one that will be in available in Japan. As for North America, I believe only two volumes for Kingdom Hearts: II was released. We'll keep you informed. (Source) The Light in Chaos Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days Ultimania Heart Station has updated with scans from the new released Ultimania book from the new title (Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days). There is a huge amount of content and spoilers in the book. If you view these scans, just note that you are at risk of spoiling yourself. http://heartstation.org/zenphoto/358-2-days/scans/ultimania/
The ghost is really a shadow of someone outside.
Who is this woman? xD There's a little more that we don't know with this painting.
So, KH-Vids has it's own Twitter. https://twitter.com/KHVidsNET We like to look at ourselves like a business. Alright, I'm kidding. Seriously, Twitter has been such a big deal. I don't know what the fuss is about, but I thought Twitter would be a part of the website since it's a huge hit. What's going on? I'm bored. 5 minutes from web
I just wanted to quickly let everyone know that KH-Vids has it's own account on one of the fast growing social websites out there now. We hope those of you that have Twitter will follow us for the latest Kingdom Hearts news/updates. We plan on updating the account as much as we can. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. Link: https://twitter.com/KHVidsNET
The Joy of Pepsi!
Two new figures from Kingdom Hearts: II was displayed at the Japan Expo 2009 in France. The first image above features King Mickey. The second image, which is also found above features Sora from Christmas Town. As of now they have no release date or price set. Please be aware that they are unpainted models. We'll keep you updated. Source: FF7AC Reunion
I heard this from my nephew. It's lame, but I'm willing to make my self sound like an a**. Alright, so how do you wake up Lady Gaga? You poke her face. POKERFACE Wasn't that hilarious? Alright, now I'll get slammed for this one. I deserve it.
WHAT IS LOVE? What is Organization XIII? This is the best video ever. Yea, yea I know. "Why is KH posted in my spam zone". Well guess what! It's my spam zone homies. xD
The latest issue from Famitsu, features a new interview with the director (Nomura) of Kingdom Hearts. The interview below has been added by Arika-san from The Light in Chaos. Translations were made from Olivia (Heart Station) and Axel. Most information that's mentioned includes Xigbar, Xion's nickname, the real names of the Organization, current progress of Birth by Sleep, meaning of the X in the organization names and more.358/2 DAYS INTERVIEW –When Kingdom Hearts II was being created; the story for 358/2 Days was floating about at the plot level. However, the story details hadn’t been established, only the setting parts. Nomura: “When the 14th member appeared, would the players be surprised?” The idea of ‘Organization XIII’ had already been imprinted. In 358/2 Days, Saix expresses in harsh words the reason why it isn’t ‘Organization XIV’. Even though it’s cruel, it’s an answer which has been prepared for. –“358” is the number of days Roxas belonged to the Organization, but the meaning of “/2” is to divide by 2, so the “2” denotes two people. Nomura: Who those two people are, I’ll leave it to your imagination. –Xion’s appearance changes depending on the relationship of the person looking at her. It seems that when that relationship changes, she changes. Nomura: The figure Roxas sees is the same as what the player sees, but for example, when Xigbar and Saix see her, her figure is different. At first some people thought it was unnatural she would be wearing a hood and then not in the same scene, but I think you come to understand it as you advance through the game. People connected with a certain person see Xion as ‘Xion’. In the case of Xemnas, since he is connected to various people, he basically sees ‘Xion’, however sometimes he sees ‘him’. Who ‘he’ is, I want you to confirm it on your own. Xigbar also sees ‘him’. –Will the relationship between Sora and ‘him, Xemnas, and Xigbar be revealed in Birth by Sleep? Nomura: Please look forward to it. In Birth by Sleep, the initial Organization members appear, but I can’t say they play an active part. At that time, they were humans. Pay attention to Xigbar in particular. Although, when you think you understand his true nature… The mystery may deepen even more. (Laughs) He has a different standing than the other Organization members, there’s speculation about his original form. –Xigbar calls Xion ‘Puu-chan’, coming from the French word meaning doll (poupée). Nomura: I requested to Mr. Ishida, “I want him to call her by a nickname that parodied ‘doll’”, and this is what we came up with. Xigbar is hinting at Xion’s true nature from the beginning. –At the time he met her, Riku was surprised to see Xion, even though he had a similar event happen to him in COM. Nomura: At this time he noticed the true nature of her face, and knew what would happen, resulting in him telling her to leave the Organization. –As for Xion loosing the ability to wield the Keyblade midway, it is because Roxas and Xion have a yo-yo effect. Nomura: As Roxas gets stronger, Xion gets weaker. Roxas influences Sora, and Xion influences Roxas. –The initial members of the Organization abandoned their hearts intentionally? Why, now, do they collect hearts? Nomura: The reason is to have a ‘complete existence.’ KH1’s Ansem (Xehanort, stealing this name) had a purpose, and realizing that he had transcended being a human, turned into a Heartless. Xemnas remembers that purpose, but as a Nobody, ‘an empty shell,’ collects hearts to become complete. The other members of the Organization have their own expectations, but are there mainly for the purpose of collecting hearts to complete Kingdom Hearts, as only Xemnas stared ahead and made it a priority. It is natural that Nobodies, who do not have hearts, demand hearts, though it may seem that Sora’s defeating them is unnecessary, the Organization members don’t look for their own hearts, but collect many from unspecified persons, and use them instead, placing the hearts in a situation where they cannot go back to their origin. –Xemnas’s goal will be further hinted at in Birth by Sleep, the ‘Room of Awakening’ that he is looking for is related. Nomura: The person named ‘Xehanort’ appears in the trailer in various ways you might expect, but those will develop in ways that exceed all imagination. Nomura: Axel goes to Castle Oblivion more than the other members by the orders of Xemnas to look for the Room of Awakening, he’s not plotting alone. Nomura: Since before the beginning of Castle Oblivion, the ‘Room of Awakening’ has its origin. The creation of these are told in Birth by Sleep. Nomura: It is a fact that Saix and Axel probably wanted to take over the Organization, however they didn’t understand what they were going to do or how to do it. As for Xemnas, he knew about this betrayal, but never brought it up. Generally, one’s conduct was for the sake of their purpose. Nomura: It is a fact that Saix and Axel were acquaintances as humans, and that fact might be touch upon in Birth By Sleep. QUESTIONS FROM THE FAMITSU READER CORNER –This time there was no Secret Movie for 358/2 Days, because after the game, Kingdom Hearts 2 begins. Nomura: Instead, there is an emphasis on the hidden characters and secret reports. As for the Secret Reports, the staff removes the names to make it more mysterious! There is only a hint to who wrote what, so use your imagination to figure it out! Here’s a list of the number of reports each member wrote! Xemnas: 4 Xigbar: 5 Xaldin: 1 Vexen: 1 Lexaeus: 1 Saix: 9 Axel: 19 Demyx: 2 Luxord: 2 Marluxia: 1 Larxene: 1 Xion: 12 –Originally, it is Sora that gives Roxas the power of light to use the Keyblade in fencing moves. But it is because of the influence of Xion that it’s possible for him to use two at the same time. Nomura: The Keyblade can be passed under certain conditions, but a clear thing cannot be said about that. The transfer of the Keyblade from Roxas to Riku at the skyscraper is related to Xion. Although it is the origin of the name “Xion,” the flower Aster Tataricus (in Japanese, 紫苑 “shion”) also means “forget-me-not” and “recollection.” And Riku received that, “to pass away memories.” When Riku gets the Keyblade, such meanings are contained in a flashback carried out by Xion. – Although it’s a subordinate of Roxas, the Samurai Nobody attacks in the end, because of the severing of the relationship with their master, Roxas. Nomura: At the time, it was in development to have a subordinate Nobody in battles, but because of the difficulty involved in making such a thing happen, the goal did not materialize. –To the bitter end, it is not Kingdom Heart’s intention in itself to collect hearts Nomura: There is no difference between a “pure blood” Heartless, and the ones with the emblems, only the process of their births. But a heart does not appear from the pure blood Heartless. This is touched upon in Kingdom Hearts 1, and may be elaborated on in the future. –With Vexen’s plan, and Roxas’s joining, Vexen’s plan took priority. Nomura: Roxas being made from Sora and becoming a member wasn’t an intention, but it was lucky for them! ―Is there a connection in 358/2 Days between Birth by Sleep and Coded? Nomura: At the moment Coded does not have any connections with 358/2 Days, but Birth by Sleep is deeply linked. Birth by Sleep has connections to all the games in the series. ―As for Coded, Chapter 2 will be distributing. Nomura: From Chapter 2, the story becomes progressively longer. The story of Chapter 1 had the nuance of a tutorial, but from Chapter 2 item synthesizing increases, and after a stage is cleared, other side quests become available. Since linkage with Avatar Kingdom also becomes full-scale, please look forward to it. ―How is the development status of Birth by Sleep? Nomura: It’s doing alright. You could say it’s becoming a confident title. I’ve kept you waiting, but I think some new information will be sent out during summer. Since the plan is to present a trailer showing off the game’s fighting spirit at Tokyo Game Show, look forward to it. ASK THAT PERSON Vol.16-01 –What is the meaning of the ‘x’ in the Organization member’s names? Also, was adding the ‘x’ to their original names difficult? Nomura: it was Xemnas’s decision to add the ‘x’. I think the meaning will become clear in Birth by Sleep. Think of the circumstances of the Organization member’s names with an ‘x’ added. We came up with many name candidates the with ‘x’ added in together with the staff, we rack our brains while we consider them. –Will the real names of Organization XIII be released publically? Nomura: Like how Axel’s real name was revealed in 358/2 Days, I think they’ll be revealed if there is an opportunity to do so. –Out of the hidden characters, I want to use Sora! Nomura: Since he’s the main character of the series, he couldn’t be left out. So he was put in as a hidden feature. –Does Xion have anything to do with Birth by Sleep? Nomura: I think although many people want Xion to come back once more, I’m afraid to say that it’s difficult. –Who is your favorite character? Nomura: It’s Sora. Since he is involved with the first title I directed, I’ll always feel a close connection to him. Since I wasn’t such a good kid, I have the desire to entrust those things I didn’t to Sora. –Please tell us how you decide on the image of the character’s clothing. Nomura: I design them so their clothes don’t become too fantastic. Using Sora’s outfit as a base, the outfits of Kingdom Hearts are designed to suit it. The design for Roxas was made more refined than Sora. If Sora was a country child, Roxas would be the urban child. By the way, the checkers of Roxas’s clothing represent light and darkness. –What about a 358/2 Days Final Mix? Nomura: There aren’t plans for a release. One of the reasons is that the voices for the English version aren’t out yet. –Is there potential for a 358/2 Days remake? Nomura: There are no plans at the moment. Chain of Memories was made in 2D, so it was remade, but since 358/2 Days is in 3D originally, the possibility is low. –I want there to be manga and short stories about Organization XIII before they were Nobodies, like those of Roxas’s time afterwards with Hayner and company. Nomura: First of all, considering manga and short stories, since they’re made when the author’s requests, saying ‘I want to write this’, this isn’t the place to ask for them. Therefore, there’s a possibility if that opinion comes from the writer’s side of it. However, it is dangerous because what is drawn upon in future games may end up conflicting with it. Because of that, if they decide not to do those parts of the game, then maybe it’ll happen. –Who are the strongest ranking Organization XIII? Nomura: Xemnas is the strongest, and Roxas is considerably strong you include his potential. Xaldin and Lexaeus are higher after that. However, when their strength is configured by preference, it’s different than how it appears in the story. –About how old is Xemnas? Nomura: Nobodies don’t age; they exist as they were at the time of becoming a Nobody. He seems about 30 years old? –You should make a girl a main character of the series! Nomura: One of the main characters in Birth by Sleep, Aqua will be. Please look forward to it! –What is the definition of a heart in Kingdom Hearts? Nomura: It is the theme of the series. To explain it simply, a person has a body, a soul, and a heart. As an image, the soul is the life source, without it a person would be dead. Since the heart doesn’t have a form, memories play an important part in forming a heart. Also, the heart isn’t limited to people, but to all things. I tried to explain this concept to Disney, and they merely said that it must be an Eastern way of thinking. It may be interesting how overseas players think of it.
Hey guys, I want to apologize for the lack of updates. It's taken awhile to get a solid connection, which is keeping me from adding updates. Below is just a catch up on some things that I've missed. Once this issue is solved, everything will be fine. Take care guys. Please note that this update contains a huge amount of information. If you are looking at this update on the main webpage, make sure you access the read more link. Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days: NA Official Website A small update has been added to the official website for Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days. This time around, another update was made to the North American Days website. You can now access King Mickey and Riku in the characters page. I added the description of these characters below. » Riku: Sora's best friend. Once, darkness ruled him; but his experiences at Castle Oblivion have since taught him to wield an arsenal of darkness and light alike. » King Mickey: The King of DIsney Castle. He travels between worlds, watching over them and often coming to Sora's and Riku's aid. New Nomura Interview A new interview with Nomura (director) has been published with some information on Coded, 358/2 Days and Birth by Sleep. Translations below are provided by Heart Station. » Is there a connection in 358/2 Days between Birth by Sleep and Coded? Nomura: At the moment Coded does not have any connections with 358/2 Days, but Birth by Sleep is deeply linked. Birth by Sleep has connections to all the games in the series. » As for Coded, Chapter 2 will be distributing Nomura: From Chapter 2, the story becomes progressively longer. The story of Chapter 1 had the nuance of a tutorial, but from Chapter 2 item synthesizing increases, and after a stage is cleared, other side quests become available. Since linkage with Avatar Kingdom also becomes full-scale, please look forward to it. » How is the development status of Birth by Sleep? Nomura: It’s doing alright. You could say it’s becoming a confident title. I’ve kept you waiting, but I think some new information will be sent out during summer. Since the plan is to present a trailer showing off the game's fighting spirit at Tokyo Game Show, look forward to it. Kingdom Hearts: II (Black Shirt): Once again, Hot Topic has added another t-shirt item. It was recently added about a week or two. Source: LionHeart14 (member from) KHInsider http://www.hottopic.com/hottopic/WhatsNew/Apparel/Kingdom-Hearts-Keyblade-TShirt-272448.jsp KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days: New Novel The Square-Enix calendar has updated on the Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days novel (volume 1). It's release date is set for July 31st 2009. KINGDOM HEARTS 358/2 Days (Fan Reviews): We have two more reviews that were sent in for the Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days (Japanese) title. Please note that we are NO longer accepting any more reviews at this time. Name: Anderson Username: Anderson Controls: 9/10 (under ideal conditions) The controls are pretty smooth and very impressive for a DS game. It plays extremely similar to the first Kingdom Hearts, so anyone who has played Kingdom Hearts I or II can adjust easily to the game. For the most part, the controls don’t cause a problem. However, there are quite a few occasions where the controls can betray you. Well, actually, it’s only one button in particular which happens to be a notorious R button. Why? It shifts the camera and serves as the lock-on button. The two normally work together in a very smooth manner. However, during a large enemy ambush, one might find it hard to attack a certain enemy/part (you’ll see what I mean if you fight certain bosses). You might be thinking, “Oh, I’ll just kill all the enemies and button-mash.” I’m going to tell you right now: That’s not how this game works. You can get by button-mashing only for so long until the game decides to turn on you. Some enemies are pretty much designed to stop button-mashing. But that’s drifting off a bit. Anyways, even with the screw-ups that the R button has, it’s not to the point where it’s going to take away from game play. Gameplay: 4/10 I know I’m going to get utterly flamed for this, but this isn’t even the lowest rating I’ll give. As a friend of mine put it: “you run up, hit stuff, look at stuff, go through a portal, repeat” It’s sad to say that this is really how the game is. Just to refresh anyone’s memory, I’ll repeat how the game goes. You’re given a mission. You complete the mission. You get the reward. You go on to the next day. Usually, it’s a mission a day, unless there are optional missions along with them. Now as you know, there are 358 days, but not that many missions, thankfully. There are a number of time skips – probably an excuse not to make that many missions in the first place. You take missions until you beat the game. There are barely any extra things to play except for Mission Mode, but it’s the same concept. Dull, monotonous, and mostly not fun at all. Audio: 8/10 (for quality) The music pieces are very nice…except for one thing. They’re the same tracks from Kingdom Hearts I and II. At first, I was delighted that they brought back some themes from each game…until I realized that that’s about all the songs in this game. There are only about 4 or so new tracks added to the game. Unfortunately, those new tracks are basically a mix of different tracks put together. However, the quality of the music is pretty good, nonetheless. I was surprised that the quality was degraded from the PS2 to DS transition. Graphics: 9/10 The graphics show that Square-Enix really pushed the limits of the DS once again. A few parts are a bit sketchy, but that’s probably because the DS can’t give perfect 3D graphics. There are a select 28 cutscenes that are granted the highest quality in the game (the ones featured in Theater Mode upon completion of the game). What utterly impressed me was the terrain of the worlds themselves. The worlds are almost identical to the PS2 games – I mean that the maps are the same. Twilight Town was the one that was the most identical to Kingdom Hearts II. Storyline: 3/10 This was the most disappointing game in terms of story I’ve EVER played in the Kingdom Hearts series. I’m afraid I can’t elaborate too much on the subject due to spoilers, but I’ll give you as much as I can. First off, Xion is the most generic character in the entire game. She’s your typical shy girl who keeps to herself and once she spends time with her friends, she opens up and becomes cheerful. I was already pissed off that they had to add a 14th Member, but it was worst that she was nothing but a pathetically made character. Next off, story development dragged on a lot more than it should have. Now, due to the nature of the story, it obviously needed to take some time to develop, but this game took it way too far. It took a long time before any kind of story started to unfold. I was also disappointed that many of the Organization members failed to be of any importance to the overall storyline. Seriously, this game was nothing but fanservice. Replay Value: Fairly Low I can’t rate this because there’s two ways to look at it. Now, there’s the obvious method and just starting a new file and playing the game over again. Then there’s this thing where once you’ve completed the game, you can replay past missions / days with the cutscenes intact. (Note: I’m not sure if you can do it immediately after you’ve completed a day, so don’t quote me on that.) I tried starting a new file and playing the game over again, but I couldn’t do it. But really, this is just how much you really liked the game. Overall Rating: 6/10 I’ll give the game some credit that it did an excellent job with graphics, audio, and controls. I found it quite easy to adjust to the game after just 5 minutes of gameplay, although that might be because I’m quite used to the Kingdom Hearts games as it is. However, the style of the game was just way too boring after a while. I don’t know how I pushed myself to finishing the game. The first half of the game is okay and moderately easy. But once you pass that point, you’re in for some frustrations. Some Heartless have from 3-6 life bars of health. Some bosses have from 5 – 17 bars of health. The worst part about that is that you really don’t get much of an attack boost from Keyblade upgrades, unless you’re using Kingdom Key+ (From what I’ve heard, it’s the strongest Keyblade in the game…and no, there’s no Ultima Weapon this time around.) Sometimes it would take quite some time to defeat Heartless and to make it worse, you were forced to defeat them to advance to the next area or perform a required action to continue on in a mission. The worst part is that there’s a lot of flying bosses. Many bosses were so similar to each other, it felt as if some were just a bunch of lazy palette swaps. Disappointing for a Kingdom Hearts game. If you’re a huge Kingdom Hearts fan, you’ll probably be enticed the moment you lay your hands on the box. ------------------------------------------------------------------ Name: Alukah (aka Kimberly) I recently finished Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days--finished in the sense that I beat the main storyline. There is still a lot I feel I need to do--including unlocking all weapons, missions, etc. There is a massive replay value, at least in my opinion. Before I bore you to tears, however, allow me to sum everything up. GAMEPLAY: 7/10 Overall, the game play was wonderfully crafted. It only loses points for two reasons: 1) Locking on takes a few times to get down pat, and it is often useless in battles, especially in the Neverland levels. 2) The challenge curve is extremely hard, especially for a Kingdom Hearts game. Provided one goes through every battle in the mission section of the game as Roxas with a great weapon and many, many potions, you will do fine. The moment you switch to, say, Vexen or Zexion, however, be ready to have your teeth handed back to you. Roxas, Xion, and Axel are the best characters (that I have come across so far) to play as during the multiplayer (or single player, as you can play by yourself) missions, simply because they are the most balanced. Other members of the Organization usually fall flat until they've been level buffed beyond all reason. The limits for each of the Organization members also vary greatly. Some of the members (Xaldin, Roxas, Axel, Zexion, etc.) have wonderful limits that you will want to use again and again until you have beat your enemy into creamy, Heartless paste. However, many of the members have horrible limits that you will never use; I'm looking at you, Xemnas. Others, such as Xigbar, have great limits provided that you are in an area in which you can aim and your enemy is directly ahead of you. Otherwise, don't even bother. Big surprise, however (please read that as sarcastic): Roxas as the best limit in the game. In short: Roxas is the hero. Apparently, no one else matters. I do, however, find the equipment pages to be enjoyable. There is a massive amount of customization in this game; you can decide what level your character is at, what weapon he or she uses, magics, etc. etc. One aspect I loved about the weapons, while we are on that, is that a weapon that is wonderful in say, Saix's hands, might not be the best choice for Vexen or Lexaeus. This makes you hunt and peck for each individual Organization member's best weapon and overall equipment set up; I loved it. STORYLINE: (Optional) 8/10 It's a Kingdom Hearts game. The story is going to make as much since as you want it to. Of course, since I cannot understand/read Japanese very well, I can only base the storyline off of what I can understand from the cutscenes. You might wish to skip over this section of the review if you are looking for something in-depth; I am doing as best as I can with what I can understand. Still, I managed to gasp a few times, cheer once or twice, and sniffle a bit. Some of the story is rather surprising, and seems to link directly to whatever's going to happen in Birth By Sleep. SOUND/VOICE ACTING: 10/10 This is the best sound I've heard in a DS game (voice acting/clarity as well) since I played The World Ends With You. The sound is crisp, clear, and sounds almost perfect. The only thing I can find wrong (and this happens in all Kingdom Hearts games) is that many of the background music tracks have been reused and were carried over from the previous games. GRAPHICS: 9/10 The graphics are close to being as great as they can be for a NDS game. However, I had a few issues with how things were set up; sometimes it was difficult to tell one floating Heartless from another. When you are hunting for a specific Heartless in order to finish a mission, this can be frustrating beyond all belief. Especially when the Heartless you have died against four times turns out to NOT be the one you are meant to hunt. OVERALL: 8.5/10 Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days is a great game to pick up and play. It falls short in some aspects, and is not the strongest game in the series, but for fans (especially those of the Organization), this is something you'll want to play over and over again. Just don't be surprised if you level grind as Roxas, Xion, or Axel, just so the other Organization members stop sucking. (I'm looking at you, Zexion.)
