a more confident, accomplished, and nuanced use of deliberately tedious game mechanics than almost any other game yet made, that will struggle to be popularly recognized as such because it stars mickey mouse and tetsuya nomura OCs, and also because square enix have done their best to erase the actual game from existence and leave only a bad compilation movie in its place.
uses the framework of daily missions handed out by actively malicious older men exploiting the identity crises and ennui of teenagers to explore the simple but ever-present existential nightmare that is Work, the hold it has over our lives and the fact that we're just expected to Deal With It without any reason or justification, as well as the uniquely cruel violence of enforced identity society enacts on the young. all this and one of the medium's best accidental trans narratives. if this had Grasshopper Manufacture's logo on it instead of H.A.N.D we'd be neck-deep in thinkpieces every single day.
the co-op multiplayer is neat but also extremely baffling for a game that is Like This. imagine if Pathologic 2 had a separate co-op mode where the Bachelor, Harsupex, and Changeling ran through the termitary competing for a high score and that's the vibe
uses the framework of daily missions handed out by actively malicious older men exploiting the identity crises and ennui of teenagers to explore the simple but ever-present existential nightmare that is Work, the hold it has over our lives and the fact that we're just expected to Deal With It without any reason or justification, as well as the uniquely cruel violence of enforced identity society enacts on the young. all this and one of the medium's best accidental trans narratives. if this had Grasshopper Manufacture's logo on it instead of H.A.N.D we'd be neck-deep in thinkpieces every single day.
the co-op multiplayer is neat but also extremely baffling for a game that is Like This. imagine if Pathologic 2 had a separate co-op mode where the Bachelor, Harsupex, and Changeling ran through the termitary competing for a high score and that's the vibe
358/2 days but the word ice cream is replaced with sex
Organisation XIII Moogle
Kingdom Hearts, 358/2 Days. See, normally If you go one on one with a Heartless, you got a 50/50 chance of winning. But I'm a genetic freak and I'm not normal. So you got a 25%, AT BEST, at beat me. Then you add Goofy to the final mix, your chances of winning go way down. See, the 3 way at Hollow Bastion, you got a 33 1/3 chance of winning, but I got a 66 and 2/3 chance of winning, because Ansem KNOWS he can't beat me and he's not even gonna try!
I don't wanna hear it from anyone. This game showcases Nomura's talent at writing characters.
Such a sincere and relatable story about loneliness and purpose. Roxas is one of the greatest video game characters ever made. The entire game does an incredible job of pacing the development of his character and his relationships with the rest of the organization members. I used to be disappointed that this game didn't explore the rest of the organization more, but now I think it's intentionally brilliant how little we really know about them, because these people don't matter to Roxas. Axel, Xion, Saïx, and the collective entity of the organization are the only ones that are significant to his life, so it makes sense that those are the only ones explored. And the buildup and conclusion is stellar. I love reading Roxas' diary throughout the game, and his blowup at Axel is perfect, leading to not only an insane boss rush, but also to some of the most effective storytelling not only in the series but in the entire medium of video games.
Such a sincere and relatable story about loneliness and purpose. Roxas is one of the greatest video game characters ever made. The entire game does an incredible job of pacing the development of his character and his relationships with the rest of the organization members. I used to be disappointed that this game didn't explore the rest of the organization more, but now I think it's intentionally brilliant how little we really know about them, because these people don't matter to Roxas. Axel, Xion, Saïx, and the collective entity of the organization are the only ones that are significant to his life, so it makes sense that those are the only ones explored. And the buildup and conclusion is stellar. I love reading Roxas' diary throughout the game, and his blowup at Axel is perfect, leading to not only an insane boss rush, but also to some of the most effective storytelling not only in the series but in the entire medium of video games.
It is an absolute tragedy that this game is STILL stuck on the DS (I also lost my cartridge many years ago and havent picked it up since)
It's actually really impressive how they got a game like Kingdom Hearts to even work on the Nintendo DS. It works near flawlessly and my only real gripe is how the lock on and camera interact sometimes. It may have chosen a mission structure instead of the traditional one, but if you think about it, it's a portable DS game meaning it was designed to be played in short sessions. Not every mission is a winner as I swear to christ if I have to kill another Emerald Serenade it's so boring or as quick as defeat the Deserters, but there are a lot more winners here. The music is mostly recycled from KHII but that's not a complaint. Could you imagine someone going "oh man I have to listen to MASTERPIECE COMPOSITIONS for a whole nother video game"? That'd be bizarre you can put Vim and Vigor and Rowdy Rumble into every game ever and I'll still enjoy it.
The Panel system is pretty fun to use, I love this kind of puzzle power placement system. It starts out simple but becomes more puzzle-like as time goes on and you ultimately determine how you want to build your Roxas.
The story is also compelling, even if it's told a bit slowly due to all the missions. This is definitely the beginning of "The Disney Worlds are just decoration" and there was only two Disney fights: Lock Shock and Barrel (which this is the third time you fight them in this series) and Pete (Who's an easier version of his previous fights in the series). Some worlds are also kind of tired as Square this is the 4th time you've shown off Agrabah and Halloween Town in class, but at least most of the all worlds being recycled plays into the narrative. The one interesting World that wasn't in KH1 was Beast's Castle, which plays as a prequel to its KH2 appearance. The whole story in general sets up for KH2 and worlds really well as a midquel to it with its own compelling characters. The cutscenes also take advantage of the DS hardware, sometimes showing two separate things on both screens, even certain gameplay elements which is impressive!
It's baffling how every game got some sort of enhanced version except this one (which only got translated via HD Cutscenes) as this underrated game definitely deserves another chance.
The Panel system is pretty fun to use, I love this kind of puzzle power placement system. It starts out simple but becomes more puzzle-like as time goes on and you ultimately determine how you want to build your Roxas.
The story is also compelling, even if it's told a bit slowly due to all the missions. This is definitely the beginning of "The Disney Worlds are just decoration" and there was only two Disney fights: Lock Shock and Barrel (which this is the third time you fight them in this series) and Pete (Who's an easier version of his previous fights in the series). Some worlds are also kind of tired as Square this is the 4th time you've shown off Agrabah and Halloween Town in class, but at least most of the all worlds being recycled plays into the narrative. The one interesting World that wasn't in KH1 was Beast's Castle, which plays as a prequel to its KH2 appearance. The whole story in general sets up for KH2 and worlds really well as a midquel to it with its own compelling characters. The cutscenes also take advantage of the DS hardware, sometimes showing two separate things on both screens, even certain gameplay elements which is impressive!
It's baffling how every game got some sort of enhanced version except this one (which only got translated via HD Cutscenes) as this underrated game definitely deserves another chance.
I guess some things really are better left unsaid!
One of my fav things about the KH2 narrative was getting to wonder all about the Axel/Roxas friendship and imagining the level of bond those guys must have had to make Axel - who in CoM is characterized as actually just a freak and murderer - seem suddenly so conflicted and caring about the well being of this mystery dude you were stuck playing as in the beginning of 2. Really got you thinking about the "what ifs", man!
iiiii'm not too big into the revelations this prequel game decided to invent as the apparent conceit of all that good KH2 drama. Learning that instead of just having a really strong bond with Axel, Roxas ACTUALLY had a SECRET cockblocking goth gf that he ended up spending a more meaningful amount of time with kind of deflated a lot of what I thought about the relationship!
Watching shit like Axel essentially throw his life away in 2 because he missed Roxas THAT much rings a tad hollow now that I KNOW all the two of them did together as friends was prattle out some basic platitudes over ice cream and argue over a puppet girl for a couple 100 days instead of actually become the SOUL WARRIORS I imagined them being from what was alluded before. I could have done without the token waifu bait for Roxas - is what I mean to sAY! It's also VERY sloppy sounding to just handwave these retcons into the series with a "the characters literally just FORGOT about this secret waifu and her inclusions between games! And that's why she's neeeeever mentioned in kh2!!!". Like, are you kidding me (NO this doesn't work outside of CoM!).
THAT kind of specific directional distaste is my main beef with the game. HOW'S the gamplay tho???
WELL much has been said and romanticized these days on how it comes off "deliberately boring" to simulate a shitty worklife and punctuate those tender moments you get with your ice cream friends while you're away from "work". That take SOUNDED interesting, and it's why I thought to give this one a replay after so many years. I'd say however - that it didn't quite live up to the hype... It's easy enough to project all that from the juicy sounding base I suppose, but ahhhh... because I'm just so let down from the Axel/Roxas narrative I'm not getting, and the new girl drama isn't serving as the payoff for the weaker gameplay like I think its supposed to, I couldn't care less about anything... It's just not what I wanted... It's a story about CONSPIRACY INTRIGUE and DRAMA, when I suppose earlier kh stories were a lot simpler and RAW when it came to their EMOTIONAL, CHARACTER DRIVEN kind of appeal that I preferred? It's complicated...
As for the actual game FEEL... well truly it's kind of lousy and a bit stiff, but hey ya know - at least whacking things feels satisfying enough for a 3d handheld; even WITH the awkward ass gravity/fall speed. And the panel equipment system is a neat shake up; though actually interacting with it is a tad cumbersome, as you have to just tap right over n over for the width of your grid when you wanna return to your list of things to place. The RE4 attache case this is not!
None of the gameplay components come off fully "engaging", but because the main appeal is apparently in that "boring worklife simulation", I give it a pass. I literally don't care enough to argue. Its OBVIOUSLY nowhere near as solid mechanically or as interesting as the last portable outing and GOAT: Chain of Memories. So like whatever, right? I'm sure you could say you play this game entirely for the story, but it just isn't my bag, and the gameplay absoLUTELY doesn't seem worth stickin' around for its howevermany iterations, so I'm just gonna bail. tldr got 'filtered' by the shitty 'stay out of pete's stealth radius' mission hard lmao.
Oh and it also kinda sucks that this one continues the nasty trend set by KH2 and misuses Disney worlds into having them not impact the main plot at all. I applaud the mild return to platforming they offer, but they are cursed to ultimately feel like filler here and serve just as the "boring work" you do while away from the REAL narrative with you and your goth gf. And that is just SO far gone from how they were used in KH1 and CoM! It frustrates me immensely.
I could go on, but ahh I'd just be bitching. Back when I was growing up playing these - it was at this point the series sought to whip up new avenues of plot by any means necessary, and it just totally lost me. The games became more n more interested in expanding the ever CRAZY LORE, and things weren't so simple and clean anymore... to put it romantically~~~
tldr Xion can DIE I hate her I want her to choke on her ice cream >:)
One of my fav things about the KH2 narrative was getting to wonder all about the Axel/Roxas friendship and imagining the level of bond those guys must have had to make Axel - who in CoM is characterized as actually just a freak and murderer - seem suddenly so conflicted and caring about the well being of this mystery dude you were stuck playing as in the beginning of 2. Really got you thinking about the "what ifs", man!
iiiii'm not too big into the revelations this prequel game decided to invent as the apparent conceit of all that good KH2 drama. Learning that instead of just having a really strong bond with Axel, Roxas ACTUALLY had a SECRET cockblocking goth gf that he ended up spending a more meaningful amount of time with kind of deflated a lot of what I thought about the relationship!
Watching shit like Axel essentially throw his life away in 2 because he missed Roxas THAT much rings a tad hollow now that I KNOW all the two of them did together as friends was prattle out some basic platitudes over ice cream and argue over a puppet girl for a couple 100 days instead of actually become the SOUL WARRIORS I imagined them being from what was alluded before. I could have done without the token waifu bait for Roxas - is what I mean to sAY! It's also VERY sloppy sounding to just handwave these retcons into the series with a "the characters literally just FORGOT about this secret waifu and her inclusions between games! And that's why she's neeeeever mentioned in kh2!!!". Like, are you kidding me (NO this doesn't work outside of CoM!).
THAT kind of specific directional distaste is my main beef with the game. HOW'S the gamplay tho???
WELL much has been said and romanticized these days on how it comes off "deliberately boring" to simulate a shitty worklife and punctuate those tender moments you get with your ice cream friends while you're away from "work". That take SOUNDED interesting, and it's why I thought to give this one a replay after so many years. I'd say however - that it didn't quite live up to the hype... It's easy enough to project all that from the juicy sounding base I suppose, but ahhhh... because I'm just so let down from the Axel/Roxas narrative I'm not getting, and the new girl drama isn't serving as the payoff for the weaker gameplay like I think its supposed to, I couldn't care less about anything... It's just not what I wanted... It's a story about CONSPIRACY INTRIGUE and DRAMA, when I suppose earlier kh stories were a lot simpler and RAW when it came to their EMOTIONAL, CHARACTER DRIVEN kind of appeal that I preferred? It's complicated...
As for the actual game FEEL... well truly it's kind of lousy and a bit stiff, but hey ya know - at least whacking things feels satisfying enough for a 3d handheld; even WITH the awkward ass gravity/fall speed. And the panel equipment system is a neat shake up; though actually interacting with it is a tad cumbersome, as you have to just tap right over n over for the width of your grid when you wanna return to your list of things to place. The RE4 attache case this is not!
None of the gameplay components come off fully "engaging", but because the main appeal is apparently in that "boring worklife simulation", I give it a pass. I literally don't care enough to argue. Its OBVIOUSLY nowhere near as solid mechanically or as interesting as the last portable outing and GOAT: Chain of Memories. So like whatever, right? I'm sure you could say you play this game entirely for the story, but it just isn't my bag, and the gameplay absoLUTELY doesn't seem worth stickin' around for its howevermany iterations, so I'm just gonna bail. tldr got 'filtered' by the shitty 'stay out of pete's stealth radius' mission hard lmao.
Oh and it also kinda sucks that this one continues the nasty trend set by KH2 and misuses Disney worlds into having them not impact the main plot at all. I applaud the mild return to platforming they offer, but they are cursed to ultimately feel like filler here and serve just as the "boring work" you do while away from the REAL narrative with you and your goth gf. And that is just SO far gone from how they were used in KH1 and CoM! It frustrates me immensely.
I could go on, but ahh I'd just be bitching. Back when I was growing up playing these - it was at this point the series sought to whip up new avenues of plot by any means necessary, and it just totally lost me. The games became more n more interested in expanding the ever CRAZY LORE, and things weren't so simple and clean anymore... to put it romantically~~~
tldr Xion can DIE I hate her I want her to choke on her ice cream >:)
(8.5) Jogo com estrutura interessante mas q não se mantém e acaba ficando um pouco irritante, e tem alguma das piores Boss fights q eu já vi, n só em KH mas em jogos num geral.
Porém tem uma das melhores narrativas da série (pra alguns a melhor por mais q eu acho a do III, II, DDD E BBS melhores), um protagonista incrível e relações de personagens sensacionais, um combate bem competente, lindo até demais para o DS e consegue te imergir mt bem na vida do Roxas, assim intensificando e botando ainda mais peso aos momentos emocionais. E claro, a reta final que é simplesmente incríveis e um dos highlights da franquia que só tem Highlights atrás de Highlights.
(E NAO JOGUE ESSE JOGO ANTES DO II FILHO DA PUTA)
Porém tem uma das melhores narrativas da série (pra alguns a melhor por mais q eu acho a do III, II, DDD E BBS melhores), um protagonista incrível e relações de personagens sensacionais, um combate bem competente, lindo até demais para o DS e consegue te imergir mt bem na vida do Roxas, assim intensificando e botando ainda mais peso aos momentos emocionais. E claro, a reta final que é simplesmente incríveis e um dos highlights da franquia que só tem Highlights atrás de Highlights.
(E NAO JOGUE ESSE JOGO ANTES DO II FILHO DA PUTA)
One of the more impressive DS games and a surprisingly faithful transition of the Kingdom Hearts combat system over to the system. The mission-based structure lends itself pretty well to handheld play even if a lot of the missions are kind of repetitive. The Panel System is also a really neat mix of character building and loadout/inventory management, since you have to balance things like panels that change your keyblade or increase your base stats with the spells and items that you want to take into any given mission. The story is about what you'd expect from a KH game, but the main trio of Roxas, Axel, and Xion are all pretty likeable characters and the extra context given to them here really helps flesh them out in other games in the series. The mission mode seems pretty cool thanks to the different playstyles of all the Organization XIII members, even if I never really messed around with it that much.
I still have no clue how to pronounce the title of this game I've always said "Three Five Eight Days Over Two" but I'm pretty sure that's wrong.
I still have no clue how to pronounce the title of this game I've always said "Three Five Eight Days Over Two" but I'm pretty sure that's wrong.
For gameplay this ass, I didn't expect the story to hit that hard ;w;
I don't care what people say, the ice cream line is beautiful and tragic.
Tomar helado es una metáfora al felatio según el alcalde
Şu geliştirici h.a.n.d in elinden bi tutun ne sıkıcı yapmışınız la gameplayi
My first and second favorite Kingdom Hearts game, loved the story!
Gameplay wise it did have some limitiations from the ds slftware it was originally created on thus unlike other games there wasnt as many worlds to explore and limited parts of them to explore. Still kind of amazimg this all fit on a ds however.
Gameplay wise it did have some limitiations from the ds slftware it was originally created on thus unlike other games there wasnt as many worlds to explore and limited parts of them to explore. Still kind of amazimg this all fit on a ds however.
As a kid, I remember being very interested in playing the Kingdom Hearts games for a pretty long while due to its combat and the Disney worlds. During that time I had a DS so when I found out this game existed I was excited and eager to buy and eventually play it. It was on sale at Target when I finally was able to get the chance to buy it. Did I? Nope, I got something else and heard that Re:Coded was coming out in the not-very-distant future so I waited to buy that the next time I had money. Boy am I glad I did because I do not think I would be into what is my favorite video game franchise if it was not for that decision.
The combat is fine but it isn't as fun as most of the other KH games including Re:Coded. The best thing about 358/2 Days combat is the ability to use Limits. Limits are incredibly useful in dealing with a lot of the tough enemies you will encounter on your missions, but outside of them there isn't anything to write home about. The best part of the game by far is the story. While I think other Organization XIII members could have used a little bit more screentime (Marluxia is my favorite one), the Sea Salt trio are easily my favorite trio in the series and I loved the dynamic they all had with each other. It makes the emotional scenes in the game hit that much harder especially when you reach the game's ending.
Everything else about the game I didn't really enjoy. The panel system was a nuisance and outside of the ability to get double, triple, and even quadruple-level panels, I really didn't like the concept of it given how it ties to pretty much everything including magic, items, and even down to the keyblade you use. The command deck in the other handheld games wasn't perfect, but at least you had a bit more freedom to choose what spells, items, and abilities to put in it nor did you have a limit to how many times you could use your commands. The mission-based structure and the missions that come with it make the game feel more like a chore than a video game you're supposed to enjoy. Exploring worlds in Kingdom Hearts is generally more enjoyable when the game keeps them to one visit per playthrough instead of being forced to revisit them multiple times. The last thing is that this game has two of the worst story bosses in the entire series, Leechgrave and Ruler of the Sky. They not only are quite powerful but the way both of these bosses are designed will really test your patience.
I believe this game did have multiplayer functionality that looks fun and with some cool secret characters which I believe would make the game a bit more tolerable if I had people to play it with. Similar to what I said with Sonic Unleashed, I do think this game would also benefit from a remaster that makes changes where they are needed and with online multiplayer for the multiplayer mode. Until Re:358/2 Days becomes a reality, I would suggest only watching the movie in the collections to get the 358/2 Days experience.
The combat is fine but it isn't as fun as most of the other KH games including Re:Coded. The best thing about 358/2 Days combat is the ability to use Limits. Limits are incredibly useful in dealing with a lot of the tough enemies you will encounter on your missions, but outside of them there isn't anything to write home about. The best part of the game by far is the story. While I think other Organization XIII members could have used a little bit more screentime (Marluxia is my favorite one), the Sea Salt trio are easily my favorite trio in the series and I loved the dynamic they all had with each other. It makes the emotional scenes in the game hit that much harder especially when you reach the game's ending.
Everything else about the game I didn't really enjoy. The panel system was a nuisance and outside of the ability to get double, triple, and even quadruple-level panels, I really didn't like the concept of it given how it ties to pretty much everything including magic, items, and even down to the keyblade you use. The command deck in the other handheld games wasn't perfect, but at least you had a bit more freedom to choose what spells, items, and abilities to put in it nor did you have a limit to how many times you could use your commands. The mission-based structure and the missions that come with it make the game feel more like a chore than a video game you're supposed to enjoy. Exploring worlds in Kingdom Hearts is generally more enjoyable when the game keeps them to one visit per playthrough instead of being forced to revisit them multiple times. The last thing is that this game has two of the worst story bosses in the entire series, Leechgrave and Ruler of the Sky. They not only are quite powerful but the way both of these bosses are designed will really test your patience.
I believe this game did have multiplayer functionality that looks fun and with some cool secret characters which I believe would make the game a bit more tolerable if I had people to play it with. Similar to what I said with Sonic Unleashed, I do think this game would also benefit from a remaster that makes changes where they are needed and with online multiplayer for the multiplayer mode. Until Re:358/2 Days becomes a reality, I would suggest only watching the movie in the collections to get the 358/2 Days experience.
I only watched the HD cutscenes but like, how the FUCK is Roxas not diabetic this mf eats ice cream every goddamn day. Does he even eat food? This guy is living off of ice cream. I know he doesn't have a heart but does that also mean he doesn't have a stomach? This is the most important part of the entire game/movie. Why isn't Roxas obese?
ngl I only watched the cutscenes
It turned me into an Axel enjoyer so it's banger
I feel like I traveled to an AU where Kingdom Hearts still exists, but is now... good?
Played on a 3DS
Difficulty: Proud Mode
Replay, but I haven't played it since it came out
358/2 Days has a great story of friendship with the three main characters: Roxas, Axel, and Xion. The interactions of the three with the organization members are interesting and tense. Some members gel well in the beginning, but eventually start to cross each other with varying hopes and goals. The added context of have played Kingdom Hearts 3 makes some of these moments even that more heart-wrenching and emotional, in good and sad ways.
The game does a great job at setting stuff up for Kingdom Hearts 2, but also gives some great context for Chain of Memories and the relationship that Xigbar and Ven have in Birth by Sleep.
The only issue is with gameplay being okay. You slash with your keyblade and the bosses are a cool spectacle, but some of them can just be beaten with the strategy of hit, dodge or block, and hit some more. This gets better during the ending stretch of the game, but at that point you're almost done with the game that you wish they had some better bosses sprinkled in.
The enemies in general are nice color palette swaps of enemies, but are pretty lackluster in general. Nothing too special about them. You have some that shoot at you to transport you to their spot, or if you hit them in a certain spot, they disappear and spawn a short distance away. But nothing too crazy overall.
The Panel system of the game is an interesting concept to figure out what to focus on in your playstyle. It makes you choose specific things and eventually introduces skills that take up multiple panels to make them stronger, or you can just keep the one panel for that skill. A nice balance I would say in that regard.
Proud Mode feels like a good balance of difficulty for the game. A nice balance of challenging at the spots that are supposed to be, but good enough to survive the other parts.
Overall, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, is a solid entry in the series! It makes you really, really care about the trio of this game. Definitely could be better in gameplay, but the bosses were fun to gaze upon.
Difficulty: Proud Mode
Replay, but I haven't played it since it came out
358/2 Days has a great story of friendship with the three main characters: Roxas, Axel, and Xion. The interactions of the three with the organization members are interesting and tense. Some members gel well in the beginning, but eventually start to cross each other with varying hopes and goals. The added context of have played Kingdom Hearts 3 makes some of these moments even that more heart-wrenching and emotional, in good and sad ways.
The game does a great job at setting stuff up for Kingdom Hearts 2, but also gives some great context for Chain of Memories and the relationship that Xigbar and Ven have in Birth by Sleep.
The only issue is with gameplay being okay. You slash with your keyblade and the bosses are a cool spectacle, but some of them can just be beaten with the strategy of hit, dodge or block, and hit some more. This gets better during the ending stretch of the game, but at that point you're almost done with the game that you wish they had some better bosses sprinkled in.
The enemies in general are nice color palette swaps of enemies, but are pretty lackluster in general. Nothing too special about them. You have some that shoot at you to transport you to their spot, or if you hit them in a certain spot, they disappear and spawn a short distance away. But nothing too crazy overall.
The Panel system of the game is an interesting concept to figure out what to focus on in your playstyle. It makes you choose specific things and eventually introduces skills that take up multiple panels to make them stronger, or you can just keep the one panel for that skill. A nice balance I would say in that regard.
Proud Mode feels like a good balance of difficulty for the game. A nice balance of challenging at the spots that are supposed to be, but good enough to survive the other parts.
Overall, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, is a solid entry in the series! It makes you really, really care about the trio of this game. Definitely could be better in gameplay, but the bosses were fun to gaze upon.
358/2 days offers the best narration of the events between and after chain of memories. For a DS title this game looks astounding and the usage of dual screen for both story segments and ingame is top notch. It's mechanically sound and has a fun panel system for leveling up and optimising your character.
Unfortunately the game is bogged down with a repetive mission structure and some really spongy bossfights. Prepare to play the same world layouts over and over the entire run of the game, with only one exclusive disney world. Towards late game I was praying for the counter to reach 358.
I'd recommend the game for its narrative segments and occasional highlights. There's a few extra character interactions and better context of how the 358/2 events transpires in parallel with Chain of Memories. Some missions and bossfights are decent standouts.
Otherwise..just stick to the movie to avoid the mundane gameplay exhaust.
Unfortunately the game is bogged down with a repetive mission structure and some really spongy bossfights. Prepare to play the same world layouts over and over the entire run of the game, with only one exclusive disney world. Towards late game I was praying for the counter to reach 358.
I'd recommend the game for its narrative segments and occasional highlights. There's a few extra character interactions and better context of how the 358/2 events transpires in parallel with Chain of Memories. Some missions and bossfights are decent standouts.
Otherwise..just stick to the movie to avoid the mundane gameplay exhaust.
If you didn't cry to this game I don't trust you.
Bad movie tbh
the gameplay is a bit repetitive but that is only to the story's benefit, a lot is lost from just watching the movie!
Best story in a KH game! Gameplay systems kinda miss tho
The story is surprisingly told well in a terrible melodramatic kinda way. I found myself weeping at the end, and really connecting to the 1 dimensional characters. But the gameplay is awful.
depression in the form of a ds cartridge
None of this shit would've happened if they just unionized, but I guess that's a different game huh.
The story is fine. I have no attachment to That character beyond an interesting existence. If you ask me, the ending feels rushed which ruins whichever impact it wants to achieve. Nintendo DS not helping.
"Busywork: The Game" is correct though. It is just a shitty job where you do the same thing but different places. Play a very annoying and shitty organization puzzle for way too long because you have brain worms. Don't forget some really dumb Challenges and that you should consider grinding missions in Solo mode. Where the levels are higher but aren't scaled for Solo play. Thank you localization.
But I think just settling with the movie loses a lot of charm with how fucking weird this game is. Both this and Re:Coded have to reuse animations or ideas from Kingdom Hearts 2 and they're both radically different ways of going about it. While Re:Coded settled with being a Command Deck game and using combo modifiers as Commands, everything is filtered through Days' Panel system. What combo you get is based on what Gear you get, what magic you have depends on how many you equip and without items or a revive, you can just run out. If it wasn't for Fire being as good as it is, I have to wonder what it's like to visit Halloween Town without any. The amount of redone rooms from Re:CoM and KH2 just for cutscenes was pretty wild because they absolutely didn't have to do that for. There's even a recreation of the Traverse Town arena, which is used only once!
And while I did shit talk the DS earlier, it is used in a way that cannot be replicated in a movie. The use of the bottom screen to flashback to Sora was cool every time. You can notice there's a disconnect between Roxas and Sora, most notably against Guard Armor, which means you're actually controlling two different characters for a moment!
Though what really hampers this game is it's placement. It is right between 2 and CoM, with little else to expand upon. Meaning ontop of a rushed ending, half of the cast just leaves to die off screen. Many of the stories can't go elsewhere either being irrelevant by 2 or left to be finished by 2. Pete just appears but if you played this alone, you'd have no clue what he was cooking. It doesn't feel like there's any real conclusion to any of these worlds.
I don't have any where else to put this but Mission Mode sure does exist. As mentioned before, enemies are buffed without account to if they're playing Solo or with friends. There's also no real way of testing the combos you get, if at all, if you're playing the other characters. Most of which who suck. Disappointingly, this applies to the really cool ones like Riku, The King, or Sora. Without endgame Gear (well the last two are only unlockable post-game anyways), you're left with one weapon with a really subpar combo. And each of them only have 3 total weapons.
I am kind of sad we can't have a game like this anymore. Or even worse, we can't really have a Re:358/2 Days with how incompetent Square is. Because nowhere else are we going to get playable Organization Members on the level of functionality like our main character.
The story is fine. I have no attachment to That character beyond an interesting existence. If you ask me, the ending feels rushed which ruins whichever impact it wants to achieve. Nintendo DS not helping.
"Busywork: The Game" is correct though. It is just a shitty job where you do the same thing but different places. Play a very annoying and shitty organization puzzle for way too long because you have brain worms. Don't forget some really dumb Challenges and that you should consider grinding missions in Solo mode. Where the levels are higher but aren't scaled for Solo play. Thank you localization.
But I think just settling with the movie loses a lot of charm with how fucking weird this game is. Both this and Re:Coded have to reuse animations or ideas from Kingdom Hearts 2 and they're both radically different ways of going about it. While Re:Coded settled with being a Command Deck game and using combo modifiers as Commands, everything is filtered through Days' Panel system. What combo you get is based on what Gear you get, what magic you have depends on how many you equip and without items or a revive, you can just run out. If it wasn't for Fire being as good as it is, I have to wonder what it's like to visit Halloween Town without any. The amount of redone rooms from Re:CoM and KH2 just for cutscenes was pretty wild because they absolutely didn't have to do that for. There's even a recreation of the Traverse Town arena, which is used only once!
And while I did shit talk the DS earlier, it is used in a way that cannot be replicated in a movie. The use of the bottom screen to flashback to Sora was cool every time. You can notice there's a disconnect between Roxas and Sora, most notably against Guard Armor, which means you're actually controlling two different characters for a moment!
Though what really hampers this game is it's placement. It is right between 2 and CoM, with little else to expand upon. Meaning ontop of a rushed ending, half of the cast just leaves to die off screen. Many of the stories can't go elsewhere either being irrelevant by 2 or left to be finished by 2. Pete just appears but if you played this alone, you'd have no clue what he was cooking. It doesn't feel like there's any real conclusion to any of these worlds.
I don't have any where else to put this but Mission Mode sure does exist. As mentioned before, enemies are buffed without account to if they're playing Solo or with friends. There's also no real way of testing the combos you get, if at all, if you're playing the other characters. Most of which who suck. Disappointingly, this applies to the really cool ones like Riku, The King, or Sora. Without endgame Gear (well the last two are only unlockable post-game anyways), you're left with one weapon with a really subpar combo. And each of them only have 3 total weapons.
I am kind of sad we can't have a game like this anymore. Or even worse, we can't really have a Re:358/2 Days with how incompetent Square is. Because nowhere else are we going to get playable Organization Members on the level of functionality like our main character.
Kinda sucks, story sad doe