Say what you will about Kingdom Hearts - its convoluted mess of a story, goofy ass characters, wonky dialogue, the number of spin-off titles on separate consoles/handhelds, etc. but the one thing that is, and will remain undeniably great about KH, is its amazing music.

Yoko Shimomura is legendary, and has been one of my favorite composers since the PS1 Parasite Eve days. Her music in the KH series really carries and elevates the entire experience, and is the primary reason why there are so many fans... For this game being dedicated purely to the KH soundtracks throughout the series, it gets a passing grade from me.

Oh, and I really found the version of the song Dearly Beloved in this game to not be depressing and melancholic for once - what a funky mix! :)

Surprisingly dense game that feels like a victory lap for where the series is so far. I haven't played many rhythm games but I felt some of the maps had some notes that felt off beat compared to where the song was heading but maybe I'm just bad/unfamiliar with the tracks. I had fun though since KH as a franchise had stellar tracks. Not itching to do the extra stuff but there's a lot there if you're willing to dig in.

If you aren't into rhythm games just watch the last cutscenes on YouTube. The 30 min lore ending makes me excited for where KH4 seems to be headings and what themes and worlds it could tackle.

Yes, I did buy the game on switch for the smash bros track

Oh Nomura. Of course you put essential story into the VERY END of this game lol. Don't be fooled though, it is a fun rhythm game, and worth your time.
Kingdom Hearts consistently has some of the best music put to game, and the chance to enjoy that for hours on end shouldn't be overlooked. Now here's where my first gripe comes in. I liked the boss & cinematic fights much better because I loved the button holding element. I thought it was more fun, and flowed better with the rhythm of the songs. I wish it had just been that style the whole game, but it's nice you can choose that when you're just playing individual tracks.
Unironically, this is also a great refresher of the story so far. Kairi explains every game in a very digestible way, so you figure out exactly what's been going on if it's been a while since you've revisited the series.
My only other complaint is I wish the rpg elements played a bigger role in the gameplay. I really never noticed a difference between my different teams if they were different levels, and ended up just playing who I liked most (Team Days all day).

I appreciate the spin Melody of Memory tries to put on the Theatrhythm formula by having a 3rd person camera and making the presentation feel a bit more like an action game. I think this presentation style definitely comes at the cost of readability though, a lot of the time you have no idea what to expect past the note/enemy that's directly in front of you, which leads to some situations where I just get blindsided in a way that doesn't feel good. Also the way they handled the KH3 maps is just awful, I understand they were working around engine limitations, but the backgrounds of those stages are so insanely distracting I can't focus on the actual notes. The songs are good though and the story stuff sets up KH4 more so I can't really complain overall though.