[parsehtml]<p> </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/HK30U.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p>In my last editorial, I covered how I fell in love with <em>Kingdom Hearts</em>. In the Golden Days, the gameplay was simple and yet it felt solid and challenging when it needed to be. The bosses and enemies were creative and yet not over-the-top; in fact, in some cases, less was actually more when it came to their design. The atmosphere was an excellent blend of Disney and Square Enix characteristics, and I never felt too flooded from one side over the other (at least, in the first game), and even when the story had its shortcomings (which is often), I was so enveloped in the universe that I rarely thought about the negatives. The <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> universe exclusive characters were memorable enough to still care about, the new and unique take on the Disney characters was excellent, and the cameos by fan-favorite Square characters was entertaining for fans of the company. So much was done right with the first game, which is surprising considering no one would expect a game that mixes something <em>Square</em> with something Disney to be a hit. But it was…at least, for a while.</p>
<p>I disillusioned myself when I was playing <em>Chain of Memories</em> and <em>Kingdom Hearts II</em>. I told you about how I’d spent hours playing both games and I absolutely adored them, but then I picked them up again just a couple of years later and found that I’d rather beat my head against a wall (which would actually probably be a more challenging experience (that was mean)). They have moments reminiscent of the things I loved about the first game, but they are, as a whole, lackluster. And every game since the original has seen no major improvement upon the formula. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/4HTBK.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The combat systems have been reworked repeatedly and while they might be getting more complicated at a glance, I found myself just repeatedly tapping X and maybe the triangle button every now and then even in a newer title like <em>Birth by Sleep</em>. Where was the challenge? The first game wasn’t exactly difficult, but I always felt like the gameplay was varied enough for me to be able to plan out certain strategies for certain bosses or enemies. Heck, <em>Chain of Memories</em> had a unique, very interesting combat system, which I sort of wish the developers had adapted to the entire series. When I played <em>Birth by Sleep</em>, all I did was tap the X button like a madman until I built up until I was able to use the “forms” (if that’s what they’re called) that let you pull off more extreme combos by –you guessed it– tapping the X button some more.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Worse than that, the story has just gone to heck in a hand basket. Granted, the story of <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> has never been fantastic if you paid any amount of attention to it in the original games, but it was manageable. But now, the series has gone astray, trying to adapt too many new plot points and mysteries that I’m sure Nomura will attempt to cleverly tie together. The newer Kingdom Hearts games kind of remind me of the manganime, <em>Bleach</em>: it’s ridiculously convoluted and it has become downright unbelievable. It isn’t cohesive, it isn’t simplistic, and there is absolutely no balance between the <em>Square</em> elements and the Disney elements anymore. Goofy and Donald aren’t even your partners in <em>KH3D</em> from what I understand, and while that might seem irrelevant, it’s something that I appreciated from the other games because it always gave a feeling of coexistence between the two universes. Simple things like that are important, lest you get lost in the dark, edgy, and ultimately confusing universe of <em>Kingdom Hearts</em>. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/bYGB2.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">So how did I fall out of love with the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> series? As I talked about in my last editorial, I grew up. Now, don‘t get me wrong: I don’t believe that the magic of<em> Kingdom Hearts</em> is inherently focused on a prime age group of early teenagers (though it doesn’t hurt). I think it’s possible to love <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> no matter the age; however, once you start recognizing what makes a game <em>good </em>(which I might argue comes not with age, but with experience and time), it becomes hard to reconcile with what the series has turned into. And that was my problem: as I spent more and more time gaming (transforming progressively into a neckbeard by the day), I started to understand what it took to make good gameplay, good atmosphere, and a solid story. <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> doesn’t have any of that anymore.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">“Anymore?” Yes, anymore. It <em>did</em> have all of it at one point, or, at the very least, it certainly had the groundwork. As I’ve mentioned, the gameplay <em>used </em>to be challenging and interactive, the atmosphere <em>used</em> to be magical and nostalgic, and the atmosphere <em>used</em> to be a fantastic blend of Disney and <em>Square</em> elements that made me excuse the shortcomings of the silly main story going on behind the scenes. So what happened? I think the biggest downfall of the series, as is with most other series, is overexposure. It was simple back in the early days of the series’ creation. You had the flagship title and then a portable sequel to tie into the second major installment. It was simple and there was just enough to keep you wanting more without feeling like they were just milking the series for all they could. And then they corrupted that concept. I’m sorry, maybe <em>Birth by Sleep</em> is a necessary title but are <em>Days</em> and <em>Coded</em>? Do they actually matter that much on the whole that they deserve their own games? Can’t you just tie certain necessary plot points into other games? Why does there need to be a constant procrastination in the development of the third major title?</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/0rEKQ.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">There doesn’t. And that’s where every single problem I listed stems from. The gameplay is ruined because it’s mindless and when you are constantly exposed to the same basic mechanics with slightly altered features, you’re going to get bored. The Disney worlds are atmospheric and nostalgic at first, but when you constantly have to visit the same characters over and over, it gets boring (I realize this is something they’ve been trying to fix as of newer titles, but there are only so many Disney movies that you can make worlds out of while still being practical. <em>Cinderella</em> is grasping at straws). </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The story used to blend together original elements of the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> storyline while also incorporating Disney events and characters in a relevant fashion. The Disney Princesses were <em>important</em> to the story in <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> without ever detracting from it. When I played <em>Birth by Sleep</em> last year, all I could feel was that I was just hopping around from Disney world to Disney world without any real point. It’s not like they ever came together. The characters there were only supposed to be important because they were Disney characters, not because they were Disney characters who also influenced what went on with the story as a whole. I felt like almost every world in the original game had something to contribute to the story outside of the mini-story that went on within that world. That’s not true anymore. The magic of the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> games should not just be that Disney characters are just present; the magic of the series should be that the Disney characters are there and they contribute to the story, both in the grand sense and in the individual worlds.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Furthermore, the story within <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> as a series is just stupid now. Pardon my second-grade vocabulary, but I sat here trying desperately to think of a better word and nothing came to mind. The story is <em>stupid</em>. The original game had a simple yet effective plot of “boy saves girl from bad guy while also saving the world (universe?),” but there was also more than that. There was Ansem’s plot and Riku’s destiny and whatever King Mickey was doing at the time. There was just enough underlying ideas to make me thirsty for more information without ever hurting the basic plot. I mean, the underlying ideas are pretty bad by design, but they weren’t overexposed or overanalyzed. They were ambiguous enough to leave you exploring for yourself, always wanting more. That’s good writing. You want to know what bad writing is? Trying to explain why Xion exists or why Ven looks Roxas. I know there are explanations in the games. <em>I don’t care</em>. They are complicated and stupid and I don’t want to ever take the time to try to learn the ridiculously convoluted storyline. Stop making up stupid characters, stop including silly elements like time travel or hearts held within hearts, and just get back to the basics that made the series loveable.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/JnOnA.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">I fell out of love with <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> because it stopped being something charming that I could appreciate and started being something repetitive and confusing. I don’t want to have to try to convince myself that the games I’m playing are good just because I enjoyed them in the past. I’ve tried <em>Days</em>. I’ve tried <em>Birth by Sleep</em>. I even tried<em> Dream Drop Distance</em> a few months back in a demo. All of them failed to captivate me. All of them felt like the same game that I had been playing since the first <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> except with a lot less heart (no pun intended). When a series has been around for as long as <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> has (happy anniversary), it's time to move forward and innovate. Every new entry into the series has felt either like a step backwards to me, and each new sequel is clearly just pushing along trying to recreate what the original game had.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">If <em>Square Enix</em> can refocus <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> into a series that is meant to portray Disney characters in a way that have never been seen while also making me appreciate the exclusive characters, maybe I’d care a little bit more. Maybe if they could fix the gameplay and think of ways to make now-tedious levels like <em>Hercules</em> more fun, maybe I could hop back into the series for once. Maybe if they can get back to the charming basics of the storyline and stop branching off into subpar, confusing storylines. They have enough time to get their acts together before <em>Kingdom Hearts III</em>. They have the ability to fix almost everything. They have the resources and clearly they still have a very strong fanbase ready and waiting for the sleeping giant to awaken. So figure it out <em>Square</em>!</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Also, just make Goofy the protagonist already. I love him. I do.<span style="text-align: center;"> </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">~*~</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">So what do you guys think? Am I way off base here or has <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> kind of lost what made it special? What keeps you interested in the series, and if you are no longer a fan, what happened? What might you like to see in <em>Kingdom Hearts III</em>? Let us know in the comments section below! </p>[/parsehtml]
<p style="text-align: center;"> <img src="http://i.imgur.com/HK30U.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p>In my last editorial, I covered how I fell in love with <em>Kingdom Hearts</em>. In the Golden Days, the gameplay was simple and yet it felt solid and challenging when it needed to be. The bosses and enemies were creative and yet not over-the-top; in fact, in some cases, less was actually more when it came to their design. The atmosphere was an excellent blend of Disney and Square Enix characteristics, and I never felt too flooded from one side over the other (at least, in the first game), and even when the story had its shortcomings (which is often), I was so enveloped in the universe that I rarely thought about the negatives. The <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> universe exclusive characters were memorable enough to still care about, the new and unique take on the Disney characters was excellent, and the cameos by fan-favorite Square characters was entertaining for fans of the company. So much was done right with the first game, which is surprising considering no one would expect a game that mixes something <em>Square</em> with something Disney to be a hit. But it was…at least, for a while.</p>
<p>I disillusioned myself when I was playing <em>Chain of Memories</em> and <em>Kingdom Hearts II</em>. I told you about how I’d spent hours playing both games and I absolutely adored them, but then I picked them up again just a couple of years later and found that I’d rather beat my head against a wall (which would actually probably be a more challenging experience (that was mean)). They have moments reminiscent of the things I loved about the first game, but they are, as a whole, lackluster. And every game since the original has seen no major improvement upon the formula. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/4HTBK.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The combat systems have been reworked repeatedly and while they might be getting more complicated at a glance, I found myself just repeatedly tapping X and maybe the triangle button every now and then even in a newer title like <em>Birth by Sleep</em>. Where was the challenge? The first game wasn’t exactly difficult, but I always felt like the gameplay was varied enough for me to be able to plan out certain strategies for certain bosses or enemies. Heck, <em>Chain of Memories</em> had a unique, very interesting combat system, which I sort of wish the developers had adapted to the entire series. When I played <em>Birth by Sleep</em>, all I did was tap the X button like a madman until I built up until I was able to use the “forms” (if that’s what they’re called) that let you pull off more extreme combos by –you guessed it– tapping the X button some more.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Worse than that, the story has just gone to heck in a hand basket. Granted, the story of <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> has never been fantastic if you paid any amount of attention to it in the original games, but it was manageable. But now, the series has gone astray, trying to adapt too many new plot points and mysteries that I’m sure Nomura will attempt to cleverly tie together. The newer Kingdom Hearts games kind of remind me of the manganime, <em>Bleach</em>: it’s ridiculously convoluted and it has become downright unbelievable. It isn’t cohesive, it isn’t simplistic, and there is absolutely no balance between the <em>Square</em> elements and the Disney elements anymore. Goofy and Donald aren’t even your partners in <em>KH3D</em> from what I understand, and while that might seem irrelevant, it’s something that I appreciated from the other games because it always gave a feeling of coexistence between the two universes. Simple things like that are important, lest you get lost in the dark, edgy, and ultimately confusing universe of <em>Kingdom Hearts</em>. </p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/bYGB2.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">So how did I fall out of love with the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> series? As I talked about in my last editorial, I grew up. Now, don‘t get me wrong: I don’t believe that the magic of<em> Kingdom Hearts</em> is inherently focused on a prime age group of early teenagers (though it doesn’t hurt). I think it’s possible to love <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> no matter the age; however, once you start recognizing what makes a game <em>good </em>(which I might argue comes not with age, but with experience and time), it becomes hard to reconcile with what the series has turned into. And that was my problem: as I spent more and more time gaming (transforming progressively into a neckbeard by the day), I started to understand what it took to make good gameplay, good atmosphere, and a solid story. <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> doesn’t have any of that anymore.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">“Anymore?” Yes, anymore. It <em>did</em> have all of it at one point, or, at the very least, it certainly had the groundwork. As I’ve mentioned, the gameplay <em>used </em>to be challenging and interactive, the atmosphere <em>used</em> to be magical and nostalgic, and the atmosphere <em>used</em> to be a fantastic blend of Disney and <em>Square</em> elements that made me excuse the shortcomings of the silly main story going on behind the scenes. So what happened? I think the biggest downfall of the series, as is with most other series, is overexposure. It was simple back in the early days of the series’ creation. You had the flagship title and then a portable sequel to tie into the second major installment. It was simple and there was just enough to keep you wanting more without feeling like they were just milking the series for all they could. And then they corrupted that concept. I’m sorry, maybe <em>Birth by Sleep</em> is a necessary title but are <em>Days</em> and <em>Coded</em>? Do they actually matter that much on the whole that they deserve their own games? Can’t you just tie certain necessary plot points into other games? Why does there need to be a constant procrastination in the development of the third major title?</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/0rEKQ.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">There doesn’t. And that’s where every single problem I listed stems from. The gameplay is ruined because it’s mindless and when you are constantly exposed to the same basic mechanics with slightly altered features, you’re going to get bored. The Disney worlds are atmospheric and nostalgic at first, but when you constantly have to visit the same characters over and over, it gets boring (I realize this is something they’ve been trying to fix as of newer titles, but there are only so many Disney movies that you can make worlds out of while still being practical. <em>Cinderella</em> is grasping at straws). </p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The story used to blend together original elements of the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> storyline while also incorporating Disney events and characters in a relevant fashion. The Disney Princesses were <em>important</em> to the story in <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> without ever detracting from it. When I played <em>Birth by Sleep</em> last year, all I could feel was that I was just hopping around from Disney world to Disney world without any real point. It’s not like they ever came together. The characters there were only supposed to be important because they were Disney characters, not because they were Disney characters who also influenced what went on with the story as a whole. I felt like almost every world in the original game had something to contribute to the story outside of the mini-story that went on within that world. That’s not true anymore. The magic of the <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> games should not just be that Disney characters are just present; the magic of the series should be that the Disney characters are there and they contribute to the story, both in the grand sense and in the individual worlds.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Furthermore, the story within <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> as a series is just stupid now. Pardon my second-grade vocabulary, but I sat here trying desperately to think of a better word and nothing came to mind. The story is <em>stupid</em>. The original game had a simple yet effective plot of “boy saves girl from bad guy while also saving the world (universe?),” but there was also more than that. There was Ansem’s plot and Riku’s destiny and whatever King Mickey was doing at the time. There was just enough underlying ideas to make me thirsty for more information without ever hurting the basic plot. I mean, the underlying ideas are pretty bad by design, but they weren’t overexposed or overanalyzed. They were ambiguous enough to leave you exploring for yourself, always wanting more. That’s good writing. You want to know what bad writing is? Trying to explain why Xion exists or why Ven looks Roxas. I know there are explanations in the games. <em>I don’t care</em>. They are complicated and stupid and I don’t want to ever take the time to try to learn the ridiculously convoluted storyline. Stop making up stupid characters, stop including silly elements like time travel or hearts held within hearts, and just get back to the basics that made the series loveable.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img src="http://i.imgur.com/JnOnA.png" alt="" width="500" height="175" /></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">I fell out of love with <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> because it stopped being something charming that I could appreciate and started being something repetitive and confusing. I don’t want to have to try to convince myself that the games I’m playing are good just because I enjoyed them in the past. I’ve tried <em>Days</em>. I’ve tried <em>Birth by Sleep</em>. I even tried<em> Dream Drop Distance</em> a few months back in a demo. All of them failed to captivate me. All of them felt like the same game that I had been playing since the first <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> except with a lot less heart (no pun intended). When a series has been around for as long as <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> has (happy anniversary), it's time to move forward and innovate. Every new entry into the series has felt either like a step backwards to me, and each new sequel is clearly just pushing along trying to recreate what the original game had.</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">If <em>Square Enix</em> can refocus <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> into a series that is meant to portray Disney characters in a way that have never been seen while also making me appreciate the exclusive characters, maybe I’d care a little bit more. Maybe if they could fix the gameplay and think of ways to make now-tedious levels like <em>Hercules</em> more fun, maybe I could hop back into the series for once. Maybe if they can get back to the charming basics of the storyline and stop branching off into subpar, confusing storylines. They have enough time to get their acts together before <em>Kingdom Hearts III</em>. They have the ability to fix almost everything. They have the resources and clearly they still have a very strong fanbase ready and waiting for the sleeping giant to awaken. So figure it out <em>Square</em>!</p>
<p style="text-align: left;">Also, just make Goofy the protagonist already. I love him. I do.<span style="text-align: center;"> </span></p>
<p style="text-align: center;">~*~</p>
<p style="text-align: center;">So what do you guys think? Am I way off base here or has <em>Kingdom Hearts</em> kind of lost what made it special? What keeps you interested in the series, and if you are no longer a fan, what happened? What might you like to see in <em>Kingdom Hearts III</em>? Let us know in the comments section below! </p>[/parsehtml]
