Once again, Kingdom Hearts doesn't disappoint. After playing Final Fantasy X-2, I was somewhat expecting a bit of a let-down from this sequal as well. However, this one turned out very well. There are a couple ways in which this one is a let down, but also a lot of improvements here.
The Graphics are similar to the old Kingdom Hearts. I takes a step up in graphics, definitely, but they keep the same style, which is good. It's a good style.
The combat actions has been stepped up a notch, and has a lot more complexity to it. There are the familiar spells, attacks and items. Also, you have summons, which now comsume the drive gauge instead of MP, and combination/limits. The Basic attacking has been ramped up to be more customizable, which is kind of nice. The introduction of the drive form is really a neat deal. In most drive forms you can wield two keyblades, and each has it's own distinct set of abilities, and method of attack. The only problem with drive forms is that it kind of invalidates summons. Summons are nice, but anytime you could summon, you can just as well enter drive forms, and almost universally, drive form seems to be the strongest choice.
The other new aspects of combat is the reaction commands. These add another whole dimension to combat, which often helps to remove the button-bashing aspects from the game. Instead of just unleashing constant barages of attacks, sometimes you have to wait for the reaction command at the right time. It really is a very nice addition.
Also, often, the combat takes a more grand scale. Instead of never fighting more than 5 or so heartless at a time, now you may find yourself up against 10 or more enemies at once on a fairly regular basis, and sometimes many more. In one instance, that I believe is fairly well known by now, even 1000 to be dispatched.
Out of combat, the game has it's pluses and minuses. On the good side, there are a lot of mini games around. While some are more fun that others, that's always the case. There are mini games and side quests and high scores to met on nearly every world. There is quite a bit to keep the player busy other than the primary storyline (which is fairly involved anyway).
A big step up goes to the gummi ship system. While not perfect, It's a lot better. The Gummi Ship builder now has levels of complexity to it far beyond the original game. However, this would be tedious for many players, so as before, this aspect is almost entirely optional. The big surprize is that, the gummi ship building isn't a complete waste of time. While in the original kingdom hearts I began to wonder if it was possible to actually die in a gummi ship (I have yet to confirm that it is, in fact possible), in KH2 it is most assuredly possible to lose in your gummi ship. Really a nice aspect that can appeal to anyones style, whether that is to mostly ignore the gummi system, or go nuts and create your personalized space-faring behemoth.
Two complaints here though. First, a very minor complaint: The game tended to be fairly linear for a surprizingly long while. you just head world to world, and follow the path your set upon straight through. There really isn't a lot of latitude as far as where to go next, and not much exploration.
My biggest disappointment, though, was in the level design. It's related to the above, really. Every area was just flat and straight. This was a big step away From the original Kingdom Hearts, where often you came upon areas set up more vertically, or puzzles to get from place to place. The chests required no more effort to get to than simply walking up and opening them. There was never anything like the Wonderland Bizarre Room area, or the strangely vertical setups in the Hollow Bastion or the End of the World. No puzzling your way through how the lower levels of the Cave of Wonders connected, or trying over and over again to figure out how to get to that chest on a high ledge in Monstro.That was a lot of the fun in Kingdom Hearts, and it's entirely absent here. This was a major disappointment for me.
The plot of this installment is a bit different than the first. There is still a group of diabolical enemies directing the whole thing with one man pulling the strings, who may look a bit familiar. They have some dangerous plan and you have to stop them, taking on countless heartless and nobdoies on the way. Pretty familiar. The unfamiliar bit is that, when you defeated your enemy you felt all right with the fact that he was bad guy and got what he had coming to him. As you progress in KH2, I personally didn't really get the same satisfactions. I felt more sympathetic to the villians. Whether that is a good or bad things is up to the player. Overall, though, a very engagin and interesting storyline. Good work there.
Overall I'd give this one a 9. As disappointed as I was with the level design, and perhaps a couple other problems, there were enough improvements to put this on about the same level as it's predecessor. Excellent game, and definitely worth buying.
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