Kingdom Hearts II is the long-awaited sequel to the surprisingly succsessfull Disney/Squaresoft Kingdom Hearts. When I finally got the game, I was very impressed by the quality of it. It is a very huge improvement over the first game, but there are still several flaws.
Storyline:
Kingdom Hearts II picks up a year after the events of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. Don't worry if you haven't played those games, KH2 has a nice story refresher early on in the game. The story is basically a continuation of the storyline from KH and KH:COM, so if you didn't like the story in those games, you won't like the story here.
There are several new characters and revelations introduced in KH2, all of which are very interesting. Unfourtantly, the main storyline is very slow, since most of the time you travel to the different Disney worlds and play through those stories. When the main storyline is the focus, things start to get good. But, since this is a title created for all types of people to enjoy, the storyline isn't very deep and is pretty basic.
Overall, the story feels like a Disney movie written by Square-Enix. I liked it, and you'll like it more if you liked the first game.
Story Score: 7/10
Music & Sound:
Very impressive. The soundtrack in the first game was kind of boring. The songs used were typical, and very few songs were enjoyable. However, the soundtrack in this game is amazing. The songs are moving and nice to listen to, and there are even some songs taken straight out of the Disney movies!
Also impressive, is the cast. The main characters are voiced by some big celebrities including Haley Joel Osment and Christopher Lee. The original characters for the game all have really good voices, the Final Fantasy characters sound just as great, and the Disney characters all have their original voices.
Music Score: 8
Sound Score: 9
Graphics:
The graphics in KH2 are clear, colorful, smooth, and detailed. Just the opening FMV is enough to show that these graphics have undergone major improvement over the past few years. If you don't like anything else about this game, at least you'll love looking at it.
Graphic Score: 9
Gameplay:
One word: Whoa. The gameplay has undergone a MAJOR overhaul. No longer do you have to deal with the crappy camera, slow controls, stupid party members. All are a thing of the past. Now, the battles are fast, furious, and fun. There are so many things to do in a battle it's insane. Sora can transform into various forms, summon characters, cast magic, use items, use limit breaks, and the new reaction command. Depending on who your fighting, you press triangle and Sora will use a special attack on that opponet. The gameplay is really awesome, and is what makes the game really fun to play.
Gameplay Score: 10
Overall:
Kingdom Hearts II was well worth the wait in the gameplay and graphics areas. However, the storyline felt to slow and it just took to long for something important to happen. If you do plan on trying this game, keep in mind that the whole concept of the game is the interaction with the Disney worlds and characters. If you remember that, then you'll play one of the funnest PS2 games ever.
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