Is Roxas and his adventure with Organization 13 worthy of being a Kingdom Hearts title?
The formula established in Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 is well implemented here. Roxas can bash enemies with his keyblade, cause mayhem with magic, and heal up with items. A brand new panel system has been used to control inventory and leveling up. It's simple; each ability/item takes up one square on a grid. As the game progresses, you unlock more room on the grid to use more panels. The more panels used, the more prepared you will be for battles. This system is very unique and fun to mess around with; different arrangements can change the way you play dramatically. There are also a lot of keyblades this time around, each offering their own combos and play styles. At its heart, 358/2 Days is broken into missions, one mission a day for "essentially" 358 Days, with some breaks here and there. Roxas will find himself with a different partner each mission. While not the best AI, partners tend to be more supportive than offensive, which can come in handy quite often. Missions are having you often killing certain Heartless or explore the world. After a relatively long tutorial in Twilight Town, Roxas is able to take on missions in these different worlds. Halloweentown, Neverland, Agrabah, Olympus, Wonderland, and the beast's castle are the worlds present this time around. Bosses are great, but some boss battles present an unfair challenge and health bars that just never seem to deplete fast enough. Unfortunately, the better missions and worlds don't appear until the last half of the game. Mission variety isn't that great either, and you can only take out so many Heartless in Agrabah before the game tires itself out. 358/2 Days does add some twists here and there, but unfortunately the overall experience can be very repetitive at some points. Bosses are great, but some boss battles present an unfair challenge and health bars that just never seem to deplete fast enough. When 358/2 Days shines at its brightest, the combat can be very thrilling and exciting. There are also hidden badges in each mission, unlocking challenges in a brand new Mission Mode. Here, you can play as any member of Organization 13 (plus some unlockable characters) and replay the missions at an added difficulty level. Mission Mode can also be played cooperatively, which can be very hectic and fun. Though definitely not as strong as Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2, you'll find a good amount of excitement when the narrative picks up.
The musical score in 358/2 Days is done very well. Although the soundtrack is taken from mainly from Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2, some of the redone tracks sound amazing. The redone versions of Twilight Town and Rowdiness Rumble are sure to be a fan favorite. Its Kingdom Hearts music at its best and this soundtrack doesn't disappoint. The last notable thing in 358/2 Days is its cut scenes. Theses cut scenes bring out the best the DS has to offer. In-game graphics are good too, but the worlds seem a bit blocky and seem completely lifeless. That said, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days is one of the most graphically impressive DS games to date.
Despite its shortcomings, Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days is still a noteworthy game. It's a great addition to the DS library and a unique treat to Kingdom Heart fans.
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days gets a solid 8.5/10