"Kingdom Hearts" is a game that mixes Disney worlds and stories with "Final Fantasy," creating an RPG experience boasting plenty of fanservice for children and Disney fans alike. At its core, a game with such a combination shouldn't have worked. Final Fantasy: Disney Edition? That's just ridiculous. 18 years later, "Kingdom Hearts" is still a widely beloved and well-received series (even after the long wait for "Kingdom Hearts III") and the original game is still extremely popular. And for fantastic reason, as well.
"Kingdom Hearts" is an absolutely brilliant game. It's a blast to play, it's visually fantastic to this day (even with a few small oddities), the worlds are breathtaking, the story is intricate and detailed, the dialogue is great, the characters are brilliant and memorable, the Disney magic is absolutely there, and the music...wow, the music. It's easily one of the best video game soundtracks I've heard. For lack of a different way to put it, "Kingdom Hearts" is truly a magical and memorable experience, and it still stands as one of my favorite video games.
All that said, though, the game isn't perfect. The platforming can be very wonky, the camera is kind of uncooperative (though, since I played the Final Mix version, it's way better thanks to analog camera controls) and the game very, very, very slightly overstays its welcome. I won't spoil it, but the final world in the game feels like it drags on a bit too much and builds itself on monotony.
Even so, "Kingdom Hearts" is a brilliant video game that RPG fans, Final Fantasy fans, Disney fans, children, teens, adults, and gamers in general, should absolutely check out!
Final rating: 10 out of 10 "Fantastic"