358/2 Days's beautiful plot, combined with Yoko Shimomura's stunning score, overshadow a couple core gameplay flaws.
In Kingdom Hearts, Sora attacked himself with the Keyblade to bring out Kairi's heart from within him. In the process, he became a heartless for a time. Sora's strong heart, combined with his transformation spawned a being called a Nobody. Roxas, Sora's Nobody, was created that day, with no recollection of the past. When Organization XIII finds him, Roxas join's their group, seeking for something he knows nothing about. Kingdom Hearts. This chapter of the story hasn't been known…until now.
As the commercial states, "The untold chapter of the Kingdom Hearts saga is here." The question is: Can all the things that made the PS2 games great be transitioned onto the Nintendo DS? Let's take a look, and find out.
To put things bluntly, the very core of Kingdom Hearts hasn't changed in this title. There are only about two crucial changes made to this new title, which will be explained in their respective section. Let's begin with what I believe to be KH's strongest point--the plot.
The plot, which was briefly summarized in the first paragraph, doesn't sound all that deep. But I'm happy to say that, just like the first two games, the plot is not only deep, but a beautiful tale of friendship, along with the sadness that life sometimes presents. After a few days within the Organization, Roxas meets the fourteenth member of Organization XIII. A girl named Xion, who; like Roxas, has no recollection of her previous human life. Oddly enough, she too, can use the Keyblade. These two form a deep friendship, and the story mostly focuses over these two, as they search for their past. Most of the game's dialogue is in text, but the game also features fully voice acted CGI cut scenes that show the most important moments of the game. There are a good many, and you'll be glad that you get to experience some of the most epic moments in movie-style quality.
The story is epic as is, but to make it even more extraordinary, Yoko Shimomura once again has created a beautiful score for 358/2. Actually, truth be told, ninety percent of the music is reused from the first two games. But for one, why mess with a good thing? The music is already great, and changing themes for each world could have been disastrous. And on another hand, there are new pieces in 358/2, and I have no difficulty saying that these new themes could be some of the best music in the KH series so far. And remember those CGI cut scenes I talked about? Square-Enix has done a perfect job of putting these beautiful themes in at just the right moments, enhancing the cut scenes to their full potential.
Okay, so it's clear the music and plot are both epic. But what about the gameplay? This is where those to crucial changes come in, starting with the new "Mission System."
In the first two KH games, you would travel from world two world, defeating one at a time, (in most cases) and then moving on. These worlds, although there were certain goals, were open-world, for the most part. You could freely move about all open areas, and even revisit and explore worlds you had already completed. The same isn't to be said in 358/2, which isn't exactly a bad thing, or a good thing. In 358/2, you perform missions, which take place in their respective worlds. There are a good many types of missions. Collect a certain number of hearts, scout out a new world, eliminate a giant heartless, and other special types of missions are presented here and there. This makes the game a bit more straight forward. I kind of like it, since I prefer games to be a bit more that way. Others, though, might miss the open-world feel. It actually works well for a portable system like the DS. Game sessions can be played in short bursts, if need be. The mission system is a change to the core gameplay that, ultimately, works.
The next change is the panel system, which in some ways works great, and in others, doesn't. Just like in the previous two games, you can earn new abilities. In KH1&2, new abilities costed AP (ability power). Depending on how much you had, you could equip a certain amount of abilities, and use them on the field. In 358/2, AP has been scrapped in place of the panel system. Upon earning/buying an ability, you will get its panel. If you want to equip it, you will place it on your panel deck, if you have enough room. The panel deck is a grid made up of small squares. If you want to equip Dodge Roll (which is one square) you will pick it up, and place it inside a blank square on your deck. Some abilities might be more than one square, and have blank squares of their own. You can place "link panels" inside these. For example, Block might have two squares, one being blank. If you put a "Block +1" panel inside the blank square, you can level up your Block ability. For abilities, the panel system works well, and opens up a lot of customization. Where things start to get shaky is that the panel system not only controls abilities, but items, magic, your Keyblade, and even your level. When you buy a potion, you buy a potion "panel" which must be applied to your deck. Upon use, it disappears. Your Keyblade also must be placed on your deck, and can link with certain panels to up your stats and abilities. These elements work well, but you only have so much space on your deck, and now you have to worry about fitting your "level panels" and "magic panels" When you level up, you don't simply gain a level. You gain a "level panel." The only way actually gain a level is to put in on your deck. In KH2, magic became a bit more accessible with the MP meter. You could use as much magic as you wanted, but once it ran out, you had to wait for it to "recharge." Like in KH1, magic feels more limited, possibly even more so. For example, if you get a "fire panel" and equip it, you get one cast of Fire per mission. Now, there are ceratin panels that increase your casts, but think about it. When it comes to your Keyblade, abilities, levels, and items, magic is probably going to be last thing on your list. This makes magic feel more like it's only for special situations. As you beat missions, you will unlock more space for your deck, but you just won't be able to help but feel like you're always a bit cramped. I suppose it could be good thing, keeping you from being ridiculously over-powered, but perhaps at least magic should have been left out of the panel system.
Now, the core gamplay. Playing on the field isn't much different from the past two games. You'll set out on your mission, and encounter heartless on the way. You'll use "A" to attack, performing combos with your Keyblade an take 'em out. There are many different Keyblades, but oddly enough, most only excel in one thing. For example, one Keyblade might excel in Air combat, but be horrible at ground combat, and vice-versa. You'll have to equip what works best for you, and possibly switch out for certain missions. A bit of a foul-up on the controls was the choice of "A" for attacking. The DS's four main buttons are just like the PS2's. Instead of making attack "B"--where the PS2's "X" is--they made attack "A." Upon starting it will take a while to get used to not using the bottom face-button to attack. "B" is jump and "X" is cycle through the command menu. The camera is now controlled by centering it with "R". You can switch camera controls to "L" and "R", but then "L" isn't open for the shortcuts menu. I personally like having the shortcuts menu, so I went with that, but you'll have to choose what works best for you.
Next, the graphics and sound. The graphics are the best on DS. Period. You'll be shocked that this is a DS game. Square has pushed the DS to it's limit. The characters and worlds look excellent for a DS game, and the only complaint I have would be the Keyblade. It doesn't change in cut scenes, as it did in the original games. It appears as the Kingdom Key, and even that is a flat model. It would have been nice to see a bit more detail but it's a small complaint. The sound is just as pristine. The battle sounds and grunts are great, and the CGI cut scenes retain the original cast of voice actors. The music is also clear, and the game's opening cutscene features Hikaru Utada's "Passion," the theme of KH2.
Finally, a small bit about mission mode. Mission mode is a gameplay option that allows you to play any mission you've unlocked alone, or with friends. The special twist that it brings to the table is the ability to play as any member of Organization XIII, as well as some special unlockables. This sounds good, but it's severely flawed. The new characters control well enough, but for some reason they're all underpowered! There's no reason to use anyone but Roxas or Xion (who has the same stats as Roxas). It's shame, and rather odd that these great characters are so much weaker. I was unable to demo the multiplayer, but playing missions with others is no doubt fun.
To sum it all up, 358/2 Days is pretty much all it's cracked up to be. The epic plot, masterful score, and solid core gameplay make up what could possibly be the best game on the DS. After you beat the game, there is still much to do. You can perform challenges (other goals to achieve on missions), play missions with friends (if you both own the game), or play the game through again on the "Proud" difficulty. I played the game on "Standard", and it was just right for a first time play through. Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days is a worthy entry to the KH series, and if you've played the first two games, is a must own.