Not Without its Flaws, but Quite Possibly the Best in Series Since Kingdom Hearts 2.
I'll start off with this: I am a huge Kingdom Hearts fan. Look at my name if you don't believe me. But if you think that means I'll give it a "Best game EVER" type of review because of it, you are sadly mistaken. I will be giving an unbiased as possible review from the viewpoint of someone who is knowledgeable about the series.
Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance takes place after the events of Kingdom Hearts 2 (finally). The story revolves around series protagonists, Sora and Riku (again, finally) and their quest to complete the Mark of Mastery exam, an exam that if completed will brand them "true" Keyblade masters. Needless to say, along the way things go awry, and Sora and Riku must both prevent the coming disaster whilst protecting themselves from becoming the villains' pawns.
Story
This is where the game somewhat shines in comparison to recent titles such as Kingdom Hearts: Re Coded and even Birth by Sleep. The story feels much more brisk and streamlined then both aforementioned titles. While Re Coded incorporated an extremely unnecessary (and quite frankly ridiculous) plot, the plot in this game is relevant to the point that if you miss it I can guarantee you'll be lost in future installments. In addition, unlike with Birth By Sleep where most worlds were indifferent to the plot, Dream Drop Distance incorporates them rather well the likes of which have not been seen since the original.
How? Well, these worlds are actually in real peril. The worlds are trapped inside a dream realm where they have resided since the events of the first Kingdom Hearts after the worlds were overtaken by Darkness. As their test for acceptance into the ever so prestigious club, Sora and Riku must liberate these worlds from their unconscious states. Sound ridiculous? Well, by Kingdom Hearts standards it is not. And in case you couldn't tell by now it is refreshing to see the Disney related worlds become relevant once again.
In addition, the story's cutscenes are much brisker and only incorporate minimal information, especially if they are not intricate to the plot. Certain scenes (including some important ones oddly though you'll know when they are) are optional and you are prompted when you are able to view them. If you decide not to, you can always go back later to view them from the menu. The brisk nature of scenes as well as this occasional option make the story feel much more streamlined when compared to past titles. You get what you need from 30 second to 2 minute scenes without having to sit through unnecessary dialog.
At the same time, the story is surprisingly well paced despite this briskness. One complaint I had with Kingdom Hearts 2 and Birth By Sleep was that the plot was mostly jumbled into three parts: beginning, middle, and end. Not the case here. You'll slowly discover something is array as you progress through the worlds. I won't tell you how, but these events do a good job of giving you the sense that something much grander is afoot. So by the end it feels fitting when you discover what it is. And just so you know, it's just as confusing and out there as any other title. Be forewarned.
Characters
My biggest gripe with the series as a whole has been its treatment of its characters, especially Sora. Sora has had little to no development since Chain of Memories, falling victim to the "clueless but noble hero" status in Kingdom Hearts 2. Well, this game somewhat rectifies this. Though certainly not up to the standards set forth by 352/2 (they actually reference romantic love in 352, oh the horror Disney) the character development is a step above both KH2 and BBS. Sora is actually forced to face some of his demons here, and while I won't say what they are, they are fitting for him including referencing certain past events that have never gotten the attention they deserved. Sora feels like a more complete character by the end of the game, and it leaves you with the feeling he will only go through more struggles in the future. But don't get it twisted: he is still Sora, and that will probably never change for better or worse depending on your opinion.
Riku somewhat takes a backseat, for the better in my opinion. The usual "falling into Darkness" is referenced here as usual, but Riku takes a much more mature approach to it here compared to the past. Again, I won't say how, but he learns to accept his demons and not let that hinder his progression towards redemption.
Unfortunately, Kairi is just about nowhere to be seen. Whether or not this continuing trend will be rectified remains to be seen.
As for the rest of the cast: Mickey gets a decent amount to do, while Donald and Goofy are mostly in the background. Mickey references his days when training with the Keyblade and the adventure that included Terra, Aqua, and Ventus and his sadness at having failed them. While it's not really resolved, it is nice to see he has regrets. I mean, Mickey Mouse with such dark regrets? Cudos to you Disney.
And ah, Lea, aka Axel. Let's just say fan service abound with this one, for better or worse. I couldn't believe what they did with him at the end. Not really a spoiler seeing as he arrives after the very first world. Everyone else is just an exposition magnet or is too important to the twists for me to reveal here.
And just as an aside, the pseudo-mocking that the cameo characters from The World Ends With You direct towards the Kingdom Hearts characters is priceless. Almost as if to say "grow up already, the world is filled with much worse horrors and mature material." A self reference to the title itself considering how much darker and more mature TWEWY actually was when compared to both KH and FF.
Gameplay
The one thing that has consistently pleased me is the developers' willingness to innovate. And here there is very little exception.
The biggest addition is the creation of Spirits, which are really just "good" versions of the enemies you'll encounter called Dreameaters (who are designed much better then BBS's Unversed in my opinion). You gather materials dropped by enemies, in chests, etc. to create these cute little things. There are two ways to do this: through the acquisition of a recipe or through choosing one material then another in a somewhat trial and error type process (though the resulting spirit is always given). Therefore, there are multiple recipes to create these spirits. If you don't have what the actual memo calls for, you may still be able to create the spirit using the trial and error process. Spirits themselves are a dull sword but decent shield on the battlefield. They do not inflict much damage to opponents but they do cast healing spells and occasionally stat boosting spells such as protect and shell (bout time these Final Fantasy spells made their Kingdom Hearts debut) though the latter spells are not available to the player.
But the true usefulness of Spirits is their ability to give you field abilities such as permanent stat boosts and certain others. These abilities are unlocked through their "ability link boards." To unlock these abilities, link points are needed, which can be accumulated by grinding or through feeding them or special item minigames. This is also one of the only ways to gain commands for your deck. You can even pet them to change their disposition, which affects their battle style and abilities available on the board. You also have special "team" attacks you can initiate when their link gauges are full. Sora's and Riku's combinations are very different, with Riku actually combining with the spirit similar to the D-Links in BBS. Be warned though, certain abilities are only available while that spirit is in your party while others are truly permanent. Also, the spirits can die PERMANENTLY. If they lose all their health, you are prompted to go "save" them within 30 seconds or they will be lost forever, though you can still create another of the same.
The other major addition is the "flowmotion" mechanic. Basically, it's the ability to do certain things such as grind on rails or jump off walls almost endlessly. This is extremely addicting, can be done just about anywhere, and is both useful for combat and travel speed. Certain flowmotion attacks become available depending upon what flowmotion action you are undertaking, and they can be very useful when a hoard of Dreameaters has surrounded you and is giving you trouble. Not much more to say here, but quite possibly the most fun and addicting new mechanic in a while.
Returning aspects are the command deck. Anyone familiar with Birth By Sleep will understand this is a welcome returned addition. Basically, you equip up to a certain number of spells or techniques dependant upon how many slots you've unlocked to a deck run by the X button. A single tap of the X button will initiate the command during battle, but once you do you will have to wait a certain amount of time before being able to use that command again. It prevents spamming of spells and special techniques while always making sure they will be available at some point and time. However, the variety of commands has been considerably reduced from Birth By Sleep, though there are a few new ones as well as returning favorites like Riku's "Dark Aura."
In addition, you have your usual melee button assigned to A. While I found melee to be more useful then in Birth By Sleep, especially aerial combat, it is still not up to par with Kingdom hearts 2 both in usefulness and sheer eye candy. Commands can be chained to melee if you have enough hits left in the combo to initiate them, which somewhat makes up for the lack of melee finishers present in KH2.
Graphics/Design
The graphics are nearly on par with it's PS2 counterparts save some less pixels, similar to BBS. The borders of characters are noticeably pixelated unfortunately, but during the intensively flashy battle sequences you do not notice at all.
The worlds have made a vast improvement. Compared to KH2 and even BBS, worlds are much more interactive now, on par with or better then in the original. There are plenty of platforming sections, some of which make use of flowmotion to get around. The platforming isn't as bad as some reviews have made it out to be, but it also isn't perfect especially when the flowmotion action randomly decides to throw you in a different direction then you intended. The aesthetics themselves are both hit and miss, with the Grid and Symphony worlds standing out far above the rest in quality.
Difficulty/Learning Curve
The game is not difficult at all if you are a veteran to the series, at least not on the three initial difficulty levels. Once you have beaten the game, you unlock an additional harder difficulty that you can play through as a second run. In addition, after saving your clear data you can carry over your spirits you've created to a new game and there levels will be reset to 1.
The one thing that may take getting used to is the spirit creation and options. You can do so many things with them you can get lost and overwhelmed easily. Between creating them, petting them, feeding them, unlocking abilities, mixing and matching for the perfect ability set, minigames to boost experience and link points, a card battle game-esque minigame called "rush tournaments" available in Traverse town, and collecting materials to make them you'll have your hands full half the time just dealing with that aspect. It's not necessarily a negative, but some players might find it overwhelming or time consuming nonetheless. And the rush tournaments, though a nice change of pace initially, become rather repetitive, dull, and slightly frustrating later on. Thankfully, they are not necessary to progress the story, but certain commands are more readily available through the medals you earn by playing the minigame and some recipes can only be obtained this way. But again, thankfully, each tournament gives you a decent amount of medals for your trouble, even giving you some if you lose.
The camera is just as bad as it always has been. It's a Kingdom Hearts staple and it's here to stay, but with the myriad amount of acrobatics, etc. you can pull off with flowmotion the terrible camera just becomes that much more troublesome. Frustration may overtake you on the higher difficulties when your struck by an enemy you had no chance of seeing. But if you're a veteran, you should expect instant death from nowhere by now. But to make things a little better, the game continues the trend of starting from where you entered that particular room rather then at your last save point like most JRPGs. It takes away from some of the difficulty, but it's nice to not have to worry about saving every five minutes.
Closing Thoughts
Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance is one of the more enjoyable entries since Kingdom Hearts 2. The story flows better then most of the games and most of the characters aren't forgotten in its wake. The gameplay is a mix of great new and the best aspects of past games, though melee has been lacking for a while and your time with spirits can be time consuming. It is not difficult if you are used to real time JRPGs or Kingdom Hearts in general, but patience is key when dealing with some of the tougher enemies. All in all, a great addition to the series that is all but welcome and deserving of the franchise name.
Now if only FF-XIII: Versus would release and development on Kingdom Hearts 3 would begin (looking forward to both).