Kingdom Hearts III: The Series Keeps Getting Better!!!
It's Finally Here!!!
Kingdom Hearts 3 Squad: (L to R) Donald Duck, Sora, Goofy
Kingdom Hearts III has been released! After a long awaited 13 years, we got what we were waiting for. As a fan of the series, I was ecstatic to see that we finally received a 3rd installment to the franchise. During the last few Electronic Entertainment Expos (E3), we were teased on what could possibly be awaiting for us. Several re-releases of the prior two games kept fans busy over the years, but Kingdom Hearts III was what we really wanted. In addition to diehard fans, any Disney lover that plays the game will become addicted to it. They also included so many classic Disney universes or worlds, as they’re called in the game, you can’t help but want to be heavily engrossed in it.
Organization XIII
For people who aren’t in the know, here’s a VERY BRIEF overview of the Kingdom Hearts series. In the original Kingdom Hearts, Sora, Goofy, and Donald Duck are on a search and rescue mission to save their friends Riku, Kairi, and King Mickey (yes Mickey as in THE Mickey Mouse), while defeating the Disney villains that have the ability to control the evil beings known as The Heartless. He uses a sword-like weapon called a Keyblade to assist him throughout his journey, but this is no ordinary sword. It has magical powers and it’s those powers that helped him defeat the head of the Disney Villains crew, Maleficent, seal the realm of darkness, free Riku, Kairi, and King Mickey, and save the Disney World. The events in Kingdom Hearts II take place a year after the first game. The new enemies are The Nobodies and Organization XIII. A Nobody is created when a person loses their heart. At the end of Kingdom Hearts, Sora sacrificed himself and lost his heart, thus creating the Nobody, Roxas. In Kingdom Hearts II, he merged with Roxas to regain his power. When he reawakens, he is sent on a mission, along with Goofy and Donald, by King Mickey to find out the plans of Organization XIII. Sora discovers that the Heatless named Ansem (which he believed he defeated) was actually an imposter named Xenahort. His Nobody is Xemnas and he is the leader of the Organization XIII. He also learns that the Organization intends to take the power of the Kingdom Hearts to create a new kingdom in order to give all the Nobodies a heart. Just like the original Kingdom Hearts, Sora, Goofy, and Donald Duck go to various Disney worlds to fight Organization XIII. Ultimately, Sora defeats Xemnas and saves the Disney Universe once again. Filler Kingdom Hearts games were released before and after Kingdom Hearts II to help develop the storyline.
In the latest addition of the Kingdom Hearts series, Sora must now obtain the Power of Waking to once again save the day. Unlike Kingdom Hearts I and II, Kingdom Hearts III incorporates brand new Disney worlds never seen before in the Kingdom Hearts Universe. The new worlds of Arendelle, the Kingdom of Corona, Monstropolis, Toy Box, San Fransokyo, and an upgraded Twilight Town were created for Sora’s latest adventure. Not only were new worlds created, but new summoning abilities (see below) as well. They implemented a variety of new links such as Stitch’s (Lilo and Stitch) plasma encounter, Meow Wow’s Wonder Balloon, and Ralph’s (Wreck-It Ralph) 8-bit blast to help you throughout the battle. The creators even went so far as to develop form changes. Out of all the new additions, my personal favorite is the ability to use Keyblade Forge. This allows you to upgrade the Keyblades you already have and make them stronger with materials you find in the game. Kingdom Hearts III is still the game we love, but the new features breath new life into the series.
Video courtesy of xTGE on XBOX and xxThegamingelite on PS4.
It seems like the creators of Kingdom Hearts III wanted the players to take the time out to really enjoy their creation. It takes an average of 2 hours to complete each Disney world. This is not a game you can breeze through because there is so much you can do in each world. In fact, to achieve maximum gameplay, you should revisit each world after your first playthrough just to make sure you covered everything. They’ve also found a way to make the game more interactive. It’s now possible to become a part of certain worlds. For example, in the Kingdom of Corona, you can dance with other characters by following the button sequence on the screen. It’s a fun way to take a break from the main storyline and to paraphrase from Ariel become “a part of their world.”
Kingdom Hearts III is everything I could hope for. Speaking as a fan, being able to play the next chapter in Sora’s saga was extremely fun. The gameplay is captivating and will have you playing for hours. I think everyone should give this game a shot even if they didn’t follow the franchise. The way I see it, after playing Kingdom Hearts III, they’ll want to play ALL the games in the series. Who knows? This game might create an even bigger fandom and with that maybe a new game...
