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Kingdom Hearts (video game)

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Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts North American pagacking artwork
Kingdom Hearts North American pagacking artwork
Developer(s)Square Co., Ltd.
Publisher(s)
Square Co., Ltd. (Japan)
Square EA (N. America)
SCEE (Europe)
Platform(s)PlayStation 2
Release
March 28, 2002 (Japan)
September 17, 2002 (N. America)
November 15, 2002 (Europe)
December 26, 2002 (Japan) — as
Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix
Genre(s)Role-playing game
Mode(s)Single player

Kingdom Hearts (Japanese: キングダムハーツ Kingudamu Hātsu) is a hybrid action/RPG that was released in Autumn of 2002, which is notable for being the result of a collaboration between the video game developer and publisher Square and Disney.

Overview

File:Kingdom Hearts Battle Screenshot.jpg
A typical battle in Kingdom Hearts (North American version).

Kingdom Hearts begins on lush tropical islands called "Destiny Islands", home to the main characters Sora, Riku, and Kairi. The three children wish to leave the island that they have been confined to all their life, so they build a raft to escape. The night before the voyage, a storm sweeps through the island, and evil creatures called the Heartless appear. The three friends are separated. Then, when Sora finds Riku surrounded by darkness, Riku disappears and Sora has to fight the Heartless. Afterwards he receives his weapon, the mystical Keyblade. Using the Keyblade and teaming up with various Disney characters, such as Donald Duck and Goofy, he seeks to defeat the Heartless and be reunited with his friends.

It is an action-based RPG, featuring realtime rendered backgrounds and scenery. The music is composed by Yoko Shimomura, the ending credits theme Audio file "Kingdom Hearts - March Caprice For Piano And Orchestra.ogg" not found and opening orchestration Audio file "Kingdom Hearts - Hikari (Orchestrated Instrumental).ogg" not found is by Kaoru Wada, and the main vocal theme is "Hikari" Audio file "Kingdom Hearts - Hikari.ogg" not found (light) known as "Simple and Clean" Audio file "Kingdom Hearts - Simple And Clean.ogg" not found in Western releases. Both versions of the song were composed and performed by Utada Hikaru.

Plot

Template:Spoiler In Kingdom Hearts, a villain has used the Heartless to tear down the walls between the many worlds. Lead character Sora, as well as popular Disney characters Donald Duck and Goofy, must travel to each of these worlds, using the mighty Keyblade, while collecting its powerful forms, to seal the entrances to the hearts of the worlds before the Heartless can destroy them. The primary villain, Ansem, seeks to find the door into utter darkness. Sora's former best friend, Riku, has been seduced by the darkness, and makes several attempts to end Sora's life. As for Kairi, her heart was taken, because she was one of the "seven princesses of heart" (replacing Ariel from The Little Mermaid since she is a party member in one world).

Final Mix

File:Cloud and Sephiroth KHFM.jpg
Cloud and Sephiroth's new cutscene.
File:Neo Shadow.jpg
Neoshadows in Final Mix.

In Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, the Japanese re-release of the game, several events and a number of gameplay tweaks were added that were not in the American release. Various new enemies, abilities, and weapons were added, and slight changes have been made to affect the game's difficulty. The game ends with what many fans assume to be two teaser trailers for Kingdom Hearts II, (the first of which was also available in the North American version by doing a lot of side-quests) a sequel which has been recently been announced. In the second teaser, titled Deep Dive, Mickey and four other cloaked figures are shown. One of the Unknowns carries two keyblades and has been confirmed as the Blonde Haired Kid, and another is blindfolded and has been confirmed as Riku. The game features two new keyblades for Sora, the One-Winged Angel and the Diamond Dust blade, both of which can only be obtained in the coliseum. It also includes a special boss fight: at the Hollow Bastion, the optional Boss is the Enigmatic Man, a member of the XIII Order. There is also a new scene (commonly called the "Showdown of Fate") that shows Sephiroth and Cloud fighting inside the Coliseum

Worlds

The many worlds in which the game takes place include various Disney settings (nearly all of which are part of the Disney animated features canon and most of which "crossed over" in gag cameos in their original movies), as well as some original ones.

The Disney-based worlds:

  • Wonderland, from Alice in Wonderland. This is a surreal level in which the player is shrunk down to a miniscule size. This is the first level that can be closed to the Heartless. Features the Chersire Cat, the Doorknob, Alice, The Queen of Hearts, and several cards, as well as the Mad Hatter and the Hare. The Lady Luck Keyblade can be obtained here later.
  • Deep Jungle, from Tarzan. This is a slightly longer world than the first, and includes Tarzan, as the first character that can be added to your party, Jane, Clayton, and Several Apes. Here you get your first keychain, the Jungle King.
  • Olympus Coliseum, from Hercules. This includes Hades, Hercules, Philoctetes (a.k.a. Phil), Cerberus, and Cloud. The Olympia, Metal Chocobo, and Lionheart keyblade can be obtained here later.
  • Agrabah, from Aladdin. This world includes Agrabah and the Cave of Wonders. Aladdin, Abu, Jasmine, Jafar, Iagu, and Genie are introduced here. You can also get the Three Wishes Keyblade here, and later the optional boss Kurt Zisa can be found in the desert.
  • Monstro, from Pinocchio. This world brings the player through the bowels of a whale, and has also been criticized as a filler level that contributed little to the game. The infamous little wooden puppet Pinocchio and his maker Gepetto can be found here, though after this level is completed, they can be found in Traverse Town.
  • Atlantica, from The Little Mermaid. This was an innovative underwater level that consists of Ursula's cave, several grottos, and Atlantica. Ariel, King Triton, Ursula, Seabastion, Flounder, Flotsam and Jetsam appear in this world. This level has often been criticized by fans as a difficult level to play because the controls vary underwater. The Crab Claw keyblade is found here.
  • Halloween Town, from The Nightmare Before Christmas. The movie's cast make their video game debut in the level. This world includes the town square, Oogie Boogie's Manor, Moonlit Hill, and a Graveyard. The Pumpkinhead keyblade is obtained here.
  • Neverland, from Peter Pan. The world's name is somewhat a misnomer because the action takes place on Captain Hook's ship and a minor bit as well as a secret boss in London; as such, the actual Neverland is not actually visited. Captain Hook, Peter Pan, Wendy, Smee, and Tinkerbell call this world home. Upon finishing this level you will be rewarded with the Fairy Harp Keyblade.
  • Hundred Acre Wood, from Winnie the Pooh. This world is unlike the others. There are no Heartless here and it takes place in the pages of a book. A variety of mini games open up as you proceed through the game.

The original worlds:

Voice cast

Note: Most of the Disney Characters are voiced by their original voice actors from the movies or their voice actors for the animated series (where applicable, e.g. Dan Castellaneta as Genie, rather than Robin Williams.)

English language version

Japanese language version


Characters

File:Kingdom Hearts logo.jpg
Official Kingdom Hearts logo.

Template:Spoiler

Sora

The hero of the game, Sora is fourteen years old and on a quest to find his friends while saving various worlds from the Heartless. He carries a peculiar weapon, the Keyblade, and travels with Disney characters Donald Duck and Goofy who are looking for their king, Mickey Mouse, while Sora searches for his two friends; Kairi and Riku. As a teenager, Sora has his share of concerns, but overall, he manages to keep an upbeat attitude. He seems simple-minded at times, but he has a strong sense of justice. His heart remains loyal to the light, no matter what.

Riku

One of Sora's best friends, Riku is fifteen years old, and he lived with him on Destiny Islands. Although Riku is Sora's best friend, there's alot of conflict between those two in games, and when Kairi came to their island, there was a rivalry between them for her. Riku is older than his friends and much more serious than them. He cannot stand living in the enclosed world of the islands and seeks to find a way out. He and his two friends start to build a raft in hopes to sail to another world at the start of the game. However, when the Heartless attack the islands, Riku seems to have no fear of the darkness they bring and goes into it willingly. After discovering new worlds, he searches in an attempt to find them, but when he finds Sora with Donald Duck and Goofy, Riku assumes that Sora has abandoned him. After that, Riku joined with Maleficent and starts searching primarily for Kairi. He made several attempts on Sora's life, including stealing the Keyblade and his friends, because Riku was meant to have the Keyblade and he seemingly believed that Sora is far too weak to protect Kairi. But Riku was cast into the World of Darkness after his body was taken over by Ansem. He then assisted Sora in closing the door to Kingdom Hearts, with himself behind it.


Kairi

Sora's other best friend who lives with him and Riku on Destiny Islands, Kairi is also 14 years old. She's very cheerful and perky and seems to be a bit of a tomboy. She was not born on the island, but came there from Hollow Bastion, presumably 11 years ago (when Ansem lost his mind and body). Her appearance on the island caused a rift between Sora and Riku, and their friendship hasn't been exactly the same since.

Kairi also disappears after the destruction of Destiny Islands, and Sora doesn't find her until he reaches Neverland. Though she is lifeless here, she reacts to Sora's voice by slowly closing her fist. Riku reveals that she lost her heart sometime between the destruction of their home and his finding her, and that he joined Maleficent to locate her heart. Kairi also seems to have some connection to Hollow Bastion and its mysterious keyhole, which is said to need "seven princesses of heart" to open. Kairi is one of the "Princesses of Heart". In Japanese, the word Kai (part of Kairi) can mean "ocean". As Sora means sky and Riku means ground, one can infer their own conclusions from this.

Donald Duck

Donald Duck appears as a magician, capable of doing various spells from curative to offensive. He, along with Goofy, goes to find their missing king, who has gone on a mission to investigate the bedlam the kingdom is under, as well as the Keyblade Master. He contributes to the party with his repertoire of spells and also brings the comic antics he never seems to lose throughout the Disney series.

Goofy

Goofy appears with Donald on the same mission. He appears as a warrior, a master in physical stats (HP, strength, and defense). He is the Captain of the Royal Knights and despises weapon usage, so he uses a shield to attack and defend, and is the king's most loyal subject. He is a great help and is the group's pack mule (he carries the most accessories and items). Like Donald, his comical antics never seem to die out.

Disney villains

The villains of Kingdom Hearts. Led by Maleficent, they are composed of Jafar, Hades, Ursula, Oogie Boogie, and Captain Hook. They use the Heartless for their evil plans in order to obtain seven maidens of the purest heart, called the Princesses of Heart, and to dominate their resident world under their rule or vengeance, etc. As Ansem's journal said, once they had obtained all seven such Princesses, they will be able to unlock the Final Keyhole. Other Disney villians that also appear but are not affiliated with Maleficent are Clayton (Who used the Heartless to hunt Gorillas) and one of the villains from Wonderland (it is debatable whether the Wonderland villain is the Queen of Hearts or the Cheshire Cat, but neither used Heartless.) (In the manga, however, the Cheshire Cat was affiliated with Maleficent, but betrayed them).

Ansem

The true main villain of Kingdom Hearts, he was hiding in the shadows until Maleficent gathered all seven Princesses of Heart. He was the ruler of Hollow Bastion (previously the home of most of the Final Fantasy characters, as well as Kairi), but he went insane due to his research on the Heartless, believing that only the power of darkness rules existence. He entered the darkness, losing his body in the process, but had a will great enough to withstand becoming a Heartless himself, and instead became something more. Deceiving Riku into letting him possess the boy's body, Ansem regained his physical form and purged Riku's heart from him when he tried to fight back. Sora followed Ansem to the world beyond the Final Keyhole, the End of the World, where the door to Kingdom Hearts awaited, and defeated him before Kingdom Hearts was fully opened. Although Ansem dies in the end of the game, he lives on in Riku's mind and heart and returns in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, the sequel.

He has connections to the man named "DiZ", a strangely bound and bondaged character wearing red. He can be seen in both "Chain of Memories" as well as "Kingdom Hearts II". It is unknown what his true motive is, however, he is said to be "both Ansem and not Ansem".

Unknown

A mysterious cloaked figure, known also as "The Enigmatic Man", who appears at Hollow Bastion in Final Mix as an optional boss. He serves as a prelude to the game's sequels, being the first member of the organiziation Sora encountered. He doesn't talk; he speaks to Sora in his mind.

The Heartless

The Heartless are creatures born of the darkness in people's hearts. When they consume a person's heart, their body vanishes and their heart falls to darkness. Almost all of them are branded with the same symbol. The Heartless with that symbol was created by Ansem, using a machine that artificially creates Heartless. They pursue the wielder of the Keyblade, Sora, although their reasons are not entirely clear.

Final Fantasy cameos

On Destiny Islands, the player meets younger versions of Tidus, Wakka (both from Final Fantasy X), and Selphie (from Final Fantasy VIII). In Traverse Town, the player encounters Squall (under the alias of Leon) from Final Fantasy VIII, as well as Aerith (known as Aeris in the US), Cid, and Yuffie from Final Fantasy VII. Rikku from Final Fantasy X was originally going to be a cameo but she was later replaced with Yuffie, and Irvine from Final Fantasy VIII was replaced by Wakka. In the Olympus Collesium, the player gets to fight Leon, Yuffie, and Cloud Strife of Final Fantasy VII. In the American and Final Mix versions, the player gets to fight Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII as well, and Final Mix has an additional scene in which Cloud and Sephiroth fight to the death.

The game also uses other Final Fantasy icons. Moogles make an appearance and help you obtain the ultimate weapon (the aptly named Ultima Weapon). Several other weapons, such as Lionheart and Save the Queen, have a Final Fantasy theme. The Final Fantasy Magic Naming System (ie. Cure, Cura, Curaga, etc.) is also in place. The names of various spells are the names of Gummi blocks, and various summons, weapons, bosses, and monsters are the names of Gummi ships blueprints.

The Keyblade

A legendary weapon that is said to have both saved the world AND to have destroyed it. The main weapon in Kingdom Hearts, the Keyblade is wielded by Sora and is the only thing that can lock the worlds, thus preventing the Heartless from consuming the heart of a world. It is the only weapon that can destroy the Heartless completely, though because of it, the wielder, Sora, is constantly pursued by the Heartless. They are mainly drawn to Sora's heart, however, not the Keyblade.

The Keyblade is upgradable via keychains, each of which change its appearance and powers.

List of Keychains

  • Kingdom Key  : The default keychain in shape of a silver mickey's head logo.
                 Appearance as a silver giant key with a crown shaped form in the upper side.
  • Jungle King  : Given by Tarzan in Deep Jungle. Has the form of a butterfly.
                 Apperance as made of wood and dinosaur's bones.
  • Three Wishes  : Given by Alladin in Agrabah. Has the form of Gennie's magic lamp.
                 Appearance as a golden old arabian key.
  • Spellbinder  : Given by Merlin in Traverse Town, after having all basic spells. Shaped in a magic book.
                 Appareance as a blue thing with astronomical instrument in the upper side.
  • Crabclaw  : Given by Ariel in Atlantica. Has the form of a blue shell.
                 Appareance with fish tails and in the upper side, a crab.
  • Pumpkinhead  : Given by Jack in Halloween Town. Pumpkinhead-shaped keychain.
                 Appareance with bats ornament.
  • Wishing Star  : Treasure chest in Gepetto's Hause in Traverse Town. Star shaped.
                 Appareance as a mechanic woody rolls n stuffs...
  • Fairy Harp  : Given by Peter Pan in Never Land. Red feather shaped.
                 Appareance with fairy flute in the upper side.
  • Lady Luck  : White Trinity in Wonderland. As of Love card shaped.
                 Heart shaped appareance.
  • Olympia  : Win the first three Tournaments in Olympus Colliseum. Takes form of Herc's Shield.
                 Cloud and muscles ornaments as appareance.
  • Metal Chocobo : Defeat Cloud in Hercules Cup in Olympus Colliseum. Has the form of a Chocobo.
                 Heavy metal thing appareance.
  • Divine Rose  : Given by Belle in Hallow Bastion, after saving all the Heart Princesses. Rose-shaped keychain.
                 Giant Rose appearance.
  • Lionheart  : Defeat Cloud and Leon in Hades Cup in Olympus Colliseum. Has the form of Griever.
                 With the Griever' head in the upper side.
  • Oathkeeper  : Given by Kairi in Traverse Town, after saving her from Hallow Bastion. Actually the lucky-charm of Sora.
                 Unique silver-blue and gold ornaments with wings.
  • Oblivion  : Treasure chest in Hallow Bastion. Black crown shaped.
                 Unique black ornaments which look like a castle.
  • Ultima Weapon : Final keychain. Sythesize all the 30 Items in Moogle Sythesize Shop in Traverse Town. Golden heart shaped.
                 A sword with a golden crowned heart in the upper side and wings (which most people confuse it as fish's bones!)
                 The most powerful keychain in the game!

Final Mix Keyblades

  • One-Winged Angel : Defeat Sephiroth in Platinum Match. In form of an angel's wing.
                    Unique fiery style with a burning meteor in the upper side.
  • Diamond Dust  : Defeat Ice Titan in Gold Match. Has a snow flake shape.
                    Unique icy style with a snow flake crystal in the upper side.
                    Maximize MP bar by 3, more than Ultima Weapon!

Positive criticisms

Kingdom Hearts received a generally positive response from reviewers upon release. Most lauded the game's unique battle system, graphics (both in an artistic and a technical sense) and storyline, whicing somewhat simple for RPG standards (Although that will be changed in the game's sequels), managed to successfully combine classic Disney characters with a darker, Squaresoft-style story (however, it should be noted that Who Framed Roger Rabbit attempted to combine Disney characters with a dark storyline before Kingdom Hearts but failed due the fact that the cartoon characters (not just Disney) weren't changed, meaning that they didn't blend consistenly; Kingdom Hearts, in contrast, changed Donald and Goofy's personalities a little to fit with the more serious tone). The game also received good notices for the voice acting used, as it is an aspect of video games that is considered difficult to do well (although this game could be considered an exception in that department, seeing as Disney was the one in charge of the voice acting and most of the cast reprised their roles from the original movies/animated series).

Negative criticisms

Kingdom Hearts has been criticized by some fans for ruining the Final Fantasy characters placed in it. For example, several characters are made younger and do not play a major role in the story. Some of the voice actors for the more popular Final Fantasy characters (for example, Mandy Moore voicing Aerith Gainsborough and Lance Bass as Sephiroth) were seen as another element of error. Other criticisms include the addition of Disney characters (many Final Fantasy and RPG fans were turned-off by elements they considered to be for children), and awkward camera angles during battles.

Some also felt that, whilst original, the combination of Square and Disney did not work as well as it could have, with aspects of both the story and gameplay swinging between 'Disney-style' and 'Square-style', without reaching an acceptable middle ground for most of the game. Several elements of the combat system were also criticized, particularly the use of menu-based items and magic in what was a frequently hectic real-time battle scenario.

Another criticism levelled by reviewers and players alike revolves around the Gummi ship missions, with the main complaint being that they are not up to the same standard of play as the rest of game. That, and they are essentially pointless later on. The missions themselves are boring and pointless, serving no purpose other than getting from point A to point B. Note that Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix has tweaked the Gummi Ship system. The developers seem to have taken these comments onboard as the sequel, Kingdom Hearts II reportedly features an overhaul of this aspect of the series, by making the ship missions optional, and creating the main form of transportation a train.[1]

Trivia

  • The secret boss Kurt Zisa was named after the winner of a publicity contest held by Squaresoft to promote the game.
  • In addition to Kurt Zisa, other additional bosses in the game include Phantom (located in Clock Tower section of Neverland, accessible after you beat Hollow Bastion), Ice Titan, and Sephiroth (both are in the Colliseum and accessible after you lock Hollow Bastion). These bosses do not need to be defeated to complete the story, but are a source of many experience points, items, and munny. While the Phantom is present in the Japanese version, the rest of the optional bosses are not. They were added later along with a few new optional bosses in the Final Mix version.

Packaging artwork

Sequels

File:Characters.jpg
Characters of Kingdom Hearts II.

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, the Game Boy Advance sequel to the original game, takes place directly after the plot of Kingdom Hearts, and provides the link between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II. In the beginning, Sora meets a mysterious man who leads him to Castle Oblivion. There, Sora visits replicas of the worlds in the original game, created by his own memories. The game abandoned Kingdom Hearts's battle system, focusing on card-based game play. These cards can be used to create new worlds, open doors, and attack Heartless. The game was released on December 7, 2004.

Kingdom Hearts II

A second sequel, Kingdom Hearts II for the PlayStation 2, is in the works. Taking place a year after Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts II will feature Sora, Donald and Goofy, as well as a vibrant new cast of characters, including King Mickey himself and familar faces. The Heartless are still running loose and a mysterious group is plotting against Sora. KH2 is being released in Japan on 22nd December 2005. Meanwhile, the North American release is being pushed back to 2006.

Previous game in series: Next game in series:
None Kingdom Hearts Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
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