Any self respecting Role Playing Game(r) will at least be aware of Kingdom Hearts; it is one of the longest lasting, multi-platform, gaming series. It features characters from both Disney and Final Fantasy as well as its own characters. Tomorrow, the latest game in the franchise will be released (Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue) so it seemed fitting to show reasons why I love the series so much.
1. Disney: I am a hardcore Disney fanatic, hands down. New Disney movie coming out? You best believe I will watch it, with a little kid in tow or not! Disney trivia? I may not be super fantastic but I will give you a run for your money. Disney World? I went there for my honeymoon! Anyway, Disney is clearly a big part of my life and when I first heard of Kingdom Hearts and that it had Disney characters in it, I was all about it! And the fact that the stories are so flawlessly integrated into the gameplay just makes it that much better
2. Storyline: I am a sucker for a good storyline, wether it's in a book, movie, video game, whatever. If it has a good story line and I can follow it pretty easily, I'm hooked. From the very beginning, I was invested in the story of Sora, Riku and Kairi (and the subsequent characters after them) and it never felt dull or boring. Each new game brought new stories that were fresh and different but still integrated into the gameplay seamlessly.
3. Surprise: One of my favorite parts of each new Kingdom Hearts game was the different worlds; there were always new worlds included in the new games so it was always a treat to figure out which Disney characters were included in this game
4. "Re-play ability" - This is one of my favorite games to re-play. The worlds are so expansive and there's so much to do that it always feels like I find something new each time I play through.
5. Nostalgia - Kingdom Hearts was one of the first games I ever played all the way through. I remember being so happy and excited when I beat the first game! And then each subsequent game after that, so for me this represents my childhood and I would be remiss if I gave up on the franchise and just stopped playing.
Kingdom Hearts is something that will always have a special place in my heart (hah, see what I did there?? XD) and I will be forever grateful that I found it when I was younger because it has been such a big part of my life as a gamer.
(Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue) comes out in stores Tuesday January 24th exclusively on PlayStation 4.