Although it has now been seven months since the release of the latest game in the Kingdom Hearts saga, I have only just completed it today.
Receiving the game on Christmas day, I was filled with ideas of what this game would behold.
I had waited for it for over two years, it had to be amazing!
The idea of playing three separate characters, each with their own tale to tell - but yet somehow they are all intertwined - didn't exactly seem like the easiest concept for me to grasp although I went with it.
I had no idea which order to play them in so I decided to take the safest route and go with the order they had already been placed in on the screen (no point defying what had already been given to me!). This lead me to become Terra at first, followed by Ventus and then ending the game as the only girl character, and apparent leader of the pack, - Aqua.
This entire game, for me, was a bit confusing.
I went into it thinking that the entire Kingdom Hearts concept would be explained to us.
Sadly, it was not.
Perhaps it was falsely advertised as doing so or I had just gotten the wrong end of the stick (the latter seems much more likely).
I felt strangely unsatisfied by the ending of each character's story and it always felt slightly unfinished and not fully explained in the slightest.
And by the end of the whole game I found myself saying, "Is that it?".
However, I was sure that that would not be 'it' and ventured to Youtube to discover a few 'secret movies' from the end of the game.
I find it rather unjust that you can only see these movies if you are playing the game at a certain level and complete it 100%. For people like myself, who may not be avid gamers, we will never get to experience these videos and will never get the full experience from the game.
Perhaps this is something Square Enix should consider on their next conquest?
Although, once I had found these 'secret movies' and watched them through, I did feel a sense of understanding.
It's just a shame that I had to take that route to get that satisfaction. It's almost as if I could have cut out the middle man and just watched the movies on youtube oppose to purchasing the game and wasting four months of my life playing it.
One thing I did like from the 'secret movie' was at the very end, we found Sora, Riku and Kairi back at Destiny Islands - a similar image to that of the ending of Kingdom Hearts II - and Sora has King Mickey's mysterious letter in his hand telling both Riku and Kairi that there are still people out there who need his help. Kairi then utters the words "Hurry back." whilst handing over her lucky charm - as seen in Kingdom Hearts I.
This is an exciting moment for any Kingdom Hearts fan as it hints at a third game featuring Sora, Kairi, Riku and the gang.
Perhaps my view of Birth By Sleep is slightly unfair, as I feel I may be a bit prejudiced towards it.
I have gotten so used to playing as Sora and having that usual gang around me, helping me fight the Heartless and stop Kingdom Hearts from forming and then to have it all taken away from you and being forced to play as brand new characters, fighting new creatures named 'The Unversed', all just seems slightly foreign and strange.
Maybe for me, it's a game I would need to play more than once to fully understand it.
Nevertheless, if you are an avid Kingdom Hearts fanatic, definitely give it a go and form your own opinions on it.
