How did you get into Kingdom Hearts?

[LBJENmariposa]

Was it from a Disney franchise? What was the first game you played through? Did you watch the cutscenes online or play the game first?

 

[SweetYetSalty]

My older sister got me into the series back in 2007. I started somewhat late into the series. I wouldn't truly love the franchise until later.
I loved Kingdom Hearts 1 and instantly viewed it as one of the best PS2 games of all time. I liked KH2 despite my many nitpicks with it's story, presentation, and characters. I tried playing Re:Chain of Memories but failed horribly at the card system and just watched the cutscenes on Youtube. Really good story. After that I took a mini break from the series.

When 358/2 Days came out in 2009 I wasn't that interested at first. I played it in 2010, and it was the first game since KH1 where I was in love with everything. It solidified KH becoming my favorite gaming series. Birth By Sleep was next, I had lots of fun with it but hurt my hands with the PSP button mashing. I'll never forget playing the game at my college while waiting for my next class. This was the last KH game I got to play for awhile though because I didn't have a 3DS for Dream Drop Distance.

Watched the ReCoded and DDD cutscenes online around 2012. Then took big hiatus until 2018's Frozen trailer. Been back in the series full time ever since, and collected many of the games, books, hats, and other goodies. And that's like the short version of my entire history with this series.

 

[Crimson Crashing]

I was watching Cinematech on G4TV which was a show that played cut scenes from various games. They actually played the ending to Kingdom Hearts 2 and at the time I had never heard of the series. I just remember immediately getting the feels with Sanctuary playing and wondering just who these anime children were and why they were with Mickey, Donald, and Goofy. I got immediately interested with the game, found out where to start playing, and tried to force the cut scene out of brain until I reached it organically myself.

 

[Squood!]

Bla bla bla I watched my brother playing KH1, blablabla I was soon able to play the games myself, blablabla I thought ReCoM was KH3 blablabla I stole his DS so I could play 358/2 Days, the rest is history.

Of course, it's gotten to the point where I'm the bigger KH fan than my brother, who recently complained that the story was confusing and wondered what the point was because KH3 Olympus didn't end with a keyhole being sealed, even though minutes ago he claimed that he played all the games.

 

[SweetYetSalty]

Bla bla bla I watched my brother playing KH1, blablabla I was soon able to play the games myself, blablabla I thought ReCoM was KH3 blablabla I stole his DS so I could play 358/2 Days, the rest is history.

Of course, it's gotten to the point where I'm the bigger KH fan than my brother, who recently complained that the story was confusing and wondered what the point was because KH3 Olympus didn't end with a keyhole being sealed, even though minutes ago he claimed that he played all the games.

Lol, that sounds a lot like my sister. She's trying to get back into the series but so many things prevent her from loving it. Though she's mad about everything surrounding Kairi.

 

[okhi12]

My older cousins got me into FF and subsequently KH, I think that was 17 years ago or so. I watched them play KH1 and I knew about the plot but my first KH game was Chain of Memories. I got KH1 a bit later when I borrowed it from my uncle. I liked the game so much that he gave me his copy as a present. Since then I have bought every KH game on its release day, but Melody of Memory will probably be the first exception. I'll buy it when it's cheaper, though.
KH has been part of my life for so long that I cannot imagine my life without replaying the games from time to time.

 

[Launchpad]

One of the old guard, baby. Saw that commercial with the Utada and the Disney characters coming at you. It activated something deep in my brain, I knew I needed it

 

[Oracle Spockanort]

Old school child here. I was like 10 and looking online at random stuff and somehow stumbled on the BTS/Making Of-ish videos for KH1 and this image:

It entranced me and I was super eager for the game to come out after I saw that.

 

[Soldier]

I've probably shared this story many times on this forum, but here we go again!
When I was a wee lad (roughly 6 or 7 in 2007 or 06, my memory's a bit fuzzy on the details) my sister and I received KH 1 for Christmas on one of those two years. Seeing as we were still quite young, we didn't really know much about this game other than the fact that it had Disney characters in it. Our reflexes weren't as honed as they are today, so playing the game was a bit difficult. And because this was the early 2000s, internet and smartphones weren't really a thing yet, so we couldn't look up any guides. But we played it, all the way until Deep Jungle where Clayton's shotgun shells prevented us from progressing (this was also our very first RPG by the way, no concept of the leveling system or anything for that matter). Over time, we got better at the game and chipped away at it over the years, cummulating in one fateful day in 2009 when we finally finished it. We still have the original disk and case, with it's christmas stamp placed on the back of it. Though the disk no longer works, we're still able to play this game and the rest of them with updated consoles, and have been fans ever since.

 

[Blackrazor187]

I remember seeing one of the action figures at Zellers when they were still in Canada and i couldn't believe that Mickey Mouse would crossover with Final Fantasy and the first game i got was 358/2 days and i had no idea what was going on with the story and this was also the first jrpg i ever played years later i decided i wanted to get more into the series and i got the compliations on ps4 i also started playing the 3rd and 4th games on the ds as well as my first ones and later i got the spin offs and xv and the 7th remake and now here i am. Love the series to death and i wouldn't be the gamer i am today had it not been for Kingdom Hearts and Square Enix giving such great games like Kingdom Hearts,Final Fantasy,Nier,The World Ends With You (Which i also got into through Kingdom Hearts) and SaGa.
Sora is by far not only one of Squares greatest characters like Zack and Ardyn but one of the best characters in gaming history.

 

[the red monster]

I played on my friend's house KH1 when i was around 12, the moment i saw you actually get to play inside the disney worlds i knew i had to get it lol. so i asked my mom to get me PS2 for my birthday.
started playing for disney, stayed for nomura's craziness.

 

[bambii (aka foreteller)]

Distinctly remember being 10 and in a friend’s basement swinging around Deep Jungle and being utterly entranced. Never wanted a game so badly in my life. I was ill-prepared though for the waterworks that I’d experience upon finishing the game. Bought CoM on release and so it goes.... Then I spent the next 3 years making GMVs LOL

 

[Bloodblade777-2]

I got it for a birthday present a good few years after it came out, and my best friend had KH2 and lent me it and we always used to play both, later I got a psp with BBS and crisis core on it back in 2011. I was already a final fantasy fan when I discovered KH, there was this whole period of my life where i was just going to a pawn shop and buying 2$ used copies of final fantasy and other games like parasite eve and resident evil to play lol, as well as a game called the Bouncer which has a main character who I think is basically the proto-design for Sora. Actually seeing the Disney on the cover actually made me cringe at first, that vanished when I played the game though. KH games have always had this strange vibe to them that sets them apart from other games, I think it's Nomura's influence.

I only played Chain of Memories and DDD really recently, just before KH3. Actually I had almost forgotten about kingdom hearts until I saw the KH2.8 and KH3 trailers, I played a bit of Days on my cousins DS but ultimately it just got spoiled on the internet for me lol (not DDD though)

 

[Absent]

Saw the commercial for Kingdom Hearts 1 and lost my mind. Like I don’t think people fully understand how impressive the commercials for Kingdom Hearts 1 were. It was so bizarre and intriguing, and the voice over nailed it.
Ah nostalgia.

 

[Zettaflare]

I saw the commercial for the first game and begged my parents to get it for me. What stuck out to me the most was that shot that showed Goofy as a Sea turtle.

I played it for a while before shelving it due to difficulty. After I finished KH2 a few years later I decided go back and finishing KH1

 

[Elysium]

The Utada KH1 commercials. That was like a drug, lol, and still never gets old. KH1 being phenomenal is what made me a long-term fan. I think my next favorite advertisement after those KH1 commercials was the CoM magazine inserts with Sora and all the cards around him (which ended up being CoM's cover in the end). The picture was so pretty...

 

[Idreamaboutcats]

Usual story, elementary school, boys were talking about it, got curious, tried it, loved it.

 

[rokudamia2]

With this

And this.

Which came with this

And the rest is history.

 

[Bloodblade777-2]

Wow i know i shouldn't be but i'm surprised how many people were introduced to the series with ads, I dont think there was ever any advertisements on TV or anywhere for these games where I lived, they just sort of spread through word of mouth

 

[AdrianXXII]

I started the series from the beginning. It was the game my sister and I got with our PS2 for Christmas.

Somehow the topic of the game came up before I got the PS2 and originally when my Uncle mentioned the game I was against getting it. I was 10/11 years old and fell for the misconception that there's a thing as too old for Disney and I at 11 I should like more older kids stuff like Anime...

Luckily I saw a show on TV where they were playing it and it looked fun, so I was all for getting it then and have been hooked since. It also helped me realize just because you reach a certain age doesn't mean you have to can everything you enjoyed at a younger age.

I basically got every game upon or around release afterwards, saving money to buy the various consoles just for the KH games. KH2 was my first pre-order I'm pretty sure.