if you could change anything about Kingdom Hearts (2024 edition)

[Perkilator]

There’s already a thread like this but I didn’t want to necropost in that one. So instead, I’m starting a new thread with the same premise. If you could change anything about the KH series, what would it be? For me:

• More natural dialogue and animations
• Specify which VA voiced which Disney characters in the English credits of each game
• Have Aya Brea fill the role that Aerith took
• Replace Atlantica with a world based on Emperor’s New Groove in KH2
• GIve DDD three playable characters: Sora, Riku and Kairi (and on that note, get rid of the Drop Gauge in favor of the BbS structure)
• Change χ to be a full game
• Have Melody of Memory be part of the KH3 DLC rather than be a separate game
• Release 1.5+2.5 in 2014 for the sake of remaking Days and Coded as full games

 

[KudoTsurugi]

Here’s my list of changes I would make if I had a Time Machine. Apologies in advance if I sound like a broken record on some of these:

1. No Union Cross: End the story of the Keyblade War with Kingdom Hearts χ. Don’t go any further until after KH3 is released.
2. Dark Road becomes the Majora’s Mask of Kingdom Hearts: Dark Road is made as a game in 0.2’s place in the 2.8 collection with the classic KH1-3D look. Use either the classic engine or Unity, along with the old world assets to tell its main story. 0.2 would be released as either the prologue chapter of KH3, or the initially planned ‘Birth by Sleep Volume 2’.
3. No more year-long time skips: The time skip in KH2 aside, since that year was explored in Days, there was no need for the year long time skip in KH3’s Limit Cut episode when everyone looks like it’s only been a week at least or a couple months at most. Don’t use them unless you plan to do something drastic, both visually and in the writing.
4. Greenlight that old KH show pilot: Let Disney make a co-produced animated series based just on KH1. Use it to test the waters and see if animation could be an avenue for stories outside the games, or for expanded adaptations in future greenlit seasons.

 

[WaltK]

-Get Shiro Amano to write the scripts, while Nomura handles the overall story direction.
-Nix the mobile games.
-Have the Disney usage be on the same level as KH1 across the whole series.

 

[MATGSY]

NATIVE Switch ports. Actually, you know what? Let's go back further: KH1 & KH2 on the Gamecube & FM versions as budget Will releases. Square should've been more on top of releasing these things on Nintendo consoles from day 1.

Kairi becoming a party member in KH2 with more build up to her getting a keyblade.

0.5 getting made instead of DDD.

CoM being a metroidvania instead of card battler.

 

[AR829038]

There are lots of things I'd change series-wise:

1. Better character interactions without the awkward wooden delivery and interactions (it was charming at first, but after the PS2 era it started feeling less acceptable quality-wise)
2. Better incorporation of Disney worlds into the main story
3. Definitely get the writers from the first game to do the others—theirs was some of the best writing and the future games just didn't have that same touch (sorry, not even 2)

But more specifically, I have some BIG chips on my shoulder:

1. UX should have been a console game. Always hated the mobile games. Still do. Hated the art style. Hated the gameplay. Hated the drip-feed storytelling. All of it. Only good part about UX to me was the story, and even then, it was loaded down with unacceptable amounts of filler.
2. Get rid of Dark Road, make it the prologue level of KH3. I always thought it was bizarre how KH3 started. It would have felt so much more appropriate to have an extended prologue telling a more truncated version of Young Xehanort's story (with him as the playable character!) in Scala ad Caelum. Would have provided a wonderful bookend with the final level, the same way Roxas' Twilight Town returns as the gateway to the final level in KH2 and Destiny Islands reappears as the final boss arena in KH1. Would have felt so much more poignant and a more awesome chapter to start the game on. Olympus was fun, but it felt strange just jumping straight into a Disney world as the tutorial level for a main numbered KH title.
3. Kairi. Just, Kairi. Please put some respect on her name, Nomura. Please give our girl something to goddamn DO. They took a well-rounded spunky kid from the first game and made her a one-dimensional anime damsel in distress with zero personality.

 

[Launchpad]

• Have Yoko Shimomura be both the director and composer, while Nomura remains the character designer

i'm gonna give you the benefit of the doubt and assume its just a goof but it's kinda sad to hear that a supposed kingdom hearts fan would rather the series be in the hands of... the composer, rather than the director who has helmed the series since day one. has it really been that bad?

 

[2 quid is good]

BBS coming out on PS2 as intended, I'm convinced the trajectory of the franchise would have changed

 

[MATGSY]

BBS coming out on PS2 as intended, I'm convinced the trajectory of the franchise would have changed

No one was buying PS2 games in 2010. That said, Wii was there & was an option.

 

[Megavoltage]

CoM: Include Tarzan. Include at least one optional super boss; grinding and making a really good deck feels kind of pointless without one.

Days: Include the Pinocchio world that was originally planned. I like this game, but it really needed a new world, and Xion meeting a puppet with a heart would have been perfect. Have Roxas summon Samurai; the other Org members can also summon their own Nobody minions in Mission Mode.

KH2: Late in the game, Ansem the Wise has a confrontation with Sora/Roxas, and this ends with a better arc than that weird gun exploding which healed one person and sent the other to the ROD. The novel handled Ansem better, with his cold heart thawing when he watches Sora’s optimism in Tron instead of him just randomly giving up on his vengeance and becoming a Sora fanboy. Also, Maleficient isn’t in this game at all. She’s spectacular in smaller stories like KH1, BBS, and Recoded. But when the plot is crowded with several anime villains, she has nothing important to do and just wanders around aimlessly; it makes her look like an idiot. She supposedly took over World That Never Was, but that subplot didn’t matter; we see in DDD that she doesn’t own shit. Just have Pete cause trouble on her behalf with vague hints that she’s planning something from behind the scenes.

Birth by Sleep: Here’s a big one! Make it a big home console game instead of a handheld game. I adore BBS, but I’ll always think about how it could have been bigger and better. Include the capes. Include The Jungle Book like originally planned. Include Laguna in Mirage Arena like originally planned; who cares if he’s also in Dissidia? Just use him in two games, and KH uses alt universe versions anyways, so it doesn’t matter. And Mirage Arena is weird without someone around to explain its story, even without Laguna they at least should have had a Moogle explain what’s up with that strange place. And having Laguna’s inclusion could have strengthened the Wayfinder trio's relationship with Laguna’s son, which is my next change... Include the Final Fantasy kids in Radiant Garden. They don’t need to be a big plot point, but the Wayfinder trio should really have met them like originally planned. When the Wayfinder trio eventually go back to Radiant Garden after KH3, it would be such a bittersweet scene to reconnect with them as adults. TAV would really feel how far they’ve been displaced in time and feel guilty for all the pain Squall’s gang went through; it could have been amazing. And have Hundred Acre Woods as a place with cut scenes and conversations instead of purely being a board game. The serious and tortured Terra and Aqua talking with those silly characters would have been funny and a nice change. Ventus would get along with Pooh and company just like Sora, and he’d be extra appreciative of their friendship since he was feeling lonely and abandoned in his chase for Terra.

DDD: Again, just like BBS, I’d prefer this to be a home console game instead of handheld. Include Treasure Planet like originally planned. And include Kairi so it has three scenarios, a spiritual successor to Birth by Sleep. I don’t think Yensid would see her ready for master training, so she’d have to force herself into the plot, like sense Sora is in danger, and use her POH powers to forcefully inject herself into the Realm of Sleep. Her lacking the stamina of her two friends and having more trouble with basic mobs could be a plot point, but her desperation to save Sora makes her push through the pain. DDD did have some holes in it, like we discussed way back when. No one had a boss battle with Monstro, etc. She does that stuff. And minus one of those several battles Riku dealt with after Sora’s encounter with Xemnas, Kairi could have that one for her big finish. And besides trying to save Sora(And Riku? I’m guessing she’d find ways to help both, like they’d be summoning a triple keyblade at the end instead of just a double), she’d also be dealing with personal issues like coming to terms with Namine’s existence and how the blonde artist deserves independence. Also, if Kairi did her training here we wouldn’t have Hyperbolic Time Chamber silliness later on.

0.5/BBSV2: It actually comes out! That trailer still bothers me. Why did Ventus vanish? What was Kairi doing at the Twilight Town mansion? Use this game to fill in all the gaps, depressurize some of the plot so KH3 has less to juggle, and to build stronger characterization. I’m guessing Aqua’s journey would have been similar to what we got in Fragmentary Passage, but maybe expanded upon a bit more. You can only do so much with her since she’s stuck. I’m guessing all the bigger mysteries would be done through a playable Mickey and Riku or maybe even Young Xehanort. All these characters traveled through the Realm of Darkness; that place probably would have tied the adventures together.

KH3: Too much to go into about the script that bothers me, but if BBSV2 came out like Nomura intended, I bet this game would be very different and probably more pleasing. Also, they’ve said that the Cloud/Sephiroth/Zack stuff was just to advertise Final Fantasy and that the plot wasn’t intended to go anywhere. Well, fuck that! Make the plot go somewhere; do something with the pieces you put on the board. Finish more subplots here instead of leaving things messy.

Just In General: Make it so this franchise doesn’t move at such a glacial pace. “I hope I can play KH3 before I graduate high school!” is something several generations of high schoolers had said to themselves. Have the OC’s interact more instead of ever depending on magical connections from afar. Take the Final Fantasy characters more seriously. Have the Ultimania stuff actually happen in-game. Make a Kingdom Hearts racing game/fighting game/Warriors game. Also, I wouldn’t mind another weird adventure like Recoded that explores stuff like 2D platforming, traditional JRPG, etc.

Whew! That went on longer than I thought it would.

 

[KudoTsurugi]

Also, they’ve said that the Cloud/Sephiroth/Zack stuff was just to advertise Final Fantasy and that the plot wasn’t intended to go anywhere. Well, fuck that! Make the plot go somewhere; do something with the pieces you put on the board. Finish more subplots here instead of leaving things messy.

100% agree with this! Even if it’s a small part, seeing Zack in Olympus in KH3 would have been awesome!

 

[Squood!]

i'm gonna give you the benefit of the doubt and assume its just a goof but it's kinda sad to hear that a supposed kingdom hearts fan would rather the series be in the hands of... the composer, rather than the director who has helmed the series since day one. has it really been that bad?

Love how you're the only one who bothered responding to their proposals lol. I legit don't understand the Yoko as director thing when she has exclusively been a composer. Only possible thing I can get from that is "anyone would be better than Nomura"

Also I want Aya in KH too but having to take out Leon as well as Aerith when Aya was only cut because of JUST Aerith is def a choice.

 

[Megavoltage]

Also I want Aya in KH too but having to take out Leon as well as Aerith when Aya was only cut because of JUST Aerith is def a choice.

Yeah, that’s such a strange choice. Why not have both? Just have Aya usually busy at some other section of Traverse Town if you’re worried about conversations getting crowded.

I wonder how her mitochondrial powers would have been handled. To keep things simple, I bet she’d just be a powerful mage in this setting. Seeing her use Liberate against Sora in some tournament would have been so cool.

 

[Perkilator]

After thinking about it some more, I decided to alter the OP a bit after reading some feedback. I didn’t have any malicious intent with the OP, I just didn’t think about it all that well.

 

[2 quid is good]

No one was buying PS2 games in 2010. That said, Wii was there & was an option.

Mmmmm well, in this universe it would have released quicker because no Re:CoM and no switching development to another console. I'm pretty confident PS2 games were selling well into 2008/2009. There probably should have been a KH game on the Wii though, even at the time i thought it was a glaring oversight.

 

[Launchpad]

After thinking about it some more, I decided to alter the OP a bit after reading some feedback. I didn’t have any malicious intent with the OP, I just didn’t think about it all that well.

it's ultimately no big deal lolol you're all good. I was wondering if maybe I had overlooked some insight Shimomura had in the creative process that gave credence to that bit or something.

As for things I'd change about KH as it is-- I think I'd just really pull the reins on the 'anime cadence' that some of the actors have been using. I think KH protagonists should sound a bit more natural, akin to what the main character in your typical Disney movie might sound like. Just to give KH a more filmic flavor rather than sounding like one of the other dozen anime games on the market. I think the VILLAINS can ham it up in that cadence, some of the dialogue really calls for it, but the heroes should strive for a bit more of a natural sound.

 

[KudoTsurugi]

As for things I'd change about KH as it is-- I think I'd just really pull the reins on the 'anime cadence' that some of the actors have been using. I think KH protagonists should sound a bit more natural, akin to what the main character in your typical Disney movie might sound like. Just to give KH a more filmic flavor rather than sounding like one of the other dozen anime games on the market. I think the VILLAINS can ham it up in that cadence, some of the dialogue really calls for it, but the heroes should strive for a bit more of a natural sound.

I wouldn’t say the ‘anime cadence’ is entirely a bad thing for the heroes, but I can understand when and where in the stories it wouldn’t always work. Especially in games like Re:CoM or the cutscene theatres, where they didn’t bother redoing the lip sync for the English version and just dubbed over the Japanese footage. Sometimes it worked, other times it was awkward.

And honestly, KH3 leaned in on the awkwardness a bit with some lines, the most obvious case being Sora’s “I’ve got this” like they were trying to make it his second catchphrase. I think a Sonic-X-Shadow-Generations-style rewrite for some cutscenes where this awkwardness creeps up wouldn’t hurt. Because it’s clear that the Japanese script had either longer words or generally different sentences.

 

[horto12485]

Hard to say....

How i do the Kingdom Hearts Series (Hortonverse)

Changes in general

Don't make the stiff platforming.
Have the Game Collection have a Physical Release on Nintendo Switch instead of putting it on Cloud
Improve the animations and movement.
More clever and creative humor instead of vile gross out humor, toilet humor, crude, and bland for shock value.
Improve the Writing, Humor

KH1: Make Ariel a Princess of Heart instead of Alice Merge KH2's Atlantica with KH1's Atlantica only without Singing Minigames, Have the Disney Princes (Prince Florian to Aladdin), play a Role in rescuing the captured Princesses (Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle and Jasmine) Either Fix Deep Jungle or replace it with another Jungle Themed World (Either The Jungle Book or The Lion King) have Chain of Memories be a DLC on Kingdom Hearts titled Castle Oblivion (Changes: Make it a normal KH1 Gameplay instead of a Card-Based Battle System, Have their be a Secret Boss fight since the Original Chain of Memories and Remake never had a Secret Boss, The Replica Program no longer took place. As such, the Riku Replica was never created, and Xion underwent backstory. Ansem actually fights rather than letting his Guardian do all the work, even if he just uses dark spells ITTL.

• Pull the camera back, similar to KH2.
• Add Quick Run in first game.
• Improve the Sora's clunky jump.
• Don't make stiff combat in KH1.
• Gummi Ship sections are fully unique and not generic.
• Make New Game+.
• Update the enemy HP bar.

KH2 Changes

Replace Atlantica with a Disney World that hasn't been in the Series (Either Atlantis the Lost Empire or The Emperor's New Groove)

Kairi gains her Keyblade at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts II.

• Improve the dancer Nobodies of critical.
• Don't make the Dancer nobodies are cringe.

Give Sora the Synch Blade ability outside of Drive Forms.
Riku wouldn't be the only party member in the World That Never Was but Kairi also joins the Party making it for the First Time 5 Party Members but Donald and Goofy would still Switch out but before you reach to Xemnas Battle
KH2 make the worlds more interactable, creative, and open instead of just having linear hallways and uncreative.
Better story pacing (especially the Roxas segment) and better tutorials.
Tifa playing a role instead of being "just there" going on a Goose Chase.
The Anti Form mechanic. Allow it to be normally accessible, allow dark magic, use reaction commands, revert mid combat, use 4 drive gauges, not need party members, give it EXP points, and completely ditch the hidden anti points.

Improve the gameplay.

In this level battle system with canceling and reprisals.
Tech point system, to incentivize use of different mechanics.
Dodge roll at the beginning instead of getting quick run and dodge roll so late in this game.
Better explanation of game mechanics.
Turbo mode.
Improve the camera controls and combat interactions between party members.
Better tutorialization of mechanics like Drive and Summons and buff Dodge Slash.
Reaction Commands that require better timing.

Characters like Jack Sparrow's Crew (Joshamee Gibbs, Anamaria, Cotton and the Parrot, Marty), Governer Weatherby Swann, James Norrington, Murtog and Mullroy, Pintel and Ragetti would be added in Port Royal. Zazu would be added in the Pride Lands

Kingdom Hearts Days Between would be added as a DLC for Kingdom Hearts 2 (Which Includes the Pinocchio World that was scrapped from the DS version OTL)

Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep (Changes: Add in Both The Jungle Book and The Sword in the Stone (Which explores Merlin's Origins before he traveled to World to World and how he became a Recurring Character in the Series) (Added in the Capes for Terra, Aqua and Ventus's Armor, Laguna would be added in Mirage Arena as a Boss, Pleakey would've been a Character in Deep Space, Ventus would've acquired the Lightseeker Keyblade)

Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance: Have the Game's Gameplay structure be Similar to Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep with Sora, Riku and Kairi having their Scenarios instead of just Two Playable Characters (I would've add in Treasure Planet as a Playable World not sure about the Rest of the Worlds maybe Save Tron Legacy's The Grid for KH3)

KH3 Changes

Have the Birth By Sleep 0.2 A Fragmentary Passage be a part of the Game and serve as a Tutorial
Use Music from Disney Movies Examples: I see the Light from Tangled and He's a Pirate for Pirates of the Caribbean
Have the game start development on Unreal Engine 4 from the Beginning
I would have at least Two or Three More Playable Worlds
Have Land of Departure appear on the World Map
Have the Anti-Aqua fight be Zodiac Aqua with less health and more moves and remove Demon Tower from Riku's section of the fight.
Don't kill off Kairi
Roxas, Terra and Xion have new Outifts
Make Mysterious Tower be a Playable Area in Twilight Town instead of a Cutscene World as was seen in the Jump Festa 2016 Trailer
Scala ad Caelum is the world that resides inside Kingdom Hearts.
Melody of Memory would be a DLC added in Kingdom Hearts 3
Sora and his party members walk in place when selecting the pause menu.
The Power of Waking is referred to as the Key to Return Hearts, a name it was called during conceptual phases of the canonical game, and is an actual Keyblade instead of an ability inside of Sora.
Have the Drive Forms and Reaction Commands instead of being replaced by Situation Commands
100 Acre Wood is expanded to be more of an explorable World with More Areas to explore and things to do
Improve the Graphics to a more True PS2 era Graphics like 2013 Trailer
Sora, Donald, and Goofy receive new winter-themed attires while in Arendelle.
Have Elsa and Anna as Party Members instead of Marshmallow.
Not sure what i would do with the DLC Remind either add it to the Base game or keep it like it is.
I would fix Arendelle so Sora Donald and Goofy would explore the Whole World and have them interact with the Cast and keep up with Anna, Kristoff, Sven and Olaf instead of getting separated

 

[Squood!]

More clever and creative humor instead of vile gross out humor, toilet humor, crude, and bland for shock value.
Improve the Writing, Humor

when the hell has KH ever had any of that kind of humor what game were you playing???

 

[Megavoltage]

Sora, Donald, and Goofy receive new winter-themed attires while in Arendelle.
Have Elsa and Anna as Party Members instead of Marshmallow.

I’m imagining something like heavy winter clothes with Arendelle flair for the males. Disney wants to keep the males separate from Elsa, so I guess the female Keybladers, like Aqua and Kairi, would spend time with the snow queen in potential future visits. And maybe Elsa would give them cold-resistant magic dresses, like how she conjured her own dress in her Let It Go moment. I'm super curious about what Nomura would come up with.

It’s a shame Sora couldn’t be pals with Elsa, but I kinda get Disney’s idea to keep the story focused on sisterly bonds; too bad the girls were locked away and couldn't be used during 90% of KH3. Future visits in Arendelle have the potential to be more fun, but I wonder if people were too badly burned and don't want it to return.

 

[Darkspawn]

when the hell has KH ever had any of that kind of humor what game were you playing???

You don’t remember the farting competition scene between Sora, Donald, and Goofy in KH2??

For real though, my biggest change would be eliminating DDD from the series and making BBS Volume 2 instead. I don’t even think DDD is a bad game, but it did too much in setting up Xehanort’s final plot that ultimately took away from KH3 having its own standalone narrative like KH1 and KH2 did. That’s why KH3 doesn’t have much plot until the end. BBS and Re:Coded were more than enough to set up a third game, but BBSV2 would have been nice to fill in the blank points.

I do appreciate the development DDD gave Riku, but I think that could have been done in KH3 instead where he has no real growth.