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Still The Best In The Series



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KHHacker6595

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This video basically explains all of my reasoning.

[video=youtube;ZhrGqE8UId4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhrGqE8UId4&list=UUO_LzRMV6m_CcbAFfQTB-WA[/video]
 

alexis.anagram

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I agreed with a lot of the video, although it didn't really speak so much to how the first KH is the best in the series as it did lampoon some of the more recent installments in an effort to validate some relatively well-worn arguments which have been circulating around the fan base since KH2.

Couple of things in particular: my understanding was that DDD Sora was meant to seem cocky, overtly trusting of others and therefore easily manipulated, hence his ultimate capture by the bad guys and sort-of failure of the Mark of Mastery. I'm not disagreeing that it's a less interesting take on his character than KH1/RE:CoM Sora, but he was written that way for a reason (after saving the world twice, I'd be pretty sure of my abilities as well). I do hope Sora regains some more emotional investment and that unassuming wisdom he portrays in KH1: "You might not hear it, but right now it's loud and clear. And it's telling me, you're on the wrong side!"

I also agree that the scope in KH1 was the best, although I never felt that quite so distinctly until DDD turned Traverse Town into a pinball machine. I think Flowmotion is FUN, and it fit DDD wonderfully; I would love to see it balanced out in such a way that it didn't make basic platforming and foot travel completely moot, though. I've always loved all the little puzzles and mini-quests (like the postcards in Traverse Town) that KH1 included. KH has become increasingly focused on the frenzy of game play, but I think it would benefit the developers to go back to the basics a bit and make sure the Worlds feel like somewhere you would enjoy exploring even if enemies didn't pop up every five steps you take. Also, I'm glad this video pointed out the transitions between areas (actually opening doors via little animations rather than simply fading in and out) as, while not something I consider hugely detrimental, I still miss those bits from KH1.

I do think that the impression many fans have that we NEED TO GO INTO KH may be a fundamental misreading of the series, however. Just because it's called "Kingdom Hearts" doesn't mean KH is an actual place. I agree that some clarity on what it means or represents would be welcome, but I've always (since I played the first game at like twelve years old) understood that Kingdom Hearts is a thematic element, that it is similar to heaven or the afterlife in that it does not "exist" anywhere and that one does not physically enter into it. I have developed some opinions on what KH is and how it functions, but suffice to say I think if we were to actually play through it as a level in KH3 it would lose its significance as a driving force for the characters which is, by its very nature, out of their reach and beyond their full comprehension. I would also say the maker of the video didn't communicate some of the series' subtler mythology by stating that KH was all the things we've seen so far which characters have claimed to be KH; the narrative is actually pretty clear about where we stand with these different KH "incarnations" that have been summoned.

I don't know if I consider KH1 the best game in the series, but it does a lot of things right and very few things wrong. As the genesis of the story, I think it's the title I have the most innate appreciation for, but I consider Days my favorite game.
 

KHHacker6595

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I agreed with a lot of the video, although it didn't really speak so much to how the first KH is the best in the series as it did lampoon some of the more recent installments in an effort to validate some relatively well-worn arguments which have been circulating around the fan base since KH2.

Couple of things in particular: my understanding was that DDD Sora was meant to seem cocky, overtly trusting of others and therefore easily manipulated, hence his ultimate capture by the bad guys and sort-of failure of the Mark of Mastery. I'm not disagreeing that it's a less interesting take on his character than KH1/RE:CoM Sora, but he was written that way for a reason (after saving the world twice, I'd be pretty sure of my abilities as well). I do hope Sora regains some more emotional investment and that unassuming wisdom he portrays in KH1: "You might not hear it, but right now it's loud and clear. And it's telling me, you're on the wrong side!"

I also agree that the scope in KH1 was the best, although I never felt that quite so distinctly until DDD turned Traverse Town into a pinball machine. I think Flowmotion is FUN, and it fit DDD wonderfully; I would love to see it balanced out in such a way that it didn't make basic platforming and foot travel completely moot, though. I've always loved all the little puzzles and mini-quests (like the postcards in Traverse Town) that KH1 included. KH has become increasingly focused on the frenzy of game play, but I think it would benefit the developers to go back to the basics a bit and make sure the Worlds feel like somewhere you would enjoy exploring even if enemies didn't pop up every five steps you take. Also, I'm glad this video pointed out the transitions between areas (actually opening doors via little animations rather than simply fading in and out) as, while not something I consider hugely detrimental, I still miss those bits from KH1.

I do think that the impression many fans have that we NEED TO GO INTO KH may be a fundamental misreading of the series, however. Just because it's called "Kingdom Hearts" doesn't mean KH is an actual place. I agree that some clarity on what it means or represents would be welcome, but I've always (since I played the first game at like twelve years old) understood that Kingdom Hearts is a thematic element, that it is similar to heaven or the afterlife in that it does not "exist" anywhere and that one does not physically enter into it. I have developed some opinions on what KH is and how it functions, but suffice to say I think if we were to actually play through it as a level in KH3 it would lose its significance as a driving force for the characters which is, by its very nature, out of their reach and beyond their full comprehension. I would also say the maker of the video didn't communicate some of the series' subtler mythology by stating that KH was all the things we've seen so far which characters have claimed to be KH; the narrative is actually pretty clear about where we stand with these different KH "incarnations" that have been summoned.

I don't know if I consider KH1 the best game in the series, but it does a lot of things right and very few things wrong. As the genesis of the story, I think it's the title I have the most innate appreciation for, but I consider Days my favorite game.
I pretty much agree on everything your saying, I also really love Days but I think the combat and gameplay in it was specifically lacking in comparison to its narrative. It lacked the sense of adventure and exploration that the other games in the series had.
 
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