Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days Review

 Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days Review

Genre: Action RPG

Developer: Square Enix, h.a.n.d.

Year: 2009

Several years ago, it was summer, and I remember earning thirty bucks. And I went down to the local Gamestop proud to be able to buy my own games. I got a remake of Resident Evil on the gamecube, (which was kind of a bummer) and good old Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for the DS. Now, I was excited to play the game. And since my brother was off somewhere that summer, and my Mom was basically half living somewhere else at the time, I had the house to myself. And I basically played through the whole game in three days. And it’s a long ass game. Like near thirty hours... in three days. Good God, I wish I had time like that still. But it’s such a vivid and wonderful memory. I remember the exact couch, and all the weird positions I’d sit in while playing. I remember not wanting to go to bed that first night because it was so good, and then waking up the next morning and playing the majority of the game that day, but finishing it when I awoke on the third day. It’s a wonderful memory, and I ate the game up. That being said, this game isn’t that great. Now, don’t get me wrong, it was a wonderful memory, and I love it, but replaying this was half a chore. The majority of the game is going on uneventful missions, going through a long long over complicated story, (which is still very good nonetheless) and then just having bits of good pieces. If I could describe it, it’s like a really long anime, but filled with filler. And it’s a good ass game. You go through a mission, and you get a piece of story. I remember no matter how small that story snippet was, I ate it up. I was seriously invested the whole time, even if the highlight of playing through a fifteen minute misision was watching Roxas and his friends eat ice cream. But dammit if that ice cream wasn’t emotional! Anyway, the combat. It’s Kindom Hearts, but more repetitive. Like the other handheld games, they shake it up and bring something new with a panel system. It’s like having a grid where you put all of your items, only you put down your levels and magic onto the grid, so you have a limited supply. Then you can get items that multiply your levels and whatnot. It’s a fairly unique system that definity brought interest, and made the game stand out more. And for the story, it’s likeable. You get a big new cast member Xion, and a lot of the story just tiptoes around the other games to make itself work, while trying to fit a major story, and then not having enough to fill moments after missions so it just kind of gives you nothing. I mean the characters are all good, the story keeps you guessing, and I think even when it tells you straight up what is going on, you don’t really know until later. The story ultimately is good, in fact it’s great for me personally. However, I didn’t need to play this game. If this game wasn’t Kingdom Hearts, and had no story, I wouldn’t even consider it good. And the story for a lot of people isn’t fantastic. So, there’s that. And I won’t ever play this game again if I don’t have to, if I want to see this story again, I’ll watch the cutscenes on Youtube or the updated remake on the PS3. To be honest, that’s all you need. if you’re a Kingdom Hearts fan and really want to just know what happens, I’d recommend that. If you’re a desperate have to play fan... go ahead and play. Maybe you’ll get lucky like me and happen to a very wonderful and innocent if not naive playthrough. I would consider it a good game from raised nose game reviewer perspective. But as me, a person who had a wonderful experience on that couch for three days, I can’t say that. That will live with me forever. And I love that memory, probably more than the game... even though the memory was of the game, and... well, it makes sense to me, and it’s good enough for a great game.

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days gets a 4/5

 

Spoilers: So yeah, that was a big as plot to cover. And only about half of it mattered. So yeah, Xion, I loved her. I remember Roxas when playing this too and even more than Sora. Then I played Kingdom Hearts II again, and came back to this and came to my senses. But yeah, the whole Xion was a puppet of memories, and the big plot, it was a lot. And I... it made for a game. It was enough. And it was sad at the end, I didn’t want to kill Xion. Especially because at the beginning of the game I thought they’d be together, and... yeah, I guess not. That would be creepy at this point. But good God, how did Xion turn into that giant monster? Kingdom Hearts loves their epic final bosses. Well, there was also that fight with Riku, that was cool too.