KH Fighting Style Analysis (Or 'Why DDD is a Step in the Wrong Direction')

[hatok 6,413]

Been playing KH from all moments in time, and been analyzing it quite a bit. I don't think people see quite how much can be said about some of the less overt bits of KH. But let's just dive in.

 

Kingdom Hearts 1 (This also includes any games that copy Sora's KH1 style)-

 

Sora's Stance: The method that Sora uses to hold his weapon isn't particularly useful for attack; no matter how you open, there'll be some lag. Note that Kingdom Key's ability would go on to be defined as 'Defender'

Sira's stance embodies defender, it's a protective stance that allows for easy guards and counters, and it is very telling of Sora's character in itself. Sora has a strong desire to protect, and how better than with a defensive stance.

 

Contrast Riku's stance;

Riku's stance severely lacks defensive options, but rather, invites an attacker under the pretense of exposure. The outstretched palm and string of insults compliments this. Riku has an overall style geared more towards offense than Sora, while elements such as holding his weapon with a single hand help show his superior athletic ability to Sora.

 

Sora, in his KH1 form, will be the basis I refer to with each other character. His moves are basic. Clunky even. After all, KH1 was the first game in the series. however, it also helps to exemplify Sora's inexperience. His thrusts can fall just short, his aerial slashes can fly right over the enemy. He uses large, exaggerated movements to cast magic. I clearly shows that He doesn't really know what he's doing. However, his growth can be represented by equipping new attacks. Moves like Vortex, a spinning move that lets you reach enemies a bit out of range, and Blitz, a high powered frontal finishing move, are far quicker, more efficient and useful abilities, that effectively show Sora gaining experience.

Additionally, Sora's moves have many unnecessary twirls and twists that ultimately increase the lag time of moves. This shows a degree of overconfidence, as well as an innocence on Sora's part. Sora's standard guarding and dodging abilities are unremarkable on their own, but are relevant in comparing other character's styles.

 

Chain of Memories-

Sora has more fluid abilities in CoM, essentially a more polished KH1 Sora, showing his improvement from the first game. Sora loses the ability to guard as part of his reliance on cards.

 

Reverse/Rebirth-

Much of what was said about KH1 Riku still applies here, however, being playable, new insights are possible. Riku's higher jump, and alternate dodge set him apart from Sora. The theme of athletic superiority persists in that he is able to increase his strength stat, unlike Sora. Riku's uncontrolled slides into 'Dark Mode' shows that he is still struggling significantly with controlling his darkness, while painting a scene of inevitability in that it's so easy to enter Dark Mode that the player will often do so unintentionally. This effectively shows the darkness' ability to corrupt, without even noticing; offering greater power for seemingly nothing. Like Sora, he loses the ability to guard, but this is more relevant to his fighting style.

 

Kingdom Hearts 2-

 

Roxas: Roxas functions like the streamlined version of KH1 Sora that CoM offered, with the removal of cards. This shows that Roxas still has a degree of improvement over KH1 Sora, but shows that he isn't near Sora's actual power level.

 

Sora:

Fundamentally, Sora's stance remains the same in KH2, however, his motion shows a degree of physical growth; while KH1 Sora would casually swing his weapon around while running unless he was in combat, KH2 Sora keeps his blade on his shoulder as he runs, switching to a position akin to his standing posture while in combat. This shows a an increased level of combat understand, as he is now in a comfortable position to attack from regardless. His growth is further shown by the elaboration of his moves. Rather than eliminate the fancy twirls that slowed down his combat in KH1, Sora now incorporates these frivolities into his attacks, increasing their efficiency; his thrust now had an additional slash to accommodate his deceleration, he could now close in on his opponents with rapid spinning moves that dealt multiple hits. Additionally, the move Explosion shows that Sora has the beginnings of the ability to manipulate light as an attack. As a whole, his abilities evolved in quite a natural way... with the exception of one thing: his defensive abilities. Sora completely lost access to all defensive abilities beyond his basic guard, as well as eventually gaining a new spell that reflected attacks. It shows a new level of confidence in Sora; his new abilities allow him to attack enemies with little worry of defense, and he eventually gains a much more effective defensive move in the form of reflect.

 

Valor!Sora:

It's interesting that despite being based on the power of your party member, both Valor and Wisdom form have little to do with Goofy and Donald, especially in terms of abilities. As such, the forms can actually have implications for Donald and Goofy respectively. Consider how Valor form makes you play: It gives you immense power, but runs on a time limit, leading to reckless head on assaults, despite the fact that healing magic become unavailable. Now Valor form sounds like reflection of Goofy. Forms are about unlocking Sora's potential, as such, the speed at which Sora is able to use his keyblades is innate, and that he will eventually reach that level. A similar supposition can be made about Valor form's increased jump height and running speed. One final bit that drives the 'reckless courage' is the elimination of the ability to play defensively; any defensive abilities gained from other forms are lost in this form, and guarding is disabled, replaced with a lead in attack that is deigned to direct the player towards using Valor Form's most effective skill; instant finishers.

 

Wisdom!Sora:

As noted above, Wisdom form's abilities have little to do with Donald, despite his power being borrowed to grant Sora new magic abilities. Wisdom form of the opposite of Valor form nearly any way you can think of. The colour scheme, the abilities available (Where Valor disables magic entirely, Wisdom enhances it) to the play style it demands. Wisdom form gives you no reason to approach an enemy, shades of Donald's cowardice, as you lose access to any form of close range attack. Wisdom form changes regular attacks into a rapid projectile move, it demands the player act in a way that goes against previous KH conventions. The fact that Wisdom form is not congruent to Sora's regular fighting style shows a lack of wisdom and maturity on his part.

 

Master!Sora:

Master Form has implications associated with its name. After all, being the 'master' of a keyblade has become more defined in recent entries of the franchise. Master form is a representation of the culmination of Sora's abilities, he has superior magic to Wisdom form, and more power than Valor form. This form represents his becoming a true keyblade master. The inability to guard most likely stems from him not NEEDING to guard

 

Final!Sora:

Final Sora is Sora beyond his limits. His keyblades are sentient, he can fly on his own accord, and move are ridiculous speeds. It's worth noting that the power Sora gains within kingdom hearts at the end of KH2 is very reminiscent of Final Form. As such, Final Form is most liekly a representation of Sora when he gains the power to defeat Xehanort. His antonymous blades are most likely a reference to Roxas, though Xion or Ventus is an additional possibility

 

Mickey:

Mickey holds his keyblade far behind him and hops around constantly. This is a completely impractical fighting stance... by human standards. As cartoon physics apply to Mickey, the stance is perfectly practical. It captures Mickey's aloof disposition, and shows the most powerful light wielding keyblade wielder by current standards. Mickey represents a goal; he is what Sora and Riku will reach when they master their keyblades. his fighting style his grand and significantly less flawed than Sora's, as a means of showing the significant gap in skill between the two. This also shows the potential in proper keyblade teachings, as opposed to self taught styles.

 

Riku:

Riku's fighting style shows drastic growth since his incarnation in KH1 thanks to supplementary powers of the darkness. His enhanced guard in the form of a force field gave him a boost in his bait and punish style, while he made significant use of projectile attacks in combination of elaborate flying slashes. His fighting style has become significantly more balanced by comparison to his offense based style in KH1, and this is reflected in his character, who has overcome his own struggles and found balance. Additionally, as a party member, he gains support abilities that held defend or augment Sora, showing a degree of inclination towards Sora's way of thinking

 

Days/Re:Coded:

 

Data!Sora and Roxas are simply meant to be modernized version of KH1 Sora, but I feel that Xion deserves mention. While she is functionally identical to Roxas, her stances are based on KH2 Sora's. In other words, she represents Sora's evolution; SHE is his refined moves in KH2. Roxas, however, is the past representation of Sora

 

Birth by Sleep:

 

Eraqus:

It make seem strange to put Master Square first, but as master of Terra, Aqua and Ventus, it is important to extrapolate his style onto theirs. First of all, I'd like to point out that Eraqus holds his keyblade the same way that Ben Kenobi does in Star Wars. It's a defensive posture, but no quite the same as Sora's. Eraqus' style is focused far more on blocking and subverting attacks than Sora's, which is representative of his shelled personality, and his steadfast ideals. Also, he was killed by an old friend dressed in black with the ability to destroy planets.

 

Terra:

Terra has a stance very similar to Aqua's, perhaps as a side effect of training together under the same master for some time. However, Terra's style varies. Terra has a very practical stance, holding his keyblade aloft tersely. Terra's style embodies a rock, he can guard easily, and hit hard. his unique attacks often involve shockwaves representing seismic shocks. Terra's style is actually very reminiscent of KH1 Sora's, however, while Sora was slow due to inexperience, Terra moves slowly to hit hard. This key difference highlights the main point of Terra Aqua and Ventus; they are more professorial than Sora, and all specialize towards a theme. Terra's actually personality isn't too far off the mark either; he's slow moving, defensive, and dense.

 

 

Aqua:

Aqua's stance is very similar Terra's, but while his is very practical, a slight change in posture makes hers significantly less so. The reason? Aqua is a magic user, it's very reasonable to believe she has little experience in actual keyblade combat, most likely preferring to use it as a conduit for magic. Aqua's entire style is built around dissuading the player from using her regular attacks, in order to make use of her amazing magical prowess. Aqua holds herself regally and confidently, and clearly doesn't overexert herself when she acts, which, while not overt in he game, is an informed trait of hers

 

 

Ventus:

If Roxas is 1/3 of the to KH2 Sora, Ventus is 2/3. Despite his wildly different stance and grip than Sora, Ventus still attacks in a very similar fashion (Despite reverse grips being optimized for backhanded attacks) Ventus keeps himself loose constantly, from his constant keyblade twirling to his foot movement, Ventus, ultimately is about speed and flow, which in no way represents his character. Several of KH2 Sora's abilities are evolutions of Ventus', such as Reversal. Addtionally, when KH2 Sora drives into a form with the Sync Blade ability, he will often perform attacks similar to those of Ven.

 

Vanitas:

Vanitas is clearly meant to invoke KH1 Riku in looks and appearance (However, his stance is wider and his hand is facing palm down). His stance and abilities suggest, however, that he is the result of years of cultivation by Xehanort, in order to increase his abilities. Riku by comparison pales, no doubt due to his limited experience with Ansem SoD. As Vanitas is not his own person, his style give no implications about him, however, many of his moves are weaker versions of ones used by Young Xehanort.

 

Master Xehanort:

People often make the mistake of saying that Master Xehanort has the same fighting stance as Riku. While they are similar, Xehanort's is far looser and more chaotic. This is the perfect illustration of Xehanort. At a glance, he seems unrefined, unbalanced, insane. But when he makes his move, it's always perfectly calculated, and devastating. He has no overt weaknesses, and attacks using all varieties of attacks, from sword to magic.This exemplifies what make Xehanort a great villain.

 

Dream Drop Distance:

 

Sora: Suddenly, something went wrong. Sora took a significant step back. He regained his KH1 form in all ways... besides new combos. and herein lies a big problem. Where KH1 was designed around punishing careless players. DDD has a new kind of punishment; when attacking, various types of lag, from a start-up on his lunge, to various cripplingly laggy commands. Sora's exploration abilities from previous games persisted as Flowmotion, but became sticky and situational. In DDD, Sora devolved into something worse than any previous incarnation

 

Riku: In Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories, Sora was differentiated from Riku in many ways. In DDD, he feels strangely homogenized. His doge roll is nearly identical to Sora's. he lost his extra jump height, and his combos became a fair bit more similar to Sora's

This could have something to do with Riku's increasingly Sora-like character.

 

Young Xehanort: See Master Xehanort above. Only more unpredictable than ever.

 

tldr; KH has a bunch of people who hit things with key shaped swords.

 

Well that was an adventure to write. two university classes, two meals, four bathroom breaks and visit to the book store and one grocery shopping trip later.

[Jim 2,990]

Huh. This is really well-written, so kudos to you. But I kinda disagree with your points on KH3D.

 

Sora and Riku were both meant to start with a 'clean slate', I.E. Starting over COMPLETELY. This explains Sora's laggy attacks. But I'm confused- what do you mean by "he regained his KH1 form in in all ways, besides new combos"? I don't understand what you're trying to get across here, if you could rephrase that, it would be great.

 

I also disagree about Riku. His standard combo is the same as it was in CoM, and didn't remind me of Sora's at all. sure, his dodge roll became a little more similar, but he did gain dark roll near the end, which shows more of his style, and also reminds me a bit of Terra's basic dash. I kinda agree a little with your point on his jumping ability, but I wanna remind you that he gained Doubleflight and Sora didn't.

 

But again, other than that, great job. This is an excellent analysis of the characters and their attacks.

[hatok 6,413]

Huh. This is really well-written, so kudos to you. But I kinda disagree with your points on KH3D.

 

Sora and Riku were both meant to start with a 'clean slate', I.E. Starting over COMPLETELY. This explains Sora's laggy attacks. But I'm confused- what do you mean by "he regained his KH1 form in in all ways, besides new combos"? I don't understand what you're trying to get across here, if you could rephrase that, it would be great.

 

I also disagree about Riku. His standard combo is the same as it was in CoM, and didn't remind me of Sora's at all. sure, his dodge roll became a little more similar, but he did gain dark roll near the end, which shows more of his style, and also reminds me a bit of Terra's basic dash. I kinda agree a little with your point on his jumping ability, but I wanna remind you that he gained Doubleflight and Sora didn't.

 

But again, other than that, great job. This is an excellent analysis of the characters and their attacks.

 

DDD Sora doesn't reuse KH1 Sora's combos, they are new ones that are designed to have new lag where there was none, while pretending to be as responsive as KH2. It's an overall theme of DDD;flashy moves that LOOK like they should function a certain way, but end up putting your character at a disadvantage.

Riku's combo isn't the same. His opening slash is much slower, in order to make it like Sora

See, the clean slate thing would work if Sora reverted to his KH1 form and gained back equivalent power, but instead he is functionally worse than before, as KH1 sora served a function, and KH2 was a logical next step. DDD takes the worst of both, by having laggy, lengthy attacks, yet punishing you for using those attacks

[khfanXIII 60]

*whistles* I've never looked at it that way. I kinda feel disappointed in sora now...

[VanitasisKirby 1,227]

Interesting. I never thought of it this way.

[Jim 2,990]

DDD Sora doesn't reuse KH1 Sora's combos, they are new ones that are designed to have new lag where there was none, while pretending to be as responsive as KH2. It's an overall theme of DDD;flashy moves that LOOK like they should function a certain way, but end up putting your character at a disadvantage.

Riku's combo isn't the same. His opening slash is much slower, in order to make it like Sora

See, the clean slate thing would work if Sora reverted to his KH1 form and gained back equivalent power, but instead he is functionally worse than before, as KH1 sora served a function, and KH2 was a logical next step. DDD takes the worst of both, by having laggy, lengthy attacks, yet punishing you for using those attacks

 

Hm. I'll give you that their basic combos are *slightly* slower, but Sora's stab attack has noticeably more range and distance-closing-speed than his KH1 stab, I think. I agree somewhat about the laggy attacks, mostly the spark/ra/ga series (which was way too slow and underpowered in the case of spark) and Balloonra. Other 'laggy' attacks seemed to ramp up the damage or effectiveness, if you were willing to take the risk, like Meteor Crash. And some ofthese attacks were programmed primarily so that they could be activated in the air (unlike BBS, notice Sora's arial Ars Arcanum?), thus offering you a higher chance of dodging the hellish storm that was probably going on below you while your attack charges.

[Gambler'sApprentice 131]

In general I agree, and the games definitely do an excellent job of showing the growth and skill of the character in their fighting stances, but I think the step back was intentional, this is a representation of a younger Sora, one who displays less experience and overconfidence, in each game the pressure to bring closure sooner increased, in Kingdom Hearts he's clueless basically until he reaches Hollow Bastion, in Chain of Memories right off the bat he encounters our villans, but it isn't until he "remembers" Naminé that he has to treat the problem seriously, and in KHII he learns of the Organization's threat incredibly quickly, and can't waste time or effort showing off. In 3Ds this isn't the case, he thinks he has to unlock Keyholes (effortless) fight some weak creatures of darkness, and the occasional boss. He can be excessive because it's fun, and he doesn't see any consequences.

[hatok 6,413]

Hm. I'll give you that their basic combos are *slightly* slower, but Sora's stab attack has noticeably more range and distance-closing-speed than his KH1 stab, I think. I agree somewhat about the laggy attacks, mostly the spark/ra/ga series (which was way too slow and underpowered in the case of spark) and Balloonra. Other 'laggy' attacks seemed to ramp up the damage or effectiveness, if you were willing to take the risk, like Meteor Crash. And some ofthese attacks were programmed primarily so that they could be activated in the air (unlike BBS, notice Sora's arial Ars Arcanum?), thus offering you a higher chance of dodging the hellish storm that was probably going on below you while your attack charges.

 

That's the problem. His attacks DO finish faster, KH2 style, but they have stylized lag built around punishing the player built into everything, unlike KH2, and you rarely get invincibility frames, unlike KH2. KH1's attacks were slow and methodical, so using them at the wrong time would lead to punishment... but DDD uses the lag to punish you for moves you have no means of seeing, as they can start and finish in the middle of one of your laggy attacks.

In general I agree, and the games definitely do an excellent job of showing the growth and skill of the character in their fighting stances, but I think the step back was intentional, this is a representation of a younger Sora, one who displays less experience and overconfidence, in each game the pressure to bring closure sooner increased, in Kingdom Hearts he's clueless basically until he reaches Hollow Bastion, in Chain of Memories right off the bat he encounters our villans, but it isn't until he "remembers" Naminé that he has to treat the problem seriously, and in KHII he learns of the Organization's threat incredibly quickly, and can't waste time or effort showing off. In 3Ds this isn't the case, he thinks he has to unlock Keyholes (effortless) fight some weak creatures of darkness, and the occasional boss. He can be excessive because it's fun, and he doesn't see any consequences.

 

See, DDD is a step down from KH1 Sora. It's ridiculously punishable, yet tries to pretend it's not, where KH1 was very functional.

See, Sora's style doesn't grow IN-GAME, per say. He'll still have the same basic combos until the next game, so saying he gets serious around the end it really doesn't mean much because the gameplay doesn't suddenly change to show it (Though that would be cool)

[Dracozombie 4,554]

Nice one. o.o How'd long have you been mulling this over?

 

I haven't played DDD yet, but I think someone (might've been you, actually) mentioned before that the game had flashy moves and the lag made things dangerous. I was honestly more interested in how you pointed out how their personalities corresponded to their styles. I was more or less aware of some of them, like TAV's, but for the likes of Eraqus, Xehanort, and especially Sora and Riku, it was nice to have it spelled out for me. With me planning to write KH fics, this will come in handy. I'm totally taking credit for it all, btw.

 

Just a minor nitpick, but how come you didn't do dual-wielding Roxas? That guy's a beast.

[hatok 6,413]

Just a minor nitpick, but how come you didn't do dual-wielding Roxas? That guy's a beast.

 

I honestly couldn't think of anything to say about it, besides that it was essentially what Valor Form would be if it were in KH1

[Jim 2,990]

That's the problem. His attacks DO finish faster, KH2 style, but they have stylized lag built around punishing the player built into everything, unlike KH2, and you rarely get invincibility frames, unlike KH2. KH1's attacks were slow and methodical, so using them at the wrong time would lead to punishment... but DDD uses the lag to punish you for moves you have no means of seeing, as they can start and finish in the middle of one of your laggy attacks.

I can definitely understand about the 'moves you have no means of seeing' part. some random KO Kabuto can just snipe you from halfway across the stage, and in Critical mode, that chips off a good 3/4 of your HP, if not all of it. That does get pretty annoying. So yeah, I agree with most of the stuff you're saying, but I still don't think it's a step down in terms of how well it shows the personality of the character.

[hatok 6,413]

I can definitely understand about the 'moves you have no means of seeing' part. some random KO Kabuto can just snipe you from halfway across the stage, and in Critical mode, that chips off a good 3/4 of your HP, if not all of it. That does get pretty annoying. So yeah, I agree with most of the stuff you're saying, but I still don't think it's a step down in terms of how well it shows the personality of the character.

 

Ah. See, this is a general analysis. DDD is a step backward in terms of how it portrays Sora's SKILLS. As a person, it still represents Sora as well as it did in KH1, with the added sleekness showing shades of KH2 Sora's mind.

[Jim 2,990]

Ah. See, this is a general analysis. DDD is a step backward in terms of how it portrays Sora's SKILLS. As a person, it still represents Sora as well as it did in KH1, with the added sleekness showing shades of KH2 Sora's mind.

 

Oh, ok. Yeah, I can completely agree with that; good analysis man.

[deathrebirthsenshi 279]

I'm just blown away by how insightful and well written that was. Woah.

 

I haven't played DDD (and probably never will, unfortunately) but I can see reasons for them going back for a more kh1 style due to the clean slate thing...I'm sure in the next game, Sora will be a lot more functional. I'm sad I can't comment on what kind of commands were there compared to BBS, but the commands may be a reason that, gameplay wise, they were okay with keeping Sora around a kh1 or so fighting style.

 

And on a random note, playing kh1 expert mode after playing as TAV in BBS was a huge leap Sora is so bad in that first game...but like you said, they've done a really good job of evolving gameplay not just as improving the game and making it more fun, but as a way to demonstrate different skill levels easily. Also sort of random, I've always loved Aqua's pose...she can fight well, but she just preferes magic and avoidance, and it definately works for the keyblade master!^^

[Gambler'sApprentice 131]

See, DDD is a step down from KH1 Sora. It's ridiculously punishable, yet tries to pretend it's not, where KH1 was very functional.

See, Sora's style doesn't grow IN-GAME, per say. He'll still have the same basic combos until the next game, so saying he gets serious around the end it really doesn't mean much because the gameplay doesn't suddenly change to show it (Though that would be cool)

 

Sora in KH I is overconfident due to his childish mentality, while 3Ds Sora is overconfident due to having saved the worlds twice, and defeating SoD and Xemnas. Before he starts the MoM exam he expresses his overconfidence, he doesn't think he'll have trouble with Xehanort. So now he just sees himself wandering through worlds fighting no-risk opponents looking for a Keyhole that will convince Yen Sid of what he already believes. KH Sora wants to visit as many worlds as possible to find his friends and save them, 3Ds Sora wants to wander around until he can do something he thinks exciting. By the time exciting things happen it's too late, he's trapped.

[hatok 6,413]

Sora in KH I is overconfident due to his childish mentality, while 3Ds Sora is overconfident due to having saved the worlds twice, and defeating SoD and Xemnas. Before he starts the MoM exam he expresses his overconfidence, he doesn't think he'll have trouble with Xehanort. So now he just sees himself wandering through worlds fighting no-risk opponents looking for a Keyhole that will convince Yen Sid of what he already believes. KH Sora wants to visit as many worlds as possible to find his friends and save them, 3Ds Sora wants to wander around until he can do something he thinks exciting. By the time exciting things happen it's too late, he's trapped.

 

DDD Sora isn't as overconfident as people portray him, and KH1 Sora isn't overconfident at all.

Sora expresses incredulity at being asked to give up all of his power and being forced to take a test in order to gain a title, after saving the worlds twice but that is entirely reasonable.

Similarly, he doesn't ever imply that he would be able to take on Xehanort easily... he just thinks the test isn't a particularly good way to go about it (And I should note that he was RIGHT. Xehanort's plan hinged on Sora taking the test)

[KingdomHearts123456 32]

DDD Sora doesn't reuse KH1 Sora's combos, they are new ones that are designed to have new lag where there was none, while pretending to be as responsive as KH2. It's an overall theme of DDD;flashy moves that LOOK like they should function a certain way, but end up putting your character at a disadvantage.

Riku's combo isn't the same. His opening slash is much slower, in order to make it like Sora

See, the clean slate thing would work if Sora reverted to his KH1 form and gained back equivalent power, but instead he is functionally worse than before, as KH1 sora served a function, and KH2 was a logical next step. DDD takes the worst of both, by having laggy, lengthy attacks, yet punishing you for using those attacks

 

Yo I think they wanted to take the button mashing away thats why they took his combos away for more favorable lengthy attacks and given the command deck he regains some of his strength but I think your concern is more towards the gameplay its self kingdom hearts 2 wasnt as rich as it could of been so they took all those flashy combos away and gave sora a command deck and flow motion he really took a step back to improve the gameplay not because they accidentally made him weaker and more laggy. Edited September 7, 2012 by KingdomHearts123456

[Gambler'sApprentice 131]

DDD Sora isn't as overconfident as people portray him, and KH1 Sora isn't overconfident at all.

Sora expresses incredulity at being asked to give up all of his power and being forced to take a test in order to gain a title, after saving the worlds twice but that is entirely reasonable.

Similarly, he doesn't ever imply that he would be able to take on Xehanort easily... he just thinks the test isn't a particularly good way to go about it (And I should note that he was RIGHT. Xehanort's plan hinged on Sora taking the test)

 

"Even without taking it no one can beat me." Sora, on the Mark of Mastery exam

[hatok 6,413]

"Even without taking it no one can beat me." Sora, on the Mark of Mastery exam

 

"Me, Riku and the king, we can take on anything" That's the actual quote. In other words, "My friends are my power"

The quote YOU'RE talking about is from an unofficial translation of a Japanese trailer

Yo I think they wanted to take the button mashing away thats why they took his combos away for more favorable lengthy attacks and given the command deck he regains some of his strength but I think your concern is more towards the gameplay its self kingdom hearts 2 wasnt as rich as it could of been so they took all those flashy combos away and gave sora a command deck and flow motion he really took a step back to improve the gameplay not because they accidentally made him weaker and more laggy.

 

It could easily have been the intention, but DDD is still more of a button masher than KH1. In fact, it holds on to traits from KH2 to give the player the implication they can button mash, however, EVERY attack has been lagged so much that an enemy can begin and end an attack in the middle of your own

[deathrebirthsenshi 279]

"Even without taking it no one can beat me." Sora, on the Mark of Mastery exam

 

What hatok said, and I also think that's more of a reaction to the idea of getting his memories messed with YET AGAIN. I'd be rather tired of people constantly making me forget how to fight lol. And once he hears how Riku feels, he agrees to take it with him easily enough.

[heyitsdeven 131]

Maybe Nomura wants to make Riku the new Sora. ;p

Edited September 7, 2012 by heyitsdeven

[Xail 113]

Maybe Nomura wants to make Riku the new Sora. ;p

 

thats what Nomuras trying to do

[hatok 6,413]

Maybe Nomura wants to make Riku the new Sora. ;p

 

You're not far off. Consider how DDD is, when it comes down to it, RIKU'S game,he fights the final boss, he saves Sora, he becomes and master. Making him more like Sora was probably a means of making him more comfortable to play, as he had become the main character of that game

[Gambler'sApprentice 131]

"Me, Riku and the king, we can take on anything" That's the actual quote. In other words, "My friends are my power"

The quote YOU'RE talking about is from an unofficial translation of a Japanese trailer

 

Completely true, I was unable to access the game any the audio on my computer is broken. But the Official quote still displays overconfidence, not as much since he's relying on the King and Riku too, but he's not doubting his abilities in 3Ds, it's a test he's sure he'll ace (first time I'm sure)

[Hooserdaddy45 5]

Wow very nice! Hatok do you dislike DDD? I have seen alot of your posts and it seems like you don't like it very much