I'm flattered that people thought my impression/review was one of the best. Thanks everyone for the kind words. I'd also like to congradulate Hatok and DragonMaster. Hatok's review was hilarious and clever on many levels. DragonMaster's was an excellent review that covered many aspects. Also great job to everyone else who submitted entries.

I am honored that I was chosen as a winner for this contest, thank you.

I would like to congratulate hatok and Oathkeeper's Oblivion! hatok, I could not stop laughing as I read that entire thread, great work! Oathkeeper's Oblivion, your story was very well written and summed up the magic of the series very nicely, also great work!

I never win!!! Good job guys...lol.

Congratulations hatok, DragonMaster, and Oathkeeper's Oblivion for winning this week"s competition :DD

Enjoy those guidebooks while they last. Don't be a dummy like me and accidentally let it out in the rain /facepalmsmyself

Looks like I have some stiff competition… welp, time to go into big-walls-of-text mode!


BACKGROUND

The road to the English release of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance has been a long and strenuous one. It stretches all the way back to E3 2010, when the system the game’s on – le Nintendo 3DS – was first announced, and it as a third-party title. Not much was known about it at the time. Loyal KH fans would have to wait until E3 2011 for actual concrete news regarding it. And then E3 2011 came and passed with no new info about the game, because we all know Nomura likes to screw over those who live outside of Japan. The title did show up however, at the Tokyo Game Show, and we got our first looks at Sora and Riku’s sexy new outfits.

At Jump Festa, we got the release date – the Japanese release date that is, and the countdown began. The title launched March 2012 in its homeland, and the spoilers reared their ugly head. Everyone was forced to make an important decision: allow themselves to succumb to the darkness, or try to keep themselves ignorant as to what happens at the game’s end. Fortunately, Square Enix made haste with the localization, and North America and Europe got the title in July – Europe got it 11 days before America for some reason, but America got a swanky collector’s edition that they didn’t, which helped ease the pain.

And then we come to today, a couple of weeks after the English version’s release, where I’m typing this on my laptop and explaining the game’s entire history, which has nothing to do with what I’m actually supposed to be typing. I suppose I’m only doing this to make myself look smarter to our great ruler and overlord DChuich, so that he may grace me with one of those sweet strategy guides… I think I’ll shut up now.


PRESENTATION

The game’s on the most powerful hardware the series had seen yet, and as such, it looks pretty darn good. Begone are the sprites, poor 3D models, and endless speech bubbles that graced the previous entries on Nintendo systems. It’s a full-fledged KH title, with realistic mouth movements and new worlds. The graphics are done very well, and although not the best on the 3DS, they’re still pretty great. The environments are expansive and detailed, making the game feel quite open-world.

The 3D effect is done perfectly. It’s fine during playtime, but it shines during the cutscenes, at times making me actually go “Mmm” due to the awesomeness it provides, particularly when characters are closer to the camera. And that doesn’t take into account the CGI opening, which looks fabulous and does an epic job of summarizing the events that have happened in the franchise. Should any 3D movies make their way to the 3DS’s eShop, hopefully they have the same great 3D as it does.

Script-wise, at the point I’m in the game, I haven’t gotten to the juicy parts yet, which I assume all happen in the last world. Regarding the Disney worlds, the game tries to replicate scenes from the respective films they’re from and while they’re done well, they’re not as good as they could be – for example, just look at the ending cutscene for the Tron: Legacy world, which isn’t as cool as that in the actual movie (though that may be to the disturbing lack of Daft Punk music, who knows?)

The worlds are also somewhat short, and thus the storylines of them are rushed, not leaving much room for real character development. One moment, Mickey in the Three Musketeers world is down, thinking there’s no way they can rescue Minnie, and a few seconds afterward, he’s all peppy and overjoyed again. The original world stories (i.e., Traverse Town’s) are perfect in contrast. It’s made me fall in love with the TWEWY characters, especially Neku and Joshua. I’ll probably be tracking down the original game for DS after I Beat (pun intended) this. <3


GAMEPLAY

One of the game’s strongest parts. I’ve always loved the game’s typical button-mashing hack-and-slash type of gameplay. It’s still here, and it’s joined by an excellent ability known as Flowmotion. You can now jump off of walls and swing around poles like you’re on steroids. :D High places finally aren’t impossible to reach; you can get to them easily. No longer can a stone remain unturned, or a nook and cranny unexplored. It helps to get around the huge areas quickly and, if you’re in a tough spot in a battle, you can spam it to get out of there and kick the butts of the Nightmares that surround you. It’s glorious!

Another new element is the introduction of Dream Eaters. They serve as more than the simple-minded enemies of the game akin to the Heartless, Nobodies, and Unversed of past titles. Some Dream Eaters (known as Sprits) can be breeded and used as your own party members, while the other ones (Nightmares) are the ones that need to be taught a lesson as I alluded to in the above paragraph. I like the customization at your fingertips for the Spirits you own – it’s nice being able to name them whatever you want (well, except for a few words, because this IS an E10+-rated game after all) and to be able to change their colors. And there’s also the Nintendogs-esque parts where you can pet them to level them up and play games with them, which I often do once in awhile. Because it’s manly.

Nevertheless, with Dream Eaters by your side, party members are a thing of the past. At several parts of the game, characters (such as Quasimodo, Donald & Goofy, etc.) say they’ll tag along with you, yet when you get back in-game they’re nowhere to be seen, which is quite a shame. However, the best thing Dream Eaters bring to the table in KH3D are the “Flick Rush” minigames. It’s so dang good. It reminds me of “Chain of Memories”, is a blast to play, and the arena it takes place in is quite pleasing to the eye as well. It’s a shame that it doesn’t have online play, as there’s most certainly no one around me that could participate in local play with me, but it’s perfect enough that I don’t even mind.

As a matter of fact, even if KH3D consisted PURELY of just Flick Rush, I’d still love it to death.

And to add onto that no party members thing I brought up before, there are also a disturbing lack of NPCs in worlds. The Hunchback of Notre Dame world, for example, which was one of my most anticipated, could have used some NPCs to make it seem more realistic, but it’s pretty barren. Kinda distracting in there, and thus it makes it not as good as it could be. It’s not as noticeable in other ones though. And the Musketeers world actually has one NPC, which automatically makes it the best world in the entire game, in my opinion.

Onto the Command Deck thing. I miss the original Command Board, as seen in KH and KH2. I wonder if that’ll make a return in KH3? Nevertheless, the Command Deck in this game is fine, I suppose. I’m not that into customizing decks that much. I just have the basic magic options (Firaga, Thundara, the like) and whatever you call the Sliding Dash stuff in. It was a tad better in Re:coded – and I’m assuming, BBS – where you could blend two abilities to make a new one.

Regarding the Reports stuff – I don’t know why, but I really love this. I just find it really fun to stare at models of characters and turn them around and whatnot. It would’ve been great if you could rotate them 360 degrees, especially in the case of the Dream Eaters, but that’s not really a big deal – at least it’s better than what Re:coded gave us in terms of Character Files. o_O

And treasures. Dear God, the treasures. Geez! There are so many of them! AT EVERY CORNER! MILLIONS OF THEM IN EACH WORLD! I’ve almost developed an OCD type of thing where I must search every single part of every world to find these. Sometimes I can’t even just enjoy running around the world, I just gotta find these babies. This has also transferred over to my playthrough of Rayman Origins, where I feel obligated to get as many of those yellow things as possible in each level and kill myself several times to get those hard-to-reach coins. Maybe if I were to actually win this strategy guide, I could take a break from having to find all the treasures myself and save them for after I beat the game when I could then get the rest easily with the help of the book. :P

Lastly, the Drop System, which has often been criticized. I find it a more ingenious way to switch between narratives as opposed to BBS’s method. But it wouldn’t hurt to make the Drop Gauge depletion time a LITTLE bit longer. I’m too lazy to put Drop-Me-Nots in my Command Deck. And, actually, I’ve encountered the drop-during-a-boss thing a couple of times. To be exact, in Traverse Town, I was stuck between Sora’s boss and Riku’s boss. ‘Twas no way out. XP

Speaking of bosses, the Nightmare bosses are pretty cool. Human-sized bosses absolutely pwn them though. Rinzler and Beagles Boys FTW.


MUSIC

The music in this game is top-notch, as with all the other games in the series. The regular and battle themes of Country of the Musketeers are excellent. Don’t have much else to say about it, except that a new Utada song would’ve been nice. I hope she comes back for KH3. Pay her for it, Disney, even If she asks for, like, tens of billions of dollars!


LOADING TIME

Why is this a section?


VERDICT

Love it. The game has some small faults, but it’s still fun and awesome and another great entry in my favorite video game series thus far.

Presentation: 10/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Music: 8/10

Score: 7/10 lolololol 9/10

While impossible to discuss the story of Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance in under 3000 words, never mind without saturating the review with spoiler warnings, it is worth taking a good look at the gameplay and how it stands up with the rest of the series. I’ve always admired the Kingdom Hearts franchise for trying something different with every installment, giving a new experience each time, and KH3D is no different. The constant tweaking of the combat system has finally resulted in what I personally find to be the most enjoyable and interactive version yet. While the Command System from BBS still remains, allowing for quick and easy casting of spells and executing of special moves, KH3D manages to improve the combat via the FloMotion ability. This permits Sora to use the environment around him to the fullest, be it swinging off of poles or bouncing off of walls. The gravity defying nature of the Kingdom Hearts combat has always been a source of fun, and being able to activate it on a more regular basis and use it at will not only permits for a more aesthetically appealing fight, but gives the player a greater sense of control over Sora and Riku and makes combat more than just smashing the same button over and over.

The FloMotion is not limited to just combat, but also greatly assists in exploration and platforming. Much to my great joy, the worlds that you travel through are once again large and spacious as they were in the original Kingdom Hearts, and indeed more so, rather than just being a series of small stages on which to do battle. This grandness of landscape adds so much to the game on multiple levels: you feel far more intimidated by the scale of Notre Dame or the expanse of the Grid, giving the levels an atmosphere of grandeur; it makes exploration a must, as you are no longer set on a linear railroad and must actually traverse the expansive landscape to try and locate your goals; and the replay value is increased exponentially, as there are so many treasure chests and secret Link Portals tucked away that the player will be able to spend a great deal of time trying to track them all down. Within these vastly increased worlds is where the FloMotion is really allowed to shine, allowing for hopping off of tall buildings, jumping and bouncing off walls, and executing daredevil moves that assists in your exploration and adventuring. The FloMotion gives a greater sense of interaction with the environment and fleshes out the game as a whole, permitting everything present on the screen to be of use in one way or another.

The other most notable addition to KH3D is the introduction of the Dream Eaters, who take the place of companions of Sora and Riku in the place usually occupied by Donald and Goofy. My first impression was wholeheartedly negative, as I am not a fan of “cute,” yet even I found myself warmed up to the idea by the end. Being able to recruit and add to your party of Dream Eaters, choosing which ones you want by your side in a given situation, allows for a greater sense of customization and interaction. There’s more than a little strategy involved to decide which Dream Eaters you decide to pal around with: do you want one who has the better special Link moves, or do you want one who subtly increases Sora and Riku’s abilities? Or, more often than not, which species of Dream Eater do you just think is plain cooler than the others? Though the likes of Meow-wow and Necho-Cat are far too adorable for my cynical, heartless self, you can unlock bigger, more intimidating forces in the forms of a tyrannosaurus rex, triceratops, or dragon. There are more ways to customize and use your Dream Eaters in the ways of playing with them or feeding them, but the game wisely does not force you to do this against your wishes. In fact, you could simply ignore your Dream Eater party altogether if you are compelled to. The way the Dream Eaters are implemented into the game is wonderful: It’s a tool to be used if you desire to, and will benefit you if you do, but you are not obligated to do so.

The final major gameplay tweak that KH3D offers is the Drop system, in which the game switches between the stories of Riku and Sora after a set period of time. While, as I said before, I always appreciate Kingdom Hearts willingness to try something new, this aspect is something of a hit-and-miss. Focusing on the positives first, being able to go through both plotlines simultaneously is a fantastic idea. One of my major complaints of BBS is that having to go through the whole length of each characters storyline three times, only to find out things which I had either already guessed or been told by a previous plot point, felt like a grind and a chore, not to mention that you’re constantly in a state of restarting the story rather than having it progress. This is avoided in Dream Drop Distance, as you are being fed new information and new plot points from two points of view, but without having the stop and restart quality of BBS. The story is constantly moving forward and feels like more is being accomplished as such. On the flip side, the switch hampers other elements: the fact that you’re being timed makes it feel like a race to explore the landscape or accomplish a goal, rather than allowing you to take your time and enjoy the surroundings. Also, there is nothing more infuriating than having the time limit expire in the middle of a boss battle, for when you return, the boss’s life bars will be refilled and you will be required to start once more. Still, given the arcade-like speed that most battles have, this does not occur as often as it would seem, and on the by and large, the Drop system is an interesting aspect that, if not being wholly positive, certainly does not ruin the package.

In the end, whether you agree with certain elements of the story or not, Kingdom Hearts 3D is simply fun to play. It takes something that already worked and made it better, and provides for an engaging and enjoyable 3DS experience.

WARNING - Inside this impression will be MAJOR SPOILERS. Do not read if you don't want your game spoiled!

Kingdom Hearts : 3D - Dream Drop Distance, where to begin? This game was an absolute joy to play. The night before it came out, I was so excited, I couldn't sleep! Ever since my mum bought Kingdom Hearts 2 for me 3 Christmases ago, I've been totally hooked. Kingdom Hearts helps me cope with real life problems, and it also teaches me what I should look for in a true friend - something I've never been able to do on my own. Kingdom Hearts lets me act like myself, instead of changing to suit other people.

KH3D Meant a lot to me, from the moment I came bursting through the door after Guide Camp. I get pulled into the game, I feel as if I'm feeling was Sora or Riku feel through the game - which is a huge fun part of it. Feeling horror as Sora got pulled down into his dark slumber, or feeling his happiness when Riku wakes up, after diving down to rescue Sora's heart. This part of the game is more exciting to me - it always stops me from putting it down- why I was up until 2:30am finishing it! :D I also love how at the end of the game, you get things like secret bosses or thorniness to keep you entertained for longer. For me, it just adds to the fun! I always get a thrill whenever I unlock a secret ending or complete an objective. I also LOVED the Dream Eater feature! It felt like I had pets following me around, they were so sweet! Bonding with them made it so sweet too, stroking them while they ran around on your desk.. that was a lot of fun!

I can't really explain how much KH means to me expect from this - it keeps me strong, and it makes me who I am, and I seriously don't know what I would of done without the series!

Kingdom Hearts is just one of those games that brings out the kid in you. The series has been an all time favorite of mine since middle school. I have played every single game, read every manga, and listened to every soundtrack over and over. This game never seizes to amaze me and always brings those tearful moments that makes life worth living. KH 3D did not disappoint whatsover and I can't seem to let the game go for even a moment! The series has taught me alot in my personal life with it's moments of carpe diem and what not. KH 3D is...how do I say..this..amazing? Tears of joy just with the intro video and jumps for joy when I started playing it! Game is just awesome and it means the world to me personally as an avid fan. The game is what every kid dreams of Disney meets bad ass hair defying Square Enix characters! What more can we ask for? (Kingdom Hearts III....-ahem- Toy Story world) anyway the game is sweeet! Any fan can get into it and I got a great brain refresher with all the unlockable story mementos and unlockables in the game.

Game got me thinking..it's really bean 10 years since I started playing this game and wow has it gotten better and better. Middle school was a drag and so was high school but the Kingdom Hearts series alone gave me alot to think about more than any game could. Some people say it's a pointless plotted mess! But hey I beg to differ.
I can't wait to see where the game is going and with this game at the moment I can see where. KH 3D is not a disappointment...wait did I mention the FREAKING POKEMON!! ahem I mean Dream Eaters! These badass mothacreatures are just epicly awesome man! They literally look like digipoke clones but hey these adorable and colorful buddies are sure to keep! (Oh yeah douchy Donald won't heal Goofy anymore even when your on 1HP since they aren't following you on this one ;)

I can't put it into words this game should just get 10's, gold stars, thumbs up,and whatever praise it deserves!
KINGDOM HEARTS FOR LIFE!

It was awesome. the whole thing about the drop system, i thought it might be inconvenient but still so i was excited. I was all like:



then when I got it i was all like:

[attachment=1293:kh3dx3.JPG]

then when I played it i was all like:




the drop system was nice but if you switched out of battle it would suck. the graphics were amazing, they did a brilliant job and the flowmotion was pretty cool but at the same time it was hard to control, i had a bit of trouble with it but then got used to it. the voice acting was pretty amazing, sora sounds a bit more mature, riku is spot on, joshua's voice bugged me the most because it sounded WAY to feminine, then I learned that IT WAS a girl that did his voice.fighting MF again was a real pain, but overall I had fun with it. the whole system involving the dream eaters were SO cute, I love my meow wow <3. they are just like pets, you can play with them and pet them and as you give them love they level up. the level up system reminded me of FF13 for the dreameaters though.  the battle system was pretty much of BBs with a slight hint of the days battle system, it made it easier for me since the battle system correlated with each other with familiar and simple controls for all to enjoy.

The music composed by yoko shimomura really did capture the tone, and the essence of the game itself with the whimsical and fluffy melodies that I will enjoy when the soundtrack comes out with the game, i wouldnt mind closing my eyes while listening to it. the gameplay was Challenging yet fun, along with the minigames which I thoroughly enjoyed. overall it was an amazing experience and i hope they can top that with their next installment, and I know I will not be disappointed.



but yeah that was my impression of the game.

imnotgonnawin