Well to start out everything took a while to get used to. The flowmotion was a bit hard to handle at first but if you learn how to use it correctly then it can get you to many places you never thought you could reach!
The spirits, which are dream eaters you carry with you as party members, were a great edition in my opinion. I literally played with my Wonder Meow for about 40 minutes when I first got it! The more you take care of your dream eaters you can unlock magic, abilities or new moves. However the abilities you learn from them such as Magic Haste, Combo Boost, and Water Screen are only effective when the dream eater is in your party of three. That in my opinion was the only downside to our furry little friends. The tournaments are good fun as well and give you a chance to hone your skills at becoming a Pokemon Master Flick Rush Champion!
The drop meter proved to be an interesting edition but soon became an annoyance. You're able to drop in any point in the game whether you're in the middle of a boss fight or in a special challenge. If that's the case then once returning to that character you must restart the boss fight or challenge. This happened to me MANY times Though there are items to restore your drop gauge, it is still a bother to remember to restore it before boss fights or something else important.
Though this game was not my favorite in the Kingdom Hearts series, it did prove to be very nice addition. This game did more answering of questions than leaving questions to be answered which I really enjoyed. This is most definitely the last game before Kingdom Hearts 3 so for those of you who are unsure about purchasing this game or do not want another "spin off", this is a must have! Though the story didn't quite take the direction I had hoped, Nomura managed to keep it on track.
This game also offers summaries of the other games in the series that you unlock within the first few hours which is very nice to remind players of past events or to give others the chance to catch up on what they have missed. My only regret is watching the 10 minute trailer over this game too many times I spoiled it for myself by recalling the video and predicting what will happen in the world I was at.
Overall:
Pros-
Great addition
Smooth battle system
Spirit party members are fun!
Amazing prelude to Kingdom Hearts 3!!
Cons-
Drop gauge
Abilities becoming unavailable when you remove the spirit from your party
Seems a bit shorter than the other games