The Five: Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep

10/20/2008 4:12 PM | 0 Comments | Page 1 of 1

The Skinny: Square Enix isn't shy about milking the Kingdom Hearts franchise, telling two separate side stories in its upcoming portable releases. The DS' Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days tells Roxas' story during the time of Chain of Memories for the Game Boy Advance, and the PSP's Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep is an origin story depicting the events 10 years before Sora received the Keyblade in Kingdom Hearts.

1. Each game is a fully fledged Kingdom Hearts title on each portable. Thank god Square Enix has ditched the card game concept from Chain of Memories and gone with more traditional Kingdom Hearts action role-playing gameplay. Even though the power and screen dimensions of the PSP suit the game much better, 358/2 Days still holds up well on the DS.

2. I didn't see much Disney in 358/2 Days, and the focus seems to be more on Roxas and Organization XIII than on Disney characters. Will there be any Disney influence at all? Could 358/2 Days be the first Kingdom Hearts title without anything from the Magic Kingdom?

3. Birth by Sleep will visit the worlds of Cinderella and Snow White, but it's unknown what other Disney worlds will be included. I hope Square Enix decides to keep any other Disney areas secret this time around -- by the time Kingdom Hearts II was released, there weren't a whole lot of surprises. I like surprises.

4. 358/2 Days will have a four-player mode that sees each player taking the role of a different Organization XIII member. It's a cooperative battle, with characters rolling through levels together, dispatching enemies, and then facing off against a final level boss. I played it, and it was mediocre. There are also unconfirmed rumors of multiplayer elements in Birth by Sleep.

5. Is it too early to whore out this franchise with two more spinoffs? There have only been two true Kingdom Hearts titles, and now there will be three side stories. Ugh.

The Big Question: Where is Kingdom Hearts III? I'm a big fan of the series, and I'm more interested in seeing what happens to Sora and friends after the events of Kingdom Hearts II. Nomura-san is probably up to his ears in Final Fantasy Versus XIII development, but c'mon. I also predict that there won't be many new Disney realms to explore. You can bet the team is saving the best remaining worlds for the next real Kingdom Hearts title.

This preview is based on hands-on gameplay at Tokyo Game Show 2008.