Kingdom Hearts

 PlayStation 2
User Score
8.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1277 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,103 out of 1277
  2. Mixed: 106 out of 1277
  3. Negative: 68 out of 1277
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  1. SuperkenGaming
    Dec 31, 2016
    8
    Kingdom Hearts
    better adventure than it is a game.
    Hide your kids, hide your princesses because they’re snatching up everybody in kingdom hearts. This game starts out very slow and is just a fetch quest game for the first 2 hours of the total of around 30… But a mysterious door unlocks one night and you and your friends go through cause you’re kids hungry for an adventure of course..    Kingdom Hearts
    better adventure than it is a game.
    Hide your kids, hide your princesses because they’re snatching up everybody in kingdom hearts.
    This game starts out very slow and is just a fetch quest game for the first 2 hours of the total of around 30…
    But a mysterious door unlocks one night and you and your friends go through cause you’re kids hungry for an adventure of course.. You want to leave this island you’ve lived on your whole life...
    But once you get there youre alone, so with your newly acquired keyblade you set out on an adventure to find them...
    Meanwhile king mickey is gone as he noticed the stars are going out… and goofy and Donald are tasked with finding the key... and guess who’s got it…
    You meet up and go on a crazy Disney adventure taking out the heartless trying to consume the different Disney worlds and snatching their princesses, so it’s up to you to battle your way to the key holes and sealing them back up…
    You’ll go to 11 different playable locations in total including places like wonderland and the 100 acre woods, meet all kinds of awesome Disney and final fantasy characters like the beast and cloud
    Some will even join your party while you’re in their worlds..
    This is a great experience for Disney fans…
    But the greatness ends there…
    Not to say it’s bad... it’s a decently fun game… but feels very dated... while it looks amazing remastered in HD… proof that looks aren’t everything...
    The biggest offenses in this game are its platforming and camera…
    The platforming is insanely stiff making some sections of the game ultra-frustrating like swinging on the vines in Tarzans jungle… and the camera locks itself…
    It isn’t 360 freedom…it chooses when you can and can’t look behind you…
    You can adjust the camera a little in the options to get it closer to your personal preferences, but it doesn’t take away the lock which can definitely get frustrating during boss battles… which is a shame because these boss battles are easily the coolest parts of the game and feature the coolest Disney villains, and all for the most part feel unique and different…
    The actual gameplay itself though feels like a bit of a drag.. there’s way too much back tracking here…
    Going to spots in the map and going back to others and back to this other spot and back to the first spot and then back to the third spot to go back to the 2nd spot and then finally back to the 1st…
    The worlds already do a bad job of feeling large as it is.. The constant back tracking makes it feel worse… I feel the game would have greatly benefited from a more linear platforming style in this case…
    Combat here is pretty basic and hack and slashy…
    As you progress through the game and level up you unlock new abilities, moves and magic to eventually be able to roll, block, counter attack, heal yourself, use fire attacks.. Just to name a few…
    And Donald and goofy have their own sets of abilities and moves they learn that can be managed in menu…
    They feel pretty useless in battle though...
    Im not sure if they get better or worse in easy or hard difficulty... but in the default difficulty they feel like theyre just there to be there…
    They have no concept of strategf programmed into them which is frustrated when dealing with shielded enemies or bosses…
    They die frequently... but thankfully do heal after a while or you can use items in battle to heal them yourself…
    You can also use sumons to call in the most fierce characters in Disney history like simba or bambi to take their place for a few seconds to offer support…
    And I cant not mention the annoying ship sections in between worlds…
    Theyre not fun… and I hope theyre gone in future titles…
    Kingdom Hearts feels like it drags on forever with its reliance on back tracking..
    But if you’re a Disney fan it’s still a pretty cool experience, taking on your favorite bad guys, meeting your favorite heroes, getting new weapons as you save their world, and helping restore balance...
    I Give Kindgom Hearts a
    7.5/10    … Expand
  2. WheelzFourReelz
    Dec 30, 2014
    8
    Kingdom Hearts is a very charming beat-em-up that has a lot of fun with its Disney worlds and overly cheesy story. It's flaws are that the game does get tedious after a little bit and the camera is pretty bad. But if you can overlook that, this is a great game.
  3. UltraTektite
    Jul 2, 2016
    8
    Kingdom Hearts is an amazing concept that is amazingly executed. When I first heard about a Final Fantasy crossover with Disney, I thought... well, I wasn't really sure what to think, but what I am sure of is that this game turned out excellent. The combat works extremely well, the rpg elements are simple but well executed, and the graphics are on par for a PS2 game. In addition, theKingdom Hearts is an amazing concept that is amazingly executed. When I first heard about a Final Fantasy crossover with Disney, I thought... well, I wasn't really sure what to think, but what I am sure of is that this game turned out excellent. The combat works extremely well, the rpg elements are simple but well executed, and the graphics are on par for a PS2 game. In addition, the touching storyline is like no other, and the beautiful soundtrack is some of the best I've heard in a game. All that being said, however, the game is not without its flaws. For starters, the Gummi Ship parts are a pain. These low-quality railshooter portions of the game aren't challenging in the slightest, and they feel like a waste of disc space. In addition, there are many tight platforming sequences in the game that don't fit the game's loose platforming mechanics, showing some overambitious game design. Also, the camera is terrible, and objectives can be overly cryptic. But these shortcomings aside, Kingdom Hearts is a magical experience that should be enjoyed by all.… Expand
  4. AriseAndBe
    Aug 5, 2015
    8
    Whilst suffering from poor platforming, this game perfectly combines two major franchises into what can only be described as an extremely enjoyable experience.
  5. ExtaticGamer
    Sep 13, 2016
    8
    Recently got back into this game. It holds up surprisingly well. At this point in the series the story wasn't completely bonkers yet, the characters are quirky and interesting, character progression is immersive. It's just as magical and engaging as it was back in '02. Yes, rotating the camera with the L2 and R2 buttons was an outdated control method even back when the game came out, andRecently got back into this game. It holds up surprisingly well. At this point in the series the story wasn't completely bonkers yet, the characters are quirky and interesting, character progression is immersive. It's just as magical and engaging as it was back in '02. Yes, rotating the camera with the L2 and R2 buttons was an outdated control method even back when the game came out, and battling can grow repetitive after a while, but the hectic nature of the battling is taxing and always demands your attention so it never grows completely stale. Plus, battling simply is a huge part of RPGs so this shouldn't be a dealbreaker. If you're a fan of RPGs you owe it to yourself to play Kingdom Hearts.… Expand
  6. artificeprime
    Apr 14, 2018
    8
    Kingdom Hearts succeeds by telling its own emotional story while transporting you to familiar worlds with iconic characters. It provides a huge variety of fun gameplay experiences that all tie into a story that is surprisingly pretty good. I am a big fan of Final Fantasy and Disney. I have seen every Disney animated movie and played most of the Final Fantasy games but I hate the idea ofKingdom Hearts succeeds by telling its own emotional story while transporting you to familiar worlds with iconic characters. It provides a huge variety of fun gameplay experiences that all tie into a story that is surprisingly pretty good. I am a big fan of Final Fantasy and Disney. I have seen every Disney animated movie and played most of the Final Fantasy games but I hate the idea of combining the two. I hate cross-overs in general. To me it just kills any sense of believability. I honestly think Kingdom Hearts would be a better game if it was just its own thing with all original characters. With that said, I think it does a good job of blending the worlds together in an interesting way. I didn't start out loving Kingdom Hearts. I thought the concept was ridiculous and I found the controls and menus counter-intuitive at first. As it progressed though I quickly found myself getting more immersed in the story and world. The gameplay also got progressively better the further I got. It isn't perfect by a long shot but it delivers on its promise of giving a heart filled journey through magical Disney worlds with Final Fantasy lore and style. That is a tall order so it deserves a lot of credit for pulling it off.

    I give it 80%

    Gameplay 8 - While the controls lack precision and menus are convoluted, there is a huge variety of fun gameplay. It is a great blend of platforming, combat, exploration and problem solving. Every world offers unique puzzles and challenges. The boss battles are mostly excellent and combat becomes more rewarding as you unlock new abilities.

    Story/Progression 6 - The story is definitely convoluted and the Disney plots are basically just dumbed down rehashes of the movie plots but the overarching plot is quite interesting. Once you get past the surface there is quite a bit of depth and lore. The game does a good job of introducing new ideas and plot elements at a good pace and I rarely felt bored. Its a confusing story that is far from being air tight but its a fun adventure that captures the essence of Disney and Final Fantasy games. The story is still much weaker than most Final Fantasy games though.

    World 8 - While I was a bit disappointed by how small each of the Disney worlds was, combined they make up a very big world and there is a lot of variety between them all. Every place offered something new and fun to experience. There are tons of secrets and as you gain more abilities, exploration becomes more fun.

    Characters 6 - The characters are likable and memorable but they are pretty simplistic. Sora is a pretty standard good intention-ed protagonist he evolves a bit but not a lot. Riku is a standard rival. Kairi is the damsel in distress. They all get moments to shine and I liked them fine but they could have had a lot more development. The Disney and Final Fantasy characters are all paper thin. They are basically very basic versions of themselves.

    Visuals 9 - The visual design is mostly excellent. The style is a really nice blend between Final Fantasy and Disney. It captures both in essence but still has a style of its own. My only problem with the visuals is that some of the locations were bland looking. The gummy ship sections also looked awful. Overall though it is a very good looking game with a memorable style that does service to its sources in both franchises.

    Sound Design 9 - The soundtrack is mostly great with memorable theme songs. Some of the world music I found a bit underwhelming but mostly it was fine. The voice acting was good all around. Most of the Disney voices fit the characters quite closely and the new character voices were almost all appealing. Sound affects were good, not the best but they worked well enough.

    Uniqueness/Ideas 8 - Surprisingly there are a lot of good unique ideas. The idea of the Keyblade is a really iconic and makes sense within the story. The idea of the Heartless is also good and fits in well with both Disney and Final Fantasy. There are little things as well such as the way characters and worlds connect to each other that are quite interesting. The way the princesses are used in the story is an interesting idea. There are some really weird ideas like the gummy ships and such but even that has some thought put into it which can be discovered through books in the game. The ideas aren't on par with the better Final Fantasy games but they are still good for what the story is. As weird as the story is I give the creators credit for blending their new ideas into the story fairly well.

    Length/Amount of Content 9 - I put in around 50 hours to complete the main story of the game and some of the side content. The worlds are small but there are 13 worlds and many bosses. There is also a lot of quality optional content.

    Immersion 8 - It took me a bit of time to get into the game but after a few hours I was hooked and rarely wanted to stop playing. There are some boring areas but enough to hold interest.    … Expand
  7. weskergamer
    Mar 12, 2018
    8
    Amo este juego, es uno de los pocos jrpg me gustan. Solamente le critico q la historia es un poco rara, en especial el final. Pero igual es un gran gran gran juego
  8. aditya1101
    Oct 6, 2017
    8
    It has its flaws, and it's hard to say that it's really exemplary in most of the typical ways that games are good. But it's still one of my favorite games of all time for two major reasons. First is that the cast of characters that Kingdom Hearts is able to amass is almost unrivaled across video games - I can't think of another game that blends so many different, well-known charactersIt has its flaws, and it's hard to say that it's really exemplary in most of the typical ways that games are good. But it's still one of my favorite games of all time for two major reasons. First is that the cast of characters that Kingdom Hearts is able to amass is almost unrivaled across video games - I can't think of another game that blends so many different, well-known characters together in the same world so seamlessly. But most importantly, Kingdom Hearts just feels so good to play. It's not the most complicated battling by any means (though it's certainly not easy either!), but its unique brand of hack and slash combo'ing just makes everything you do feel super badass.… Expand
  9. Sebascr12
    Nov 23, 2018
    8
    The combat is ok, nothing special but work fine. The history have some cringe moments but after all is nice to see this characters, interact with each other. The platform parts are bad and feel awkward. The soundtrack is awesome...
  10. Toastclaimer
    Feb 20, 2018
    8
    It's combat hasn't aged perfectly, the plot can be a bit by-the-books and the difficulty spikes like a rocky sales chart but original KH is still a fantastic game. This is not the way to play it as the updated release; despite bugs adds new graphics and features
  11. dggt
    Jul 10, 2019
    8
    Great game, but it have one annoying problem, game doesn't f*ing tells you where you need to go and what you need to do, no map, no waypoins, no current objective. You are needed to look in to every corner (with infinite spawning enemies). You can't skip cutscenes, even after the game is finished, i want to see how much time i spend on it or play after ending, i only see inscription "TheGreat game, but it have one annoying problem, game doesn't f*ing tells you where you need to go and what you need to do, no map, no waypoins, no current objective. You are needed to look in to every corner (with infinite spawning enemies). You can't skip cutscenes, even after the game is finished, i want to see how much time i spend on it or play after ending, i only see inscription "The End", and can't do anything, i can only turn off console. These are trivial things, but if you sum up this that's a problem.… Expand
  12. maturene
    Dec 22, 2018
    8
    Luego escribo una review desas que ahora mismo me da pereza y tal. me cagoento
  13. Eseka_M
    Jan 3, 2019
    8
    Kingdom Hearts es un muy buen juego para su época, por eso esta review va a ir enfocada a esos años entre 2002-2006. Lo primero que hay que destacar es los buenos gráficos que tiene, comparandolo con otros juegos de esos años, Kingdom Hearts explotaba al máximo la capacidad de la PS2. Una de las BSO más increibles en todos los videojuegos que hace que el juego sea mucho más ameno y dan másKingdom Hearts es un muy buen juego para su época, por eso esta review va a ir enfocada a esos años entre 2002-2006. Lo primero que hay que destacar es los buenos gráficos que tiene, comparandolo con otros juegos de esos años, Kingdom Hearts explotaba al máximo la capacidad de la PS2. Una de las BSO más increibles en todos los videojuegos que hace que el juego sea mucho más ameno y dan más ganas de estar atento. Un sistema de combate bastante fluido con el gran defecto de la cámara, que imposibilita mucho al jugador y es realmente una molestia cuando el sistema de combate está tan elaborado, una pena. El diseño de los personajes y de los mundos originales me parece una pasada, sobretodo de sincorazones como el Invisible, Bégimo o Defensor. La historia es aceptable, es un juego que esta destinado a un público bastante joven por lo que cae en algunos clichés y no da rienda suelta a toda la imaginacion que puede tener un guionista aunque pese a esto se le coge un cariño especial a la historia y a veces es incluso arriesgada como por ejemplo cuando (SPOILER) Sora decide clavarse la llave espada para sacar el corazón de Kairi,

    En líneas generales es un gran juego aunque para un público determinado y he de decir que el juego envejece muy mal asi que no hay que crearse grandes expectativas al leer la review.    … Expand
  14. MarioneteGaming
    Feb 13, 2020
    8
    I absolutely loved this game even though i was too new to the series in 2020 but it still holds up today but the game has some flaws like most of the time you dont know where to go and it has lots of puzzles, i do like puzzles for the challenge but some of them are WAY too confusing and complicated but its sstill considered to be one of the best game on ps2
  15. HylianBran12
    Jun 11, 2020
    8
    Kingdom Hearts' mix of Disney and Square may make it odd and strange to approach for some, but that doesn't stop it from being a great game. The combat is fluid and streamlined, giving the player enough tools to give them a diverse arsenal, while never overwhelming the player. The gameplay also allows for various play styles, enhancing replayablity. The presentation is over the top asKingdom Hearts' mix of Disney and Square may make it odd and strange to approach for some, but that doesn't stop it from being a great game. The combat is fluid and streamlined, giving the player enough tools to give them a diverse arsenal, while never overwhelming the player. The gameplay also allows for various play styles, enhancing replayablity. The presentation is over the top as well, with this being one of the best looking PlayStation 2 titles, only hampered by the lack of 480p Progressive Scan support. The soundtrack is also absolutely fantastic, although my lack of musical expertise prevents me from articulating why. The plot is also great, delivering fun set-pieces, engaging conflicts, and memorable characters with clear and potentially relatable motivations. The relationships between the characters in particular really deliver impactful and emotional scenes that will stick with you forever. Despite all this, the game is definitely dated. While the controls are great for combat, they quickly go down the **** when the game decides to attempt platforming, and is awkward every single time. The stage "Deep Jungle" suffers especially from this, along with it also highlighting the awkward, confusing, and sometimes even downright poor design of some stages. The game is also hampered by a piss poor camera, which is always zoomed in way too much, and gets caught on everything. The player can't fix most of this manually, either, as camera control is mapped to L2 and R2. The "Gummi Ship" missions in between stages also drag down the pace, as they are painfully simple, boring, long, and lacking in any sort of mechanical challenge. Even with all that, however, Kingdom Hearts is still a wonderful action RPG, and well worth your time. I recommend the Final Mix version on the PS3 collection Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMix, or even better, the version on the PS4 or Xbox One, contained on Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 25 ReMix.… Expand
  16. ZeroBacon
    Sep 3, 2020
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Kingdom Hearts is a great game, but it has some flaws with EVERY world. Traverse Town is too empty. Wonderland is boring to look at. Olympus Colosseum is just an enemy gauntlet. Deep jungle’s vine physics are annoying. Agrabah is just platforming, and platforming is not one of the game’s strong points. Halloween town could’ve been better. Monstrous is much like Jabu jabu’s belly, boring and disgusting. Atlantica is atlantica. Never land has so much missed potential. Hollow Bastion is fine, and 100 acre wood is just a bunch of boring mini games, not to mention that the combat is a bit aged as well. All tat aside, it’s still worth every penny, and the music is phenomenal.… Expand
  17. genesisdoes
    Oct 2, 2020
    8
    Kingdom Hearts is quite the unique game, linking the two beloved worlds of Final Fantasy and Disney. Despite neither catching very much of my interest throughout my life, I always had a fondness for Kingdom Hearts. Its a very nostalgic property for me. I used to play KH1 and KH2 a lot as a child but never got very far, always getting stuck due to difficulty or lack of knowledge as to whereKingdom Hearts is quite the unique game, linking the two beloved worlds of Final Fantasy and Disney. Despite neither catching very much of my interest throughout my life, I always had a fondness for Kingdom Hearts. Its a very nostalgic property for me. I used to play KH1 and KH2 a lot as a child but never got very far, always getting stuck due to difficulty or lack of knowledge as to where to go next. I finally decided I would stay dedicated and play through the whole game.

    Despite what most fans will tell you about the controls being outdated and future games being generally better experiences, I still had a lot of fun with Kingdom Hearts. It was pretty difficult at times, especially with the final boss but I managed to get through it on normal difficulty. I've played through most of KH2 at the time of me writing this (November 2019) but I'm stuck on the Roxas battle. Even without having completed it, I definitely prefer the sequel for it's improved gameplay and more interesting worlds to explore. Regardless, the original is still very much worth playing.
    I beat this game in February of 2019.    … Expand
  18. Xrayplayer
    Oct 16, 2020
    8
    Kingdom hearts is a great game but far from perfect.

    the camera can be uncooperative the combat machines can get repetitive at times in the first half of the game. But in the second half there's a handful of upgrades to your abilities there's nice amount of depth to your arsenal you can get a lot of Useful items and magical powers and your party members can also be helpful... the battles    Kingdom hearts is a great game but far from perfect.

    the camera can be uncooperative the combat machines can get repetitive at times in the first half of the game.

    But in the second half there's a handful of upgrades to your abilities there's nice amount of depth to your arsenal you can get a lot of Useful items and magical powers and your party members can also be helpful... the battles themselves are so much fun and the bosses are some of best thing the game can offer they're challenging in good way and required some serious skills to win and it feels so rewarding when you win and you get better and better at this game.

    the biggest flaw in the game are the unskippable cutscenes it's so annoying especially during the hardest boss battles after you die you need to rewatch them again.

    it's easy to get lost in some of the levels so you need to pay attention to the story.. the story is great I love the characters and the plot and the Disney worlds are great they are well designed with catchy and amazing soundtrack.    … Expand
  19. yBazara
    Jun 18, 2021
    8
    [ENG] I really liked this game, despite having some ''bad'' graphics for the ''nowadays'' time, I got used to the graphics, and what impressed me was the great story developed about friendship, companionship and adventure, I found the game very difficult when fighting the bosses, but it was a very fun challenge, I recommend it a lot

    [PT-BR] Gostei muito desse jogo, apesar de ter uns    [ENG] I really liked this game, despite having some ''bad'' graphics for the ''nowadays'' time, I got used to the graphics, and what impressed me was the great story developed about friendship, companionship and adventure, I found the game very difficult when fighting the bosses, but it was a very fun challenge, I recommend it a lot

    [PT-BR] Gostei muito desse jogo, apesar de ter uns gráficos um pouco ''ruim'' para a época de ''hoje em dia'' eu me acostumei com os gráficos, e o que me impressionou foi a ótima história desenvolvida sobre amizade, companherismo e aventura, achei o jogo bem difícil na luta contra os bosses, mas foi um desafio muito divertido, recomendo demais    … Expand
  20. Frosstype
    Oct 28, 2021
    8
    The 3rd best KH game behind KH2 and KH3:ReMind and those two for me is 2 of best games of all time! KH1 is not one of the best games for me but it doesn't mean its not amazing! It's the origin of the franchise which gives it a lot of respect for it but gameplay is lacking in a lot of ways with several rough edges.
  21. Zer0xl
    Nov 20, 2021
    8
    The quality in kh1 is very good, the combat is rough after you play the next numbered games, but it's not bad, and it didn't aged poorly.

    The Pacing is Very good, every disney world feels connected to the whole plot.

    I still prefer 2 slightly, but they are in the same spot in my Kingdom hearts Tier list.
  22. Mr_Fish
    Jun 15, 2022
    8
    even on a first playthrough there's something about this game that just feels nostalgic
  23. Diaboliste
    Jun 4, 2022
    8
    the best game ps2 graphics good level design good scenario taking a secret cutscene for regular players too bad there are only disney worlds and not final fantasy
  24. MacArron23
    May 15, 2023
    8
    Nostalgia User, as good as i remembered
    ......................................
  25. Unemportant
    Feb 9, 2023
    8
    One of my first games and it still holds up as an absolute classics. Say what you will about the series it clearly started out pretty strong.
  26. CharlotteBelmon
    Sep 4, 2023
    8
    For its first outing, Kingdom Hearts is a great game, and in a bubble, an amazing game of its era. Despite being one of, if not the weirdest mashups in gaming, Final Fantasy and Disney (although more leaning on the Disney side of things for the first game), Kingdom Hearts strangely works. The game, as well as its main original characters, strike a good balance between the two seeminglyFor its first outing, Kingdom Hearts is a great game, and in a bubble, an amazing game of its era. Despite being one of, if not the weirdest mashups in gaming, Final Fantasy and Disney (although more leaning on the Disney side of things for the first game), Kingdom Hearts strangely works. The game, as well as its main original characters, strike a good balance between the two seemingly clashing art and writing directions of its creators, with Disney's whimsy and childlike adventurousness and Final Fantasy taking care of the serious and more engaging parts of the story.

    Speaking of the story, the first game in the series is a lot lighter than the rest of the franchise, which came as a bit of a shock to me, as you always here horror stories about Kingdom Hearts' convoluted story, which is what made me pick up the 1.5 + 2.5 HD Collection on Ps4 (In case you're wondering, the HD remakes are the way to go with this game. Better graphics, more moves that make the game less frustrating and more fun). The story has main protagonist Sora going on an adventure with Disney's Donald and Goofy throughout various classic Disney films, such as Hercules, Peter Pan, Aladdin and more in order to find and save his friends Riku and Kairi, all of which were separated due to mysterious shadow monsters called the Heartless. On top of this, Sora can wield the magical Keyblade, a key shaped sword that can rid the Heartless for good. Like I said, its a lot simpler than the rest of the franchise, but it just about kept me interested until the end. Emphasis on the "just about", as the story tends to take a backseat during most of the Disney worlds, where Sora goes about helping the characters from the films in their on condensed story, some original to Kingdom Hearts, and some just straight up being the films they're based on. Its alright for a first game, but nothing ground-breaking or incredibly interesting until the later parts of the game.

    Gameplay-wise, the combat is quite fun. Sora can attack with his Keyblade in melee combat, or use it to cast classic Final Fantasy spells. This being said, I never really used the spells except for the first couple of times using them. This was when I realised that the offensive spells are very underwhelming, and not worth using when you could use your MP for healing or protective spells, or your time going up to the enemy and using the Keyblade. Melee is really the only way to go. There are also various summons you can use. Summons are unlockable moves where Sora calls upon a Disney character and they help out in the fight, such as Simba from the Lion King attack enemies with his roar, or Tinkerbell providing continuous healing. I used these moves every now and again, as they require having Donald and Goofy as party members, which means giving up having the Disney character from the world your in, which is a shame because they don't show up again after completing the world. As a whole, the gameplay is fine, just feels slightly dated in some parts.

    In conclusion, Kingdom Hearts is a game worth your time, and definitely a must play. While it pales in comparison to other games in the series, it still just about holds up today as a legendary start to a legendary franchise. Stick with the game and the series as a whole, and you'll find a new obsession that you will not regret.    … Expand
  27. Gonyaestaba
    Jul 20, 2023
    8
    Despite the fact that Kingdom Hearts is one of my favorite games, it is undeniable to say that it has some flaws such as the camera that sometimes does not work quite right, another flaw is the script which is good for the game but compared to the following games it is much simpler than the following although despite these flaws that I have just mentioned, it does not mean that you do notDespite the fact that Kingdom Hearts is one of my favorite games, it is undeniable to say that it has some flaws such as the camera that sometimes does not work quite right, another flaw is the script which is good for the game but compared to the following games it is much simpler than the following although despite these flaws that I have just mentioned, it does not mean that you do not have fun with this game and also note that there are many details… Expand
  28. llamayarmybar
    Jul 21, 2011
    7
    At the least- a very uneven game. At the worst? A decent game accompanied by a terrible fan-base full of weird Disney-anime obsessed pasty white tweens that either like the game because it has flashy colors in it- or attempt to justify it as a "deep action rpg with meaningful dialog between a child with gravity defying hair and micky mouse." It has its merits and it also has its boringAt the least- a very uneven game. At the worst? A decent game accompanied by a terrible fan-base full of weird Disney-anime obsessed pasty white tweens that either like the game because it has flashy colors in it- or attempt to justify it as a "deep action rpg with meaningful dialog between a child with gravity defying hair and micky mouse." It has its merits and it also has its boring segments that shouldn't even be in the game. Goofy and Donald duck are an odd duo here and anybody will admit that the melding is a bit strange. The enormous amount of licensed Disney characters included- as well as the lack of original or even "sound-alike" voice actors tells me that this wasn't really a big deal to Disney. They probably knew they could market the crap out this game without even trying: "Final fantasy and disney characters? Kids will eat that **** up!" Thusly Kingdom Hearts was born. Then their was that retarded (but we all loved it) trailer on TV with that catchy 10 seconds of some Japanese song that had been dubbed for the commercial and everyone was suddenly entranced. Its kind of like Pokemon in a way.. even though we get older and stop playing it (most of the sane ones anyway) they keep making them for nostalgic factor. Thats why this game succeeded. No shame in hiding that truth.… Expand
  29. doodlerman
    Jun 12, 2011
    7
    It kinda grows tedious after a while, but to say that this isn't a decent game is a bit much. The very beginning of the game is extremely boring, but as you get further along it gets much better. Even if it didn't have the involvement of Disney characters but still followed its same basic story this would be a good game, but having DIsney characters and the Disney world makes this gameIt kinda grows tedious after a while, but to say that this isn't a decent game is a bit much. The very beginning of the game is extremely boring, but as you get further along it gets much better. Even if it didn't have the involvement of Disney characters but still followed its same basic story this would be a good game, but having DIsney characters and the Disney world makes this game pretty unique and a whole lot of fun. It's great to see some of your favorite movies and characters and have them as their own worlds that you can explore (it's not necessarily open world, but it's good enough).… Expand
  30. Caestus
    Mar 14, 2013
    7
    Better then average RPG, which profits from the Disney and Final Fantasy Characters with a disapointing and way to simple battle system. Story is just absurd.
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Awards & Rankings

21
#21 Best PS2 Game of 2002
2
#2 Most Discussed PS2 Game of 2002
5
#5 Most Shared PS2 Game of 2002

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 46 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 43 out of 46
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 46
  3. Negative: 0 out of 46
  1. Game Informer
    95
    The battles that unfold are as beautful as they are intense, and as difficult as they are easy to manhandle. [Oct 2002, p.76]
  2. Play Magazine
    80
    To say that Kingdom Hearts is magical is an understatement. As cinematic experiences go, it's exquisite. It's not the finest in terms of action, but overall, it's wonderful. [Oct 2002, p.74]
  3. GameZone
    91
    Has a few flaws, but its unique character pairings and jaw-dropping graphics make this a remarkable RPG.
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