Kingdom Hearts is the first game in a fantasy action-roleplaying series for consoles and handheld devices.
Great Characters
Great Story
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Story & Themes
The story of Kingdom Hearts is spread out over many different devices and can be hard to follow. That said, the world of Kingdom Hearts is rich, complex, and fascinating to all ages.
The first Kingdom Hearts game (available for PlayStation2 and PlayStation3) begins with the story of Sora, a young boy living in the aptly named Destiny Islands with his best friends, Riku and Kairi. One night there is a terrible storm, and the three friends are separated as shadowy creatures attack the islands.
Sora lands on a world called Traverse Town, where he meets up with Donald Duck and Goofy. Donald and Goofy are also on a quest assigned by King Mickey. As it turns out, Sora is just the person they're looking for, since he is the chosen wielder of the Keyblade. The three set out on a journey across the worlds to seal keyholes and find King Mickey.
They travel to familiar locations from Disney movies, including Neverland, Agrabah (from Aladdin), and Halloween Town. They even get swallowed by Monstro, the whale from Pinocchio. At the end of the game they must fight Maleficent and a new villain called Ansem who has possessed Riku and is using him for evil.
Ansem is eventually defeated, the lost worlds are rebuilt, and Riku gets restored after a long battle—but Sora becomes a Heartless and all the friends are once again separated.
The story continues in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts 2, and Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.
Save Points
There are save points in each level where players can go to save the game, as long as they are not in battle.
Difficulty
The different difficulty settings affect how tough enemies will be. On easy, the game shouldn't give you much trouble. Proud mode, the most difficult setting, may not be too tricky for an experienced player but is not recommended for a first-timer.
Heads Up!
Violence Kingdom Hearts features cartoon violence that will be familiar to anyone who has seen an animated show. Sora bashes enemies with a giant key called a Keyblade. His enemies explode into gems or smoke; there is no gore to speak of.
Scary Imagery The player fights against shadowy monsters called "Heartless" and classic Disney villains that kids will be familiar with from movies.
Consumerism Since Kingdom Hearts ties into the Disney universe, kids might feel encouraged to buy Disney products. There is also a manga series based on the first game. And, of course, the rest of the games in the series.
Discrimination Most of the characters are white or Japanese. Aladdin and Jasmine are present as well. There are no playable female characters.
Conversation Starters
- Does the inclusion of Disney characters give you an emotional connection to the game? Do you feel as attached to the original characters as you do to the Disney characters?
- How does the story appeal to older players, even though it uses characters from kids' movies?
- Characters in Kingdom Hearts lose their memories often and forget who their friends are. How do you feel when it happens? Is it cathartic when characters finally reunite with their friends after a long time apart?
- What characters would you like to see appear in the next Kingdom Hearts game?
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