Drop System

Sora's Drop Gauge.

The Drop System is a game mechanic in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. It allows the player to switch control between Sora and Riku, allowing each to progress independently through the game. One character is presumed to be "asleep" while the other is active. The player will drop into the next character once the Drop Gauge (ドロップゲージ, Doroppu Gēji) is depleted, or they can drop manually by tapping the "Drop" button that appears on the World Map, in the main menu, in the pause menu, or at a Save Point.

Development

Following an interview with Tai Yasue, the Drop System was developed to increase the thrill of the game and to keep Sora and Riku's stories united, in contrast to Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, where the player has to finish a story before going on to the next one.

Story

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Sora goes with Neku to the Third District, where they encounter a mysterious youth. While Neku goes to confront him, Sora is suddenly overcome with drowsiness, and he succumbs to sleep. He later wakes up to find the district empty.

After Riku fends off Beat's Spirit and the other attacking Dream Eaters in the Second District, he becomes overwhelmingly sleepy and loses consciousness. When he wakes up, he finds Joshua and Beat have gone.

Xigbar and Young Xehanort corner Sora in The World That Never Was and send him into a dream. After Xehanort shows Sora visions of his meeting Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, Sora and Ansem entering the Secret Place before the Destiny Islands fell into darkness, and Sora's visits to the different incarnations of Traverse Town, Sora suddenly passes out while chasing an illusion of Pluto.

This information is based on alternate scenes or materials and is not considered canon within the overall plot of the series.
If Riku tries to approach the Castle That Never Was before Sora defeats Xemnas, he will always drop off to sleep.

Mechanics

The Bonus Time counter in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

The Drop Gauge has three differently-colored bars that continuously deplete, one by one, from blue to yellow to pink. The gauge's speed is indicated by the multiplier that accompanies it. Once the third bar empties, Bonus Time (ボーナスタイム, Bōnasu Taimu) begins, and the speed multiplier is replaced with a final 30 second countdown. During that time, the Attack command drops HP, Munny or Droplet prizes for each hit landed on a target. Droplets also appear more often and more abundantly from enemies. After the 30 seconds is up, the character will fall asleep and Drop, and player control will pass to the other character. When the player returns to the first character, play will resume where it left off. If the character drops during a boss battle, the battle will start over from scratch when they resume, as if it were a Game Over.

The base drop speed depends on the current forecast: 2.0 for Risky Winds, 1.6 for Treasure Front, 1.3 for Overcast, and 1.0 for all other forecasts. Being hit by an attack that inflicts the Sleep status effect increases the gauge's speed by (duration of sleep status / 20), while coming into contact with the pink gas released from jars will increase the speed by 0.1 every 3 seconds. Guarding an attack with Wake-up Block will reduce the drop speed by 0.5, but won't become lower than the base speed. Drop speed increases can be prevented with the Sleep Block ability, and the gauge can be refilled and the drop speed reset by using Break Time, Drop-Me-Nots, Drop-Me-Nevers, or Megalixirs.

Relay Bonus

The Relay Bonus Screen in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.

After a character drops, the Relay Bonus (Bonus Relay) screen is shown, and the player can purchase different Drop Bonuses (ドロップボーナス, Doroppu Bōnasu) with Drop Points (ドロップポイント, Doroppu Pointo), or DP. The boosts will affect the other character's gameplay. They include reduced Drop Gauge speed, temporary stat boosts, new commands or items. Some boosts are available in three different levels after being obtained, each one with better effects, but with a higher DP cost. Any leftover DP is converted to Munny.

DP is earned during gameplay by collecting Droplets relinquished by defeated Nightmares, collecting specific "lucky items", which are detailed on the Forecast screen, or by completing Link Portals. The player can collect of maximum of 999 droplets per drop. The player can give the other character several bonuses depending on the amount of Droplets acquired in the last Drop and depending on what has been unlocked from Bonuses.

List of Drop Bonuses

Default Drop Bonuses

Bonus	DP Cost			Unlocked
	LV1	LV2	LV3
Link Accelerator (リンクブースト, Rinku Būsuto, lit. "Link Boost")	30	80	200	Defeat the Lord Kyroo.
Drop Decelerator (ドロップスピードダウン, Doroppu Supīdo Daun, lit. "Drop Speed Down")	10	40	100	Save Shiki from the Dream Eaters.
Flowmotion Turbo (フリーフローブースト, Furīfurō Būsuto, lit. "Freeflow Boost")	30	80	200	Defeat the Spellican at Symphony of Sorcery.
Attack Gain (アタックブースト, Atakku Būsuto, lit. "Attack Boost")	30	80	200	Available from the beginning.
Magic Gain (マジックブースト, Majikku Būsuto, lit. "Magic Boost")	30	80	200	Available from the beginning.
Defense Gain (ガードブースト, Gādo Būsuto, lit. "Guard Boost")	30	80	200	Defeat Rinzler.
Affinity Gain (ブリードブースト, Burīdo Būsuto, lit. "Breed Boost")	10	40	100	Defeat the Wargoyle with Riku.
Spirit Auto-Life (スピリットリレイズ, Supiritto Rireizu, lit. "Spirit Reraise")	10	—	—	Defeat the Spellican at Traverse Town.

Random Drop Bonuses

Bonus	DP Cost	Shop Level
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
Potion	10	50.0%	33.3%	16.7%	11.2%	8.5%
Balloon	20	50.0%	33.3%	16.7%	11.2%	8.5%	7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Aerial Recovery	30		33.3%	16.7%	10.4%	7.5%	6.6%	5.2%	4.9%
Water Barrel	20			16.7%	11.2%	8.5%	7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Treasure Goggles	30			16.7%	11.2%	8.5%	7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Wake-up Block	40			16.7%	11.2%	7.5%	7.2%	5.2%	5.4%
Hi-Potion	20				11.2%	8.5%	7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Mega Potion	30				11.2%	8.5%	7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Payback Blast	40				11.2%	8.5%	7.2%	5.9%	5.4%
Dark Break	50					8.5%	7.9%	5.9%	6.0%
Timestorm	50					8.5%	7.9%	5.9%	6.0%
Cura	50					8.5%	7.9%	5.9%	6.0%
Sliding Block	50						7.9%	6.6%	6.7%
Magnet Spiral	50						7.9%	6.6%	6.0%
Dark Firaga	60							6.6%	6.7%
Dark Roll	60							6.6%	6.7%
Dark Barrier	60							6.6%	6.7%

Bonus	DP Cost	Shop Level
		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
Potion	10	50.0%	33.3%	16.7%	11.2%	9.2%
Balloon	20	50.0%	33.3%	16.7%	11.2%	9.2%	8.6%	8.9%	9.2%
Aerial Recovery	30		33.3%	16.7%	10.4%	8.6%	7.0%	7.0%	6.4%
Water Barrel	20			16.7%	11.2%	9.2%	8.6%	8.9%	9.2%
Treasure Goggles	30			16.7%	11.2%	8.6%	7.8%	7.0%	7.2%
Wake-up Block	40			16.7%	11.2%	8.6%	7.8%	7.0%	7.2%
Hi-Potion	20				11.2%	9.2%	8.6%	8.9%	9.2%
Mega Potion	30				11.2%	9.2%	8.6%	8.9%	9.2%
Payback Raid	40				11.2%	9.2%	7.8%	7.9%	7.2%
Timestorm	50					9.2%	8.6%	7.9%	8.3%
Cura	50					9.2%	8.6%	7.9%	8.3%
Sliding Block	50						8.6%	8.9%	8.3%
Magnet Spiral	50						8.6%	8.9%	8.3%

Forecast

The Forecast (イベントフォーキャスト, Ibento Fōkyasuto, lit. "Event Forecast") is a collection of components that affect the current period between two Drops. These components are activated under the current condition, which Rare Nightmare Dream Eater's special portal is present and its difficulty and a certain item, that if collected will grant the user a bonus in drop points.

List of Forecasts

Image	Name	Description
	Munnystorm (マニーデー, Manī Dē, lit. "Munny Day")	The dropped Munny prizes are bigger.
	Risky Winds (リスキーデー, Risukī Dē, lit. "Risky Day")	Every Spirit created has an automatic increase of one rank, but recipes have a 50% higher chance of creating alternate Spirits or failing outright, the Drop Gauge base speed is increased to 2.0 and enemies are stronger than normal. Not available in Beginner Mode and Traverse Town.
	Overcast (マジカルデー, Majikaru Dē, lit. "Magical Day")	Awards a 20% boost to the magical strength of both the player, their allies, and their opponents and the Drop Gauge's base speed is increased to 1.3.
	HP Showers (HPボールデー, HP Bōru Dē, lit. "HP Ball Day")	The dropped HP Prizes are bigger.
	Treasure Front (トレジャーデー, Torejā Dē, lit. "Treasure Day")	Increases the amount of Prize Boxes dropped by defeated enemies, and the Drop Gauge is increased to 1.6.
	Ordinary Day (ナチュラルデー, Nachuraru Dē, lit. "Natural Day")	Just a peaceful, uneventful day. There are no modifications to any mechanic.
	Bargain Flurry (バーゲンデー, Bāgen Dē, lit. "Bargain Day")	Rare items at the shop, plus a 20% discount!