Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix is a Japan-exclusive remake of Kingdom Hearts that uses English voice acting.
Limited releases
Pre-order goods
Depending on what store the game was pre-ordered, customers could get a CD containing tracks from the game or a playing card set adorned with Kingdom Hearts characters and symbols.
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix Platinum Limited
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix Platinum Limited came in a box containing the game case, a sheet of eight Kingdom Hearts stickers; a postcard calendar featuring Tetsuya Nomura artwork and contained in a CD case; a block figure of Sora, part of Square's Minimum Collection; and three can badges. The set cost 8,800 yen.
Changes
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix features changes from the original version, including bosses present in the English version, but not in the original Japanese version. Other changes include recoloring Heartless, new weapons, new enemies, new abilities, new cutscenes, Gummi Ship missions, new Ansem Reports, and a new secret movie.
The start screen was replaced with another drawing of Sora, hooded and holding a flag. On the start screen, a trailer for Final Fantasy X-2 is acessible, labelled as a "Secret Movie" as a third option after "New Game" and "Load Game". The game has three difficultly levels, the first being Final Mix: Beginner. Final Mix: Beginner gives the player a Ribbon, an EXP Necklace, 8 Power Ups, 8 Guard Ups and 4 AP Ups at the start, and neither secret movies can be seen. The Drill Gummi's Attack Power is 9,999, instead of 35. The second difficulty is simply "Final Mix", analogous to Standard from the previous game, but not the exact same. The Gummi Ship takes double the damage from the original version and damage inflicted by the player is cut by a third. The last option is Final Mix: Proud, a greater challenge than Expert from the original game. The Gummi Ship's attack is reduced further to a half, and damage is four times. A "Battle Report" is shown at the end.
Another new features include an Event Skip option, allowing the player to skip cutscenes already seen. Sora is modified to become transparent when camera situations force.
Bosses
The new bosses included "Unknown", who was introduced with no context and later revealed to be Xemnas, leader of Organization XIII in Kingdom Hearts II. Also added were "palette swap" bosses for the Olympus Coliseum: Destroyed Behemoth, Arch Behemoth, Red Guard, and Stealth Army. New to the Japanese were bosses included in the English version: Sephiroth and Kurt Zisa.
Enemies
All Heartless are recoloured and several new ones are added:
- Chimera
- Gigant Shadow
- Grand Ghost
- Stealth Soldier
- Pot Scorpion
- Pink Agaricus
- Jet Balloon
- Missile Diver
- Sniper Wild
- Black Ballade
- Neoshadow
Weapons
Two new Keyblades were added: One Winged Angel and Diamond Dust.
Abilities
Ten new abilities were added:
- Slap Shot
- Slide Dash
- Stun Impact
- Gravity Break
- Ripple Drive
- Hurricane Period
- Zantetsuken
- Leaf Veil
- Tech Plus
- Encounter Up
Cutscenes
Several new cutscenes were added. The first, shown after Sora ends up in Traverse Town, has Riku lost in Hollow Bastion, calling out for his friends and Maleficent looking on. Another, played after speaks to Kairi in the underground waterway in Traverse Town, showed Riku lost in the realm of darkness after Xehanort's Heartless took his body. There, he is assisted by Mickey Mouse who reveals that he has the realm's Keyblade. An optional cutscene was a confrontation between Cloud and Sephiroth, seen after the player defeats Sephiroth. Cutscenes were provided for Unknown, using spliced voice acting for Sora and Goofy, but shaking text on a black screen for Unknown.
- Another Side, Another Story [deep dive]
- Gummi Ship Missions
- 3 more Ansem Reports
