Kingdom Hearts II
Kingdom Hearts II is the MOST anticipating video game sequel to Kingdom Hearts.Kingdom Hearts II (キングダムハーツII, Kingudamu Hātsu Tsū?) is an 2005/2006 action role-playing game developed by Square Enix Co., Ltd. and published by both Square Enix Co., Ltd. and Buena Vista Games (now Disney Interactive Studios) for the Sony PlayStation 2 video game console. Kingdom Hearts II was released on December 22, 2005 in Japan, on March 28, 2006 in North America and on September 29, 2006 in Europe. After one month of availability, it sold 1,000,000 copies in North America and was the second best selling game of 2006.[1]
Kingdom Hearts II is the follow-up to the 2002 PlayStation 2's Disney Interactive/Square Co., Ltd. RPG Kingdom Hearts, and its 2004 Game Boy Advance sequel, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. The story centers around a group of heroes searching for lost friends and trying to decipher and defeat the mysterious Organization XIII, along with a large cast of characters from both Disney and Square Enix properties.
Story
Kingdom Hearts II begins one year after Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. Sora, Donald and Goofy have been asleep for the past year to regain their lost memories. Meanwhile, Roxas is trapped in a virtual simulation of Twilight Town created by DiZ so that Roxas, the Nobody of Sora, may merge with his original self to restore Sora's power. This is done as part of DiZ's revenge on Organization XIII. DiZ's plans are threatened when Organization XIII's Nobodies infiltrate the virtual town, but Roxas finally merges with Sora. Sora, Donald and Goofy wake up in the real Twilight Town and King Mickey Mouse and Yen Sid send them on another journey. Their goal is to find Riku and stop the plans of Organization XIII, who control the Nobodies—the body and soul left over when a heart is turned into a Heartless. Sora also receives a new set of clothes that allow him to fuse with party members to gain special abilities, known as Drive Form. Afterwards, Maleficent is resurrected and joins with Pete to continue her quest for power.
Sora travels to many Disney-themed worlds, both old and new, and resolves the troubles caused by Organization XIII, the Heartless, Maleficent and Pete, and local villains. Meanwhile, Kairi is kidnapped by Organization XIII. During a visit to Hollow Bastion, they again meet King Mickey, who reveals the true nature of Ansem, the antagonist of Kingdom Hearts. The Ansem who Sora defeated was actually the Heartless of Xehanort, a student of Ansem the Wise. Xemnas, the leader of Organization XIII, reveals himself to be the Nobody of Xehanort. Organization XIII's plan is revealed: they seek the power of Kingdom Hearts, which is the sum of all the hearts that Sora released by destroying the Heartless with his Keyblade. Sora then revisits the worlds to solve lingering problems and new complications, while seeking a path to Organization XIII's base of operations.
Through a passageway in the virtual Twilight Town, Sora, Donald, and Goofy arrive at the World That Never Was, the headquarters of Organization XIII, with Kingdom Hearts looming overhead. There, Sora finds Kairi and Riku, who reveals the nature of Sora's and Roxas' relationship. Mickey meets DiZ, who reveals himself to be Ansem the Wise. Ansem the Wise uses a device that dissipates some of Kingdom Hearts' power, but a system overload causes the machine to explode and kill Ansem. At the top of Organization XIII's castle, Sora and his friends battle Xemnas, who uses the remnants of Kingdom Hearts to power his multiple forms. After Xemnas' death, Sora and Riku are reunited with their friends at Destiny Islands, their home. The game concludes as Sora, Kairi and Riku read a mysterious letter stamped with King Mickey's seal.
Gameplay
The gameplay of Kingdom Hearts II is similar to that of Kingdom Hearts, though developers made an effort to address complaints with the previous game. The player directly controls Sora from a third person camera angle, though first person perspective is available. Most gameplay occurs on interconnected field maps where battles take place. The game is driven by a linear progression from one story event to the next, usually told in the form of a cut scene, though there are numerous side quests available that provide bonuses to the characters.
Like many traditional role-playing games, Kingdom Hearts II features an experience point system which determines character development. As enemies are defeated, the player gains experience which culminates in a "level up," where the player characters grows stronger and gains access to new abilities. As in Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts II allows a certain degree of character customization through a short tutorial found at the beginning of the game.
Combat in Kingdom Hearts II is in real time and involves button presses which initiate attacks by the on-screen character. Also, a role-playing game menu, similar to those found in Final Fantasy games, found at the bottom left of the screen provides other combat options such as using magic, summoning beings to assist in battle or executing combination attacks with other party members. A new feature is the Reaction Command, special enemy-specific attacks that are triggered then the player presses the triangle button at the correct time during battle. Reaction Commands can be used to defeat regular enemies or avoid damage and are sometimes necessary to complete a boss battle. In addition to the main character, two party members are usually present who also participate in combat. Though these characters are computer-controlled, the player is allowed to customize their behavior to a certain extent through the menu screen.
In response to criticism, the "Gummi Ship" feature of the first game was re-imagined to be "more enjoyable". Although retaining its basic purpose of travel, the previous system was completely redone to resemble a combination of rail shooter and "Disney theme park ride". In the world map, the player must now control the Gummi Ship from a top-down view and fly to the world the player wishes to enter. Worlds are no longer open from the beginning—the player must unlock the routes to them by entering a new level, controlling the ship from a third-person point of view, and battling enemy ships. After the route is unlocked, travel to the world is unimpeded, unless it is blocked through a plot event.
