More than a decade has passed since Kingdom Hearts first meshed the worlds of Disney and Final Fantasy on the PS2, yet fans' passion for the franchise has hardly diminished over the years, leading Square Enix to bring a trio of Kingdom Hearts titles to the PlayStation 3 re-packaged as Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX.
While millions of fans have been clamoring for new information on Kingdom Hearts 3, the recently confirmed final chapter in the Dark Seeker Saga, Square Enix is hoping that fans are ready to support yet another collection of remakes while they wait. Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX sees three of the seven entries in the Kingdom Hearts franchise make their PlayStation 3 debut, with Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories and Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days all assembled on a single Blu Ray disc.
Though the project has been playing second fiddle to Kingdom Hearts 3 as of late, Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX is far more than a simple port of the titles in question. The surprising loss of most of the original Kingdom Hearts art assets forced the dev team to recreate many of the game's new HD textures from scratch, resulting in the creation of a beautiful new Kingdom Hearts HD remaster.
From the minute the first bits of color splash across your screen, it's clear that your time spent playing Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX will be some of the most visually-stunning gameplay sessions that you're going to have on current-generation hardware. Kingdom Hearts looks gorgeous in high definition, and getting to see each of the game's myriad worlds in all of their new glory would likely be enough to get most Kingdom Hearts diehards to purchase a copy of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX on its own.
Longtime fans of the original Kingdom Hearts will be happy to know that Square Enix has changed very little in their latest release of the game, and the most noticeable difference (outside of the graphics) has to be the game's new camera controls. Square Enix has mapped camera movement to the right-analog, an improvement over the original L2/R2 rotation; however, the solution is only a minor improvement over older Kingdom Hearts iterations.
Purists will be happy to know that Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX also includes all of the bonus content from Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix that didn't make it to the United States when the game launched back in 2002. A handful of additional items and costumes are also included in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX; however, there aren't any new worlds to tide fans over until the Kingdom Hearts 3 launch.
Surprisingly, the years have proven kind to Kingdom Hearts' real-time battles, though the camera does still feel like an extra member of the villains' party at times. While the new right-analog-based camera controls are certainly a step above the L2/R2 scheme of the original, it would have been nice to Square Enix include a camera system that didn't occasionally feel like an additional obstacle on the path to victory. For the most part, though, combat remains quite fun in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, particularly if you have a high definition display to watch all the action unfold in 720/1080p.
The Gummi Ship segments didn't age quite as well, though they're unlikely to prevent anyone interested in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX from enjoying the bulk of the Kingdom Hearts content included in the single-disc collection. The same can be said for the occasional platforming segment found in Kingdom Hearts, which don't do anything to hide the continued shortcomings of Kingdom Hearts' camera system. Few games are perfect though -- and I'm told that some of you crazy people out there even enjoy the Gummi Ship bits -- and these (admittedly frustrating) issues are relatively minor when compared to the enjoyment offered by the rest of the content in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX.
In addition to the original Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX also includes Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories and a three-hour compilation of cinematics that originally appeared in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. Many fans of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II have yet to play the franchise's portable offerings, though Square Enix is clearly hoping that the convenience of having all three titles on a single disc will increase the chances of fans checking out all of the content offered in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX while they eagerly await the Kingdom Hearts 3 launch.
Both are semi-vital to understanding the overarching narrative of the Kingdom Hearts franchise, with Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories covering the events that transpire between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts 2, and the cutscenes from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days filling in the back story of many of the series' non-Disney characters.
Gameplay in Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories is quite different from that of Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix, with the former ditching the latter's real-time battles in favor of a critically-acclaimed card-battle system which seems to get overlooked whenever fans are recalling highlights of the Kingdom Hearts franchise. The card system takes a bit of getting used to, but isn't so deep that it should prevent those who enjoyed Kingdom Hearts from learning exactly what happens during the brief period between the first and second numerical entries in the series.
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX Review - Final Verdict
Without a doubt, Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX can be considered the definite release of the original Kingdom Hearts game, and the collection also gives fans yet another chance to experience portable entries in the franchise that many Kingdom Hearts fans haven't yet had a chance to experience.
If you're interested in all of the content found on the Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX disc, there are literally dozens of hours of gameplay between Kingdom Hearts: Final Mix and Re:Chain of Memories, plus three(ish) hours of cutscenes from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. Even if you're only looking to play one of the two Kingdom Hearts titles on the disc, there's a good chance you'll still have enough fun to warrant Kingdom Hearts 1.5 HD ReMIX's $39.99 price tag.
If you've recently found yourself interested in the Kingdom Hearts franchise, or revisit the series with any regularity, then I can think of little reason not to pick up a copy of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX and (re)introduce yourself to one of Square Enix's greatest franchises. Those who weren't interested in the Kingdom Hearts franchise previously are unlikely to find anything that changes their mind in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, but anyone who considers themselves a diehard fan of the series shouldn't hesitate to pick up Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX at their earliest convenience.
Score - 3.75 / 5
What do you think of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX? Have you already played through both of the remasted Kingdom Hearts games included in the collection? Wish Square Enix included gameplay from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days in Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX?
Let us know in the comments section!
[Full Disclosure: This review was based on gameplay from a free copy of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX provided by Square Enix.]
