Classification: PG
Platform: Nintendo DS
Test Platform: Nintendo DS
Details
Developers: Square Enix, h.a.n.d.;
Publisher: Square Enix
For fans of action RPGs, Kingdom Hearts is a pretty huge title, and the newest game in the series is out today for Nintendo DS.
I've played most of the games in the series at one point or another, and from what I can tell after playing a couple of hours of Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded, Square Enix has decided to amalgamate the best features of the series into their latest game.
The story starts after the end of Kingdom Hearts II, and begins in classic Square Enix style with full motion video. I was impressed; it was some of the best looking video I've ever seen on my DSi. The video helps Re:Coded do a pretty quick run-through of events in Kingdom Hearts and its sequel, so you don't have to have played a game in the series before to pick up this one. That said, I would advise you do because the story isn't exactly easy to follow without having played them.
There are a lot of things that are pulled almost directly from previous games - you play as Sora, and go to a couple of familiar worlds in the first few hours. The layout of those worlds doesn't appear to have changed much at all from the PS2 games, except for the dark, crate-sized blocks that have sprouted up everywhere - it's your job to find out why.
Most of the gameplay is pretty familiar, too, except for a few changes to the battle system. They've introduced "overclocking" - bit of a nerdy reference there - which basically means that rather than having Magic Points, you need to attack to recharge abilites, and each time the overclock bar fills up you earn a new ability to use in battle. Skills you can get are dependent on your weapon. It seems cool now, but I need more time in-game to figure out whether it becomes annoying in the long run.
One dubious change is the camera setup. I'm weird about camera control - I want complete manual control, especially on the x-axis, without having to use the touchscreen. In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, the other game in the series I've played on the DS, you could at least control the x-axis using the bumpers. Now, if you don't want to use the touchscreen, you have to hold down the right bumper and look around with the directional keys. (This also snaps the camera behind you on the default settings, which I hated - I'm not always trying to look at the things Sora is facing.) Of course, you can't look around and run at the same time if you want to do it this way, because to run you use the same up-down-left-right buttons. So I was basically forced to use my thumb on the touchscreen to look around while moving.
Relatively minor annoyances aside, I'm looking forward to exploring Re:Coded further. The story so far is pretty strange - this is Square Enix, after all - but I'm intrigued enough to want to know more.
If you're unsure about whether you want Re:Coded, hang in there for a month or so and wait for my full review, coming in March’s issue of PC World .
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