Several years ago, I saw the game KINGDOM HEARTS advertised on television.  I'm not sure exactly what it was about the commercials, but I became interested enough in the game and eventually ended up buying it. It was one of the first games I purchased for Playstation 2.  Upon playing the game I soon became hooked and KINGDOM HEARTS became my favorite video game of all time.  When I finished the game, I couldn't believe it ended on such a cliffhanger and I eagerly awaited the release of the sequel.  It was about four years in the making, but KINGDOM HEARTS II was finally released.

The story takes place about a year after Kingdom Hearts ended, following the events of the PSP game KINGDOM HEARTS: CHAIN OF MEMORIES. The game begins with a rather long prologue that takes nearly three hours to play through.  The prologue follows the adventures of a young man named Roxas.  Someone is stealing pictures of Roxas and his friends.  In the process it seems that memories are being stolen as well.  The prologue culminates with Roxas uniting with the sleeping Sora thereby filling in the final missing pieces in Sora's heart.

Once the prologue is completed, the real action of the story begins.  Sora, Donald, and Goofy, now released from a state of suspended animation begin anew their quest to find King Mickey and Riku who they last saw sealing the door to darkness.  As the renew their quest they discover that the Heartless have returned in force. Not only that, but there is also another group of enemies known as Nobodies.  The Nobodies are more powerful and are led by a group called Organization XIII.  Sora and his friends aren't sure what Organization XIII is up to, but it isn't good.  There's also a mysterious figure named Diz who at times seems to be helping Sora, but other times seems a part of the darkness.  The game follows the trio as they travel from one world to the next defeating Heartless, fighting Nobodies, gathering clues, and meeting up with old friends and making new ones.

The gameplay of KINGDOM HEARTS II is a huge improvement over the KH.  Some of the more annoying abilities from the first game have either been done away with or have been incorporated already as part of the characters movements.  Donald and Goofy react much better than they did in the first game, using more powerful abilities and only using items when needed.

Players also have full control over the camera angle which is so much better than the shoulder button option that was a part of the original.  Almost all of the star vocal talent from the first game has returned for the sequel, including Haley Joel Osment as Sora, Hayden Panettiere as Kairi, and David Gallagher as Riku.  The music is just as great and the graphics are amazing.  There are times that the plot does get a little confusing, especially if you have no familiarity with KINGDOM HEARTS: CHAIN OF MEMORIES.  However, overall the story is just as engaging as the first and ends with a very satisfying conclusion.

One of the welcome improvements in game play is the gummi ship component of the game.  Much of the unnecessary difficulty of creating gummi vehicles has been done away with. Not only that, but the ships are easier to fly and fight in than they were in KH.

Some worlds from KH are revisited which was one of the major drawbacks to the game because instead of accomplishing anything new on those worlds you were basically replaying the same adventures you did in KH.  For instance, in Agrabah you have to fight Jafar again and though the plot of that adventure contains some elements of ALADDIN 2: THE RETURN OF JAFAR, it's still pretty much a rehash of the things done in KH, but this time instead of trying to free Genie, Sora and company are involved in trying to redeem Iago.  I really enjoyed most of the new worlds the game offered, including a Steamboat Mickey world of the past, the world of Tron, and the world from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. I also found the time-alternating concept behind the Steamboat Mickey world to be a nice added twist.

Other than rehashing some of the same adventures from the first game in a slightly different form, the other major complaint I have about KINDGOM HEARTS II were all the little mini-games.  The prologue takes almost three hours to complete because of all the mini-games that Roxas has to complete. The world of Pooh and Atlantica are back and the entire adventures there consist of mini-games. Not only that, but in order to unlock the secret video at the end of the credits, you have to complete every single component of Jiminy's journal, which includes playing these mini-games over and over several times.

The only other thing about the game I didn't like is that there is no theatre mode after beating the game.  The most recent Square games and Asian versions of KH & KHII have featured this feature which allows a person to replay the cutscenes of the game in order and view them as a movie.  This is a wonderful addition that I wish all epic games of this sort would feature. Unfortunately, the U.S. version of the game does not feature this.

Despite these complaints, I still find that KINGDOM HEARTS II is a worthy sequel to the KH.  Square and Disney put a lot of time and effort into molding there worlds into the one world which has now become Kingdom Hearts.  The game is very entertaining to play.  The game has been designed to appeal not only to children and youth, but to adults as well.  Experienced gamers might find some of the boss matches a bit too simple, but for a beginner or average gamer, the game has just the right mix of easy challenges and difficulty.

Overall, KINGDOM HEARTS II is a game that fans of Kingdom Hearts need and will want to play. It's also a game that non-fans of the series will probably enjoy playing, too.
Several years ago, I saw the game KINGDOM HEARTS advertised on television. I'm not sure exactly what it was about the commercials, but I became interested enough in the game and eventually ended up buying it. It was one of the first games I purchased for Playstation 2. Upon playing the game I soon became hooked and KINGDOM HEARTS became my favorite video game of all time. When I finished the game, I couldn't believe it ended on such a cliffhanger and I eagerly awaited the release of the sequel. It was about four years in the making, but KINGDOM HEARTS II was finally released. The story takes place about a year after Kingdom Hearts ended, following the events of the PSP game KINGDOM HEARTS: CHAIN OF MEMORIES. The game begins with a rather long prologue that takes nearly three hours to play through. The prologue follows the adventures of a young man named Roxas. Someone is stealing pictures of Roxas and his friends. In the process it seems that memories are being stolen as well. The prologue culminates with Roxas uniting with the sleeping Sora thereby filling in the final missing pieces in Sora's heart. Once the prologue is completed, the real action of the story begins. Sora, Donald, and Goofy, now released from a state of suspended animation begin anew their quest to find King Mickey and Riku who they last saw sealing the door to darkness. As the renew their quest they discover that the Heartless have returned in force. Not only that, but there is also another group of enemies known as Nobodies. The Nobodies are more powerful and are led by a group called Organization XIII. Sora and his friends aren't sure what Organization XIII is up to, but it isn't good. There's also a mysterious figure named Diz who at times seems to be helping Sora, but other times seems a part of the darkness. The game follows the trio as they travel from one world to the next defeating Heartless, fighting Nobodies, gathering clues, and meeting up with old friends and making new ones. The gameplay of KINGDOM HEARTS II is a huge improvement over the KH. Some of the more annoying abilities from the first game have either been done away with or have been incorporated already as part of the characters movements. Donald and Goofy react much better than they did in the first game, using more powerful abilities and only using items when needed. Players also have full control over the camera angle which is so much better than the shoulder button option that was a part of the original. Almost all of the star vocal talent from the first game has returned for the sequel, including Haley Joel Osment as Sora, Hayden Panettiere as Kairi, and David Gallagher as Riku. The music is just as great and the graphics are amazing. There are times that the plot does get a little confusing, especially if you have no familiarity with KINGDOM HEARTS: CHAIN OF MEMORIES. However, overall the story is just as engaging as the first and ends with a very satisfying conclusion. One of the welcome improvements in game play is the gummi ship component of the game. Much of the unnecessary difficulty of creating gummi vehicles has been done away with. Not only that, but the ships are easier to fly and fight in than they were in KH. Some worlds from KH are revisited which was one of the major drawbacks to the game because instead of accomplishing anything new on those worlds you were basically replaying the same adventures you did in KH. For instance, in Agrabah you have to fight Jafar again and though the plot of that adventure contains some elements of ALADDIN 2: THE RETURN OF JAFAR, it's still pretty much a rehash of the things done in KH, but this time instead of trying to free Genie, Sora and company are involved in trying to redeem Iago. I really enjoyed most of the new worlds the game offered, including a Steamboat Mickey world of the past, the world of Tron, and the world from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. I also found the time-alternating concept behind the Steamboat Mickey world to be a nice added twist. Other than rehashing some of the same adventures from the first game in a slightly different form, the other major complaint I have about KINDGOM HEARTS II were all the little mini-games. The prologue takes almost three hours to complete because of all the mini-games that Roxas has to complete. The world of Pooh and Atlantica are back and the entire adventures there consist of mini-games. Not only that, but in order to unlock the secret video at the end of the credits, you have to complete every single component of Jiminy's journal, which includes playing these mini-games over and over several times. The only other thing about the game I didn't like is that there is no theatre mode after beating the game. The most recent Square games and Asian versions of KH & KHII have featured this feature which allows a person to replay the cutscenes of the game in order and view them as a movie. This is a wonderful addition that I wish all epic games of this sort would feature. Unfortunately, the U. S. version of the game does not feature this. Despite these complaints, I still find that KINGDOM HEARTS II is a worthy sequel to the KH. Square and Disney put a lot of time and effort into molding there worlds into the one world which has now become Kingdom Hearts. The game is very entertaining to play. The game has been designed to appeal not only to children and youth, but to adults as well. Experienced gamers might find some of the boss matches a bit too simple, but for a beginner or average gamer, the game has just the right mix of easy challenges and difficulty. Overall, KINGDOM HEARTS II is a game that fans of Kingdom Hearts need and will want to play. It's also a game that non-fans of the series will probably enjoy playing, too.