Kingdom Hearts 1 feels like a lot of "first games" that came out in the PS2 era.
It's definitely a quality experience, the gameplay has a unique twist on character action mechanics, the graphics are gorgeous, the music is revelatory, and the story, while a bit tropey and basic, has a lot of heart backed by a voice cast who absolutely nails it.
However, this being the first game, there are a lot of gameplay elements that feel included without fully baking them. The exploration elements often cause me more frustration than they do joy, and some of the level design feels antithetical to the movement system at times. This is the only Kingdom Hearts game that has true platforming in it, and most times it shows up it sucks.
Add to that the Gummi missions absolutely grinding the pace to a halt every time they show up, some of the objectives being needlessly vague (the game opening on a material collecting segment that is never mentioned or brought back while also not pointing the player in the direction to find said items is something I will never forgive), and a finale that, while mostly good, feels like it'll never end, I have a hard time seeing this game as anything other than required reading.
That said, this game is legendary for a reason, and given that I find most of the franchise to be as good or better than this game, I would still recommend it to anyone looking for a new franchise to get into, and it definitely serves as a great intro to action rpgs.
It's definitely a quality experience, the gameplay has a unique twist on character action mechanics, the graphics are gorgeous, the music is revelatory, and the story, while a bit tropey and basic, has a lot of heart backed by a voice cast who absolutely nails it.
However, this being the first game, there are a lot of gameplay elements that feel included without fully baking them. The exploration elements often cause me more frustration than they do joy, and some of the level design feels antithetical to the movement system at times. This is the only Kingdom Hearts game that has true platforming in it, and most times it shows up it sucks.
Add to that the Gummi missions absolutely grinding the pace to a halt every time they show up, some of the objectives being needlessly vague (the game opening on a material collecting segment that is never mentioned or brought back while also not pointing the player in the direction to find said items is something I will never forgive), and a finale that, while mostly good, feels like it'll never end, I have a hard time seeing this game as anything other than required reading.
That said, this game is legendary for a reason, and given that I find most of the franchise to be as good or better than this game, I would still recommend it to anyone looking for a new franchise to get into, and it definitely serves as a great intro to action rpgs.