KH3: The Finale
Mar. 18th, 2026 11:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
witchpoetdreamerOh god. It's done. We've finally got to the end of the series (at least what exists for now). I'm sad. This is sad. I needed a moment to process everything that happened when we finished the game. What do you mean we only learnt Glide (my beloved) and Curaga at the very end of the goddamn game? What do you mean Sora is gone? What do you mean the Toy Story video game Riku is a real character now?
Terra has been the Guardian this entire time??!? Xigbar was Luxu??? Those, those two I really was not ready for them! I really think Terra is the strongest character of the whole series! Like, sure, Riku is up there, and Sora is as good as you level him up so that doesn't really count, but Terra? Boy spent 10 years possessed, his mind fighting Xehanort's darkness, and he still powered his suit of armor by himself! And the reveal that he has been the Guardian of Ansem this entire time. We've fought against him since KH1!!! And he was there, muzzled, forced to do Ansem's bidding! I was shocked! SHOCKED, I SAY!
Xigbar. He has got to be the best actor of the whole game! He's been there since Chains of Memories I think? Full of himself, as most of the villains of the week were. And he was Luxu all along? Cloaked dude sent on a mission away from everybody by the Master of Masters Luxu. We've only seen him briefly in Union X, and of all people, I did NOT expect him to be fucking Xigbar! Ugh, I want to punch him in the face!
I have not been able to play the last few chapters of the game due to my thumb tendinitis making a come back (I definitely know that I've been holding the controller too hard, thanks for the painful reminder), but watching my wife play for us gave me the same amount of enjoyment. We found all the treasures in the game, all the lucky emblems, and completed all the photo missions for the moogle. And we killed most of the creatures in space with our very ugly but very powerful gummi ship (except one, almost impossible to kill that fucker). It was fun! I'll definitely play everything on my own at some point, but not anytime soon. Heal well, overused tendons.
As for the Disney world we went through: I did NOT care at all for an in game rendition of Frozen's Let It Go. I know it was popular, please, skip the musical part for the game. I did enjoy how big the Frozen world was though. I think this time around my favourite part was Pirates of the Carribean actually! The graphics were definitely much better this time around, and Sora and the gang blended pretty well with the rest (and the map was cool!). Toy Story was interesting but I didn't care at all for the mechas, and Big Hero 6 was frustratingly limited (Hiro kept reminding me all the time that I reached the borders YES I KNOW THERE'S A BARRIER THANK YOU!)
The Final World was the one I liked exploring the most I think. Not because it was particularly interesting and vast, but because of what it meant. I really liked how it mirrored Scala Ad Caelum where we fought Xehanort for the last time, with the world warping sideways and upside down Inception-style, and the lake looking like the water Sora walked on trying to reform his body.
Oh and the reunion between Roxas (ROXAS! THE SCREAM I SCREAMED!), Xion (!!!) and Axel really got me, not gonna lie. It's the first time in those games that I actually shed tears, mainly because the game gave us some time to stay with the characters before moving to something else right away. Somehow, the reunion between Aqua, Ventus and Terra wasn't as intense for me. Maybe because I have spent more time with the previous trio? Oh, no, I think it's because I still had some doubts that they would ever be reunited together in this game. I knew Aqua, Ventus and Terra would finally see each other again, that was a given, but I didn't make the same assumption for Roxas, Xion and Axel. So seeing them together at last just really made me happy. Same thing for Kairi, Sora and Riku. Of course I know they'll find each other one way or another, so it doesn't feel as heartwarming when they do. It really was the uncertainty of them reuniting that made their reunion that much more poignant. Something to remember when writing stories!
FINAL THOUGHTS
What I love the most about the games:
1 - The music! It's so damn good, I want it in the background all the time!
2 - I really love how seriously the whole game took itself. I love me some crack treated seriously, it's my favourite genre, no matter the media. It's silly, but there is so much heart (ha!) and sincerity poured into these games, and I think that's what's leaving such a lasting impact!
3 - Character-wise, my favourites are Axel, Roxas and Terra I think! Might change eventually, but I really do love them most! I didn't care much for Roxas upon first seeing him, but he grew on me a lot! Riku and Sora are also up there, but I love them differently. I love their stories, and their importance in the game, but I love Axel for his confidence, Roxas for his determination, and Terra for his willpower, three qualities that I've been working on building myself. Younger me would've absolutely relate to Riku's "been through hell, came back better" arc (I still do, just from afar). And I already share Sora's hope for the future. As for female characters... well... better luck in another game I think XD Although if I had to choose only one favourite, I think Larxene would be the one. She's a bitch but at least she has character and does something. And she's not another version of Kairi.
What I didn't like:
1 - Not enough good female characters XD Although you probably could get that from the previous point.
I might have different thoughts as I learn more in depth about the games and/or play them again, gain some new insights, new things to love, new things that irks me. But for now, you can bet your ass that I'll be there when KH4 is out (and for anything else in the series from now on).
Highly recommend the whole thing!
Terra has been the Guardian this entire time??!? Xigbar was Luxu??? Those, those two I really was not ready for them! I really think Terra is the strongest character of the whole series! Like, sure, Riku is up there, and Sora is as good as you level him up so that doesn't really count, but Terra? Boy spent 10 years possessed, his mind fighting Xehanort's darkness, and he still powered his suit of armor by himself! And the reveal that he has been the Guardian of Ansem this entire time. We've fought against him since KH1!!! And he was there, muzzled, forced to do Ansem's bidding! I was shocked! SHOCKED, I SAY!
Xigbar. He has got to be the best actor of the whole game! He's been there since Chains of Memories I think? Full of himself, as most of the villains of the week were. And he was Luxu all along? Cloaked dude sent on a mission away from everybody by the Master of Masters Luxu. We've only seen him briefly in Union X, and of all people, I did NOT expect him to be fucking Xigbar! Ugh, I want to punch him in the face!
I have not been able to play the last few chapters of the game due to my thumb tendinitis making a come back (I definitely know that I've been holding the controller too hard, thanks for the painful reminder), but watching my wife play for us gave me the same amount of enjoyment. We found all the treasures in the game, all the lucky emblems, and completed all the photo missions for the moogle. And we killed most of the creatures in space with our very ugly but very powerful gummi ship (except one, almost impossible to kill that fucker). It was fun! I'll definitely play everything on my own at some point, but not anytime soon. Heal well, overused tendons.
As for the Disney world we went through: I did NOT care at all for an in game rendition of Frozen's Let It Go. I know it was popular, please, skip the musical part for the game. I did enjoy how big the Frozen world was though. I think this time around my favourite part was Pirates of the Carribean actually! The graphics were definitely much better this time around, and Sora and the gang blended pretty well with the rest (and the map was cool!). Toy Story was interesting but I didn't care at all for the mechas, and Big Hero 6 was frustratingly limited (Hiro kept reminding me all the time that I reached the borders YES I KNOW THERE'S A BARRIER THANK YOU!)
The Final World was the one I liked exploring the most I think. Not because it was particularly interesting and vast, but because of what it meant. I really liked how it mirrored Scala Ad Caelum where we fought Xehanort for the last time, with the world warping sideways and upside down Inception-style, and the lake looking like the water Sora walked on trying to reform his body.
Oh and the reunion between Roxas (ROXAS! THE SCREAM I SCREAMED!), Xion (!!!) and Axel really got me, not gonna lie. It's the first time in those games that I actually shed tears, mainly because the game gave us some time to stay with the characters before moving to something else right away. Somehow, the reunion between Aqua, Ventus and Terra wasn't as intense for me. Maybe because I have spent more time with the previous trio? Oh, no, I think it's because I still had some doubts that they would ever be reunited together in this game. I knew Aqua, Ventus and Terra would finally see each other again, that was a given, but I didn't make the same assumption for Roxas, Xion and Axel. So seeing them together at last just really made me happy. Same thing for Kairi, Sora and Riku. Of course I know they'll find each other one way or another, so it doesn't feel as heartwarming when they do. It really was the uncertainty of them reuniting that made their reunion that much more poignant. Something to remember when writing stories!
FINAL THOUGHTS
What I love the most about the games:
1 - The music! It's so damn good, I want it in the background all the time!
2 - I really love how seriously the whole game took itself. I love me some crack treated seriously, it's my favourite genre, no matter the media. It's silly, but there is so much heart (ha!) and sincerity poured into these games, and I think that's what's leaving such a lasting impact!
3 - Character-wise, my favourites are Axel, Roxas and Terra I think! Might change eventually, but I really do love them most! I didn't care much for Roxas upon first seeing him, but he grew on me a lot! Riku and Sora are also up there, but I love them differently. I love their stories, and their importance in the game, but I love Axel for his confidence, Roxas for his determination, and Terra for his willpower, three qualities that I've been working on building myself. Younger me would've absolutely relate to Riku's "been through hell, came back better" arc (I still do, just from afar). And I already share Sora's hope for the future. As for female characters... well... better luck in another game I think XD Although if I had to choose only one favourite, I think Larxene would be the one. She's a bitch but at least she has character and does something. And she's not another version of Kairi.
What I didn't like:
1 - Not enough good female characters XD Although you probably could get that from the previous point.
I might have different thoughts as I learn more in depth about the games and/or play them again, gain some new insights, new things to love, new things that irks me. But for now, you can bet your ass that I'll be there when KH4 is out (and for anything else in the series from now on).
Highly recommend the whole thing!
no subject
Date: 2026-03-19 03:47 pm (UTC)And now you can watch that YouTube video about Kingdom Hearts and the hero’s journey! :p
no subject
Date: 2026-03-19 04:53 pm (UTC)