Structurally, the story is made of up chapters each of which maps to an experience in a single Disney world. So there is an "Aladdin" chapter and a "Hercules" chapter, yet they all fold neatly into the confines of the main story, and you are even given a surprisingly high level of control (kudos!) in terms of what chapter happens next. This simple method mostly works and results in a largely believable story flow, even though a few of the chapters are invariably taken straight out of the corresponding Disney film with too little modification and just fitted to the plot. Still, even that does little to take away from the experience, because...

The fighting is just so much fun!

   If somehow the stunning opening paragraph didn't get through to you - let me put it plainly: the fighting kicks ass. It's fast, it's glorious, it's gratifying. Period.

   The mechanics of it add up, once again, to a modified Final Fantasy system, tipped more towards the action side of things. On one side there is a magic system and a summon system, which are straight out of FF, adapted (with some degree of success) to a real-time combat scenario. The good part of this, of course, is that "you've got some power in your corner now" in the form of the all-powerful Genie, among others (after you complete a certain portion of the game, of course). The not so good part is that navigating through menus in a highly fast-paced battle can be tricky, and more than once my decision to reach into my magic bag cost me my life - which, if you are fighting a boss, means you are dropping back a step and watching that (no doubt beautiful) cut scene all over again (and no, you can't skip). Thankfully, your loyal computer controlled companions (a.k.a. Donald and Goofy) do quite well on the magic front, especially if you keep them stocked with appropriate items (they will even heal you right when you need it most), and it's entirely possible to leave that part completely up to them. Which I wholeheartedly recommend - it will be less frustrating and more effective for you, both in the short and in the long run.

   The second side of it, is of course, the weapon system. Your main weapon at most times will be some sort of a key (which is a bit of an odd choice, surely, but it fits into the story), augmented with a slew of modifier items and enabled with various move combos. You can pick and choose the combos you have enabled based on a number of Ability Points you have available; those, in turn, increase as you level up and equip certain specialized items. This system easily adapts to your particular style of ass-kicking and overall left quite a pleasant taste in my mouth and a satisfying buzz in my hands. There are only two things that can weigh in negatively on the combat experience. One is that sometimes the bosses are just too damn hard. This is largely the result of the fact that you are given freedom in selecting which world you will go to next, and sometimes you will invariably pick one that's a little too tough for you at that point. However, overall I felt it was a worthy trade off (it really does feel good to be in control of the story), so no more picking on that one. The second thing is that the camera in Kingdom Hearts can be a very bad girl. It doesn't always follow you quite the way you'd like, and most importantly, manages to totally misrepresent distances rather often - which costs you dearly when it comes to platforming elements, of which there are plenty, both during battles and otherwise. Still, the good grossly outweighs the bad, and in the end, Kingdom Hearts delivers the most fun and engaging combat experience in recent memory (5-7 business days :))

Square finally produces ugly graphics

   Umm, NOT! The game, of course, looks absolutely marvelous. It's all the beauty of the FF series, plugged into the amazing and imaginative art talent that is Disney. It's vibrant, it's outrageous, it's just plain gorgeous - there is little else to declare about it. The fact that each Disney world brings a very distinctive setting with it, results in locations that truly feel like a different part of the game, which continually re-enforces your sense of visual satisfaction (not that it's needed). Square alone had more people working on this game than on any individual Final Fantasy title, and it shows - this is Playstation 2's prime grade eye candy.

Play this, people.

   Kingdom Hearts is really a terrific game, if there ever was one. Being what is, it is obviously a bit slanted towards kids, but the gameplay is so solid and fun that anyone letting that be the excuse for leaving this awesome piece of gaming on the shelf would be doing themselves a poor favor. This is one great action-RPG, the kind that instantly sparks an excited conversation with complete strangers at your local game store and is definitely worth a week or two of your lunch money. Enjoy it thoroughly, and don't forget to sleep. Amen.

       ... Vaga