My Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep!

[NoobSlayer92]

 

Please remember that anything I say in this review is just my opinion.  WILL CONTAIN SOME SPOILERS!!!  Feel free to leave some constructive criticism or love.  Not anything mean please.  It looks like a pretty long read but I think it's worth it.

STORY:

Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep (BBS for short) is a prequel of the famous Kingdom Hearts.  Please be advised that you DO NOT need to play Kingdom Hears 1, Kingdom Hearts 2, Kingdom Heart 358/2 Days, or Kingdom Hearts Chains of Memories to understand the story of this game.  But your experience will be much better if you have played the 4. BBS takes place 10 years before the original Kingdom Hearts.  In this game you will be given the option to play as any of the  3 new heroes:  Terra, Ventus, Aqua.  Terra is a young man obsessed with power who is trying to fight the darkness in him.  Ventus is a young boy who looks exactly like Roxas.  Ventus's dream, just like his friends, is to become a Keyblade Master.  And then there's Aqua.  Many fans of the series have boners just looking at this chick.  Yes, she's hot.  But that's not the point.  Aqua is kinda like a mother.  She worries about Terra and Ven and spends most of her time either looking for them, or making sure they're not in trouble.  She values their friendship a lot.  

*Note:  I highly recommend playing the stories in the following order: Terra -> Ventus -> Aqua. 

Each character also has their own unique storyline( I will not go into detail with the storyline because I want you guys to experience it for yourself.  It is a very intriguing tale.)  They all travel to the various Disney Worlds either looking for something, or someone.  And also fighting some of the new baddies here and there. Speaking of Disney Worlds, in BBS we have a combination of new and old worlds.  Deep Space and Enchanted Dominion are some of the new.  Olympus Coliseum, Radiant Garden, and Neverland are some of the old.  We also have new enemies in BBS: the Unversed.  These Heartless-like creatures roam every world you visit.  You may notice that some of the Unversed resemble some of the Heartless from the original Kingdom Hearts.  They are everywhere, just like the Heartless.  And they are annoying, just like the Heartless.    

 

Aqua, Terra, and Ven looking like total badasses.

GAMEPLAY:

Gameplay is where BBS really shines.  It is crazy fun.  We have the old X for Attack, and O to jump.  But there are also some new tricks in the gameplay.  Players can buy or find commands that will allow them to use certain moves in battle.  You can level up and combine the commands to obtain new and more powerful moves.  In battle, you can choose your commands with the D-Pad and use them with the triangle button.  There is also a new ability to the series called "The Shoot Lock System."  By pressing L and R at the same time, you will be able to lock on to many enemies simultaneously and obliterate them with a powerful salvo of attacks.  Once you use a shoot lock in battle, you will have to defeat enemies in order to replenish the Focus gauge.  You can also summon your friends through D-Link, which brings some variety to the gameplay.  When you use a D-Link, you will be given a new set of commands and also a new finish move.  By defeating enemies in D-Link, you can obtain certain medals that will make your D-Link stronger.

Each character has their own unique fighting style.  Terra is strength-based.  He relies on brute force and is pretty useless using any offensive magic like Fire or Blizzard.  He is also slower than the other two.  He reminds me of Ike from SSBB.  Slow as hell but will kick your ass in 3 seconds with his overpowered sword(or Keyblade in Terra's case.)  Ventus is speed-based.  He's the most balanced of the 3.  He has average Attack and Magic.  This dude is pretty fast.  He can kick ass just as fast as Terra with his quick combos.  And now we have Aqua(the best of the 3 IMO).  Aqua is magic-based.  She possesses magic that can kill enemies in a flash.  I can't count the number of times her high magic saved my ass.  Her magic is really helpful in battle.  But don't let the high magic fool you.  She can kick butt with her Keyblade as well.  And her Cartwheel is perfect for fleeing battles and dodging enemy attacks.  More helpful than Terra's dash and Ven's roll IMO.  

There are also style changes in BBS, which is what truly brings some innovation to the gameplay IMO.  Using certain moves in battle will cause your character to go into a Style Change( or Command Change.)   This allows your character to use different moves with the X button.  For example, Bladecharge gives you a huge sword and also gives you combos that allow you to kill multiple enemies at once.  There is a wide variety of them.  There are style changes that require you use certain moves WHILE you're already in a style change.    

Another new feature in BBS is the Command Board.  In the CB, you play a monopoly-like game, where you move using a dice and place a command wherever you land.  Once you place a command, you can pay to increase the level of the command.  It is another method besides battling to level up your commands.  

Only problem I had with BBS was the camera and locking onto enemies.  But this is not really a problem.  You'll just find yourself locking onto the wrong enemy sometimes.  It is barely noticeable. 

 

Terra using Bladercharge

 

MULTIPLAYER:

We also have multiplayer in BBS.  To access multiplayer, you have to go to a world(which is accessible from the beginning) called Mirage Arena.  In there, you have the option of playing a variety of challenges either offline or online with your friends.  And it gives a nice 5-10 hours of extra content to each character.  In there, you have the option of playing in races, command board games against the CPU, or in tournaments against some either pretty easy or pretty powerful enemies.  There are 30 ranks in the MA.  Each time you finish either a race, a CB game, a tournament, or collect a certain amount of medals you rank up.  Once you get to level 30, you unlock the last challenge.  Which is a tournament against all the bosses you fought in the previous tournaments.  What's the reward for such a pain in the ass?  The strongest Keyblade in the game:  Ultima Weapon.  

 

Someone playing a CB game with his/her buddies online.

CONCLUSION:

As a huge fan of the series, I must say BBS if by far the best of the series.  Amazing story and fresh new gameplay.  Add in there the amount of extra content SE put and you have yourself the best PSP game out there.  I have 150(plus) hours and still counting(I still haven't beaten the second goddamn secret boss.)  It is just that good.  You will find yourself replaying some of the stories over and over.  Or just replaying them on harder difficulties. If you have a PSP, buy this game.  If you don't, go buy and PSP and get this game.  Every cent you pay will be worth it.  It deserves some love.  

I give Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep a whooping 9.5/10.  

"Yes I'm looking at you!"