Hmm.... I kinda feel like something a lot of people are missing is that: It's not really a matter of whether or not the returning characters NEEDED to come back. No character absolutely
has to return. Not even Sora. They could just as easily make someone else the main protagonist if they really wanted to.
To me, what each person ended up bringing (or not bringing) to the story of the KH3 shouldn't be viewed as the end all, be all to they're potential as characters in the series. Ultimately, that's a
choice Nomura has to make. TAV, Roxas, Xion, Namine, AtW, and even the apprentices ALL had potential to add new and interesting dynamics to the plot while simaltaneously tying a bow on their own stories. And I mean that whole heartedly. Just because we barely see Siax and Vexen, or Xion and Terra (for example) do anything in the version that we GOT, doesn't necessarily mean they couldn't have been given a legitimate purpose and actually ADDED something the story. It simply means that Nomura CHOSE not to do anything with them (despite hyping up their return), and thus undermined their whole purpose for coming back in the game.
So, to give you a few examples of how utilizing one of the returning characters to a higher degree could've added to the game, let's take a quick look at Roxas.
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Recall that he had still yet to work things out with Riku and AtW. In fact, he never had a
single positive interaction with either of them up until this point. Well, this had the potential for some really engaging and tense scenes that could call back to key moments in the characters history, and show us each of their perspectives and how they differ from one another (ex. AtW seeking atonement versus Roxas holding a bitter grudge, since they were both essentially trying to
kill eachother the last time they were together). It even had the potential for some heartfelt moments too. We could've seen him grow to accept, understand, and eventually be on good terms with them across his duration in the game (provided he gets brought back a decent amount of time before the ending). I'm particularly curious to see what Riku would've thought, since he hardly ever expressed his own personal feelings on the matter. And also, what would Aqua think? Seeing as how her and AtW formed a
very important bond while in the RoD, wouldn't it be interesting to see her act as a mediator of sorts? Learning/demonstrating an understanding that things aren't always black and white (which was a flaw she's been slowly learning to grow past over the course of several games), and playing a part in convincing Roxas to hear him out/give him a chance (maybe even bringing up what Ansem told her while they were together)?
We could've seen the new beginnings of his relationship with Hayner, Pence, and Olette. Axel made a huge deal about him seeing them again in KH2, so why not show us their reunion/first proper meeting (a very unique scenario) ON SCREEN? The three expressed genuine interest and curiosity about Roxas, and thought he seemed like "a cool guy." Well, what if they got the opportunity to not only see that, but also witness another side to him too? For example, say Roxas and Ansem reunited (or just interacted) at the TT Mansion. If the trio was also present, they could see some of Roxas' angrier, bitter, and colder side that even we as the audience only really saw when he fought Sora in KH2, when his data self guided Data Sora in Re: coded, and when he interacted with Xemnas in the version of KH3 that we got. That, to me, could make for some really interesting drama & diologue that could help further flesh them all out as individuals. Show that Roxas isn't
quite the same as he was when he met their digital counterparts (since ya know, no more fake memories and all that), and help distinguish that they're starting their friendship for
real this time. Heck, just seeing some fun banter between them would've gone a long way (the diologue in this game was so damn stiff after all).
With Sora.... *Sigh* From the very beginning of the game, the reunion between Sora and Roxas (after the latter was saved) was framed as something
very important for both of these characters. They have a really strong connection, but they never truly established a BOND. They never got the chance to speak to each other as equals on
even footing. KH3 was a prime opportunity to give them just that. Let us get more insight into how Sora feels about Roxas' sacrifice (and I mean the physical act itself, not just that he was a nobody) and the sheer amount of
guilt he's been holding onto since then. Let him say it to Roxas (and maybe even Xion, since he should also come to know her own sacrifice) face to face. Even something like "If I was there.. If I had known, I would've
never wanted you to go through with that" could've gone a long way to organically demonstrate Sora's selfless nature as a person. This could even lead to Roxas having an epiphany, and realize that it's exactly THAT attitude that separates him from Sora. Potentially prompting him to start an arc of learning to be less selfish and more forgiving in general (at least a little bit).
Another dynamic we only got bits and pieces of was his relationship with Xemnas. We
rarely get to see the two speak one on one, yet more often than not, when we do, it's very intriguing. Roxas seemed like the only person Xemnas ever spoke to on equal footing out of his fellow members in the Organization, and I'm specifically reffering to their private meeting at the dark margin. Xemnas wasn't speaking to Roxas in his usual "superior-subordinate", tone. Rather, he seemed genuinely curious on what Roxas thought of Sora (not really pressuring him to talk about it if he didn't want to), and asking him if he remembered his "true name." Which is the exact same way Namine spoke to him in KH2, only she actually told him her name. Unfortunately, since it was only the sixth day and Roxas hadn't really formed proper social skills- or even a personality yet, the conversation was short. We then later see Xemnas, in private, address Roxas as "friend" when he sees him in a coma. It's clear that part of him felt attached to Roxas, since he resembled Ventus so closely (which makes sense, since it would've caught both Xehanort and Terra's attention). Why not expand on that more? There could be one or two scene's where the pair have another of those one-on-one conversations, and discuss the value of having a heart and what it could bring &
has brought them since they were completed. Since Roxas has experienced, very deeply, both the positive and negative spectrums of emotions, he could help Xemnas to slowly realize that, as a former Nobody himself, a heart isn't "just pain." It
can be that, sure, that's the price of being human. But ultimately, those happy moments are the things that make life worth living for. It's because Xemnas abandoned that idea so long ago that he ended up feeling nothing but loneliness and truly hollow at the end. Well, what if Roxas, in addition to helping Xemnas come to realize the strength people require to endure the everyday of having hearts/being human (like in the game we got), helped him to feel something
positive in the end? Finally giving Xemnas the sensation he had been missing and unknowingly longing for for
years; solidifying the complicated bond between the two. Bonus points if Xemnas leaves Roxas some kind of momento so that he could, in a way, carry on the legacy of the
original organization (the people he saw as his companions), and become a representation of they they should've been trying to achieve. It'd be Xemnas' final order as his superior. Another connecting factor could be that both he and Xemnas take a part of themselves from two different people, so they, from a physical standpoint, have a lot more in common then most Nobody's. Making it all the more poetic for him to be the one to reach Xemnas' heart. Also, you could add another storyline boss fight with these two clashing at, least once, before the endgame battle (similar to Aqua vs Vanitas), so that's one gameplay incentive. I feel it's reasonably important enough to justify it's inclusion too since this is the only real chance we'll get to see the two settle who's actually stronger (it was also being built up to since 358, and it's not really clear what either was thinking in that regard during KH3).
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So again, this just one example of how a returning character could've really added to the the narrative of KH3, and helped to present, and more importantly
close, old tensions and character plots. In this case, using Roxas more could've really done a lot to flesh out the cast, and open the door to new dynamics and interactions we've never really seen before. It could've also helped to bring the themes presented in Days and KH2 to a proper close. And again, just because this didn't happen, doesn't mean that the potential didn't exist. There
was a lot of value in bringing some of these characters back, and I just don't think saying "they only didn't add/do anything because they had no business coming back in the first place," is really a fair statement. I mean, the game's entire premise was to bring these characters back, no? The simple truth of the matter is that he just didn't utilize them properly, and never really gave them enough
to do to justify their return and roles in the first place. In the case of the tragic characters, this, ironically, also ended up hurting their sacrifices because now it feels like they're just present because people
want them to be, and not that they had an actual
purpose to serve. The struggles to bring them back also felt
very rushed or otherwise contrived, and had a kind of "check that one off the list" vibe. It's no wonder it feels like they shouldn't of have come back, they barely do anything and we're tacked onto the story, rather than actually apart of it. If Nomura doesn't know how to handle a large cast of characters, then DON'T set up the ending to
every one of their stories in the
same game.
In the case of characters like Larxene, Marluxia, and Luxord on the other hand, they're only
really there to help serve as sequel bait. Nothing more tbh. If he wanted to bring them back so much though, then maybe we should've seen their original somebodies come back as regular people at some point. Though even that could've honestly waited till the next game. Which circles back to the fact that this game could've, and
should've focused more on the history of the series (and wrapping up any of those lingering plot threads) rather than include so much sequel bait that isn't even important to the Saga it was supposed to be concluding.
*Yeesh, this post wasn't meant to be so lengthy lol*