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Why does nobody talk about how 0.2 was better than KH3?



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BassDS

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Why the heck are you even comparing the two? 0.2 and KHIII are essentially the same game, just split apart. They wanted to give us a piece of the gameplay so they gave us it's original intended prologue chapter.

It's LITERALLY the Sonic 3 to KHIII's Sonic & Knuckles, just no lock-on feature
 

mouflon

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The series “maturing” is a feeling I also got when I first played 0.2. By maturing, I mean that it felt like the vision for the game in regards to atmosphere, narrative and level design were becoming more cohesive. Some of the design aspects I was hoping would be carried from 0.2 into III weren’t, such as the verticality in environs as others have mentioned. (But then at the same time, cat ears, what)

I do wonder though how much of that was simply down to the devs having more freedom with the worlds. Just like how the summons in III were elemental spirits since Disney didn’t want the literal Ariel, Simba, etc. to appear in that context, I wonder how much less Disney cared about what was done with the worlds in 0.2 due to their being twisted, almost unrecognizable versions of themselves. But that’s just my mind wandering down Baseless Speculation Street.

I don’t think one game is better than the other. To me, they serve different functions. 0.2 is a technical and narrative segue into III whilst also serving as a character piece (and an additional reason for players who already had DDD to purchase the 2.8 collection) whereas III is a full story that also serves as the bookend for a multi-game saga. 0.2 succeeds far more than III did at achieving its function, but I found both were ultimately very enjoyable.

0.2’s smaller scope must've helped in regards to factors like decent pacing with the story and more focus on the information they wanted to deliver in a relatively short amount of time. 0.2 was a clear, focused snapshot of Aqua’s time in darkness. III was a huge bundle of threads that needed to be all tied together somehow with Sora ‘necessarily’ being at the forefront, but the game spent half its lifespan staring longingly out the window at the KHUX ice cream van driving by instead of sewing certain threads together.
 

2 quid is good

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Why the heck are you even comparing the two? 0.2 and KHIII are essentially the same game, just split apart. They wanted to give us a piece of the gameplay so they gave us it's original intended prologue chapter.

It's LITERALLY the Sonic 3 to KHIII's Sonic & Knuckles, just no lock-on feature
Are we not allowed to compare two games within the same series that are almost 1:1 now?
 

Veevee

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The title may seem clickbaity and contentious but I think it's totally true.
  • 0.2 had puzzles incorporated in the level design
  • Platforming is better
  • it had dynamic cinematography even in mundane situations which KH3 absolutely doesn't have (compare Mysterious Tower scenes from both games)
  • Kairi has personality
  • Characters react in organic ways to the events that happen around them (Aqua showing emotion, it's great)
  • Vastly improves on Terra and Aqua's characters
  • situation commands make more sense to attain than in KH3
  • Plot is engaging throughout
  • Incorporation of Disney Worlds is actually very good and works thematically
  • Kairi and Riku talk like real people
  • There really isn't awkward pauses in dialogue
  • NEKO EARS?!?!?
I could talk at length about any one of these points, but for the sake of brevity I'll leave them as a list, but honestly, I feel like I might be going crazy because playing 0.2 legitimately made me so excited for KH3 - it felt like a worthy successor and that the story was going in the right direction, and the characters felt more 3D in their short outings. Like, did I imagine how good it was?

I mean dodgy graphics and combat aside, everything else about it felt like KH was "maturing" for want of a better word, am I the only one?

Okay, let's see.

Kairi has personality? She and Riku talk like real people? Personally, their interaction might be the worst in the entire series for me because it feels incredibly shallow. Instead of positively acknowledging that Riku has opened up, she immediately compares him to Sora which is just so ... bland. Positive personality = Sora, what a conclusion. No, Kairi, Riku is not like Sora now and that comparison intensifies that feel that I always have about Kairi, that everything she ever says, wants or does must be in some way related to Sora. That dialogue felt so awkward to me, imagine someone thinks your mother is great and now goes to you and tells you you've become so much like your mother ... yeah, it's kindaaa nice but overall you're being more praised for being similar to someone else who is great than being great on your own which would be much nicer. But that's just a personal opinion and I can see why other people would see this differently.

I honestly wasn't too keen on the platforming, it wasn't bad, it wasn't great. Sliding was fun, the reversed room was fun, but the game felt very linear in parts and for me, the purpose of platforming kinda is giving a challenge or exploration options.

Vastly improves on Terra's character? Not sure what you're getting at, care to explain? He's mostly just imagined in her head. His struggle against the darkness was a powerful scene though. I agree on Aqua.

I liked the plot and LOVED the atmosphere and setting, but hate how they tried to include 0.2 in the whole picture. That Mickey KNEW that Aqua was in the RoD and despite having the literal key to enter the RoD at any time (+ we learned in KH3 that you can just switch your equipment for better gear) makes him a total ass for never at least trying to get her - and don't try to sell me this with "he just tried to keep people out of harm's way and couldn't go" - they literally were there in Re:Com, so it wouldn't have been that far and considering he found her by looking for her light, it would've been doable.

I agree on the rest of your points, but I can't really agree or disagree on 0.2 being better. Not because I think KH3 is better, but because I don't think it's fair to compare 0.2, a two hour-game to KH3, a 30 hour game. 0.2 was good because it was so short and thus couldn't feel filler-y or bloated like KH3 and didn't have to juggle with so much narrative ideas as KH3 did.
 

PikaPal

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I did enjoy 0.2 for what it is but personally I think it’s just that - a 3 hour teaser to get you ready for KHIII and it pretty much did it’s job.
 

Luminary

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I think it’s worth arguing that 0.2 was better overall than any one world in KH3 or even Remind because that’s a more equal comparison. But comparing 0.2 to 3 as a whole is like comparing a short story to a novel or an episode of a tv show to the entire season. It’s not that the comparison is unfair or invalid, but that it isn’t exactly surprising that 0.2 did a better job with its character development, story, and level design when it only focused on one character, a story with a fixed beginning and end point, and only four playable areas during its three hour runtime.

As others have said, KH3 had a lot more to accomplish by being responsible for bringing the entire saga’s story to a close, finishing the arcs of 20+ characters, adapting 8 Disney worlds with much more rigid oversight and a few original locales, and more. So it makes sense why the details weren’t as fine tuned as they were in 0.2.

My point in saying all this is that OP isn’t wrong. It just isn’t that surprising to me that 0.2 is better in certain aspects than KH3 due to each project’s nature and I think that may be why people don’t talk about it.

I think the most important thing that this discussion can bring up is that maybe we should be advocating for more shorter, character-focused projects like 0.2 that don’t have to be involved in setting up some dramatic climax at the end of KH6 or whatever. This is why I was always down for some character episodes as KH3 DLC. What others see as a cash grab, I see as an opportunity for more stories like Aqua’s in 0.2 where the devs will be more free to be creative without Disney’s interference. Hell, I’d love a full game’s worth of 4-6 hour stand alone stories like this packaged together for $60.
 

Henryp

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I think it’s worth arguing that 0.2 was better overall than any one world in KH3 or even Remind because that’s a more equal comparison. But comparing 0.2 to 3 as a whole is like comparing a short story to a novel or an episode of a tv show to the entire season. It’s not that the comparison is unfair or invalid, but that it isn’t exactly surprising that 0.2 did a better job with its character development, story, and level design when it only focused on one character, a story with a fixed beginning and end point, and only four playable areas during its three hour runtime.

As others have said, KH3 had a lot more to accomplish by being responsible for bringing the entire saga’s story to a close, finishing the arcs of 20+ characters, adapting 8 Disney worlds with much more rigid oversight and a few original locales, and more. So it makes sense why the details weren’t as fine tuned as they were in 0.2.

My point in saying all this is that OP isn’t wrong. It just isn’t that surprising to me that 0.2 is better in certain aspects than KH3 due to each project’s nature and I think that may be why people don’t talk about it.

I think the most important thing that this discussion can bring up is that maybe we should be advocating for more shorter, character-focused projects like 0.2 that don’t have to be involved in setting up some dramatic climax at the end of KH6 or whatever. This is why I was always down for some character episodes as KH3 DLC. What others see as a cash grab, I see as an opportunity for more stories like Aqua’s in 0.2 where the devs will be more free to be creative without Disney’s interference. Hell, I’d love a full game’s worth of 4-6 hour stand alone stories like this packaged together for $60.

I agree with this. While I don't see a fair comparison with the whole package, it's true that 0.2 is more complete and polished than most of the sections of KH3 when taken into consideration individually. And hell yeah, even if I love ReMind, I would have loved the DLC to be mini-scenarios for the rest of characters. I actually thought they where going in that direction when Nomura initially talked about a single DLC with 3 episodes, although I gotta say that what I wanted to see in those imaginary scenarios was in Remind (minus playable Young Xehanort, bruh).

I do wish the next game pre-KH4 is something like what you say. Small storylines for the characters looking for Sora, each one having their adventure and their own unique set of worlds.
 

drew0512

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I only agree with your first point. Some things you listed I would almost describe as objectively wrong (I think I missed Kairi's personality in her 2 min screentime, especially compared to KH3), but it's your opinion amd I respect it, of course.

0.2 was very atypical, mostly because they needed to bloat it with random stuff to make the price tag look better. I wish some stuff (such as customization) was in KH3, but it's just fluff so I don't care that much. As a whole, KH3 just feels like the natural continuation of 0.2.
 

OneDandelion

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0.2 was very atypical, mostly because they needed to bloat it with random stuff to make the price tag look better. I wish some stuff (such as customization) was in KH3, but it's just fluff so I don't care that much. As a whole, KH3 just feels like the natural continuation of 0.2.
I think you're talking about KH3 here bud.
 

Foxycian

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What i liked

1. Aqua struggles to escape and her character development I really liked that in 0.2 compared to khbbs where she felt bland

2. Gameplay, I liked how it was both bbs and Kh3 style

3. The word building in the realm of darkness was beautiful dark and creepy

what I disliked

1. the story of this whole Game felt weak imo, this game shouldn’t have happened tbh they could have left it as a kingdom hearts 3 dlc or epilogue cause it’s not really a full game, also for me aqua is a great playable main character but that’s when she is in a shared game like the first bbs with other main characters beside her like terra and ventus, but alone? No:/ she isn’t suited for a full sole protagonist game, I was happy when 0.2 was announced but after playing it I think it’s an ok game, the story with aqua felt lackluster and somewhat forced to connect it to kh1, I’m glad she only got a dlc game instead of a full one cause I was really getting bored every time she opened her mouth plus I didn’t want to see other lazy writing trying to connect everything

2. Demon tower heartless, I got tired of seeing this heartless boss again and again it felt underwhelming that it’s the only heartless boss you encounter
 

OneDandelion

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Care to elaborate?
90% of KH3 is bloated filler content. I don't think I even need to elaborate on that, but I'm curious what you believe was filler content in 0.2 because as far as I could tell there was none other than the customization. It was like a 2 hour game of Aqua traveling through the Dark World and they even managed to squeeze a secret boss in there...
 

drew0512

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I don't think I even need to elaborate on that
Then don't, but I'll just keep considering that comment just a snarky, kind of random remark with some anti-KH3 bias sprinkled on it.

I'm curious what you believe was filler content in 0.2
Customization, objectives, the gears segment at the start. Stuff to extend the playtime as much as possible. Every game does this but it's particularly evident (and annoying) when playing something that shouldn't exist on its own. I have similar feelings with Re:Mind (the episode itself, not the whole DLC).
 

OneDandelion

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Customization, objectives, the gears segment at the start. Stuff to extend the playtime as much as possible. Every game does this but it's particularly evident (and annoying) when playing something that shouldn't exist on its own. I have similar feelings with Re:Mind (the episode itself, not the whole DLC).
Amazing, so you're against optional challenges that give you cosmetic rewards. Agree to disagree, but I appreciated the platforming that the gears brought to the beginning and it didn't even take that long.
 

Foxycian

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Amazing, so you're against optional challenges that give you cosmetic rewards. Agree to disagree, but I appreciated the platforming that the gears brought to the beginning and it didn't even take that long.
0.2 was a filler imo, ofc it was connected to kh1 therefore there is some minor canon stuff there but still it didn’t need to happen, bbs secret ep was enough for aqua story in the realm of darkness and meeting Ansem, as for this nonsense that aqua was there the whole time in kh1 is just nonsense i choose to ignore, 0.2 ruined blank point for me personally add this dumb idea that Aqua was there all along ahem Nonsense, Aqua was never there in that scene it was just riku and Mickey, sorry but even if that scene is canon now I still don’t like it or approve of it.

Nomura just pulling stuff out of his ass trying to connect every game with one another, khbbs final mix secret ep was already a Good enought story for Aqua’s journey in the RoD till she meet Ansem, I didn’t need more then that specially with how 0.2 turned out being connected to kh1 and all that nonsense that aqua was always there.
 

Cumguardian69

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  • 0.2 had puzzles incorporated in the level design
  • Platforming is better
  • it had dynamic cinematography even in mundane situations which KH3 absolutely doesn't have (compare Mysterious Tower scenes from both games)
  • Kairi has personality
  • Characters react in organic ways to the events that happen around them (Aqua showing emotion, it's great)
  • Vastly improves on Terra and Aqua's characters
  • situation commands make more sense to attain than in KH3
  • Plot is engaging throughout
  • Incorporation of Disney Worlds is actually very good and works thematically
  • Kairi and Riku talk like real people
  • There really isn't awkward pauses in dialogue
  • NEKO EARS?!?!?
•They were obvious padding and 0.2 was largely hold W and kill mobs just like previous non KH1 entries.

•Definitely agree here

•This isn't FALSE but is such a moot point. 0.2 was a miniature Aqua's Game that was written somewhat competently. So of course it would feature a wider variety of camera angles and moving shots. 3 was a bonafide Disney advertisement and sequelbait interquel, nothing more.

•Kairi has like two lines in 0.2. She says she wants to help somehow (by doing literally nothing in hyperbolic time chamber and getting G L A S S E D) but this is nothing new for the character as she expresses the same "all talk and no action" spunk in 1 And 2, and she expresses fear/disgust at the mention of Axel (which is NORMAL, Axel gave off creepy rapist/stalker vibes in kh2).

•They literally do this in KH3 as well? Aqua visibly tired and over Vanitas' bullshit, she drops down and nearly cries when she touches Ven, she is S H O C K E D when Ven gets blitzed, and so on.

•Nothing new for the characters in 0.2, but it was good to get a character-driven story in 0.2 rather than a Disney-driven story.

•I disagree? Stacking grand magic in 0.2 is SO MUCH EASIER even on crit than in 3, but the formula is still random. Sitcoms only make more sense in 0.😝🙂 because there are fewer commands to obtain.

•I disagree here. Story is supoosed to tell what aqua and mickey were doing in the rod but 2/3 is Aqua being depressed and 1/3 is simply the ending of kh1.

•only because all of the disney soul (lessness, ironically) was removed. Actually, having essentially inverted Disney worlds would be FANTASTIC but this is a chuldrens game u fortunately

•For like two lines of dialogue.

•Because there is barely any dialogue

☆I absolutely missed having character customization. Full royal gear on Aqua was clean AF. Wish Sora couldve gotten the crown back in Remind but nooo
 

SuperSaiyanSora

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If a two hour glorified demo is somehow better than the real thing, Square must've really shit the bucket with this one.
 
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