Actually I imagine it would have been worse than those. Link to All was playing throughout that scene and whenever that plays we're generally expecting something substantial and epic to happen. Have no audience to that and it's just like
Oh, it would've been worse also because of the bigger technical possibilities and implied "grander" scale, but yet again that didn't stop them from having Daybreak Town itself empty in all other scenes, not once does one see regular Keykids just walking through town with their Chirithies in the background, arriving from or departing for missions, interacting with each other in the background etc.
Whenever there is a scene with a Foreteller inside of town that isn't a battle during the movie, the town is empty (when looking at the scale of damage caused by the brawl between Aced and Invi/Ava/Gula I'm also surprised that there is apparently no collateral damage in form of at least injured normal Keykids around).
It's also somewhat of a missed opportunity in form of showing how each Foreteller handles and interacts with their own union. There's a scene during the alliance negiations where Gula points out that he doesn't want the kids of his union involved in the affairs between the Foretellers, but the movie could have done much more with the prospect.
Furthermore even, if one thinks this through it is actually somewhat stupid that Ava gathers the Dandelions at the Fountain Square right in the middle of town and makes her grand speech.
The Dandelions are supposed to be a secret organisation entirely separate from the unions who should stay out of things, yet Ava gathers them in a place which is arguably the "hub" of town and loudly speaks about things that are supposed to be classified.
Are we supposed to believe that there are really no non-Dandelion Keykids (or their Chirities) of different unions around town/in the buildings who could overhear/watch this whole event?
Say all you like about KH2's flat levels, but they ameliorated one of the bigger flaws in KH1's level design. All those pits that would take you to lower levels of the world.
Playing chicken with Heartless flying over pits and having to make your way back there again if you fell blew HARD (thanks Hollow Bastion).
Good for world depth, not so much for combat.
Agreed, on this I think it comes down exactly to what KingOfHearts pointed out earlier in this thread.
In the end it boils down what everyone of us individually values more, the exploration/depth aspect of a world and attached to that also the "platforming" or the combat aspect on how good it works as a battle arena.
There certainly exists a middle ground that takes both elements into account without diminishing the other, but I do not think that any of the KH games so far has hit exactly this fine balance, as I do agree that several of the KH 1 worlds were indeed flawed when looking primarily on the combat aspect.
There is like 6 or 7 models easily that are completely copied and pasted over certain scenes! Also I could have sworn keyblade wielders randomly switched positions throughout the speech, like red tunic samurai guy would appear in the front then move to the back and then there'd be two of him in the next scene for no reason. I've already ranted about this enough, I just find this observation funny
There is an answer though: They're practiticing instant teleporting! ;P
It's certainly funny but at least they tried something more this time, so that's something I can at least appreciate.