When I play KH, I play on normal. I plan to beat KH2, BBS, and dream drop distance on critical before I play 3. I started DDD first, but I haven't picked it up for a while. Last I remember though, I struggled a bit. I'm a hands on kind of wielder (Keyblade attacks, close-mid range deck commands). It almost seems like suicide trying to use up close and personal attacks on critical.
But yea, I want to feel like a KH master by the time 3 is released. The thing is, I believe popping in KH2 will prove to be much more satisfying and enjoyable. I still feel I can use my preferred play style in that one instead of constantly running away and using ranged attacks. I hope KH3 is similar in nature as well.
Oh, I may watch Gametrailer's Kingdom Hearts Timeline one last time before release too. I just remembered, one HUGE thing I always do is stop visiting this site!! About 3 or 4 months before release, this site is flooded with spoilers and information I'd rather learn about myself playing the game for the first time (For instance, I don't want to know all of the new worlds before I get to play). Spoilers are by far my biggest pet peeve, and if anyone spoils this game after so many years of patiently waiting..ugh...This is also why I hope for a simultaneous release. If it comes out in Japan first (Which will probably happen), you can just type in "Kingdom Hearts" and you will be spoiled without question, even if the video is totally unrelated. I remember being on a video about Naruto when BBS was out in Japan, and here they were talking about BBS spoilers in the comments!!
. I stop looking up all things KH because youtube will attempt to recommend KH videos, and most people put spoilers in their Title or thumbnail. So that's definitely my ritual/tradition, dodging as many spoilers as I can.