Birth by Sleep Countdown: Worlds

Details

Published on August 29, 2010 @ 10:55 am

Written by Destiny KH

Hiya fellow Kingdom Hearts fans!

I bet you guys are breathless with anticipation as the North American release of Birth by Sleep draws near. I know I'm having trouble sleeping! But we're not here to talk about my obsessive geekiness, are we? Instead, we're gonna take a look at the upcoming worlds in the game, complete with tantalizing pictures to give us a hint of what is to come.

Keyblade Gliding: A New Method of World Travel

Like the previous Kingdom Hearts titles, world travelling is heavily featured in this installment, but with many shiny and new changes. We learn that being a powerful Keyblade Master-in-training has its perks, some of which include the ability to cover yourself in a suit of armor before riding your Keyblade across the cosmos. That's right, the Gummi Ship system is completely absent from this game, instead, all you have to do is to direct your Keyblade-riding character to the desired world on the world map, and voila, you're there.

True to the diverse set-up of the game, each of our main protagonists, Terra. Aqua and Ven, have different styles of Keyblade riding which reflect their individual personalities and capabilities.Terra rides his Keyblade like a motorcycle and attacks enemies by turning his Glider around, hitting the enemies with great strength. Aqua rides her Keyblade like a pair of water skis, thus she can use the upper part of her Glider as a bow and hovering platform as she hits enemies from far away. Ventus rides his Keyblade like a skateboard that has wings with fast and quick reflexes.

However, this new development has led some people into thinking that the Keyblade has become a deus ex machina gimmick, while those who dislike the Gummi Ship system feel immensely relieved. So, yay or nay? Or could care less? Regardless, it will be interesting to ponder how Sora will look like in a suit of armor (assuming this system will be implemented in future installments).

The Worlds

Furthermore, players are able to explore brand new Disney worlds for the first time in a long while, along with major revisions of the old ones due to the story being set ten years into the past, allowing for a completely fresh take on a tried and true formula. Due to the top-notch writing, you will find that most of these Disney worlds have a purpose of being in this installment instead of being mindless filler, may it be plot oriented like the worlds of the Princesses of Heart, for character development purposes or to reinforce a recurring theme. I'm aching to reveal how these worlds will tie into the main plot, but that goes into spoiler territory, and we can't have that! Instead, let's take a brief overview of the worlds the game has to offer:

Disney Worlds

A medieval kingdom haunted by the dark magic of the sorceress Maleficent, who yearns for the seven Princesses of Heart. Princess Aurora lies in a deathly slumber, awaiting true love's first kiss. (Sleeping Beauty)

It's only a few more hours to midnight, and Cinderella needs to attend the royal ball otherwise her dreams would never come true. (Cinderella)

True beauty is redefined as you travel through this land of magic mirrors, jewel mines and poisoned apples, wherein Snow White has become the victim of the Evil Queen's wrathful jealousy. ( Snow White and the Seven Dwarves )

The Dream Festival is in full swing, so let your hair down as you participate in racing competitions, stack ice-creams to music and play fruit volleyball.

The Coliseum is the same as ever, but what's this? Hercules is not a true hero yet? And he is being overshadowed by one Zack Fair? ( Hercules)

In a universe teeming with talking animals, robots and zombie pirates, it's only natural for Terra, Aqua and Ven to run into aliens aboard a large spaceship. But even the aliens themselves are terrified of Experiment 626, a pint-sized pinball of destruction.(Lilo and Stitch)

Step beyond Hook's Ship and venture into the fantasy island of Neverland, where treasure hunting is taken very seriously among allies and villains alike. (Peter Pan )

Original Worlds

The mystical training ground for future Keyblade Masters. Terra, Aqua and Ven leave this safe haven in pursuit of the missing Master Xehanort and Vanitas.

Ten years before its fall into ruin, Radiant Garden was a majestic citadel and capital of the Realm of Light. The secrets it holds will shape the course of the series forever.

Seek counsel with the all-knowing sorcerer Yen Sid in order to unravel mysteries past, present and future.

Join forces with other players or even fight against them via wireless networking in a virtual reality where boss battles can be relived again and again!

Sunset Horizons

This dusty, Keyblade littered battlefield appeared in Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix and seems to have intimate connections with all the main characters involved in Birth by Sleep. This was the place where Sora was challenged to a duel with the Lingering Sentiment (who coincidentally, dons Terra's armor), and was depicted in the Secret Ending as the scene of a doomed battle between Terra, Aqua, Ven, Master Xehanort and Vanitas. Shrouded in mystery, this world is essential in finally understanding the overarching story of the entire series.

Comments From The Developers

For Disney worlds such as Castle of Dreams (Cinderella) and Dwarf Woodlands (Snow White), we based a lot of the map designs on the film. Basically we watched the DVDs over and over and recreated the worlds in 3-D as accurately as possible.

Is the detail as accurate and flawless as the game developers described? Compare Birth by Sleep's rendition of the Dwarves' cottage with the original movie and judge for yourself whether it translates well into the game.

For the details we couldn't quite get from the films, we contacted Disney for help. For example, there were no scenes showing the backside of the giant ship Durgon from Lilo & Stitch, so we had to ask Disney for materials that provided a full view. In Castle of Dreams, there's a section where the player shrinks to the size of a mouse and explores Cinderella's home by traveling through the mouse holes. Even Disney didn't have materials for the "behind-the-wall" environments, so we did a lot of research on Rococo architecture from the 1750's and created the map from scratch.

Love them or hate them, it is clear that the team has put in their entire heart and soul into bringing these fabled Disney locations to life, right down to the very last mouse hole, and we are grateful for the effort.

What The Fans Think:

For those who feel that the platforming element the first Kingdom Hearts was so famous for is sorely lacking in its sequels, never fear! Forum member Sahvergnugen has this to say:

Ok well, I pretty much spoiled myself on this game, except for a few details. But despite that, I'm still so excited for this game! Getting to play the game over with three different scenarios sounds great, because you'll get different fighting styles and weapons, etc. I'm also interested in the new enemies, which will be fun fighting and learning the origins of! The English voices sound really good me, and I'll be able to understand what everyone is saying! Perhaps the biggest reason that I'm looking forward to this game is that the areas are all huge, and exploration will make it's way back into the series, especially with the introduction of the new crown stickers!

The fountains of Radiant Garden is just one of many platforming areas in the game.

A great portion of the fans, particularly x37rnu4 and VagueSimplicity respectively, seem to be giddy over the opportunity to explore the worlds of the remaining Princesses of Heart.

I have to say I'm pretty eager to explore the home-worlds of the Princess of Heart. It's something I've wanted since the end of KH1! Being a girl, I'm always excited for the Princesses; I can't wait to see their worlds and find out how the TAV crew's story plays through them - the trailers I've seen so far have me on edge! I'm especially excited for Enchanted Dominion, since that's Maleficent's home-world.

I was most excited for Birth By Sleep because of the new Disney worlds. The reason I played the first Kingdom Hearts was only so I could experience the landscapes of my favorite Disney movies, and after Days's disappointment in the lack of new Disney worlds, Birth By Sleep got me excited again. The detail I've seen in the landscapes of Snow White, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty look beautifully emulated in this installment and I can‘t wait to embark through them with Terra, Aqua, and Ventus.Of course, though Disney was my first reason for loving Kingdom Hearts, the story is a significant second and has stayed in my heart for eight years now as a sentimental fiber I can't seem to rid myself of. It taught a nine-year old boy an important lesson: that behind every darkness, there is a light waiting to shine out. And for that reason, I can't wait to solve the mysteries that remain in Kingdom Hearts on September 7th!

The iconic staircase where Cinderella loses her glass slipper at the stroke of midnight.

And who would've thought a world like Deep Space would make an appearance amidst all the other medieval-themed worlds? Thankfully, it does not stick out like a sore thumb. Ernesto R. praises the seamless blending of all the Disney movies, new and old.

Well, when I was learned about the new game of Kingdom Hearts I was excited so, when the game went to sale on Japan and some people put all the game in You Tube I was surprised but you know when i get noticed that the worlds of Snow White, Cinderella and the Sleeping Beauty they were on the game I couldn't believe my favorite movies of Walt Disney's they were there I really think "Oh my good, I can't believe" because when I was little I saw that movies somedays and the scenery it's really fantastic and I tell that I always dreamt to be in that worlds and it's crazy that they combined the worlds of old movies with movies from the 90s and the 2000s it´s really cool.

The past comes together with the future in a harmonious fusion.

Fan Media:

Courtesy of Destiny Seeker and Hakumei K. (BlackFireX5656) respectively.

Conclusion:

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep comes out on September 7th in the USA, and on September 10th in Europe. 5 more days (8 for Europe) until players are finally able to return to the vast, rich universe of Kingdom Hearts once more. Let's hope the game will shine as brightly as Radiant Garden during its prime.

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