All in all, Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX is the most robust collection available to experience all of the Kingdom Hearts games. While difficult to recommend to those who have played the games before, the collection does offer a chance for long time fans to brush up on the story. Combined with the already released Kingdom Hearts 2.8, we’re just one step closer to finally playing Kingdom Hearts 3. Whenever that may be!
The hype for Kingdom Hearts 3 is real, and what a perfect time to jump into the series if you never have before. Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX is the perfect set for new players of the series, and perhaps even fans of the series who may have fallen out after the slew of spinoff games that have been released. Not only does KH 1.5 + 2.5 give you access to the two main Kingdom Hearts games, it gives you all of the spinoffs that you may not have played. Let’s just list them, for clarification sake:
- Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 in their Final Mix forms (including superbosses and extra content)
- Kingdom Hearts re: Chain of Memories (the PS2 remake of CoM, not the Gameboy Advance game)
- Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
- Two 60+ minute CG movies for 358/2 Days and re:Coded
Just like each of the Kingdom Hearts collections released (1.5 and 2.5) on PS3, the main games have been beautifully remastered and are running at a fluid 60fps. So, from the perspective of a first time player of the Kingdom Hearts series, this collection would be the perfect jumping off point as you would be able to play each of the games in their best possible form. Unfortunately for long-time fans like myself, I found very little difference between the PS4 and PS3 versions of the game. The camera is still wonky, and the combat featured in the first game still feels very dated compared to the later entries. Luckily, I found those small issues ignorable due to the simple nostalgia factor playing throughout. Truly, Kingdom Hearts’ story-telling (as convoluted and confusing as it can get) still holds up and can deliver 10+ years since the original released on PS2.
Do I recommend the set for any longtime fan of the series? If you hadn’t picked up the individual 1.5 and 2.5 collections on PS3 back in the day, now is the perfect time to catch up on the series ahead of Kingdom Hearts 3. Actually, the real benefit I found playing this collection on PS4 as opposed to PS3 was using the Dualshock 4, which is inherently more comfortable to use. But if you’re a first time player of the series wanting to know what all the fuss is about, Kingdom Hearts 1.5 and 2.5 ReMIX is the perfect place to jump in; even if you’re only going to play the two main games.
