Does playing every game in the Kingdom Hearts series qualify you as a true fan? Commenter zombie711 thinks it might be a little more involved than that in today's Speak Up on Kotaku.
I love the Kingdom Hearts series. It remains today to be my favorite series of all time. What I don't like is when so called "fans" complain about the smaller games in the series (or mainly the Nintendo ones). "Poppycock!" I say! This series is built upon small things. So I have compiled a list of things for someone new to the series or someone who wants to fully enjoy the series should use.
First off, you need to buy the Kingdom Hearts games (obviously) but you will also have to get the Final Fantasy games if you want the full experience ( and one non Final Fantasy game as well as all dlc with story content)
Games to buy
Final Fantasy I
Final Fantasy II
Final Fantasy III
Final Fantasy IV
Final Fantasy V
Final Fantasy VI
Final Fantasy VII
Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy IX
Final Fantasy X
Final Fantasy XI
Final Fantasy XII
Final Fantasy X-2
Final Fantasy XII- Revenant Wings
Final Fantasy IV- The After Years
Final Fantasy Before Crisis-VII
Final Fantasy Dirge of Cerberus- VII
Final Fantasy Crisis Core- VII
The three Final Fantasy Tactics games
The World Ends With You
Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts 2
Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (on GBA, which includes Riku's story during the game)
Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded
Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep
Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days
Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance
Also to play games you will also need consoles as well as handhelds. This series is gonna make your wallet burn.
The consoles (and handhelds) that will be needed are:
NES
SNES
GBA
PS1
PSP
DS
3DS
PS2
Wii
PC
Lastly You're gonna need to watch some movies. These are cheaper than anything else on this list which is good because this is the biggest part. Now don't worry, all these movies are Disney so for the most part there classics. Granted how you watch them can range from DVD, to VHS, to Blu-ray Disk, to streaming via Netflix. It also would not hurt to watch the cartoons some of these movies were adapted into. One last note would be to watch Steamboat Willy. It's Mickey's most famous cartoon, and should be easy to find (if you find yourself in Disneyland or Disney World, they tend to play it with other classic cartoons at lunch areas).
Movies to watch:
Lion King
Lion King 2
Lion King 1 ½
Little Mermaid
Little Mermaid 2
Tarzan
Tarzan 2
Lilo and Stitch
Lilo and Stitch: Stitch has a Glitch
Leroy and Stitch
Chicken little
Tron
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Alice in Wonderland (1951)
Alice in Wonderland (2010) (this film acts as a sequel to the '51 film despite the titles being the same)
Fantasia
Fantasia 2000
Hercules
Hercules: Zero to Hero
Aladdin
Aladdin 2
Snow White
Sleeping Beauty
Cinderella (1-4)
Mulan
Mulan 2
Winnie the Pooh (all 42 of them)
Beauty and the Beast (1-3)
Peter Pan
Peter Pan: Return to Neverland
101 Dalmatians
101 Dalmatians II: Patch's London Adventure
Hunchback of Notre Dame
Hunchback of Notre Dame 2
Now there just about everything you need to be immersed into Kingdom Hearts.
So next when you or anyone else complains about how these smaller games are pointless or bad, let them know that if they can't handle a few extra games, they shouldn't be playing Kingdom Hearts.
Video games people. Enjoy them for what they are. And what they are is amazing.
About Speak Up on Kotaku: Our readers have a lot to say, and sometimes what they have to say has nothing to do with the stories we run. That's why we have a forum on Kotaku called Speak Up. That's the place to post anecdotes, photos, game tips and hints, and anything you want to share with Kotaku at large. Every weekday we'll pull one of the best Speak Up posts we can find and highlight it here.