The Evolution of Magic in Kingdom Hearts

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Thumbnail by Kinode, God of Little Images
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Outro music by Nora Q. Rosa!
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Music used (in order):
"A Walk in Andante" from Kingdom Hearts (2002)
"To Our Surprise" from Kingdom Hearts
"Dive into the Heart -Destati-" from Kingdom Hearts
"Precious Stars in the Sky" from Kingdom Hearts
"Merlin's Magical House" from Kingdom Hearts
"Traverse Town" from Kingdom Hearts
"Hand in Hand" from Kingdom Hearts
"Shipmeisters' Humoresque" from Kingdom Hearts
"Welcome to Wonderland" from Kingdom Hearts
"A Very Small Wish" from Kingdom Hearts
"Hollow Bastion" from Kingdom Hearts
"Destiny Islands" from Kingdom Hearts
"Scherzo di Notte" from Kingdom Hearts
"Naminé" from Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories (2007)
"Piccolo Resto" from Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
"Just Wondering" from Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
"Castle Oblivion" from Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
"Reviving Hollow Bastion" from Kingdom Hearts II (2005)
"Scent of Silence" from Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories
"Magical Mystery" from Kingdom Hearts II
"Cavern of Remembrance" from Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix (2007)
"Lazy Afternoons" from Kingdom Hearts II
"Monochrome Dreams" from Kingdom Hearts II
"Cloudchasers" from Kingdom Hearts II
"The Afternoon Streets" from Kingdom Hearts II
"Sacred Moon" from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (2009)
"Secret of Neverland" from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
"At Dusk, I Will Think of You..." from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
"Crossing to Neverland" from Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
"The Promised Beginning" from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep (2010)
"The Secret Whispers" from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
"Dice and Shine" from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
"Pretty Pretty Abilities" from Kingdom Hearts Re:coded (2011)
"Traverse in Trance" from Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance (2012)
"One for All" from Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
"Night in the Dark Dream" from Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix (2011)
"The World Within" from Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep A fragmentary passage (2017)
"Mount Olympus" from Kingdom Hearts III (2019)
"Heroes' Gathering" from Kingdom Hearts III
"Sky of Wonder" from Kingdom Hearts III
"Star Explorer" from Kingdom Hearts III
"Radiant Garden" from Kingdom Hearts III
"Wonder of Electron" from Kingdom Hearts Re:coded

[@RegularPat]

Wanted to note that I definitely meant to have more about the Drive Gauge and its hit-based restoration properties when I discussed MP Charge/KH2. The script went through a lot of (coincidentally) different forms, and the lines I had that covered this got lost in the shuffle when making edits. I also should have used KH3 footage in some spots where I used KH2 footage, that was an oversight on my part.

[@captianblitz]

Ah, ya that checks out.

[@Meepalasheep]

I just got to the KH2 portion, and I kept thinking you missed a big part of what made that system tick. Yeah, you gain more Drive in MP charge like you said in this comment. But also in your clips you're running around waiting with a full Drive bar that you could have used to transform and restore both your health and MP. MP Charge tends to make me more aggro so I can fill up drive and bust out a form for quick mp and health regain, on top of using a form which is just fun.

[@Arcana_zero_studios]

I do like gravity, but more specifically, gravity break. I just hate that it deals 0 damage to bosses since it had a 33.3% chance to just get me punished. Especially against Riku, since I'm always taking the shield and leaving the sword, which means I only get it around hollow bastion.

[@kyledevino2721]

For aero spell context, don't consider it as just a wind spell. It's a wind armour spell. So you get it from beating a animated suit of armour, it upgrades in a world where you learn to fly/ glide on the wind, then the doggos upgrade it for protecting their pups

[@EntertainMeTV]

You spent a long time on very straightforward features in KH1 in meticulous detail, then ignored the magic combos in KH2.

[@madratthemighty]

I think it’s important to acknowledge the brilliance of KH2 introducing magic combos, and their ability to be integrated into physical combos at any step. It feels so good, especially in drive forms.

[@kamperemu]

for this very reason I don't think regular pat is the right person to review magic in kingdom hearts 2. He simply hasn't spent enough time with the combat system of the game except for wacking enemies with the keyblade. Not talking about the magic combos is downright criminal. KH2FM fire is the best version of fire if you know how the magic combo system works. My favorite way of nobodies 1 in transport to remembarance is to call out chicken little and use vicinity break -> firaga -> explosion -> firaga -> explosion. It even works really well at critical level 1. Not to mention the magnet + explosion (or thundaga) combo with stitch active can literally get you through every mob fight in the game.

[@apathy2454]

KH2 really was a game changer for the series but ppl hate to acknowledge good points about kh2 because it’s “OvErAtEd”.

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@apathy2454 KH2 will always be above KH3 for myself and that's okay.

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@apathy2454 KH2 will always be above KH3 for myself.. and I think that's okay 😅

[@aguywithgames3135]

@@apathy2454I beg to differ, it’s near impossible to navigate this fandom without inevitably running into someone giving out every (valid) reason KH2 is the pinnacle of the entire franchise.

[@skibot9974]

13:30 in KH1 Gravity is refered to as “Power of the Stars”. In the Hercules film Phil’s goal in life was to train a hero great enough that the gods would make them a consolation. With Phil specifically stating he wanted people to look up at the stars and say “Hey that’s Phil’s boy!” Under that lens associating Phil with Stars makes sense

[@SourWine789]

Yeah I always got that reference too, but I guess people who didn't see the film wouldn't understand to be fair

[@skibot9974]

@@SourWine789 part mentioned he watched the entire animated canon during lockdown

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@skibot9974 damn, that important detail must have flew over pat's head.

[@andrewponder3855]

I like the idea that Balloon spells are dream-element which would explain why they're never used outside sleeping worlds.

[@TheGamedawg]

A wrinkle I feel you might be missing with KH2 is MP Charge's relation to the Drive gauge. It increases every time you deal a hit or take damage (like KH1's MP bar), but it actually increments significantly quicker each time if you're in MP Charge. I think the idea is that when in MP Charge, the risk-reward of still wanting to attack is bumping up your Drive gauge just enough to go into a Form, which itself fully replenishes your MP bar. I dunno, it's just a bit of a thought. Anyway, great video as usual! I always love hearing people talk about the magic of this series!

[@imjustalittleqwerty]

Which would make sense, but there’s just one enormous problem. KH2 punishes excessive use of Drive Forms with Anti Form.

[@samforrt2898]

@@imjustalittleqwerty You think Anti-Form is a punishment? I see it as another risk/reward sort of deal. I think it's better Valor Form honestly.

[@imjustalittleqwerty]

@@samforrt2898 It’s designed to be a punishment. No party members, no magic (including healing), not being able to revert, and collecting Drive Orbs literally depletes the Drive Meter instead of filling it so you can get rid of it faster. It guarantees your death if used in any serious fight, especially on Critical Mode. It’s too limiting and too weak. Its only advantage is that it can parry moves really easily, but most people are doing that by accident.

[@tasoganedude]

@@imjustalittleqwertyFor every Anti Form you trigger, you're closer to getting Final Form. And the Drive Gauge is also used for Summons.

[@imjustalittleqwerty]

@@tasoganedude 1. That is only when you’re holding a very specific Keyblade that you get in the literal final world. 2. I’m not sure what your point is here for the summons.

[@fruitlion8]

Something I always found interesting is how magic works in KH2 Pride Lands. - Donald casts a smaller vesion of Cure, 3 times in a row, targetting a different target each time if needed. - Simba retains 1MP after casting Cure, so he can immediately use it again. - Sora can cast all spells faster and on the move, as though in Wisdom form.

[@nuclearsynapse5319]

Simba's MP retention is something all party member cures have iirc. At least Donald does the same thing. It costs 99mp so they won't immediately gas out from full. From what I've seen the rest of Donald's Pride Lands repertoire is also modified in a similar way, with a tendency towards weaker multicasts

[@Mozethe]

I can’t remember which party member it is in kh2 but they have a cure spell that only costs 10 mp

[@thedoomnegotiator9693]

And Goofy Spin 🤩

[@MusicalLuxEnby]

Actually, Donald casts three smaller versions of any spell, like three consecutive Blizzards and three rings of Fire one after another. He also targets the party member with the least HP for all three Cures, which is nice!

[@hanzybb842]

I’m gonna be a 358/2 Randy and say that the progression of the magic in that game was sick! Distinct versions of spells that could be used in multiple ways and the upgrade felt like sidegrades which allowed for more discovery and planning/ strategy

[@jmell458]

I agree. Days had so many cool ideas, like multiple playable characters and 13 elemental status effects, that I wish were carried forward.

[@jmell458]

@@tylercafe1260 Illusion is just the Psychic type from Pokemon without telekinesis. Moon is tricky because it is probably grounded in spiritual and cultural understandings of the moon rather than the space rock that it is. In Japanese, for example, the kanji for Silence contains the kanji for moon, which is why Moon's status effect was silence. Personally, I think Moon is a weak element in KH because of the absence of a clearly defined and conceptualised Sun counterpart. Perhaps I would have reassigned Saïx to a Dark, Spirit, or Beast element.

[@Dat1G1]

​@@jmell458 I love how in KH3 he yells "THE MOON SHINES DOWN" in broad daylight

[@everthon2457]

Absolutelly correct

[@everthon2457]

Days has my 2nd favorite magic system behind 2

[@TalonSky]

I love Sora's growth as a mage in 3. If you view the Attractions as spells Sora is uniquely capable of casting due to his personality and focus on having fun, they make SO much more sense.

[@loganrenfrow2544]

In all likelihood it's probably closer to the trinity abilities utilizing all 3 but Sora is probably like, the focus.

[@ZekromAndYugiAndDrago123]

​@@loganrenfrow2544I'd believe that if Sora couldn't use them when he's alone/not with Donald and Goofy

[@loganrenfrow2544]

@@ZekromAndYugiAndDrago123 Ah, good point. It's been awhile since I've played with them on so I didn't realize.

[@EntertainMeTV]

Sadly not even headcanon can save attraction commands. They just completely disrupt the flow of combat, in my opinion

[@ZekromAndYugiAndDrago123]

@@EntertainMeTV disagree but to each their own

[@Frootoon]

4:17 I fear not the boy that practices 10,000 spells once, but the duck that practices 1-3 spells 10,000 times

[@Watch-Yisus]

One detail about KH3 is the existence of MP block (or MP Renewal? Forgot the exact name). A badass ability that makes you restore MP when you block. In endgame boss fights in particular, it basically grants you infinite MP without using alternate resources like Ethers, Elixirs or Drive Forms as long as you play well, blocking and not using Cure. It's very Devil May Cry-esque combat design and I love it. Too bad almost no one realizes this ability exists.

[@raheemaslam7363]

There’s a lot of shit that KH3 I didn’t know about until now

[@peytongonavy]

Even after beating it, I don't think I've explored KH3 nearly as much as 1 or 2, when I would wander for the fun of it even after collecting everything. For 3, I was ready to move on pretty fast. Probably missed out on a lot.

[@jessebridgeman767]

ROYAL GUARD

[@gusgarrison9211]

MP Block + MP Safeguard + Extra Cast is a goated combo

[@GoldPrince2468]

I know it exists; I just can’t block. The only KH game that makes blocking a nonexistent skill issue is 358/2 Days and maybe Re:Coded. My memory of ever blocking in Re:Coded is hazy. I hit the button! I’m pushing [[]]!! It’s so much of a skill issue that I just focus on dodging like a fancy boy and boxing like Mike Tyson… and spamming Thundaga.

[@khfanboy666]

I think you could argue that Sora might be a stronger battle mage than Donald is by this point, but I always assumed that Donald knows a bunch of non-combat magic as well so the breadth of Donald's magical skill is probably still greater than Sora's. Like, for example, the spell Donald uses to turn them into fish in Atlantica.

[@slimegirlgaming2142]

hard disagree. Sora could never wish to aspire to cast zetaflare

[@vadandrumist1670]

Considering what Sora is capable of with shotlocks, summons, and finish commands, I'd say it's a fair bet that Sora is stronger. Donald's most powerful spell straight up K.O.'s him, and while Sora might not have a spell that matches it he is stronger more consistently with less cost. And of course there's always his ability to delete even the strongest bosses via Area-Firaga spam.

[@TheWonkster]

​@@slimegirlgaming2142nobody can. Its insane that they gave him something like that instead of letting him summon a new version of Bahamut, something that would still be extremely impressive, and have him cast it. Donald going from throwing out -aga level spells to a version of a high level spell many times more powerful than a series of space dragons who specialize and probably created that spell in the first place is so absurd it boarders on just being stupid.

[@Bowsersoxdude]

I actually think having Opposite Armor drop Aero in KH1 is thematically on point. Aero is a defensive spell that visually uses spinning air. Opposite Armor is a suit of armor, associated with defense, that uses a tornado spin style of attack with its floating limbs. Not a perfect fit, per se, but still a fun connection to me. Edit: Goofy also gives you your first defensive ability after Guard Armor, so getting your first defensive spell from the variant of that same boss is also pretty cool.

[@Jonathan-us1qu]

i love the magic progression in kh1 it just feels so nice especially with thunder

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

Agreed! We go from a few thin sparks of lightning, to a giant maelstrom of thunder.

[@kevingunderson1334]

Always liked the diversity of KH1 magic. Love me some KH3 but the magic just feels like 6 different versions of “hit something over there”

[@ptrexy9761]

That's why I love water. Yes, it is still a projectile, but it creates a defensive barrier for a frame or two

[@Jonathan-us1qu]

​@@ptrexy9761I loved water because id able to touch one enemy with the barrier it makes and then hit another with the projectile 😂

[@justanotherartist7463]

As much as I like kh 3 truth lol

[@michaelkindt3288]

Three projectiles and two AoEs, but still.

[@LucasSantana-ws8po]

Fire and Blizzard - projectiles, like KH1 Water - defensive and AOE Aero - mobility and AOE Thunder - AOE like in KH2, but costs less I don't know, there is diversity, at least as much as in KH2

[@velvetbutterfly]

I feel like when a video is over an hour long, most people hit play and just listen. But I want to take a second to appreciate how even for this length a ton of the clips you used were related to what you were saying

[@treesnip5667]

The biggest thing I want out of magic in future entries is for the spells to be more distinct from each other. Like how KH2 fire circled around Sora, or KH1 aero was a buff spell, or how cool gravity was. Some of the old spells would be obsolete with the current combat system (what'd be the point of bringing back reflect when Sora now has a counter built into his block) I think making each spell more unique could really add to player expression.

[@toowiggly]

Sora has a counter built into his block in kh2 with Counterguard

[@treesnip5667]

@@toowiggly I forgot about counterguard but I still stand by what I said considering blocking in KH3 is much better than in KH2, still making reflect less useful.

[@Seelmileswolf]

@@treesnip5667 Counterpoint: reflect's damage is flippin' busted, the fact you can't reflect in mp charge almost feels like a necessary nerf

[@SourWine789]

Yeah most of the spells in Kh3 feels too similar, as they all are auto target spells which is fine but it's weird when it's every spell that does it

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@SourWine789 so true. I was hoping for more unique spells in 3.

[@DuskoftheTwilight]

I have to say that I love the cutaways to various KH dialogue to punctuate certain points or just make jokes.

[@Khlaylav]

Pooh's swing is based on timing, there ya go. As for the Princess giving Firaga-yeah, their magic is defensive but light is a natural byproduct of flame, so the Princesses of Heart giving an upgrade for something that gives off light? A stretch but I'm willing to work with it.

[@spindash64]

I think the theme of Aero in KH1 is “wandering” rather than air or wind itself: opposite armor I don’t have much for, but the treasure chest is on Hook’s ship that wanders worlds, and the final upgrade is only obtained by reuniting a family that was “scattered to the wind” as it were

[@RedMageCole]

Actually a really good point now that you mention it- with Opposite Armor, it could be reflecting back to the beginning of Sora's journey (beginning his own 'wandering') with a rematch against his first boss fight alongside Donald and Goofy.

[@elvickRULES]

I mean the Armors pieces wander around separate from each other. 🤔

[@RazzBerryJelly]

This feels like an under-appreciated aspect of your videos, but your clever ad placements never fail to give me a giggle and/or guffaw

[@samedwards3186]

You have no idea just how hard the Raymour & Flanigan joke hit me specifically, I literally know someone who IS banned from the store

[@thelemon5463]

We all have that one friend

[@tenworms]

I feel like I say this with each new video essay style vid Pat uploads, but this might be the best video on the channel. What a worthy successor to Evolution of Motion, just a fucking KILLER script on all fronts.

[@joeytabora1052]

19:08 Demi is pronounced like in Demi Lovato, not like in Demise. It rhymes with semi and hemi, and has the same meaning (half or part, depending on context). It's what the demi in demigod means. It's also sometimes used in music, as a suffix when talking about the lengths of notes, though there's two systems for giving names to those, and that's not the one that's used in the U.S. and Canada for the most part. 46:28 in the few FF games where you get light-elemental magic of different tiers (since in a lot of them it's only the end-game Holy spell that does light damage), their names are Dia, Diara, and Diaga. It's interesting that they very briefly switched from -za to -ja for 4th tier spells, and then back to -za. I'm aware there weren't actually 4th tier spells prior to 0.2, but the names were used in the names of some accessories. Since the FF source material always uses -ja, at least in games that use that naming scheme (since there's a couple that just say Fir1, Fir2, etc), I wonder if there was any rhyme or reason behind that choice. Some of the other changes KH made definitely make sense cause they sound better - Aerora instead of Aera, Reflega instead of Reflectga, Protega instead of Protectga. It would definitely be neat to see new magic in KH4. Just from the FF source material, there's a lot to pull from, some of which KH has used and some of which it hasn't. The aforementioned Dia probably wouldn't be necessary, since it seems they've gone with Spark as the name of the Light magic in DDD, though if they dramatically change the look of it to be more of the shining blast of light you were talking about, I could easily see a name change, if basic Light-elemental magic ever comes back. Ruin would be interesting, because it's a non-elemental spell, but visually it can look sort of like a ball of light and dark together, which could have some interesting thematic implications for KH, but I'm also not sure how keen KH is on non-elemental magic, considering it changed Flare from non-elemental to fire. Of course, beyond spells from FF, it's also cool to see completely original KH magic, because it's interesting to see what they do with it. Magnet and Balloon are both pretty cool, so I'd definitely be down to see what else they can come up with. I do think it's kind of interesting to note that the KH series has had a similar trajectory to the FF series when it comes to magic. By which I mean, in both series, there were originally only very few elements, and early on in the series, any spells which don't neatly fit in to those elements are either assigned to one of those elements, or treated as sort of their own thing, and those weird spells usually only had high level versions. For example, the first water-based ability in the FF series was the Leviathan summon, but there wasn't actually a water element yet, so it was sometimes classed as ice-elemental, just like water used to be in KH (though I think more often than that, Leviathan was considered non-elemental, with the other water abilities being considered ice-elemental). Eventually, water became its own element, just like it later would in KH, and some moves were changed in remakes of older FF games to be Water instead of Ice or Non-elemental. As another example, the light- and earth- elements in a lot of early FF games were only really represented by Holy and Quake, only later getting lower-level variants in the form of Dia and Stone (Dia was actually in the very first FF, but light wasn't really an element in that game, Dia just did damage to the undead, which made it behave much like the light element later would, since undead enemies are often weak to light). KH has had Holy and Quake for a while, but didn't get Spark until DDD, and still doesn't have Stone. Water also sort of falls into that category too, at least on the FF side, since it FFVIII it was a high tier spell, or at least sort of mid-tier, but definitely higher than the standard elemental spells, since it was the only regular spell that dealt water-elemental damage. The parallels mostly end there, but it is also kinda neat that Aero used to be a defensive spell and later became offensive, because that's sort of similar to how in FF it was original a White Magic spell, before later bouncing back and forth between being a Blue Magic spell and a Black Magic spell.

[@escahfaidhe755]

On the topic of light, ff14 also introduced Glare as a proper line of light based spells for white mages. With currently having access to glare 1 and 3. But no glare 2. Same is true for holy. We have holy 1 and 3, but no 2. as well as afflatus misery which is holy 4 in all but name.

[@joeytabora1052]

@@escahfaidhe755 that's cool. I keep meaning to play XIV. Also, I've realised that since low level light/holy magic isn't super common across the series, Banish is just about as common as Dia, so I guess there's really no stand out standard for what the name should be

[@escahfaidhe755]

@@joeytabora1052 Banish is more common than Dia at least. XD

[@darkAwesome100]

I think the evolution of combat would also be a topic worth covering. We went from "three hit combo and that's it" in the begining of KH1, to "effortlessly commanding dozens of swords simultaneously" at the end of kh3

[@psycoNaughtplaysMCPC]

Don't forget BBS with "throw everything at the wall and see what sticks"

[@jmell458]

This is video is exactly what I needed in life haha For me, I was always surprised that we've never really gotten spells for each of the 13 elements in Days. Across the whole series, the only elemental types we've never been able to use are Nothing, Earth, Illusion, and Moon. Of these, Earth is definitely the most surprising, especially in KH3 where it felt like a lot of enemies could've been resistant or weak to an Earth element

[@Voltricity435]

there are a couple earth commans aas terra in bbs but other then that yeah we've never used em in a mainline title

[@nashywill]

Wanna know what’s messed up? Party members in KH1 have their Cure frequency affected by “HP Items” rather than “Defensive Magic”, even though the description for Defensive Magic says it includes “restorative” magic. I think it’s a big reason behind the whole “Donald never heals” thing

[@4piecespicy589]

Oh my god

[@Lazypackmule]

WHAT

[@4piecespicy589]

@@Lazypackmule THATS WHAT I SAID I'm genuinely angry

[@zephyrias]

Donald: its the potion or the magic. what u want?

[@pikachump1]

something i thought was neat along the line kh1 laid in regards to sora having magic innately rather than as a result of the keyblade is that he keeps all of his magical abilities when losing the keyblade in hollow bastion, his power isn’t ALL keyblade, he definitely does have some innate magical ability!

[@matthewbreytenbach4483]

His limits as well. I spammed limit finishers during that segment.

[@darkAwesome100]

Maybe the best magic recovery system would be a combination of 1 and 2? A passive recharge, but if you hit enemies your magic recharges faster

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

That sounds great!

[@JustSomePasserby]

I have to mention the best use of the Aero spells in KH1. Their chip damage will pierce the invulnerability of a Wizard Heartless casting Thunder, letting you defeat it before it finishes casting. Unfortunately, you can't upgrade the spell until late game.

[@Rockman9830]

I feel like my perfect form of magic in KH would be a mix of KH1 and KH2/3 style magic. Like you go into mp charge but if you hit and enemie your mp recharges faster.

[@sofaris576]

In KH2 your Drive Gauge fills faster so hitting the enemy is plenty rewarded during MP Charge. Going in to a Drive Form restores HP and MP completly and if you do not want to risk Anti Form Summons are a safe alternativ. Stich is a bit random but he also refills MP.

[@VaultLink]

I actually got quite a bit of use out of Cura in Days. It can give you some safety with Limit Break, casting it right before activation so you get yourself healed out of that danger zone while you're kinda vulnerable spamming out hits

[@LucasSantana-ws8po]

I do the same!

[@Kaxuria]

29:50 Just use your drive forms ! Full Heal & MP refill if I recall. Even in your records, your drive gauge is always full ! And if you don't want to use it, cancel it right away. The risk/reward balancing in KH 2 come from when you are in MP recharge, hitting ennemy make your drive gauge goes up ! Risking anti-form is always more fun than fleeing the enemy !

[@captianblitz]

That is a valid point, but KH3 lacks that solution for MP recovery. Drive is a fix to MP Charge leaving you high and dry, but it’s not an intrinsic part of the MP system.

[@SoraKingdom3]

To be fair to him, I'm not that big on using Drive form against bosses. Especially organization members. Too often I get Anti form which is a nearly guarantied Game Over with how miserable it's defense is. And I know it's a punishement for using Drive form too much but what can I say? I HAVE to use it too often in normal game so I can unlock the movements abilities.

[@sofaris576]

​@@SoraKingdom3If you dont want to risk Anti Form use a summon instead. Stich is stupidly overpowered and honestly better then Drive Forms.

[@SoraKingdom3]

@@sofaris576 Why would I bother with summons? It's just more safe and practical to wait a bit for the MP to charge up. The point is, Drive heal back your HP and MP so they are an interesting choice on a pitch. Summons? Certainly not as much, especially with how the game doesn't teach you how useful they are individually.

[@sofaris576]

@@SoraKingdom3 Why should you bother with summons? Becuse they are really good. Stich is stupidly overpowered and its more safe and practical to summon him instead of waiting fire your MP to come back. And the rest have there uses aswell.

[@Zahri8Alang]

"They went from offensive, to - offensive" I almost cracked out loud in the restaurant

[@TealOpal]

KH1 Magic has always been my favorite handling of it in the series. Cure and Aero were definitely overpowered, but the level of risk vs reward present with dealing damage restoring your MP combined with the game being balanced around its magic economy makes it really satisfying to use well. Edit: HELL YEAH RAYMOUR AND FLANIGAN DAP ME UP FELLOW NORTHEAST

[@andrewan1225]

I actually always put Cure on Triangle bc Sora thrusts his keyblade up when he casts it. Thunder went on X bc you're calling down thunder and x is down

[@hanakoisbestgirl4752]

Same. Also because cure is green and the triangle is green. Fire is on circle because it's a red circle. Reflect is square because square is block

[@Comicbrooke]

Thank you for the serotonin Pat, only 2 minutes in and I can already tell this is gonna be gooood 😎

[@TimReviewsEveryNAWiiGame]

OK this is a stretch but the pooh swing minigame is heavily inspired by a musical scene from The Search For Christopher Robin where Robin tells Pooh he is gonna grow up one day and not be around a ton. Thus he learns to appreciate his time with him in the now. This coming of age element is further emphasized with the KH3 100 Acre Woods plot which might point to this time spell unlock being an intentional bit of ludo-narrative harmony/symbolism regarding growing up.

[@ReTranslated]

Ooh another Regular Pat KH documentary. Should be a good one!

[@davestertm6498]

I really hope Regular Pat checks out ReTranslated! The mod always makes me laugh.

[@rusticgiraffe4262]

Kh1: “Would you like to specialize in strength, magic, or defense?” New Player: “Magic sounds fun” Kh1: “Too bad you don’t know any spells, loser. Here’s a wand and a giant monster.”

[@GoofyCascade]

Thank you again for such an eloquently written yet wildly entertaining KH video!!! Good lookin and good luck with the channel! I’m sure we all hope your community grows as large as you deserve for it to be!! :)

[@fable23]

I think an interesting way to take magic in the future would be to have "Spell Shapes." Basically, you have several spell slots, each of which indicates a different firing method, and you decide which element goes where. Shapes like: - Blast, a fast projectile with slight homing. - Spread, which shoots several projectiles in a cone. - Rain, which calls several projectiles down on and around your target. - Drop, which calls a single large projectile down on your target. - Surge, which surrounds you with short-lived projectiles and moves you forward. - Shield, which gives you a protective barrier that can do minor damage to enemies that get too close. - Mines, which makes small traps on the ground which home in on anything that gets too close. - Orb, which creates a large projectile that moves slowly but has very strong homing. Blast would be a good distance option, with Spread better for groups, or large targets since they could potentially get hit with multiple projectiles. Rain would be good against groups, and Drop would be good for flying enemies. Mines and Orb could trip up aggressive enemies who try to pressure you. Surge would be good in close quarters, etc. It could give some interesting variety, and offer a lot of freedom, especially if you give each element unique benefits. Like instead of having separate status spells, give each element a chance to apply a unique status effect. Fire would apply damage over time, Blizzard would slow enemies down, Thunder could give them an aura that "zaps" them every so often, applying hitstun and interrupting them. And so on

[@keyblademasterct2]

KH2's Blizzard actually also has the added effect of being able to piece through enemies, making it possible to damage multiple opponents.

[@PajamCam]

Bro thank you so much for this video. I'm such a goblin for magic in games.

[@elbow_juice]

Great video! Magic is balanced sort of weird in KH2/3 since you, theoretically have infinite resource if you can just stall. I think an improvement to the system could be making MP recharge hit count/damage dependent rather than time based. To fix the problem you mentioned of just dodging around during the downtime. Can't wait for KH4's evolution!

[@donovanfaust3227]

So kind of back to KH1 in a way though ideally improved and refined better.

[@ImmaniGregory]

BABE WAKE UP NEW PAT JUST DROPPED

[@Sunspotbaybey]

The minute Pat mentioned the Dashcon ball pit it was literally like something reactivated in my brain. HOW DOES HE KNOW.

[@jinx1987]

I always found it fascinating how the magic in KH3 changes when you’re underwater

[@michaeljohnson905]

KH2 Fire became one of my most useful spells in my first Crit Lvl 1 playthrough. Alongside Chicken Little, it's great for early crowd control, especially in the Cave fight in LoD. I think Fire is pretty useful even later on, it just has more niche uses. Using it on Marluxia to stop him from spawning his rose pools is extremely helpful.

[@dylanmcnab2980]

Something I don’t think a lot of people notice with the KH2 mp recharge is that it doubles the rate that you recover drive at, which means that you can purposely go into recharge to get a summon or drive sooner. It’s a trick I used during my lvl 1 run.

[@Potpie_king]

One of the big reasons I prefer KH1's combat is the mp system. The ability to attack and gain mp is requires more skill than hiding in a corner for a few seconds. Also the spells are just more fun. Gravity is my favorite spell in the series and Aero comes in clutch. Stop is the only spell I don't often use.

[@andrewponder3855]

The way gravity flattens the enemy character model is such a delight.

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@andrewponder3855 Yess, I really loved that part of Gravity magic in KH1. I did like how Zero-gravity magic was handled in BBS, too.

[@JPer811]

@@xXLunatikxXlulzero gravity or magnet combined with thundaga was so damn fun

[@xXLunatikxXlul]

@@JPer811 agreed! It was an amazing to combo them :)

[@kppierre35]

BABE WAKE UP NEW VIDEO TO SLEEP TO JUST DROPPED

[@TimberCreates]

Can’t wait! Will comment my thoughts later :)

[@bczpkhny]

A fantastic in-depth analysis sprinkled with thoughtful opinions. Great job Pat!

[@emmain1080p]

I think my favourite Magic is from 358/2. The panel system kinda sucks But the fact that each level of the spell had different functions made it really enjoyable to me

[@lulukomadori9651]

Fire was the balloon in that game

[@MBRSims]

Axel frantically yelling for the train to stop has to be my favourite joke you've ever done. Really caught me off guard and gave me the chuckles

[@smallwaves]

C'mon Patty *clicks channel page and sees new video uploaded one (1) (uno) minute ago* YES. Also, the Northeast sees you.

[@StevenLloyd95]

Another great essay from Pat! Some affirming responses to your arguments: -Donald keeping pace with Sora in KH1 but not 2 or 3 is another way in which KH1 properly programs your party to do reasonable damage to all enemies, whereas the later two numbered titles, and KH2 especially, cheat by artificially reducing the party's damage output. There's party members only doing 1 damage on every hit against bosses and then there's Donald never getting upgrades past level 1 magic, which really reduces him to a source of Cures, limits, and items. Knowing that party members are artificially nerfed (which means the bosses aren't actually programmed to match your party's real or logical potential) is really disillusioning compared to KH1. -I didn't realize just how much variety there is in Days' magic system! Very cool! -The blend of movement-based magic and environmental effects in 0.2 and KH3 is one of the best parts of that era of the series. But I agree, very strange that Riku and Aqua don't have a full kit of spells.

[@TimberCreates]

I think the mp system in kh1 is the best but I like the feeling of using magic in kh3 the best, mostly due to being able to move around while casting (and not being locked into a drive form while doing it). Also the fact alone that you mentioned the dashcon ball pit makes this video A+ since it caught me so off guard 😂

[@asrieldreemurr1988]

When does he mention the ball pit?

[@enigmafarce5413]

Clearly a new regular pat essential. Keep up the great work.

[@dreamfractures]

This is a great video/essay. I didn’t know how much I needed to hear someone talk about the magic mechanics in KH games.

[@elementallobsterx]

I actually used a lot of magic in Atlantica as a kid, and it was a blast.

[@zenmanlovesgames9906]

I personally agree, that I LOVE when the spells and when/how you learn them are contextualized in the story. It's why even with all the other KH games, I sort of keep coming back to KH1, as I feel that a lot of that context is lost in 2 and 3, where you sort of... just learn the spells at random. 3 in particular being a big offender which makes learning new spells feel like a kind of 'huh, neat' moment, instead of anything grandiose.

[@punkitt]

Haha, this is crazy, I remember my very first message to you was a ko-fi donation message that asked about this exact subject. Cool to finally see a vid on it :)

[@thebigchungus4515]

18:19 In KH1, there’s actually a secret shortcut option in the form of just opening the menu and using a spell since if you open it again after that point, the cursor will be on the last spell that you used, thus making it easy to spam against certain encounters.

[@mcwyman7928]

15:47 you actually don't need to find all the evidence to get Blizzard early. You just need the Claw Marks. I've definitely gotten Blizzard early without getting every box.

[@thanksgivingoracle6880]

Thanks Pat, I needed that. A show that I’ve been heavily invested in for years came to an end today, and I needed one of your analyses to put my mind at ease, to let myself know that everything is not, in fact, going to crumble away. Sounds extreme, I know, but just know you’ve allowed me to have peace of mind and normalcy tonight. The video is well made as always, of course.

[@liminal-roses]

which show , if i may ask?

[@thanksgivingoracle6880]

@@liminal-roses it’ll sound cliche, but Attack on Titan. I’ve been with the series for years, and always had another season, another episode to count down to. It’s a surreal feeling to know it’s finally done.

[@liminal-roses]

@@thanksgivingoracle6880 oh ,,, i remember how much it shook the internet when it came out ! i havent been following it , but to hear that its over ,, was the ending good , at least ?

[@thanksgivingoracle6880]

It was pretty incredible. That level of investment in a story is difficult for even me to muster a lot, so it was sad but ultimately rewarding seeing these characters get any sort of happy ending.

[@TheBigGlober68]

I am shocked and appalled that this is not the ranking of every blade of grass in the series.

[@TalysAlankil]

i love your rant about atlantica being a world that wants the player to use magic, because as someone who has favored magic in most playthroughs where i wasn't a 9 year old mashing the X button (well i also chose the dream rod even then i just forgot to use magic lmao), that's definitely how i've felt. i just think there should have been something to nudge the player a little less subtly, like maybe sebastian or flounder going "you can't swing that giant key underwater it won't help much" or something.

[@thebigchungus4515]

54:20 A cool thing about base Thunder is that it actually stacks up on walls so you can tear apart enemy health bars by casting near a wall since it will rack up tons of damage.

[@noname76761]

14:35 i mean, pooh's swing is a timing minigame, where the goal is to stop pooh's momentum at the right moments, so there's maybe a flimsy connection there? and Gepetto is a clockmaker, so if you tied Stop to a conversation with him after Parasite Cage, there would at least be maybe some connection to clocks that could be drawn through the Phantom fight as well. I don't know if that was the intent on either, but maybe they were considering something. Or maybe i'm out my goddamn mind

[@garretthoie6542]

An ad coming up at 48:10 was too perfect

[@lexlayton7966]

i just knew he would upload

[@jetstreamjackie3437]

I’ve been doing a casual run of KH1, and you recommending to focus on magic in Atlantica made me have WAY more fun with the world than i would have :>

[@304Dolo]

Damn , I love you Pat! Thanks for the great videos !

[@Maxwell_Covfefe]

I always enjoy your takes when it comes to a deep dive through the minutia of each KH entry. This was a great GREAT video and it made me appreciate KH 1 + 2 a ton more! Keep up the great work Pat, I hope you had a happy birthday!

[@theazurehawk310]

3:37 a good way to show that Donald is your better in magic while still keeping the surprise of new spells would be having Donald only use the same spells that Sora has, *but at a higher level* (for example, if Sora just acquired Fire, Donald will use Fira or Firaga).

[@FormalGibble]

Damn, another brilliant and well made video all about all of something in kingdom hearts. This was a real great watch. Oh and by the way, I heard a rumor that you can freeze the bubbles in hollow bastion in kh1. Haven't seen any proof yet but I just thought you should know.

[@sablen1319]

Kh1 magic uses outside of battle are Zelda levels of interactivity. I was still discovering new secrets in Traverse Town and Wonderland for years after I beat the game.

[@tab-xp8fb]

Honestly I think kh1 has always made me think of OOT and majora's mask with it's combat

[@plaip6404]

Rewatching this vid and just wanna say I love the moments where the subtitles momentarily stop syncing with the video because Pat had the sudden urge to go off-script and do a little nerd rant, like with when he spazzes out about freezing the bubbles in Hollow Bastion for the millionth time. Gotta appreciate the unending love for the most esoteric features in KH1

[@fink_rat]

Your comment of making ∆ your trigger button for fire reminded me of how KH2 wired my thumbs. To this day, when it comes to short cuts, X is my Cure Button (easy access) and ∆ is my defensive button. Square had to become my trigger button for offensive spells due to my brain quickly going to X and ∆ for main combat, they were the quintessential buttons for KH, and it'd make sense to put my best defensive capabilities on those two buttons. The semi-exception is Water on ∆ in KH3, namely due to its defensive property while prepping the cast

[@roaringthunder8069]

Getting stop from pooh swing makes sense kinda. A swing is a pendulum, something associated with grandfather clocks.

[@ZeranZeran]

Amazing job on this man. I loved this. I thought I was crazy for thinking KH1 magic felt better, and made it feel more special to earn them too. It's nice to know I'm not alone!

[@SweetSoundP0N3]

Another amazing Kingdom Hearts essay from ya Regular Pat. Always love chilling out to these late at night while learning or thinking deeply about all these different topics. Can't wait for more in the future! I love the "DashCon Ballpit" deep cut joke at 55:10 btw!

[@Kalernor]

A weird thing to choose my comment to be on, but I just have to vocalize my appreciation of the ad placements and jokes, they always catch me off guard and have me laughing

[@tab-xp8fb]

heavily agree with all the points made on kh1. The variety of magic and their uses, in combat and exploration, are an element I wish would return. Though the series probably won't be that slow paced again I still hope we get new spells with more uses.

[@zeridoz4464]

The way you learn things in birth by sleep is my favorite form of progression

[@TheMegaMario3]

I know it was just a joke but "the power of sea salt ice cream" has to be the best contextualization in all of KH3

[@cbloc12]

FINALLY SOMEONE ELSE PICKS UP ON ATLANTICA BEING THE MAGIC WORLD

[@bdhuffman42]

I think that the reason Hades is not weak to Blizzard is because he's so hot that it mostly melts before hitting him.

[@darkAwesome100]

You know, there are a lot of spells in all of the games that I didn't start to use until my second playthrough. Maybe it comes down to game knowledge? Like how I never used to use guard until I realized how powerful it was. Like how it deals magic damage even to enemies who are immune to all elements

[@novemberbravo6194]

Can’t wait to check this out when I get home later tonight! Thanks, as ever, for continuing to share your awesome creative work with us! I find your style and level of quality to be so inspiring; it always makes me want to work harder, do better for my own channel. Keep ‘em coming, and all the best, Pat (in the hat)! :D

[@Numba003]

For some reason, that snippet of Axel screaming about stopping the train just cracks me up big time lol. That note aside, thank you for taking the time to really explore this topic. You had a lot of good points to make. God be with you out there everybody. ✝️ :)

[@jetstreamjackie3437]

KH1 Gravity from Halloween Town actually does make a bit of sense-Jack Skellington is the first party member you encounter who uses Gravity, so just like with Tarzan, by fighting alongside a guy who uses Gravity for a whole world Sora learns how to do it himself

[@maagic2031]

I wished that you talked about KH2's (and KH3's) integration of magic into the combo system more. Being able to go from an attack, to a fire spell for crowd control to a finisher is really cool, to me. The spells also have their own unique finishers which is where I feel like the real power of magic comes out. Fire for most of the game can fill a similar role to explosion in the end game, giving you a nice shield to deal with enemies swarming you. Thunder spells instead pop enemies up, letting you go in for air combos. Blizzard... I have never found a use for the Blizzard finisher, but I'm pretty sure that someone smarter than me has. And of course, this interacts with the drive forms in such an insane way. It gives so much flexibility and player expression to the wisdom form because you can either spam spells back to back or use your wisdom shots as filler to get to the explosive magic finisher. Because master form can't do magic finishers you can perform literal infinite combos, tearing through mobs and building up big multipliers for finishers. I think KH2 wanted to nerf 1's magic because once you know what you're doing, it is stupidly strong and invalidates a lot of the physical systems imo, but it also wanted to marry magic to its melee combat and I really like that idea.

[@StevenBryceWroten]

The KH 1 magic interactivity is one of my favorite things in literally all of gaming.

[@skelenize]

the Raymour and Flanigan employee absolutely shitting themselves and pushing the button under the desk after seeing Sora walk in

[@EpicBossJazz]

Back at it again with a classic, you already know!

[@AdjectiveOtter]

I was a big physical attacker for the series, but this more recent play through of KH1 I made it a point to expand my magic use and found myself having an easier time with previous roadblocks. I never knew how much the Aero spells meant to me until I realized I could cast it during the Ansem Riku fight and save myself from SOOOOOO many retries.

[@keiths2902]

Thanks for all your content! I’ve just found you and been binging your vids

[@sophiebee23_]

Pat I love your videos for many reasons but how have you got me laughing at an ad break?! Incredible as ever, I'm always so excited to see a new vid from you