#44: Kingdom Hearts

When Kingdom Hearts was first announced and previewed, gamers took one of two sides.  They either loved the idea that their childhood movies could infiltrate their teenage games or they hated it.  But, when the game was finally released, the praise was universal.

The setting of Kingdom Hearts is its most talked about feature.  The idea that you could have a conversation with King Triton and Aeris turned the game into something you originally could only read in fanfiction.  Squaresoft was also very accommodating to Disney, realizing that most people were coming to the game for Disney's characters, not Final Fantasy's.

The gameplay of Kingdom Hearts was also loved.  It was an action RPG that featured an impressive level of customization while still targeting all crowds.  The separate magic spells, equipment, collectibles, and stat boosts drew in the hardcore crowd.  The platforming and exploration drew in the casual gamers.  The simple but fun combat made sure that both sides were appeased.

This is the only Kingdom Hearts on this list (for now) and there's one major reason why.  Kingdom Hearts 2 and the numerous handheld spinoffs all had convoluted plots that required you to own all of the franchise's games to barely have a grasp of what was going on.  Kingdom Hearts 1 featured a plot line that was actually followable and that's the final reason that its on this list.