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Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX
キングダム ハーツ HD2.5リミックス Kingudamu Hātsu HD 2.5 Rimikkusu
Developer(s)	Square Enix
Publisher(s)	Square Enix
Release date(s)	October 2, 2014 / December 2, 2014 December 5, 2014 December 4, 2014
Genre	Console action role-playing game
Game modes	Single player
Ratings	CERO: A ESRB: E10+ PEGI: 12+
Platform(s)	PlayStation 3

"An Unforgettable Journey."

—Tagline

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX, stylized asKingdom Hearts HD II.5 ReMIX, is a compilation of various games from theKingdom Hearts series that have been fully remastered in HD. It is a follow-up toKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX and includes remastered versions ofKingdom Hearts II Final Mix andKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix. It also featuresKingdom Hearts Re:coded remade as a movie of HD cutscenes. The release ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX marks the first timeKingdom Hearts II Final Mix andKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix have been available outside of Japan.

The ending credits feature scenes fromKingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance and theE3 2013 announcement trailer forKingdom Hearts III, teasingKingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue.

The collection itself was remastered and released withKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX asKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX for the PlayStation 4 in March 2017.

Development[edit]

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX was first hinted at during the ending credits ofKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, as they contain footage fromKingdom Hearts II Final Mix,Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, andKingdom Hearts Re:coded. In October 2013, Tetsuya Nomura said thatKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX will contain more graphical improvements thanKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX.^[1] In December 2013, Nomura also said that due toKingdom Hearts Re:coded being shorter thanKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, new scenes featuring events that took place in Disney worlds and during battles were added. In addition, new scenes connectingKingdom Hearts Re:coded andKingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance have been included. Nomura lastly stated that development ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX was faster than that of its predecessor because the team that developedKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX had established a system for making games in HD.^[2] As of March, 2014, all lines inKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX had been recorded.^[3] In an interview withFamitsu Weekly in April 2014, Shinji Hashimoto stated that the additional cutscenes had also been completed and the game was nearing its final stage of development.^[4]

On June 5, 2014, Square Enix announced the release dates for the Japanese, European, and North American versions ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX. Along with this announcement came a new trailer for the game compilation that was featured at E3 2014. Announcement of an Ultimania dealing with the entireKingdom Hearts series would be sold with the game^[5], and an official soundtrack was to be released, as well^[6]. On June 6, 2014, Square Enix France released a ten-minute video featuring gameplay from bothKingdom Hearts II Final Mix andKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix from the HD compilation. In an interview during E3 2014 on June 10, 2014, Tai Yasue said that the development of the compilation was far easier than the development ofKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, that theKingdom Hearts Re:coded cutscenes extended to three hours (two of which were completely new), and that the Mirage Arena inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix would not have multiplayer capabilities. Following this bit of news, Yasue said the Mirage Arena had been tweaked to be more enjoyable as a single-player arena.^[7] On June 12, 2014, Tai Yasue confirmed in an interview with IGN that there would be new secret cutscenes inKingdom Hearts Re:coded that would relate to the previous games in theKingdom Hearts series, as well as toKingdom Hearts III.^[8] Yasue also mentioned during E3 2014 that over ninety instrumental tracks inKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX had been reorchestrated in Boston. The Video Game Orchestra and its recording division, SoundtRec Boston, confirmed this on June 13, 2014 via Facebook.^[9]

Changes[edit]

General[edit]

• All three games now include support for various video outputs (480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p), as well as audio output supported by Dolby Digital 5.1 sound and DTS Digital Surround 5.1.
• All three games now have PlayStation 3trophy and an unlockable PlayStation 3 theme for each title.
• English voice acting is now available for all cutscenes in Theater Mode in the Japanese release.
• Textures have been updated to remain consistent withKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX.

Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix[edit]

• Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix features improved graphics and a completely re-orchestrated soundtrack by Yōko Shimomura's original score team and performed by the Boston Video Game Orchestra.
• All cutscenes exclusive to the original Japanese version ofKingdom Hearts II Final Mix (mostly the cutscenes that were not later adapted toKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days) now have been recorded in English. However, none of the actors whose characters were not in the originalKingdom Hearts II (along with Meaghan Jette Martin who replaced Brittany Snow for the onlyFinal Mix cutscene Naminé appeared in) were listed in the credits.
• In the English version, theAbsent Silhouettes and their respectiveOrganization XIII's Replica Data's grunts and laughs are now provided by archived recordings from their English voice actors fromKingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories andKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, while Roxas's battle grunts incorporate those of hisKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days incarnation and some of Ventus's voice clips fromKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep.
  • In the Japanese version, Roxas uses bits of his younger Japanese voice in his boss fight.
• InJiminy's Journal, the "Combo Attacks" section is renamed to "Limits".
• Xigbar's sniper rifle is uncensored in the English localization, which otherwise retains most of the censorship fromKingdom Hearts II.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix[edit]

• Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix features improved graphics, and its controls have been adjusted for the game's transition from the PlayStation Portable to the PlayStation 3. For instance, the camera can now be controlled using the right analog stick, rather than and.
• The various environments the player visits over the course of the game are more detailed in appearance, and new sound effects have been added to these areas, as well.
• In the final cutscene in Terra's scenario, theLingering Will sprouts a cape to maintain continuity betweenKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix and its later appearance inKingdom Hearts II Final Mix.
• The Mirage Arena no longer has multiplayer capabilities, meaning that Mirage ArenaD-Links cannot be used. Events and battles in the Arena have been tweaked, and additional challenges are present. Due to the lack of multiplayer, theTaunt command has been replaced withVictory Pose in all appearances, andGroup Esuna has been completely removed. The ability to pause the game during Mirage Arena events has also been added.
• While the entire soundtrack ofKingdom Hearts II Final Mix has been re-orchestrated, only the pieces "Keyblade Graveyard Horizon" and "Dismiss" have been re-orchestrated inKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix.
• The stars emitted from theMaster's Defender change from lavender blue stars resembling shuriken to golden ones bearingTerra's Mark.
• The cutscenes inA Fragmentary Passage are now recorded with English voice acting, while they featured Japanese voice acting in the original release.

Kingdom Hearts Re:coded[edit]

• Kingdom Hearts Re:coded is featured in the form of over three hours of fully voiced, high definition cutscenes. In addition, it includes character reports.
  • UnlikeKingdom Hearts 358/2 Days inKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX,Kingdom Hearts Re:coded features cutscenes from the Disney worlds, as well as battle scenes, and narration byMickey.
  • Several scenes that the original game presented with only 2D sprites and text, are now represented with 3D models and environments.
  • Most of the characters who were silent in the original game now have new audio dialogue. A few exceptions to this include Tidus, Aladdin, Jasmine, and Phil, who only appeared in the text-based cutscenes.
• Cutscenes have been added so players can better understand theKingdom Hearts series, including:
  • A scene with Pete and Maleficent that connects to the story ofKingdom Hearts χ.
  • An additional secret ending, titled "Destiny," which connects to the events ofKingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.
• While the entire soundtrack ofKingdom Hearts II Final Mix and a few pieces fromKingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix were re-orchestrated forKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX,Kingdom Hearts Re:coded does not feature the remade soundtracks from either game. However, the music selection was still given a major overhaul, with around a quarter of the cutscenes having a different music from the original.
  • Several tracks that did not appear in the originalKingdom Hearts Re:coded were added to this version, most notably thePiano Collections Kingdom Hearts versions of "Roxas" and "The Other Promise", the hitherto unusedKingdom Hearts recording of "Destati", and "Link to All" (which was not composed until after the release ofKingdom Hearts Re:coded).

Reported bugs[edit]

Several new bugs are present in this collection, such as:

• Random crashes. A consistent crash point is the battle againstXemnas at theMemory Skyscraper.^[10]
• Slow load times, which sometimes also affect the length of Drive Form transformations and D-Link transformations, and thus may require pause buffering.^[11]
• Most sound effects that are played consecutively (i.e. Xigbar's lasers, Sephiroth's Reaction Command) are not played properly. This glitch is also present on the PC version of the game.^[12]
• The Reversal Reaction Command failing to execute during the battle withXemnas(Final Form).^[13]
• Vexen's snowflakes from his Saucer attack suddenly disappear, and sudden deaths may occur during his data battle.^[14]

Special editions[edit]

The announcement poster for theKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX Limited Edition pack

Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX has special edition releases that differ from the retail edition of the game.

Japanese releases ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX have two different Collector's Edition versions of the game that are only available through the Square Enix eshop. The first is "KINGDOM HEARTS Starter Pack HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX", which contains bothKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX andKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX. The second is the "KINGDOM HEARTS Collectors Pack HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX", which contains bothKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX andKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX, a Blu-ray Music Disc containing tracks from theKingdom Hearts series, and an artwork booklet. Both have the option to include aPlay Arts Kai figurine of Sora in his Limit Form.^[15]. Purchasing the game from Amazon.co.jp grants a downloadable PlayStation 3 theme.

On July 24, Square Enix announced a pre-order bonus for the international release ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX via theKingdom Hearts Facebook page. By pre-ordering, one receives a free, automatic upgrade to the Limited Edition that includes a Disney Parks Pin Trading collectible pin featuring Sora and Mickey.^[16]

On November 5, 2014, Square Enix announced a Collector's Edition ofKingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX for the United States, United Kingdom, and France. The collector's edition includes a 9.4-inchShadow plush toy, 30-page hardcover artbook with dust jacket,Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX andKingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, along with a special steelbook to house the two game discs, and the Disney collectors pin. The Collector's Edition is only available through Square Enix's online store.^[17]

External links[edit]

• Official JP Site
• Official NA Site

Notes and references[edit]

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• Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 ReMIX

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