Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue
| Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue | |
|---|---|
| Developer(s) | Square Enix |
| Publisher(s) | Square Enix |
| Year released | 2017 |
| System(s) | PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows, Nintendo Switch |
| Series | Kingdom Hearts |
| Genre(s) | Action RPG |
|---|---|
| Modes | Single player |
| Rating(s) |        |
Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue (キングダム ハーツ HD 2.8 ファイナル チャプター プロローグ Kingudamu Hātsu HD 2.8 Fainaru Chaputā Purorōgu?, stylized Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue) is a collection of the Kingdom Hearts series, developed and published by Square Enix for the PlayStation 4. A successor to Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix, it was announced in September 2015 and released in January 2017. It received a digital port to Xbox One on February 18, 2020.
Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue includes a high-definition remaster of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, as well as two new pieces of content to the Kingdom Hearts series. The first, Kingdom Hearts χ Back Cover (キングダム ハーツ キー バックカバー Kingudamu Hātsu Kī Bakku Kabā?), is a cinematic based on Kingdom Hearts χ that details events not shown in the original game. The other, Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage (キングダム ハーツ 0.2 バース バイ スリープ -フラグメンタリー パッセージ- Kingudamu Hātsu 0.2 Bāsu bai Surīpu: Furagumentarī Passēji?) is an original game that takes place after the events of Birth by Sleep from the perspective of Aqua. Back Cover and A Fragmentary Passage were the tenth and eleventh installments in the Kingdom Hearts series.
Games[edit]
Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance HD[edit]
- For more details on this topic, see Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance.
The collection features an HD remaster of Dream Drop Distance, which Nomura stated was essentially a full remake of the game, since the original utilized the two screens of the Nintendo 3DS. Minigames from the original 3DS version that utilized that console's dual touch screens were reworked into a card-based system, while enemies were made "less offensive than they originally were", a complaint from players in the original. Additionally, touchscreen-based commands were switched to a more traditional control scheme.
Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage[edit]
Kingdom Hearts 0.2: Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage is a new, short episode taking place after the events of the original Birth by Sleep, told from the perspective of Aqua. A Fragmentary Passage, which ties into Kingdom Hearts III and uses technology from III, is set immediately after Dream Drop Distance, when King Mickey reveals that he has a few secrets to confess, relating to Aqua and her time in the Realm of Darkness. The story then picks up immediately after the secret ending of Birth by Sleep Final Mix, and lasts around the length of one world from the series. The content features a world based on Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty in fragmented form. The "double flight" ability returns, which allows Aqua to leap higher and do a mid-air double jump, while also gaining a burst of speed mid-jump.
Aqua can also utilize powerful magic finishers, depending on the frequency with which she uses a certain type of magic. She also has access to the Spellweaver Command Style from Birth by Sleep, now referred to as a Style Change, though she cannot learn any others. It can be activated with the frequent use of physical attacks, rather than the magic attacks required for magic finishers.
Kingdom Hearts χ Back Cover[edit]
Kingdom Hearts χ Back Cover, told through HD cinematics, tells a new tale of the Foretellers and reveal new parts of the series' history. Nomura revealed that Back Cover would utilize technology being developed for Kingdom Hearts III, and would be approximately one hour in length.
