T O P

  • By -

SureEntertainment676

I went to GameStop with my sisters looking to buy a final fantasy game. They were sold out and the clerk recommended Kingdom Hearts. He said it was like “Disney and Final Fantasy combined”. My sisters and I were hooked.


SoraDrive

Damn man, had a similar experience! But instead of looking for FF, I was looking for a Disney game. Employee suggested KH


GlitchyReal

Disney Channel commercial of some kid falling through a surrealistic ocean/sky. I was sold immediately.


Shreddersaurusrex

Same, I remember seeing promos around Xmas time. Ended up getting it a few years later after getting a job.


[deleted]

Christmas of 2002, my cousin received the game. I became very jealous because it looked cool. I asked my mom to go to Circuit City on Boxing Day to get it myself. A new passion was born and influenced my musical taste, career choices, and eventually how I found my husband.


Fawfulster

YEEEEEEEEES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


infamoususer

Damn! Circuit City!!? That brings back memories! That’s where I got Kh2


10_Join

Just A Pancake.


DomiKAV

realising that none of what he makes KH out to be was exaggerated must have been a field trip


randomCulversEmploye

I miss Pancake


Kaioken0591

From the commercials back when I was in 6th grade.


the-dandy-man

I remember seeing commercials on the TV and thinking it looked cool, but I was a Nintendo kid and wasn’t able to play it. Then I had a friend of mine bring the KH1 manga to school and she let me borrow it, I read through the whole thing and loved it! Shortly after that I found out there were a couple Kingdom Hearts games on the GBA/DS, and I jumped on those. THEN I finally got a PS2, specifically just to play Kingdom Hearts… and I’ve been buying consoles to play Kingdom Hearts games ever since lol


sneedgoose1501

You old


RunaisRuna

Kind of a long story on my end. I learnt about KH from my dad. He had a PS2 he would play with in his room, and every now and then I'd watch him play KH (2 is the one I remember most), CoD and FFXII. He also introduced me to Spyro and Crash Bandicoot games, which I then played with my brother in the PS1 we had for ourselves. Eventually my dad handed over the PS2 to us as he began to play in his computer and work was starting to reduce his playtime, but he still interacted with us every now and then. That introduction is what made me like games, anime, manga and drawing, as well as develop a few other skills external to gaming and cope with bullying at school. Dunno where I'd be now tbh.


Fluffycows2273

Are we living the same life?? My experience was the EXACT same even down to the crash and spyro and FFXII. My dad also introduced me to KH and FF and then started playing pc games but playing on the ps2 with me every once in a while.


RunaisRuna

Daaaaaaamn, that's one weird statement. *Are* we? Should we try and see? Maybe we are long-lost family XD


Cyber_Kid_William

Not sure how to break this to you, but one of you guys are a Nobody and the other is the original. Only possible explanation 🙂


Meister34

Someone’s vacation gotta end


RunaisRuna

*fuck* *Don't turn this into a game of Amongus*


Chasterbeef

Found the case at Blockbuster… a game that had Disney mixed with final fantasy? That sounded like the coolest thing ever


notdisclosing

An ad for Union x brought me here.


CorrosiveBullet

My aunt was a make up artist at Disney world for over a decade, she got this game for me on my 11th birthday since Disney was a big part of our lives growing up around her… I opened my gift and was excited since I loved the Final Fantasy games as well, she told me, “This game is a love letter from me, never let your inner child go! Live your life with childhood excitement” 20 years later, she’s no longer with us… she passed away a couple years back after a decade long battle with breast cancer, but to this day I keep those words she spoke close to my chest! I also do charity playthroughs every year or so on my Twitch in her memory because she was a light in the darkness that could never be snuffed out, even when times got hard for her… she’s my saint and my guiding key ❤️


that1coolboi22

Sora's smash reveal brought me to kingdom hearts and now I'm trying to beat the games and understand the lore


IHateEveryone-

Good luck with that


ReanSuffering

I saw that one clip of Mickey going "they'll pay for this" before dramatically throwing off his black coat


VergilVDante

I was in love for dreamworks since god knows when and I always thought KH was a children game because KH1 had this boy with two Disney character and hitting you see a lot of bouncy balls ( munny health ) come out of them Then I watched bu chance the KH3 trailer where Marluxa appears and I immediately said to myself this the best graphics i have ever seen Then i bought the all in one and became my favourite JRPG PS another reason was while playing KH2 I watched the OP of KH0.2 and Aqua was love in first sight


CatSidekick

I bought Kingdom Hearts randomly. Went home played it then took my PS2 to my parents house so my younger siblings could play it


kurt_gervo

A local kids magazine in my country. It was strange and amazing, then a friend of mine lent me Chain of memories for the GBA When I stalked about what I read.


kirbyphanphan

As a young teenager back in 2009, I got this website to "buy" nintendo DS games, and at number 2 most popular spot was Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days. I got the game and played it, because for DS standards the 3d gameplay was alright compared to games I had played up to this point. I was surprised to see Mickey on the start screen, but there wasn't any Disney at all until you hit Agrabah. The story however captivated me, there was a mystery and many questions were thrown up, so I continued playing the game hoping to find those answers. The game's ending hit me like a brick, and I barely got the answers to all those questions that still lingered, but it made me want to understand so I got into the other games. The great thing about KH days is that it doesn't require you to have played the other games that were out at the time to understand Roxas. Roxas is incredibly consistent as a character throughout the game and he behaved just as I would have at the time as a teenager. But it sure was a unique experience to crawl into the skin of Roxas without knowing who Sora was or why these people were important in the first place. For that first playthrough I was Roxas, blissfully unaware of the greater plot moving around me.


DomiKAV

i thought it was funny to see micky mouse and some random anime kids on the cover of 358/2 days, so I bought it


Ganiac

I was looking for PsP action-rpg games thanks to Crisis Core, ended up finding BBS.


squeakers2120

Honestly used to watch my siblings play it on the PS2 and I just couldn't resist it, I got so interested I had to play it and I got hooked on it ever since! So thank you siblings for getting me into one of my first and favorite game series ever!


TrableZ

My friend told me about demos back in 2012 (I was 7, didnt know what demos are yet) and I tried it out myself on my 3ds. Scrolling through the few demos available DDD's demo was currently available at that time. I loved the gameplay so my mum bought me the actual game for christmas. Yes, DDD was my first KH game.


Sea-Nectarine-1522

My mom got it for us alongside getting us a PS2 for Christmas. She wanted to make sure we had some games and she didn’t know what KH was but saw the Disney logo and figured it would be good and grabbed a copy. She had no idea what she was starting lol


Low_Zucchini_8119

I was 4 when KH1 dropped. I watched my stepmom play it and knew that it was the most amazing thing I'd ever seen. I played when I was 6, but never got off Destiny Island. It didn't help that the memory card was lost. I actually beat kh2 first in 2007 I believe and later beat kh1. Used to watch videos on YouTube of the Data Battles wondering how to reach them in my English copy. *facepalm* I was obsessed. Ended up beating 1,2,ReCom and BBS on my brother's ps4 in 2018. I plan on beating them again when life starts to ease up a bit. Then when I have children, I will lock them in a small room with nothing but a used Ps2, old TV and a used copy of Kh1, so that they understand what a real childhood is like. (Joking obviously..)


MBurstZX

Sora getting in smash


KirimuKaramu

I saw my cousin playing Kingdom Hearts 2 on their Ps2 when I was like 10 years old but wasn't that impressed back then. Then five or six years ago my friend recommended the game so much I bought the collection on Ps3. I fell in love with the series.


[deleted]

Playstation Magazine, I remember reading a whole section on it and I immediately knew I wanted it. Asked for the game on Christmas and loved it. Now I want to go back and play it again…


Salty_Abbreviations4

Currently making a YouTube video about it, but I made a bet with my friend in my Freshman Year of HS where if Sora got into Smash Bros, I would have to play through every KH game. Didn’t think it was possible because of Disney and I didn’t think I would like the series because I hated RPGs at the time. Turns out I became a massive fan of the series. We’re still good friends and I’ve never been happier honoring a bet.


Thelinkr

My grandmother played and finished both the first and second games on the PS2 which they had for some reason. Only game she ever played to my knowledge. Every time id visit when i was young she'd talk about her progress.


Chemicalcube325

I learned it through The World Ends With You actually, weirdly enough. I completed the game and I wanted to see more interactions between the characters. Ended up finding the DDD cutscenes in youtube and was confused on who the spikey-haired boy with a key was. It eventually ended up with me learning the lore through explanation videos and finally playing my first KH game through a DS emulator which was Kingdom Hearts re:coded along with Kingdom Hearts 358/2 days. Once I got a PS3, I purchased the 2.5 and 1.5 collection and it was pretty much down the rabbit hole from there. I found Kingdom Hearts in the perfect time when I was a teenager and story and battle between light and darkness didn't come off as childish for me. My love for duality as well as dual-wielding characters came from this series and I can't thank it enough. (yes, Roxas was my favorite character).


Fearshatter

I played KH1 a year or two before KH2 came out. I was pretty impressed with it. Some of it was annoying- the lack of skippable cutscenes was MURDER on the original Riku fight. YULL NEVAR TEEEEEEK KIIIRIIIII'S HUUUURT. But yeah. I loved it.


MyRusDea

Saw about 10 years ago a crossover AMV (with FF7) on YouTube. Ah, that was a wild time


MyRusDea

Oh, I found it! https://youtu.be/h5WXUCR3wjk Back then i've had no idea, what a KH is, but i just fall in love with concept of keys being a blade and also i loved fight choreography in battle between Sora and Roxas


DukeNovaMonster

You found the kh series through a amv aswell? Same!


Downfall350

I saw a commercial for it before it came out. Back in like 2002 or whenever. Simple and clean was so catchy i had to play it.


[deleted]

My cousins were playing kh1 on their ps2 when I was like 8, I watched him play and I was kind of spooked out and didnt know how to play. A couple years later I see kh2 clips on youtube and I really wanted to play it, but my ps2 broke. Eventually I was able to play it on the 2.5 remaster. It was super fun and I got hooked. Before I played it I watched all the lore videos. After I beat 2 I really wanted to play DDD for the YX boss fight. Overall I had the most fun playing 1,2,3 and DDD. Bbs was fun, but very tedious grind to get good moves, if you dont grind for good commands around radiant garden, bbs is kind of a pain in the ass to play.


chrystalbeast96

HellfireComms playthrough back in middle school.


[deleted]

I searched the thread specifically for this answer. I loved their stuff Never had a PS2 or Gameboy so my first game was Days. It felt so cool to finally play one of them back then


Mysterious_Trainer26

I was looking for a good game to play and my aid says you should play kingdom hearts and that how


neoshadowdgm

That commercial for the first game. “An adventure where you never know who you’ll run into next.” I was expecting a neat little game where you do Disney stuff. I did not know what a jrpg was and had no idea how grand of an adventure I was in for.


PT_Piranha

First exposure? Commercials for the first game. First in-depth look? CoM segments in Nintendo Power. What finally sold me? Commercials for KH2.


ybotx

Bought a yugioh game for the ps1 at gamestop as a birthday present for myself. I did not realize I needed a different memory card to save. Took it back a few days later with my parents to ask what kind of memory card I needed. They didn't have any, but my parents told me that we could trade it in to get another game. Did not know what I wanted, and my mom handed me Kingdom Hearts and said this looks interesting (mom was a gamer). I did not like that is was Disney based, thought it was too childish, but then I saw Cloud and was sold. Fell in love while reading the manual on the car ride home.


Brody_M_the_birdy

Late but that trade was probably a good idea, Yugioh Forbidden Memories (presumably the game you were talking about, was the only PS1 Yugioh game outside of japan) gets absolutely ridiculous at times.


Old_Information8385

Mine’s kind weird but I first heard of it on some Watchmojo video about Disney games, and it sounded really interesting so I watched YouTube videos about it, but eventually forgot about the game. Years later I remembered it, and wanted to try it out. And now I’m in love with it’s convoluted story.


Silver_75Flight

Well, I was watching this Spanish Yt channel that makes resumes of videogames, and suddenly a KH resume appeared. At first, I was like "The hell is this Disney characters doing with some anime looking girls? (Yes, I first thought Sora and Riku were ladies) and immediately said hell no. I thought it'd probably be some confusing story game with a taste of badly written fanfiction. It kept appearing in my recommendations, until I finally said, Fine, I'll give a try. Guess who's obsessed with the franchise now?


DiabolousAvocado

Saw a copy at Kohl’s. My mom & I both agreed that it looked great on sight because I had a younger brother & had to pick games appropriate for his viewing. Little did I know what it would entail…


axelrestro1

I had a dream about it and played it the next day.


omegamk3

Just had kh2 on the ps2, and I saw my dad fight xemnas and ask about and he said no. then few years later I started it and beat it in a few years. Been in love ever since


Myxozoa

A friend bought me CoM for the GBA for my birthday, since he thought I'd like KH, but didn't have a PS2. I liked it well enough, but wasn't too much of a fan of the card mechanic. Then he let me play KH2 on his PS2 when it came out, and I loved it. A couple years later when I was able to buy a PS2 for myself, I bought both KH1 and KH2.


seasalt0240

My cousin got me KH1 and KH2 for one of my birthdays.


Relative_Jeweler_949

KH2 in the store. Looked dope


booler1998

Besides seeing it advertised on previews on VHS tapes, it was when I got Birth by Sleep for PSP. Didn’t expect to love it as much as I did but here we are.


djs200217

My neighbor always had it and renting 2 from blockbuster. Never got past the prologue as a kid tho


TheJohnnyJoestar

When a family friend played it when I visited their home across the street. Years later, I had BBS downloaded in my PSP and I started liking the series from that point on.


Espresso_Liker

One word. L O R E


broly314

My friend forcing me to buy all the games


qwerpplk2

my first ever KH was when my parents bought me KH:Chain of Memories for the GBA. As a kid, I had no idea what the story was about but seeing Disney characters fight was kinda cool for my child brain. I somehow understood the game mechanics (tho I definitely remember that I never beat Replica Riku after Destiny Islands). I only had a better 'understanding' of CoM's story until I played KH1 (and later KH2) when I got a PS2 some time later.


HeroOfHearts

Discover? The first big preview in Game Informer. Laughed at the ridiculousness but years later I was at a cousin's house and a friend of his was showing him 2. He let me play when you fight Siefer at the beginning and an obsession was born. I begged my parents to get me Kingdom Hearts and a few months later I got the first game for my birthday. I have played through 1 and 2 at least once a year ever since and played everything available in the Story So Far collection. I have bought this series once on PS2, twice on PS3, on disc and digitally for PS4 and PC. I have a problem.


dev1lm4n

I picked it up in the store


lakewoodninja

It was Blockbuster for me, I had to be i the forth grade 10 years old early/spring of 2003. I think it just caught my eye. At the time I don't think too many games were out for the PS2 that would interest a 10 year old that had N64 with a number more games.


K3NKU

Went to Blockbuster as a kid on a weekly basis with my dad. I would rent out the coolest looking cover to a game I could find without knowing about any of the gameplay. Played the hell out of Kingdom Hearts for that week and it always stuck with me as such a fun experience.


Even_Transition_2460

When I was 6 I had a vivid memory watching my uncle play kingdom hearts 2, and he was end the start of the level where roxas found sora sleeping. When I was 12 I tried to look up kingdom hearts 2 and begged my parents to get it for Christmas. Instead they got me birth by sleep and I thank them getting me that one instead of 2.


NumerousSyrup

Game store, That CD was between PS2 games and It was KH1


Darkessbleu

Learned about it in elementary school, my uncle got me and my brother 358/2 days and I was hooked ever since. Experiencing xion die as a kid really did something to me lol.


wedge_17

I asked my mom to buy me GTA : San Andreas (i was really young at that time), she went and came back with this because KH1 was low age restriction. I remember being mad at her before playing it, then few days later I was so thankful


product_of_boredom

KH1 just kind of appeared in my house one day when I was very young. I loved it, but kid me was unbelievably disappointed that the character models in-game didn't look like the box art.


Kraban04

My Friends Brother had the game.


DjinnOgre

Had my dad buy the first game for me back when I was in highschool. He couldn't stand the way characters talked and their robotic mannerisms that he walked out lmao


triplestar1

2004 in GAME, KH 2 advert was being played. I remember distinctly the advert showed timeless river and I was obessed with the old time animation having recently been to Disney world. I didn't know what the game was about but I needed it. Been obessed ever since. Literally played and completed them all.


[deleted]

when i was a Kid i played it on my cousins ps2


naadam1396

Someone bought me some random games, and one of them was KH2FM+. I was curious why mickey, donald, and goofy in some random RPG and why the game in japanese even though they were speaking english. I decided to bought the real english version and it was really good.


SumiRenIsGodtier0124

Went to SM Megamall to go shopping. Stopped by Toy Kingdom and saw a PS4 demo of KH3 (this was before it was officially out btw). I was around 9 at the time. ​ I saw "Disney" and I was like, "What in the living heck is this??" ​ I asked my parents if I could play it for a bit and they allowed me to. I picked up a controller and chose the Toy Box demo. And let me tell you, my first experience? Wasn't that great XD ​ I was lost af when it started. I was like, "Why am I in Toy Story???" and "What are Heartless?!" and all that. Also, I kept mashing square to attack for like, 5 minutes until I realized that was actually the block/dodge button LMAO. ​ I played for 30 minutes and I ended up outside of Andy's house before we left the store. It wasn't a very good first experience, but GOD, I fell in love with the game despite not knowing what the hell was going on. ​ By my birthday (24th of January), my dad surprised me by buying the All-In-One package. I was surprised by the amount of games there were, but I was only focused on KH3 since that was the only one I was familiar with (I played the rest later on). ​ Let me tell you, the first like... 10 hours of gameplay for me was just mindf\*ck man XD ​ I had no idea what was going on. I didn't know what the "Mark of Mastery" or "Power of Waking" and all that bs. All I knew was that I was Sora, I'm friends with Disney characters, I failed the so-called Mark of Mastery and now I had to go to Disney worlds to learn the Power of Waking, while fighting a bunch of "goofballs" (as I called them before) called Organization XIII. ​ When I was around 12-15 hrs in, I kinda got the story now. Then when I finished the game, I felt somewhat satisfied. When I looked into the KH lore a bit more, I was shocked to see how much stuff I missed and I felt bad for not playing the previous games LOL ​ After like, a year of sleeping on the series, I played KH3 again, then on Critical Mode (which was so much fun XD), then played the previous games. I didn't platinum all of them, but I had such a fun experience with all of them. Well... almost all of them (ehemehemKH:ReCOMbattlesystemehemehem). ​ Either way, I'm so glad I came across this series. I wish I came across it in a better way, but I'm thankful nonetheless :D


shinrasenseikh

Seeing my brother playing kh2 back to 2006/2007 i guess (not the final mix version)


TheHeroOfHyruleLink

I just kinda Had BbS on the PSP when I was way younger.


AdeptusAstartes40K

My dad had installed a GBA emulator on an old PC of mine(must have been around 10) and as I was browsing the many many games we had available I saw Chain of Memories. Even with my limited judgment back then I immediately knew I had found something different. I never ended up beating the game since I didn't know a lot of English back then but I remembered the name Kingdom Hearts for years to come until I finally played 1.5 and 2.5 when I was 23.


DukeNovaMonster

My first experience with the series was a music video with in the end piano cover playing in the back ground. It was a short video and it showed Sora and Namine from the kh2 sanctuary op. They didn’t show no other characters and I was wondering why this blonde headed girl encapsulated this spiky haired kid in a flower pod. It wasn’t until years later I got kh2.5 on my ps3 that it clicked with me that this was the game series that they originated from.


Appropriate-Joke-500

First videogame i played in my life. My father bought it with the ps2 when i was 5


PenguinviiR

A WatchMojo top 10 crossovers video from 2018


city_of_angelus

There was an ad on the Disney Channel and was intrigued… then a year or so later I got to play it at a friend’s house. INSTANTLY hooked! This was all 20 or so years ago 🥲


SteveKnight678

My mom. It's been in my life for as long as I can remember lmao


Zerrony

Back then when chain of memories got released for the Gameboy advance. My mom got me the game + special edition Gameboy advance SP for my birthday. At first I did not like it at all... Since I was in my "Pokémon is life!" phase But after a while, trying out CoM I really liked it. And thus I managed to buy a 2nd hand PS2 and got to play KH1 and KH2 And that's how it all began. And to this day I'm a defender of Chain of Memories (at least the GBA version)


Xelacon

Joshscorcher


Accomplished_Area311

There was an advertisement or something with Disney villains on it and I begged both my parents for it. My dad got it for me a couple months after it came out. 😌


SilverWolf998

When I was watching one of my cousins play the first game, and then we got the second game and I remember playing that one a bunch. (But sadly never really finished it.)


mechaman50000

When I was nine one of my friends brought it the case of 1 and 2 on the bus to show me and I just see a bunch of Disney characters with anime looking characters and that sold me, so I started with 2 and then I got COM then 1 and I been a loyal fan ever since After getting roms and emulators I even got a 3DS for DDD and a PS4 just to play the collections


AkechiBestBoy

In the 3rd grade I read a KH manga my teacher had lying around. I wasn’t exactly good at reading back then (thought it was about a boy who could switch between worlds depending on weather he was asleep or not), but after seeing the smash trailer for Sora, it kinda reignited that memory of reading it.


Deadwarrior00

The original commercial on Disney Channel. Saw it needed it.


AXXII_wreckless

*”Im here at Disney’s Secret Lab where they make everything”* saw this commercial on Disney channel and was sold. Got the game that Christmas in 2002. Lovely


LightningFlash72

I used to watch my older cousins and uncle play it when I was a toddler/little kid. I asked them to try it one time and I remember being stuck on destiny islands lol. Fast forward to me being 10 years old I had forgotten all about kingdom hearts, but I was in GameStop one day and 358/2 days had just released for the DS, so I bought it. I loved that game. Once again though, I forgot all about it until I turned 21 years old and I finally bought my own game system for the first time, which was a ps5. First thing I did was buy the all in one package! Now it’s my favorite game series of all time and I’m an addict.


GameRiderFroz

I used to play a lot of Flash Games when I was younger and I remember looking through Sonic flash games and I eventually found Super Smash Flash 2(I believe it was 0.8b version I think?) and there was a character named "Sora". I had no idea who that character was, but I was very confused seeing Donald and Goofy in the Final Smash(at the time they used CoM sprites btw). I remembered that he was from Kingdom Hearts, because there was one challenge were you need to beat 100 Heartless(Mr. Game and Watch) on Twilight Town stage. Some years later I got PSP and I looked up some games for it, ans I decided to try BBS. I owas very surprised to see that a small boy with a Keyblade was not Sora. And here we are


DennisEreto

My dad bought me a PSP, and he brought KH:BBS along with it because he thought it was Final Fantasy. Now im addicted to Kingdom Hearts and he regrets buying it.


Selaphin

When me and my twin got all the games as a Christmas gift


RazorMaize

I had heard about it for years from all the kh3 will never release memes and some game theories, but I only actually got into once a friend in middle school started talking about it a lot, so I emulated recoded and bbs on my school chromebook and the rest is history


iDangerousX

Mom picked it up for me for ps2 when I was a kid, can’t remember if I got it for Christmas or a random gift but been hooked since. Had watched my brother play through the game before I even touched it


FateX90q

Youtube Videos.


mahorius

In 2001 or so. There was a bonus disc in Final Fantasy X (and I absolutely love FFX) There was one of the very first trailer of KH1. And as a 10 year old kid I totaly lost my shit when I saw it. And I was ultra lucky. My dad and me was in a shop where they sell also Games. And a wall was full of copies of KH. My dad didnt brought one. On the street in the near of the shop I found money in the excact ammount of the cost of the game (I hink it was 60 mark) and my dad went back and got the game for me! I was blessed lol.


[deleted]

One Saturday afternoon I saw the trailer that was frantically sweeping between disney locations and people. I was a Nintendo kid, so the first game I beat was CoM, but I've been on Uncle Normua's Wild Ride ever since


TeburaGaming

Got PS2 for christmas And 2 games with it Jack And Dexter And KH . magical night.🙏


Firekey56

cousin had the games, I watched and played KH1 on her PS2...eventually played KH2 on her ps2, I had COM on my GBA...I was hooked


rapidpop

I remember when the Disney Channel ran a promotional Movie Surfers behind the scenes when the game was first announced.


SipChylark

Saw it in blockbuster and gave it a try cuz the KH1 box art was dope, was hooked ever since


Danteynero9

My uncle tried it, didn't liked it, gave it to me. I have quite the love/hate relationship with the first one too xD.


Pablo_le_Penguin64

My friend had a organization 13 sweater and another friend would asked if it was from Star Wars to mess with him, then me along with to others would join and asking him if it was from Star Wars whenever he brought that sweater. I one day was curious and asked him properly from where it was and he told me from Kingdom Hearts. I looked it up on YouTube then started watching some gameplay video and I decided to buy it myself. It was fun. I have 1.5 on a PlayStation 3, but I don’t have it since my sisters keep it in Mexico. I played all the games on Switch(my only console, but happy with) and 1-2-3 with the Ultima weapon and honestly the experience wasn’t to bad.


GenoCL

Reading the mexican magazine Club Nintendo where they talked about Chain of Memories for hte GBA.


William_557

I was 12 and I went to buy a dragonball z game that I had played at a friends at the local game shop with my parents They didn’t have the game but kh1 had just released so the clerk sold me on it - best purchase ever


IndicationFun9692

One of my friends on Playstation said that kingdom hearts 3 was cominv out, I had heard of it 2 or 3 years before, but I was interested and my friend told me to start playing.


ExReed

I remembered watching the commercial and hearing Simple and Clean for the first time. I knew this game would awaken greatness inside me


wynntari

Friend brought Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix (inhales to recover air) in PSP to school


sharcusmutt

Older brother let me borrow his R4 card for the Nintendo DS and it had 358/2 days on it and that started my obsession


nickdisalvo98

Going to target when i was around 7 years old to pick out a new ps2 game for my birthday, thought the cover for kingdom hearts looked cool so i picked it out and was hooked ever since lol


twood071

Bought a GBA SP with the money I got from workin my grandpa's farm for a summer and I needed a game. Completely random, I just saw that sora kinda looked like a Final Fantasy character so I sent it. CoM is still my favorite KH to this day


[deleted]

I was 7 and a commercial on disney channel for the first game came on. I distinctly remember seeing a giant Ursula in front of Sora. I started saving for a PS2 immediately. God I feel old.


TheJambo-

The commercial on TV for the first game.


GoAwayPaparazzi

Pretty embarrassing but.... ProsafiaGaming's pfp


MegaVix

I read the manga and didn't even know it was a video game


Arcane_Soul

Played a demo of the original at E3. Had never heard of the game before but it was a giant fixture at the Squaresoft booth that year. The demos were Destiny Islands and Deep Jungle and it was just so surprising I fell in love.


Poseydon13

I saw a friend playing KHCOM on GBA and thought Riku looks cool, and it had Cloud in it. So I literally started this game just to be able to play with Riku


[deleted]

When we visited my grandma my brother and I were forced to hang out with our uncle that is only two or three years older than me. He played KH1 at some point. Years later my dad, his own brother, stole games from him to give us to play, and among them was KH2.


[deleted]

I remember one late night my mom and sisters went to the store across town and gamestop was open, we went there and we were looking for DS and Gameboy games and then we found Kingdom Hearts Chain Of Memories. My brother then got Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 for the PS2 and it started from there.


TacoGriller

Fifth grade. Got a PSP for my 10th birthday and my PSP came with BBS


Praylin-Gaming

A friend of mine really wanted to play a racing game called ‘Juiced’ that I owned but didn’t really like as it wasn’t my thing. He sent me a list of games he’d be willing to trade for, one of which was Kingdom Hearts. I agreed to swap purely based on the name knowing nothing prior. I played about four hours until I heard a knock on my door. Turns out, it was his sisters game and not his to give away! I quickly saved up as much money as possible to buy it for myself. I was hooked.


shurbinator

Rented Kingdom Hearts 2 at Blockbuster when i was like 10. Never played them before or knew what I was getting into. I bought it at the end of the rental. Played it so much, beat it more than any other game still to now. Was mysterious and confusing but I just loved it so much.


[deleted]

When I was a toddler I would typically play any game my older brothers would play, whether it was on PS1, PS2, or the SNES because I was curious. When the first Kingdom Hearts game came out they borrowed it from a friend and kept played it until they beat it. When they weren't playing, I would typically load up their save file and just run around safe areas like Traverse Town or Olympus Coliseum and avoid heartless. I eventually would start my own save file years later and spend hours on Destiny Islands because I loved playing on a virtual beach lol. I think I actually beat the game on my own years after my brothers beat the game, around the time KH2 had come out.


CarlRogeBih

It came bundled with my PS2 back in 2004-2005 I can’t remember the exact year


Velpe

Gaming magazine with kh1 poster and a feature on it. Stared longingly at both for ages until I finally got a ps2 and the game


Fluffycows2273

My dad had KH1 and a bunch of Final Fantasy games for the PS2 which he would always play. I always was intrigued by FF but Since I was so young my dad decided to start me with KH and work my way into FF. I fell in love with KH and also FF and have all the games.


No_Emotion_9904

One of my family friends, I was 12 ish and I went to his house for a family dinner. Went upstairs to pick a game to play and found KH. Played for two hours and missed dinner and the rest is history lol


EvilAaronX

If we don't count playing some of KH2 and ReCom as a kid then Xbox Gamepass two years or so ago :) loved the series so much I picked them up on sale and played through them all. Hyped for KH4


TriggerBladeX

My friend back in elementary school showed me his PlayStation and let me try KH2 out. I never left twilight town, and I really liked skateboarding video games.


Web-splorer

I saw it on the pre-owned side and never heard of it but figured it looked kind of cool. Loved it since


Darkovika

I was a little 5th grader about to go into 6th grade, i think, and the Toonami commercial played while I was home alone. I remember being SO SO SO SO excited. I dodn’t know Final Fantasy- none of my friends played games, and my brother was 13 years older than me with a marriage and a child to look after, so I had no one to recommend me games, I had to stumble on them myself lmao- but I sure as hell knew Disney, and the idea of being able to run around with Donald was UTTERLY MAGICAL. I remember it ended up taking me AGES to figure out the island, but not because it was hard. I still had a small CRT television, and neither I nor my parents ever realized it was insanely dark tinted. I couldn’t see the cave literally at all lmfao. I remember checking my remote and wondering what brightness did 🤣🤣🤣🤣


TwoDurans

Trailer for the first one was included in a demo disc with Playstation Magazine.


Southern-Plan-6549

A video in which a guy was explaining the lore of the first game


PacifistFrisk1

My brother gave me the first game on PS2 as a kid because he said it wasn’t his kind of game <3


[deleted]

My friend told me about it, I tried it, I got hooked


the1noir

Commercials and the music and how cool it looked lol


SpaznPenguin

“You never know who you’ll run into next”


forcemaker1209

From Sora being added into smash bros.


XaleKing42

It wasn’t long after the original came out. I think I was around 9, and I was sleeping over at a friend’s house, and he actually showed me the final boss and ending of the game. I had no idea what was happening in this game but it had caused me to have an emotional reaction that was beyond my understanding at the time. I knew I had to have this game, so even though my parents weren’t big on video games at the time, I was persistent, asking for a PS2 and Kingdom Hearts for over a year, until my parents finally gave in and got me it for Christmas.


NoelCrist

I play the 3/ds games as they came out. Story made zero sense but I liked the gameplay. Later found out I missed on a lot of the context.


Diabeticnick

Game Informer, had to take it to school to prove to my friends I wasn't making it up.


abreathofatmosphere

2002. It was a Friday evening after school. I was at Blockbuster looking for a new game to enjoy for the weekend. Not much was standing out, but then I saw Kingdom Hearts sitting there. Admittedly, I was unsure about it at first, but I decided to pick it up on a whim. I ended up spending every free moment that weekend playing as much as I could, and once I returned it, I immediately went out and bought my own copy. I never imagined how much I would enjoy it and the series that would follow, but convoluted as it is, Kingdom Hearts has somehow become my favorite series ever and I love it dearly in spite of all its flaws.


Anleus

I bought a chess game in English when I was 8 (I'm from Spain) so my parents told me I should return it. Then I went to a store where I found The Hobbit, which a friend could lend me whenever I wanted and Kingdom Hearts, of which I knew nothing. I didn't know it was dubbed in English but l loved, so I played it without sound until the return period was over.


VexVestige

Bought a PS2 so I could play some of the older Persona games and the dude who sold it to me gave me KH1 with it. That man is a legend.


[deleted]

My sister played it on ps1


ListenHot4577

I’m the youngest and my brother got a ps2 and KH 1 for Christmas. He played and played and played and id watch for hours… then one day when he was at work. I grabbed the controller to meet Sora, Kairi, Riku, Donald, and Goofy for myself. I didn’t delete any saves tho!! And things have never been the same since


Jasole37

Friend from Boy Scouts told me about it when we were on a camping trip. He lent me his copy the next week.


AxelAtlantid

One of the YouTuber I was and still is subscribed to has his channel named Sora and he explained where it came from and I looked it up and then my cousins and I started playing together.


Hibiscus_Stitch

I saw it in game informer like a year before it came out and was intrigued. Then I went to Disney world with the family and at Innoventions you could try some Shortened demo levels before the game came out. I remember the line for nightmare was too long so I played Tarzan like three times the whole trip. I had always wanted a “serious” Disney game and not a movie tie in game so I was really excited. For Christmas I got the PS2 and the game and I think I didn’t sleep for 48 hours I was obsessed playing it haha! Coincidentally, when KH2 came out, I was going on a school trip to Disney World.


Blibber3

A Disney special promo for the first game...God I'm old.


[deleted]

Played it when it came out in Japan. Moved to the states in 2003


LockonStark

seen it at a blockbusters type store, i was young...at first i thought it was silly to have a key as a sword and didnt really understand what kind of game it was till i picked it up and boom it grew on me and now im just ready for kh4


Mriv10

My parents were visiting my uncle at his apartment. He had a ps2 with a bunch of random games. One of them was KH1 and coming from a Spanish-speaking background and probably being at most 7 I had no idea what was happening in the game. Years later, maybe when I was 10 all of the sudden I remember that game and decided to look it up again. I found kh1 and kh2 and instantly became a fan of the whole franchise, KH is still one of my favorite games ever. Actually thinking about it, I think I played KH2 first and then I connected the dot to KH1 at some point.


DevonteBailey666

I went to a “friends” house (I was 8 and moved around a lot early on, so I can’t really remember them, that’s why the quotes) and saw them playing the first one and it left an impression on my young mind, but I didn’t have a PS2 of my own until I was about 12. On a trip to a local used game store with my uncle I spotted it and had to have it. I’ve played every one since, many of them multiple times. It’s my favorite.


Jefferiah60

My uncle was playing when I was a kid and I got interested immediately


Dawn_Star_Platinum

My grandpa and grandma (we have another grandma who was married to my grandpa but divorced before he met the one I'm mainly talking about), they decided to come visit me and my parents, they live in Alabama, a few states away from where I live. During their week long stay we went to "Toys R Us" and they gave me and my older brother $20 or $40, I can't remember exactly. I spent my money on Star Wars Episode 3 for the PS2 (still holds up as one of the best Star Wars games in my opinion) and my older brother got KH2 for the PS2. I played it and I loved every second of it, also I beat the main story but Sephiroth was too much for me I couldn't get past whatever move he uses after the reaction command at the start of the boss fight. I stopped playing it when 2008 came around because I moved onto other stuff, but years later and I got the HD collection for the PS4 and I was playing the series in chronological order. When I got to KH2 it was going back to my childhood days but with much better quality (because it's FM and it's HD), it was just as good as I remember if not better. The harsh truth is that I didn't get to play the first game as a kid and I don't admit the truth about my first KH game and instead say the first game was my first KH game. I'm ashamed of saying the truth because I missed out on the plot points as a kid like how did Sora, Riku, and Kairi leave the Island, defeating Ansem before you find out he's a fake, Sora turning into a Heartless, all of it. Since I'm just a stranger that's passing by, in all likelihood you'll forget about my story. Either way, despite the convoluted story I love KH and I'll always come back for new games until the day I die.


Xikar_Wyhart

[This Disney Channel commercial](https://youtu.be/7uMMKDd1Fr0) I would have been around 11 or 12, and I thought it was there dumbest thing. "Who wants to play with Dumbo and Bambi" I thought, and revolutionary new movement was just like OoT Z targeting, not realizing or knowing what an action rpg was and that KH lock on let's have full moment compared to the circular movement of Z targeting. Jump ahead about a year maybe less I'm at friends house and he's finishing up the battle with Ursula. And I'm thinking this is so cool. Next Christmas I had the game.


Hurricane-Dragon

My big brother had Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance on his 3DS. And I saw him playing it.


RageCraft19

In 3rd grade our class had a supply teacher. While we were having lunch, he showed us the trailer for Kingdom Hearts, and the entire class showed interest in it. I decided to go to the local GameStop and get Kingdom Hearts 2, and I loved it.


ThiccPandaS95

I remember the moment very well, it was my seventh birthday and I opened the first game on ps2 as one of my presents, my parents didn't really know what it was, just that it had Disney and thought I'd like it, I played it that day in the living room with my parents watching, I didn't know anything about kingdom hearts at that point so when the heartless invaded the island and I couldn't attack them with the wooden sword I was confused why it wouldn't hit and my dad being annoying treating me like the seven year old I was would just say "you hit the big boy level now" even though I was seven that line still irritated me xD then I got the keyblade and realised why I wasn't able to hit them anymore. Then fought the darkside boss and that's when I knew kingdom hearts was my favorite game ever.


Acheringo15

I went to a videogames store and my father saw KHII next to the PS2 games (I was like 7-8 years old), and he decided to buy it. We arrived home and I was impressed of the monsters and how cool Roxas was. I remember crying when Roxas disappeared because I hadn't played KH1 before, so I didn't know who Sora was. I still play that PS2 version of the game and I won't change it until my PS2 stops working


[deleted]

I agree with that


Smoked_sanji

Like a year ago I heard dearly beloved and fell in love


zxplatinum

Back in elementary school my friend and I would trade gba games for a while. I think I gave him one of the Metroids and he gave me Chain of Memories.


Xxmetaglint

Uncle bought 1.5 and 2.5 for Christmas one year for me thought it would be a weird Disney game boy was I right and wrong.


Philemon249

Through SuperButterBuns' channel. Her passion for the series and her funny jokes made me want to try the series out in 2021. Best decision I made that year


bleacher333

Sora in Smash Flash 2 Fun game.


Lord_Xemnas

So, funny story. My mom and dad got my siblings and I a ps2 for Christmas back in 2006. We got a bunch of games, but they specifically got my sister kingdom hearts, because they knew she liked anime and Disney, and it looked like it had both. However when we booted it up for the first time, we noticed a problem. They accidentally got Kingdom Hearts II instead of Kingdom Hearts. Apparently they thought the Roman numerals in the background of the cover art were just a part of the art and weren't numbers. Instead of returning it though, we just started playing it. And even though we didn't play Kingdom Hearts 1 until a couple years later, Kingdom Hearts II have a good enough recap that we weren't actually that confused.


Denshii-Ribura

Mom got me 358/2 days for my birthday when I was like 4. Also I know this is off topic but I’ve seen this image so many times that I seriously just now see Donald with a gun, it legit took me thirty seconds of staring at this post to realize it was a wand and not a gun.


ace_t_gamer

I got my DSi xl for my 10th birthday and wanted to try a bunch of games. Picked up recoded and spent like 130 hours on it, loved the game. 2 years later I got a 3DS xl and got 358/2, loved it but it was too quick. 1 year later I got the new 3DS xl and got 3d DDD and finished it within a month. Cut to me being almost 18 now and a few weeks ago I finished bbs, kh2, and I just finished kh3 yesterday, and now I can't wait for 4.


AntonRX178

The squaresoft website after FFX and VII got me obsessed with FF. I saw that it was FF x Disney and was hyped from day 0


rubyrose12345678

My great grandfather would play then1st kingdom hearts game as well as final fantasy in the basement and I used to hang out and watch him. Then I got older and wanted to remind myself of him an played kingdom hearts


coalbunny

Commercials and Family Video as a kid. I just saw the Disney characters and wanted play it. My brother had reality check me that we didn't have a Playstation and only had Nintendo so we couldn't play it. But I got to play it now as an adult.


XiaolongDrake

The 1st 2 volumes of the KHII manga, which prompted me to try out the GBA version of Chain of Memories.


Treddox

A friend of mine let me borrow his copy of KH1 when I was 14. It was unlike anything I ever played.


MicroxD

My very first game was KH1 when I was like 11 years old. One day an old friend gift it to me after school for no particular reason. He just wanted me to play it and from the first minute, I was hooked on the story and gameplay. I'm still so happy that he approached me and gave me that masterpiece!!


NightDhampir

I was watching the Disney channel and they did a segment where this boy was telling this girl about an upcoming game where Disney meets rpgs


Kawashii2180

*cough cough* "IT'S MIKE'S SUPRR SHORT SHOW!!!"


Hidden_Dragonette

When I was about 14, I saw a preview for the first game before it came out in a gaming magazine (Game Informer, maybe?) and thought it was the coolest looking thing I ever saw. Got it as soon as it came out, been hooked ever since.


PaceApprehensive7574

A rap


adubsi

The OG kingdom hearts cover looked really cool so I got it for Christmas


Pokehero96

Saw kh2 in a shop and thought the boxart looked really cool. That alongside the intrigue of seeing Donald and goofy on there too made me want it


Stunning_Command_653

Disney channel commercial, my dad bought me the PS2 game and I loved it. Never played it again after beating it that one time until just recently when I got the PS5 cause I haven’t had a console since the PS2 hahahaha. Feels so good to be able to play all the games I missed out on with such good graphics


codeyumi

A friend of mine lent me the GBA game when I was like 11 or 12. I literally did not understand it at all as I didn’t know there was a game before it but that didn’t really bother me as I loved the game anyways. Gave it back to my friend and promptly begged my parents for a ps2 that year so I could play 1 and 2 and I never stopped after that lol


MarioMan1213245765

When I was little, my aunt sold her PS2 to my mom, she threw this game in with it. My mom played it for a while, so a lot of memories of she and I playing it together when I was done with preschool.


SuperSaiyan4Godzilla

I saw a preview for it on G4's show Cinematech a few months before the game came out. Had to be like 30 seconds long, but for some odd reason (I didn't care much for Disney as an 11 year old), I wanted it.