If March is our month of royals, it only makes sense to take you all on a little tour through some of the most interesting (or troublesome) video game kingdoms out there.
We’ll start our journey in Kingdom Hearts — a world of animation and nostalgia and so many black leather belts. The Kingdom Hearts series is a perfect blend of pre-teen angst and childlike wonder. But those are easy feelings to latch onto when you’re adventuring through these worlds from the safety of your PlayStation. If you ever lived in the kingdom of Kingdom Hearts, Disney Castle, and its surrounding worlds, you might have a different perspective.
A lot of Disney Castle’s faults start and end with one person: King Mickey. While King Mickey is a powerful key-wielder, he does often neglect the problems in his kingdom until someone else points them out. Or he gets lost in the realm of darkness. Whether King Mickey is MIA or not, though, the various worlds of Disney Castle’s kingdom are in constant threat from errant villains causing havoc. King Mickey is a far better hero than he is a king. It’s no wonder Sora, Goofy, and Donald always have so much to do.
Now, another problem with Kingdom Hearts is its geography. Or, lack thereof. If you consider the various worlds of Kingdom Hearts part of King Mickey’s kingdom, they’re quite fragmented. Often, when disaster strikes Disney Castle and its surrounding worlds, few will notice before it’s too late. And “too late” often means Heartless or other threats pouring into said surrounding worlds.
Between a somewhat negligent leader and difficult infrastructure, Disney Castle and its kingdoms would not be as fun to live in as they are to adventure. Visiting these worlds as a tourist — much like the IRL Disney World — is probably your best way to enjoy these kingdoms to the fullest.
But if you see a single Heartless and don’t have a keyblade ready, you better skedaddle. Quick.
