Kingdom Hearts 10 year Anniversary Contest {Non-Fiction}

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Hey people! here's the entry thread for the Non-Fiction Writing Contest. So basically, here you will POST YOUR WRITTEN PIECES. Show me HOW MUCH Kingdom Hearts means to YOU!

Now, so you don't have to trek back to the Community News Forum...here's the requirements and rules:

Spoiler

We would like you to write about how the Kingdom Hearts series affected you and why you still enjoy it today, despite ten years passing between the original release and now. For example, you could write about how it has affected your views on friendship; would you go through the same trials Sora did for his friends? Or perhaps how the characters themselves have affected you, or why one character is your favorite. It doesn’t have to be an essay, but at least try to make it a few paragraphs. Submissions like “I like Axel because he’s hot” will not be accepted.

• MUST be related to in-universe - that means no original characters or anything like that.
• Must be appropriate as per KHV's rules.
• DO NOT take someone else's writing and claim it as your own. We will check, should we find this happens you will be disqualified.

Examples:
(thank you Plumz)

That is all. You have until NOVEMBER 2nd to turn in your piece.

For those who partake and win we have ~special~ things planned. So stay tuned, my dear writers~

 

My first jump into Kingdom Hearts started with the original game, but in a little different fashion than most fans. I was introduced to it on Youtube. Yes, my KH experience began only a few years ago when my sister showed me the opening to KH1. I was immediately awed by the professionalism of the voice acting. From there, Riku grabbed my attention, and overall the whole cutscene confused, yet interested me. And, that was only the beginning…
So, what is it about KH that is so special? That is not easy to explain. Part of the specialty must be thanks to Disney. There is just something so magical about Disney, and anyone can feel that if they visit the theme parks or watch the movies. But, Square Enix can not be ignored. Their brilliant games are truly responsible for the great characters and plot of KH. I know that ever since KH, I and my sister have been watching a lot of Disney--and appreciating it more and more.
As a writer, I am especially attracted to KH for its story and plot. Those games have given me so much inspiration for my own writing, and for that I am grateful. The characters of KH reminded me of the characters in my stories, giving the games a sense of familiarity for me.
One of the points I appreciate about Kingdom Hearts is the relationship of the characters. Sora, as well as others, exhibit such a positive concept of helping those in need. I also love how the characters will just break out laughing with each other. Its such a perfect image of friendship. My sister and I relate to Sora and Riku in their friendship, (especially at the end of KH2 or DDD). One of the greatest things is being able to see yourself or your friends in characters.
As a Christian, I appreciate the concepts of fighting against darkness and standing for light. Doing what is right is what any person should strive to do. When me and my sister went to a convention dressed up as Xion and Riku, we entered the costume contest, and one of the judges told us, “Good luck fighting the darkness!” It was uplifting, because it was applicable.
For me, one of the greatest influences of KH is Final Fantasy’s Cloud Strife. When I first “met” him in KH1, I liked him because he was cool and reminded me of my own characters. In KH2, he took on a change. His struggle with darkness was more focused on, and anyone who struggles with guilt or their past can relate to him. I struggle sometimes with the inability to let things go, and my sister even called me “Miss Strife,” because of that. So, he is, in a sense, a “fellow-sufferer” for some people. But even Cloud overcomes his past.
It is truly hard to summarize the impact of Kingdom Hearts into a few paragraphs. The magic of the games reaches people of all ages. All I know is that I am glad that I did not skip this series. I would definitely be missing out.

 

I’m going to start by saying this, a few paragraphs won’t be enough to say how I feel about Kingdom Hearts but I give it a try. For me KH is my favorite game and I mean in every possible way you could imaging, the story, the characters, the music, the environment, every little detail in my opinion is perfect. I’ll be lying if I didn't say that KH has changed how I am as a person. The way a look at my friends now is not the same I did 10 years ago, it shows me to be a better person and how a real friend should really be. I will have to say that my favorite character is Sora, Why? Well because for Sora, nothing is more important that the friendship that he has with his friends Kairi, Riku later on Donald, Goofy, King Mickey, Namine and so on. He will risk it all to make sure that all of them are saved. He did not hesitate to use the keyblade on himself in order to save Kairi when her heart was taken away by the heartless and become a heartless himself or everything he has to endure to try and rescue Riku from Ansem. I would say that one of the best moment that shows Sora’s real commitment to friendship was in Chain of Memories, when he decide to save Namine from the Organization even knowing that everything was a lie and that he never knew her in first place, but that didn't matter to him because his heart really believed that the promise was real. My friends are always there for me when I need them and I’m always there for them, that why my connection with them and the game is so strong.

Would I go through the same as Sora did?, of course I would. KH show me that friendship is worth fighting for, no matter how many obstacles are on the way. The way this game is put together has changed the life of thousands of peoples as it did to me. Ten years has pass and kingdom Hearts is still my number 1 and it will be for years to come. Can wait to find out what in stores for my friends in the future, what new adventures they embark, but I’ll be sure to be there every step of the way helping in any way I can. As I’m writing this, the soundtrack of the game is playing and it help me inspire myself to write what really this means to me, so what do you guys think?, KH Forever?, For me I guess you know the answer.

 

5 Lessons that Kingdom Hearts Has Taught Me

There’s a special something about Kingdom Hearts. For years I’ve tried to put my finger on the definition of this something, but I’ve never come up with a satisfying answer. One thing I know for sure is that—personally—no other video game franchise has been so influential and thought-provoking as this one. A deceptive depth underlies its simplistic, Disney-esque feel. Its characters have grown on me—and almost grown up with me—to the point where I regard them as “old friends.” The lessons I’ve learned from this franchise as a whole can’t all be listed here, but I’d like to highlight some of them, none-the-less. They have touched my life and influenced my convictions, and for that I believe they deserve recognition.



Lesson 1: Even Nobodys are Somebodys
I want to highlight Xion in particular for this point. Xion’s story is easily the most heart-breaking in the franchise. She comes into existence as nothing more than a tool to further the Organization’s schemes. In the most literal sense of the word, Xion is a true “nobody”—a being who never really existed at all—just a physical embodiment of Sora’s memories.

And yet Xion makes an impact on those closest to her—Roxas and Axel. These three form an unbreakable friendship—so strong, in fact, that Xion is willing to sacrifice her existence in order to see it protected.

One of the most misunderstood scenes in 368/2 Days shows Roxas cradling a dying Xion. Just before her death, Roxas gasps out, “No! Xion… who else will I have icecream with?” Fans often joke about the naivety of this line, not realizing just how powerful it is. Xion has made such an impression on Roxas that, without her, Roxas can see only an empty hole in his life. Those simple memories of sharing icecream together on the clocktower have become more important to Roxas than anything else—his accomplishments, his standing in the Organization, even the truth about his existence, perhaps. After all, it was Xion that encouraged him to find the truth behind his unanswered questions. With her death, that encouragement has also ceased to exist.

And yet, even whilst dormant in Roxas’ memories, Xion still manages to influence him. During Roxas’ final battle with Riku, Xion telepathically interacts with both combatants, ultimately setting her friend on a path to rejoining Sora and discovering his ultimate purpose. In the end, Xion lives on—in the heart of Roxas, which is truly the heart of Sora. Her influence helps to shape Roxas and grow him as a person. In this way, Xion is far more than a collection of embodied memories. She had more “heart” than most of the Organization. Her memory will forever linger in the mind of the one person that was closest to her.

All that to say this: I find Xion highly inspirational. She stands out from the cast because she proves a powerful point—that everybody has a purpose… even if it seems that that individual was “never meant to be” or “never should have been.” Without Xion, Roxas would have probably never struck out on his destiny to rejoin Sora, and Axel may have developed in a dramatically different light—one that did not expand his heart and emotions quite so much.


Lesson 2: Your Past is not Your Future
From the moment that Riku discovers the Darkness, he sets himself on a shadowy path to redemption. He stumbles between the Light that is his friends and the Darkness that lies buried in his heart. His personal journey is filled with self-regret, anger, and mistakes, and yet Riku never lets himself give up on reestablishing himself as a true friend to Sora and Kairi.

Looking at the latest installment in the series, Dream Drop Distance, it’s incredible to see Riku’s unwavering dedication to his friends—especially near the end, in which he takes up the Keyblade and goes to Sora’s aid. Looking at Riku’s early years, in which he openly humiliated, and even turned his Keyblade against, Sora, it’s difficult to believe that he’s even the same character.

It’s obvious that Riku has regrets about tampering with the Darkness, but he accepts his past and moves on. By the end of the Mark of Mastery exam, Riku realizes that his future doesn’t have to reflect his past. Does he still struggle with Darkness? Of course. Xehanort’s Heartless seems to haunt his every step, and yet Riku acknowledges this as his personal demon and grows stronger each time he does battle with it. His heart eventually becomes so powerful that when Xehanort’s Heartless approaches him for the final time, Riku is able to ward him off, simply by raising his Keyblade. In the end, his mistakes and his painful road to redemption give him a quiet strength that even Sora cannot understand, having never gone through the same experiences.

Riku is my favorite character for this very reason—he is relatable. I’m sure that, like me, a lot of fans look to him as a beacon of hope—that no matter the opposition, it can be overcome; no matter what the past holds, it does not have to dictate the future. Each day is a new opportunity to set things right. Each opportunity is a challenge to grow. Each growing pain makes you stronger as an individual.


Lesson 3: Trust Until Given Reason to Doubt
Sora’s name has all but become synonymous with naivety, and yet a closer inspection of his seemingly reckless behavior reveals something much deeper beneath the surface: trust. No matter who Sora encounters—whether it be angsty Neku or imperiled Alice—his automatic response is always either: “Can I help?” or “Let’s be friends!” Sometimes it’s both. In the same mouthful.

This default trust is shocking, especially when you consider the amount of deception that Sora has encountered in his lifetime. In Kingdom Hearts, Riku—his best friend—betrays and fights against him. In Chain of Memories, Sora learns that Namine has been deceiving him all along, and yet he still chooses to protect her at the risk of his memory being lost. Unlike Roxas, who experienced similar deceptions his entire life, Sora never loses his faith in others. I believe that the answer to this miraculous trust lies in the fact that Sora holds deep-rooted friendships with those that he meets. He stands on a belief that a true friend is someone that you can trust unconditionally—and accept unconditionally. In that light, Sora finds it easy to trust and even easier to forgive a fault.

It is because of characters like Sora that I’ve begun to give others more trust and more benefit of the doubt. I hold a faith in my friends that says, “I trust you because you’ve never given me reason to doubt.” But, like Sora, I also understand that we are all imperfect human-beings. Forgiveness is a necessary ingredient, and it is certainly the fastest way to mend a broken or strained relationship.


Lesson 4: Love is the Strongest Weapon of All
Kingdom Hearts is full of love, although if you’re searching for it in a romantic sense, you’ll be looking in all the wrong places. Let me clear up my definition of love in order to explain this point. By my definition of love, I mean a selfless, unconditional, accepting love—not a boyfriend/girlfriend romancey-kind-of love. In Kingdom Hearts, this kind of love fills the game. When Sora proclaims that, “I don’t need a weapon. My friends are my power!” he’s speaking of this unbreakable bond of love that he shares with them. Sora realizes, long before any other characters does, that the power of love is stronger than the Keyblade itself. Through his concern—his love—for his friends, Sora is able to heal the mental and emotional wounds of many characters, and even aid in the redemption of Axel and Riku. Though a mighty weapon, the Keyblade could never perform such acts.

The power of love presents itself in the father/son relationship that exists between Terra and Master Eraqus in Birth by Sleep. Although we are told little about either characters’ pasts, it is quite clear that Terra views the Master as his own father, even going so far as to call him such during his final battle with Xehanort. Perhaps Terra was an orphan, brought in—like Ventus—to Eraqus’ care when he was young. Whatever the terms of their first meeting, the results were magnetic.

Unfortunately, Eraqus suffered from excessive worry and lack of trust, having been betrayed by his friend Xehanort in the past. This fear leads to his strict aversion of Darkness and an almost scrutinizing surveillance of Terra the moment that his pupil shows outer signs of his inner Darkness. Though his love for Terra never comes into question, Eraqus’ fears eventually lead to a severe misunderstanding and a deadly Keyblade battle with Terra, in which Eraqus is mortally wounded. As the Master’s life fades away, a strange phenomenon occurs. Both Terra and Eraqus simultaneously come to terms with each other, recognizing their personal faults and silently asking the others’ forgiveness.

After Terra’s own demise at the hands of Xehanort, his heart proves stronger than the evil one thought possible. It soon becomes apparent that someone new is residing in the former pupil’s heart—Master Eraqus. Even in death—even in the face of personal failure—Terra and Eraqus never lose the love that they have for each other. It is this act of love that gives Terra the strength to face years of helplessness, imprisoned in the confines of Xehanort’s dark existence.

“I'm not afraid of what the darkness holds now. Even if you do wrest control of my heart from me--even if you cast me into the deepest, darkest abyss--you'll never sway me from the one cause that pushes me to keep on fighting. Whatever the cost, I'm ready to pay it.”

With those words—and only the spirit of his beloved Master to guide him—Terra prepares for the battle ahead. He knows that he can win. The power of love has shown him that.

I am a strong believer in “overcoming evil with good” through the power of love, and Kingdom Hearts has served to reinforce this theory in my mind. No matter the fault and no matter the wound, love cures and makes right. Even the most wicked evils do not stand a chance in the face of it.


Lesson 5: We Are All a Part of Each Other
I thought it would be appropriate to close with this point, as it is one of the strongest underlying themes of the series: we are all a part of each other, and together we form something greater. “The three of us will always be one,” says Aqua, and even when she, Ventus, and Terra, are separated by death, Darkness, and deception, they never lose sight of this belief.

Sora sums it up in a climatic pre-battle speech with his best friend Riku: “Although my heart may be weak, it’s not alone. It’s grown with each new experience, and it’s found a home with all the friends I’ve made. I’ve become a part of their heart just as they’ve become a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then… If they don’t forget me… Then our hearts will be one.”

This network of friends—linked through the power of love—leads to one individual sharing hearts with many others. In this way, nobody is an island unto themselves. With each contact made, a piece of one individual forever connects with another—influencing him, healing him, or harming him. When hearts grow strong, they form legacies, and those legacies keep friends and memories eternally alive. Axel Lea had a thing or two to say about this topic in Birth by Sleep, “I want everybody I meet to remember me. Inside people's memories, I can live forever.”

This undying legacy creates a sort of immortality for the individual. It gives him purpose and assures him that—even in the most trying of times—he or she is never alone. The minds and hearts of his friends are ever with him, and, because of that, he has nothing to fear. In almost every Kingdom Hearts game, the main characters become separated from each other—forcefully or otherwise—for an extended period of time. Yet, throughout this separation, they never forget that they are together in spirit. Sora first realizes this after his reunion with Kairi, “I looked everywhere for you, but you were with me all along,” he says.

For me, this has served as a reminder to influence carefully. With each contact I make, I am—in some way—shaping each person I meet, and I want to shape them (or become a part of them) in only a positive way. Understanding this concept brings a huge responsibility into focus. I can say with certainty that Kingdom Hearts has given me a lot to chew on in this particular area.

More importantly though, I have been reminded that I’m never truly alone. I have people and friends who I have impressed and been impressed upon… People who care about me and want the best for me. People that I can open my heart to, or simply sit on a clocktower and eat some Seasalt icecream alongside. It’s a good feeling, and it’s truly comforting to know that you’ve made a difference in someone’s life, just because you were in it.


Closing
I feel like I could expand this list forever. Kingdom Hearts has been a major part of my inner influence map, and it’s prominence only grows with each new installment to the series. I owe this franchise for a lot of things—expanding my creativity, getting me into Disney, introducing me to an amazing story filled with vibrant characters…

…But most of all, perhaps, I owe Kingdom Hearts for simply being a part of my life. It’s taught me lessons about friendship, purpose, destiny, and love that I will never forget.

 

I wrote this at the beginning of all the Anniversary contests, but I was hesitant to post it for reasons better left unsaid.​

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This is very serious for me, please take it seriously.​

Spoiler: Anniversary Writing

“It's just a game.”

If you want to get on my bad side, you will say something like this to me. Nothing is ever “just a book/movie/game/story” because you have immersed yourself within its world, so much so that it has almost become a part of you. In the end, your mind has interacted with the story, the characters, the world. You have thought of all these things, you have imagined them, so it is never just a story.

About six years ago, when I was twelve, my dad and I were at a GameStop, and this was when he still bought games for our PS2, and he was the only one who played it. While he was looking for something to buy, I saw the Kingdom Hearts II game, and picked up; I told my dad that I had been "meaning to play it", when I had seen the first Kingdom Hearts just a few years before.

During this time, I had only played games that were for the GameCube, the Nintendo 64, and my GameBoy Color. To be honest, I was scared of playing the PS2 because of the types of games my dad played, which were games like Call of Duty, Medal of Honor, Half-Life, Devil May Cry, and others similar. I hadn't thought that I could play any games on the PS2 because they might have been too hard for me.

My freshman year of high school, it was around Christmas time, I went to GameStop again (don't misunderstand, I took many, many visits to GameStop in between the times). It was decided that I should stop being such a wimp about playing the PS2, and so I grabbed the first Kingdom Hearts.

Like usual, when I came home, I immediately started playing the game; the beginning mesmerized me and the opening sequence graphics were amazing – I had, very silly of me, I might add, thought that the rest of the game would look like that, but to my surprise and slight disappointment, it didn't. Still, it looked great; however, the part where Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka ask you the questions freaked me out a little, I almost stopping playing it. Also, I think I had a bit of trouble fighting the first Darkside, but it ended up being easy enough.

Just a few days after I had gotten the game, I beat it; It was a Saturday after Christmas, and I cried when Riku got stuck behind the Door to Darkness. I usually cry at the end of video games (not so much anymore), so I digress.

After that, I had gone on to play the rest of the series in this order: Kingdom Hearts II, Re:Chain of Memories, 358/2 Days, Kingdom Hearts II, Re:Chain of Memories, Birth By Sleep, Kingdom Hearts II, Re:Coded, Birth By Sleep, and then Dream Drop Distance. If you can't tell, I had . . . issues with Kingdom Hearts II and Re:Chain of Memories. Goddamned cards.

To me, Kingdom Hearts is more than just a story, just a game, it's a big part of my life for a few reasons. There was a time when things were bad in my life and I had more problems than your average adult or teenager. I grew a sort of obsession, addiction to Kingdom Hearts, and it was more than just wanting memorabilia of it, having the plushies and figures and all that goes with that, it was wanting to be in the world, actually interact with the characters. Be a part of the cast.

To someone outside of my mind, outside of my world, to anyone who isn't me, this sounds normal, but it was more than just wanting into that world, it was wanting it so badly that I was willing to die for it.

When I had talked to . . . professionals about this, they said it was due to all the events that had taken place in my life, that I wanted it as an escape, and I think that was true enough, but I was in denial about it. A fantasy world where it was good versus evil with a key that was also a sword sounded like a much better deal than my life.

This obsession hadn't grown until I was about fourteen or fifteen. I had just gotten out of a rehabilitation/psychiatric asylum in which I was in for some things I'd rather not mention here, and life after I left hadn't gotten much better than what it was before. My parents didn't get along, my mother was stressed due to my sister not behaving, my family was all in an uproar about things that had happened out of the country, and I had school to worry about, and about what all of my school mates would think of me.

The real world just wasn't my bag. I didn't like it, didn't want it, not a single part of it. I wanted to fall asleep and never wake up. It wasn't like Kingdom Hearts could have me do that, but the universe of it was so imaginative, intricate, things would move in a direction I liked, it was the first thing I turned to. It just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is all to say that it could have been anything else, for you see, I liked Naruto at the time and some other things, so it could not have just been Kingdom Hearts.

It had been a few years, and I had still had issues with it into my junior year of high school.

Someone who isn't me might think that it's of a humorous nature that Kingdom Hearts has affected me like this. There were times when I would think of it, and it would make me cry; I would run to my room, slam my door and collapse on the floor, crying so hard, wishing that I wasn't obsessed. It hurt a lot. I don't know what I had been waiting for, I wanted someone to tell me something, anything that would help me. I have no idea what it was, but I knew that if they told me, if someone, anyone told me what I was waiting to hear, everything would be fine. I would be okay again.

Suffice to say, it never came.

Eventually, it stopped. One day, I just wasn't thinking about it, I had a mote of dust fly across my vision and it was as if the past years of my life with the obsession melted away. It was after that I realized that I had been bombarded with other things that were more important that I just couldn't keep up with both of them, so I just subconsciously choose which issue was more important.

I love Kingdom Hearts now, and am able to enjoy it thoroughly without having to worry about my mind reeling on the thoughts of being in the universe of aforementioned game. It seems that, from the previous narrative, nothing good has come out of the series and games for me, but that's not true in the slightest; without Kingdom Hearts, and maybe even the obsession, I would have never joined KH-Vids, I would have never met people who would become my friends today, probably never would have felt that I belonged somewhere.

Kingdom Hearts is more than just a game, really, I pretty much owe my life to it.

 

Deadline has passed.

_LOCKED