Should "Cure" be introduced earlier in future games?

Playing through the first few hours/levels of KH games were kind of cumbersome, because you don't have your Cure spell yet. Sure, you can rely on potions (or, God forbid, Donald), but starting out, you usually don't have a lot of munny to spend on a good amount of potions. This made the game challenging, but almost inaccessibly so for a newcomer to the series.

On the other hand, introducing the Cure spell later in the game helps the player hone their skills and not make them rely on a crutch such as Cure.

So, what do you guys think? Should SE introduce Cure earlier in future games, or leave it as is?

 

I think it's fine as is.

Also, don't you dare insult Donald, because he's awesome, especially in Kingdom Hearts II, where he comes with Donald Thunder and Donald Cure right off the bat. Unlike the first game, he doesn't learn spells when Sora does. :P

 

Playing without Cure is definitely a bother for someone who has played the games before, but I think there's something to be said for delaying its availability. Kingdom Hearts games can be pretty easy, so lacking the Cure spell creates some kind of difficulty threshold for the first part of the game. You learn about dodging and blocking attacks early on because a few hits can take you out. You have to manage both your inventory of potions & elixirs. They're skills that are important even after learning Cure, but giving Cure too early wouldn't encourage honing them.

Not only that, but it's important to incrementally unlock abilities. A lot of people wonder at how they'll set Sora back to the beginnings in terms of fighting/abilities in Kingdom Hearts 3, given that he's a pretty seasoned fighter and magician at this point. Even if it's not explained well or at all, letting the player try different play styles and feel they are evolving through the game is really important to the gaming experience.

 

yes, if its on beginner mode. beginner mode is supposed to have "crutches" like that. as the difficulty gets harder and harder, it should take longer for cure to show up, or maybe more mana to do so (if the game supports mana, that is)

 

Well the way they used it in kingdom hearts 2 was good, in kingdom hearts 1 you could use it multiple times and heal multiple people without using up your MP bar which made it far too easy. Kingdom hearts 2 itself is pretty easy though but when it comes to the cure spell it's really a last resort if you're in a tight spot and both allies are down. But for adding it earlier, I'd say it would depend on difficulty for when you'd like to obtain it. or make it a player choice thing where the player decides what spell they want when it comes to unlocking a spell.

 

That would be interesting! Sort of like in CoM, where you could choose to upgrade HP, CP, or sleights upon leveling up. It'd be a neat mechanic to allow more customization, e.g. someone who is a heavy magic user doesn't need much attack power, so they'd focus their level ups on magic power.

 

I like the choosing which spell you unlock one as well. I tend to rush into battles and button mash Attack until the enemy is down, so I tend to lose a lot of HP each battle. Maybe make Cure a bit more difficult to unlock though, ike gaining a certain amount of points everytime you level up and not spending them when you first can allows you to spend them later when you need a better spell i.e.: get to Level 12, don't choose a spell, get to Level 13, don't choose a spell, get to Level 14, have all the points you need to get Cure or Magnet or Reflect. And of course, you can't get a higher end spell (Fira) unless you get the basic spell (Fire). The same could work with abilities. So someone who doesn't use magic much could spend all of their points on abilities instead of magic.

 

Reasons of economy. As was said numerous times in the thread, introducing Cure and associated spells at a later time allows the player to develop on other methods of HP management, whether it is inventory organization or simple dodging/movement, that arguably are less MP-dependent and could retain it as needed for more offensive uses. However, I do like the idea of Cure's introduction being dependent on the difficulty level, along with magic acquisition customization. More than anything, it may indeed be nicest if the game fit its introduction with the level at which the player felt comfortable.