For reference, the Naminé I dubbed as being Emo Naminé was the "real" one. The second one, whatever the hell that thing was, never comes up again. Definitely annoying and it's not much of a plot hole, in essence, but it does make you wonder where it came from.

Sora: It's not you. The person most special to me - it's not you.
Naminé: No. The girl you care about... the one who was always with you... It's not me. It's her.
Sora: But...who is she? I just... I can't think of her name. If she's so special to me, why can't I remember?



You just know this is going to end well, don't you?

Repliku: Your memory is a train wreck. You're not the one who's meant to protect Naminé - I AM! But you and your messed up memories always get in the way!



So, uh, Repliku Round IV.



Not much harder than the previous fight... it's actually a hell of a lot harder than the previous fight. Hook is essentially a hard fight because of the area and being dickish for a world boss. Repliku IV is the first genuinely hard fight. It doesn't seem that difficult... because I never left him actually perform Dark Aura. If he performs that move, you're dead. If you have the highest max HP possible you're going to be left in a position where one hit will kill you if you don't heal right away. And he's a lot faster than you. Nothing else he can do is any different to before, other than his Sleight Lock enemy card effect (which you get from winning this fight, incidentally). Sleight Lock is probably one of the better effects, so it's a shame you get it so late; it prevents you from losing the first card used in a Sleight. Shame it's effect is highly limited, but it's still damn awesome.

And, yes, the acquisition of the Riku card means we will never have to fight this bugger again. So that's a very good thing to come out of this.

Note: Straight after this fight is a VERY good time to switch your deck around; you get a chance between the end of this fight and the start of the next cutscene to do this. Also, you can head back and save if you need to (no need to heal though). You'll probably want to, depending on how likely you are to ragequit as well. Most important of all is to remove any Thunder element cards you have. Why? Oh you'll see... There'll also be a really, really large exposition dump. Forewarning etc.



Until you approach Naminé and Repliku, the next scene won't trigger.



Repliku: Want some more?



It's not easy to tell from here, but Repliku punted Sora across the entire room. With his sword. How the hell Sora didn't just sliced open by the thing is just video game logic, so roll with it.




Repliku: Looks like I win.
Naminé: Stop! Riku, no!
Repliku: You're through, you fake!
Naminé: I said, STOP!




Wow, that, uh, looks... pretty bad. If this wasn't a Disney game he mi- oh, wait, Vexen. Yeah. he's pretty dead then. Probably.

Sora: R-Riku...? Riku! RIKU! What did you do? What did you do to Riku?



Ugh, we just had a boss fight. I get the whole point of tying up loose ends and blah, blah, blah, but this just screams of poor pacing. And, yes, fighting Larxene here is going to happen.

Sora: Smashed?! But that means he's...he's...
Larxene: Ah ha ha! You're so much fun to watch. If it's Riku you're worried about, then worry no longer. Riku was never here.
Sora: What do you mean?
Larxene: You want me to tell you? Gee, I don't know... I just HATE spoilers...

It's hardly a spoiler if it was established ages ago. Just sayin'.

Sora: Quit playing games!
Larxene: All right, have it your way. It'll kill you to hear this - but I can live with that. That thing lying there is a puppet Vexen made. Nothing more than a toy. It's laughable, really. It called you a fake, but IT was the fabrication all along. It was only finished recently. And without any past, how could it remember anything? Its memories with Naminé were planted, not real. All this time, it's been picking fights with you over bogus memories. Isn't that right, Naminé? Behind that cute little face, you do some awful things. Messing with peoples memories is all she's good at. She steps into people's hearts and rearranges their memory. If she wants, she can even draw new memories of things that never even happened. The girl you've been dying to protect...is a manipulative witch who shackles people's hearts with phony memories!
Sora: Then my memory...Everything I remember...it's...
Larxene: Lies, lies. All lies! An illusion Naminé made! Binding you in the chains of your own memory was central to our trap. It makes me tingle to think how easily you were duped. This was our chance to make the Keyblade master our puppet! We nearly had you... But that jerk Axel used Naminé to wreck everything. HE BETRAYED US!
Sora: You'll pay...

As talkative as Larxene has been, it gets better. I swear, she pretty much refuses to shut up at this point. It's annoying actually.



Larxene: Excuse me? It's a little late to grow a conscience, witch. Last I checked, YOU'RE the one who got him into this mess. I should tell you that I am in an EXTREMELY foul mood. Thanks to you, all our plans are toast!



As cathartic as seeing someone finally hit that whiny bitch is, I'm just sort of disappointed that the person who did it would smack someone across the face anyway. For kicks at that.

Sora: Naminé!
Larxene: What, what, what? Do I detect DISTRESS? You don't even know her!
Sora: Maybe not. But I still made a promise. I promised Naminé I'd keep her safe. Maybe my memories are fake. But they're still mine, and I'm gonna be true to them.
Larxene: What an idiot! There is no promise, there never was! YOU ARE DELUSIONAL! Must you insist on playing the hero? Oh, whatever. It's your funeral. Nighty-night, you sham!

Intravit deus ex machina.





This scene couldn't be more asssaving if it tried. It's just so completely contrived and ever-so-convenient.

Sora: Donald! Goofy! You came back?
Goofy: Of course we came back. We were worried about you!
Donald: We weren't about to let you have all the fun yourself!
Goofy: Right! It's always been the three of us...
Donald: ...And it always will be! Got it, Larxene?



At least this fight has a bloody damn good set up.

Larxene Redux



Like the Repliku IV fight, this one can actually be kinda hard. It's not for any massively bullshit reason, though; she's just more durable and can hit harder in general. This fight is basically just a rehash of the first fight with her but with more HP and that's pretty much it. She's fast, strong (even stronger with the Yellow Rhapsody card... but you can reduce the damage she deals with Hook's card since it makes you resistant to thunder) and can stunlock you more often. Oh and she can use the completely useless Dash effect. Which is granted by her card. I think it's supposed to be used in multiplayer or something, but it seems like it would be completely useless there as well. Unless your opponent is using a deck based entirely on the thunder element, because they're stupid or something, since the card makes you immune to that element completely.



If someone loses to a bunch of losers, doesn't that make them the biggest loser of all? Or perhaps they're just more of a loser than the combined forces of the bunch of losers? But then wouldn't those bunch of losers have a huge lose factor as well?

...Better question: why am I thinking this hard about it?

And, yeah, Larxene just dies here. She just disappears.



Goofy: Gawrsh, you must be Naminé! We're friends of Sora, I'm -
Naminé: Goofy, I know. And this is Donald.

It's kind of obvious how she knows this; she did go into their memories to mess around with them after all.

Goofy: Congratulations, Sora! You finally found your friend.
Jiminy: Hmm, where to begin...Naminé, I know it's not east, but could you tell us what's going on?
Naminé: I don't mind. It's my fault, after all. I took the people and memories in Sora's heart...and little by little replaced them with false memories that I made.
Donald: So the promise Sora made to keep you safe...
Naminé: It was all a lie. Sora never promised me anything. Me being on the islands - that was a lie, too. This is our first meeting. I was never Sora's friend...
Jiminy: So you're the reason the rest of us lost our memories, too. Can we ever get them back?
Naminé: If we go to the thirtheenth floor I can fix everything. But Marluxia...
Jiminy: Is that the person who made you tamper with our memories?
Naminé: He said he'd keep me locked away in this castle, forever, if I didn't obey. I've been alone for so long...

Okay, this is getting emo again. I'm still waiting for that non-angst related RPG. Maybe Final Fantasy XIII? Pfft, I doubt it.

Sora: Please don't cry... Look... I'm not happy about you screwing around with my memories. But you know, I can't really get mad at you, either. These memories that you gave me... In my head I know they're lies, but still... they feel right. Like my promise. I said I'd protect you... that I wouldn't make you cry... So if you cry now, I feel guilty. Like I let you down somehow. So please...don't cry. Don't apologize. Until I get my memory back, smile, laugh, be happy. It's easier on me that way.
Donald: Goofy, don't you think he's laying it on a bit thick?
Goofy: I don't know. Sora's always like this around girls, a-hyuck!
Naminé: Hee hee...
Sora: There! That's it! That's the Naminé I remember. I used to really like it when you smiled. I mean, in my fake memory. But what I'm feeling now isn't fake. It's real.
Naminé: That's sweet, Sora.
Sora: Well, we've still got work to do.
Goofy: Marluxia is up there, so you better stay here, Naminé.
Sora: Goofy's right. Could you look after Riku after me? We'll come get you after this is over.




Oblivion is the best keyblade card that can be acquired in a single playthrough, and without going out of your way with either a Key to Rewards or actually getting something that isnt the Elixir in Hundred Acre Woods, it's the only keyblade card you'll acquire that has an element other than Physical; it has Neutral. It's rather slow, but it deals the most damage per hit, making it useful in short fights but detrimental in longer fights.

Next time: The End?

So, here we are. The thirteenth floor. The final battle is at hand...



Sora: It's no use. I only remember Naminé. Do either of you remember anything?
Donald: No, nothing. I think Goofy and I are supposed to be looking for someone important, too. But I can't remember... Um...you know, I'm just a teeny-weeny bit...scared.
Goofy: Then let's make a promise! What you said back there got me thinking. It's easier to face the scary stuff when you've got a promise to keep!
Sora: So it's like...courage.
Donald: That's a great idea! So...what should we promise?
Goofy: That's easy! No matter what happens - even if we end up far apart or forget each other.
Sora: All for one, one for all.
Donald: And that's a promise!



Trinity; a better name would be Nuke. Because that's what it is. It oneshots every regular enemy in the battle at the time of its use. It's easy to get to use in battle but it's also annoyingly random, since it requires an attack card, a Goofy and a Donald. The latter two can be in any order so long as the attack card is first.



Floor 13 is Castle Oblivion itself. Was there any doubt?

Enemy wise, it's exactly the same as Hollow Bastion, but with one new addition...



Neoshadows. Just like regular Shadows, only stronger, faster and deadlier (and by deadlier I mean they can use anything from a 2 to an 8 in card value). They can sink into the ground as well but due to their size they can be hit out of the animation rendering it pointless.

There is, however, one more regular Heartless that has not been encountered yet. It can be found on any floor, you just need to enter the right room... The White Room.



Meet the White Mushrrom. The final heartless; the only one that's got a gimmick. You don't kill it. It doesn't attack. What do you do then? You cast magic at it. Three spells, is all it takes. You have to cast the right one, though, other wise it will run away in annoyance. Hit it normally, and it will also run away. It is invincible during the animation prior to retreating. So how do you know what spell to cast? It has three animations (more in the original Kingdom Hearts though) which determine the spell;

Shivering - Fire
Fanning itself - Blizzard
Lightbulb above its head - Thunder

Use three correct spells and you've beaten it. The rewards? A mediocre amount of experience and a guaranteed premium bonus. Definitely not worth it.

About four rooms in...




Shit's getting serious.

About ten rooms in...




You just know your organisation/company/whatever is in turmoil when a traitor bitches at someone for betraying them and not actually being a traitor.

Axel: Traitor? I don't know what you're talking about.
Marluxia: Why did you let her go? You and your cursed meddling! He was ours! The Keyblade master could have been our slave!
Axel: Right, your big plan. You use Naminé to rewrite Sora's memory piece by piece He becomes her puppet. Then, using Naminé and Sora, you and Larxene othertrow the Organization. Did I get it right? 'Cause that would make YOU the traitor, Marluxia. Not me.
Marluxia: But you eliminated Vexen!
Axel: Yeah, so what? All I did was weed the garden. And I had to be sure you two trusted me.
Marluxia: I see...a double agent. You've been investigating our conspiracy from the start.
Axel: Moving on... I believe you ordered me to "rid us of our traitors."




They can weaken each other and Sora can finish off the victor, I guess. Kind of an anticlimax, but I can't complain about it. Other than it being a huge goddamn anticlimax and all.

Let's interrupt their little quarrel, shall we?



Ordinarily, this door could be a bitch to get into (because of the blue if nothing else), but I grinded upto an infinite supply of useful room cards, so no complaints here.



Axel: You're next, Marluxia. In the name of the Organisation you betrayed, I will annihilate you!
Marluxia: Go ahead then - strike!



Well, that's not very nice. From either of them.

Axel: Think again. Your little mascot can keep you company in the void. Farewell, Marluxia.
Marluxia: Oh, I think not. Are you listening, Sora?



Gotta admit, this was an actually clever move on Marluxia's part. Pretty obvious how it's going to end as well.

Marluxia: Axel is willing to harm Naminé just to get at me! Destroy him!

Then Marly runs like the chickenshit coward he is. He could at least stay to watch Axel get his shit kicked in, but nope.

Axel: Well, Sora, Marluxia made you his puppet after all.
Sora: Never. After I finish you, he's next.
Axel: Hmm... Listen, Sora. We've got more in common than you think. I'd rather not fight you...



Axel Round 2



So, since we last kicked Axel's shit in he's had the entire game to get stronger. How does he manage this? By getting one new sleight (which is either painfully easy to dodge or homes in on you, depending) and being able to use his own enemy card. Doesn't sound like much, does it? Oh it's more than enough. This is usually a sort of hard boss fight, but it was stupidly easy this time... or maybe I'm just misremembering.

Axel's card is actually pretty useful, if you feel like getting hit. It lets you use cards during your staggering animation, that only occurs if you get hit in the first place. I suppose it'd be better suited to multiplayer, than single, but the same problems exist regardless.



Sora: Saving me? What do you mean?
Axel: Sorry... I'd hate to kill the suspense, and if I get erased by you it'll be a problem...later.



So Axel vanishes, never to be seen again.

Time to kick Marluxia's arse, I suppose.



On the way there, I managed to pick up this. Very useful effect; Bio. It slowly reduces the HP of every enemy in the fight. Even bosses. The time it takes to do it, is pretty slow and the damage is minimal (a few HP, like 1/64th of a bar or something, every 5-10 seconds or so), but it's still very useful in its own right.

Like how every between world boss takes place on the floor of the world you've just finished but past the world itself, the next fight is like that. Only this time, you have to manually enter the final room itself. The best thing to do, is make it a Moment's Reprieve for simple reasons. You'll want a save file on this floor, in this world for later no matter what, so might as well make it at the end of the world.




Marluxia: Or, perhaps, I should thank the power of the Keyblade. How I long to make it my own and have the Organisation at my mercy!
Sora: Get real, Marluxia. Let Naminé go!
Marluxia: You cannot win as long as she is in my ahnds. Naminé... Erase Sora's memory!
Naminé: But...if I do that...
Marluxia: Yes. If you uproot the memories you planted...then Sora's heart will collapse and all his memories will be torn asunder. I'd prefer the Keyblade master unmarred...but even a riven heart can be rebuilt with time. Sora will yet be my slave. Do it, Naminé! Obliterate his memory!
Naminé: No. Sora forgave me even though I deceived him. I could never break his heart! I don't care what you do to me. I won't hurt Sora!
Sora: Do what he says! I don't care! Erase my memory! Who am I going to look after if I don't have you? Do it! Erase my memories, break my heart... I'll still have my promise. I'll still protect you! I don't need my memory to take on Marluxia.
Donald: Even if Sora forgets, we won't!
Goofy: All we gotta do is remember for him!
Sora: With everyone else's memories, I can piece my own together again in no time!

Why does this all seem familiar? They're using what they learned twelve floors ago, in Traverse Town, hence the memory resonation part of the plan, to beat the badguy by letting him win. I'm pretty sure I've seen the latter somewhere before, but I can't remember where...

Marluxia: Ignorant fool! If she destroys your memory, you'll be naught but a lifeless shell. Your heart will be unable to feel, to care! Just like that pathetic imitation of Riku.

Oh, yeah, that guy. Shame he's dead now...





This is supposed to be Riku smacking Marluxia with the sword like he did to Sora earlier, but it looks like it glitched out and there's a second Marluxia there wearing some of Riku's attire. Pretty odd.



Sora: Riku!
Repliku: No, not Riku. Just someone's pet project.
Marluxia: But...you're an empty shell! You've been stripped of all you had!
Repliku: What did I ever have? My body and heart are fake. But there's one thing you can't take from me anyway... even if it is a lie! I will protect Naminé. Phantom promise or not, it's MY promise!

And Sora's. Don't forget that.

Marluxia: Know your place! You would chain your heart with false memories? Cast your heart's freedom aside?





(Ansem Retort is awesome and you suck for not reading it. Also it did this joke better than I could have done.)



Marluxia: You cannot defeat me!
Sora: I'M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!

While fighting Marluxia, Sora reaches out to the truth (this fight only has the generic Organisation battle audio and it takes a while since he has 4full HP bars which is more than Darkside)



This fight... this fight is the most fun part of the entire game. No question about it. Unfortunately, it's also stupidly difficult at times, since he only has two sleights... but he also has the Double Sleight effect via his enemy card. His sleights aren't that hard to dodge; Blossom Shower is technically unavoidable since it's a fullscreen attack but by abusing dodge roll invincibility frames (thanks for letting me know about them Veste!) you'll take no damage from it. His other attack, Deathscythe, is very easy to dodge; he'll raise his arm when the attack is about to his and when he does that, wherever you're standing at that point is where the attack will hit, so by using Dodge Roll then you'll take no damage either. His regular attacks, however, are where most of the trouble lies. One of his regular attacks hits you twice, or more depending, and will take out about half of your maximum HP if its still at base (like mine is), another is a sort of easy to dodge area of effect attack... and the other will deal either 50% damage or fucking instant death. Because of this, the best strategy, I've found, is to stock up on 0s and high numbers and (a few cures just in case and preferably an item or two, since you'll likely have a large deck which takes ages to restock the normal way and) just constantly break him to attack. Don't charge head on UNLESS you're using Attack Bracer; he can, and very often will, use sleights of very high numbers. Like, 27 kind of high.

I said a while back that Mimic is only good for one fight after you get it. This is that fight. Double Sleight + Trinity, or Double Sleight + Ragnarok, or Double Sleight + Ars Arcanum... or Double Sleight + Anything that doesn't suck for that matter, is pretty useful in this fight. But it's still pretty risky. And, yes, you get Double Sleight for winning. It's awesome, I recommend using it. Even though it comes too late to be useful for anything but multiplayer (and the final boss).

Still, fun fight. Favourite in the game. Even though it's a better contender for being the hardest fight in the game, over all, at least to me.




Oh come on! I just killed you. That's it. Game's over. Right?

Marluxia: What you destroyed was just an image of me. No more than a petty imitation.
Repliku: So what!



Repliku: Grrr... Another trick.
Sora: The real Marluxia's in there?
Naminé: Yes.
Sora: Whatever's on the other side is powerful... I can feel it.
Goofy: Well then, we'd better hurry up and stop it!
Donald: Let's do this!
Sora: Riku... Keep Naminé safe.

Time to prepare for the final battle. Hey, what's that over there?



Eww, warm? I think I'll pass. (Thanks FighterKnuckles for letting me know about the manga!)



Beyond this door... lies Marluxia. The final battle.



Man, I was born ready. Let's do this thing!



Pfft.... bwahahahahahaha what the hell is that thing?

Beyond the door...



...Lies the final fight...

...And it is a joke (I used Auto-Life out of instinct moreso than anything else; Bio would've been better in hindsight just to speed things up a bit). It has no sleights, no real dangers in card value (aside from the occasional 0) and it's just really, really long. It technically has more than 4 full bars of HP; Marluxia himself has four and the two scythe things which have to be killed first have a bar and a half. Each. (That's 7 in total for those bad at maths.) Attack wise, he does the shockwave thing from before and shoots lasers from decoy things which don't need to die but are really hard to not target because Marluxia suffers from Darkside targetting issues. Only worse, because you need to card break him before you can get a hit or two in. Sleights are pretty much useless since the only ones worth a damn won't hit the bugger, so I dismantled my deck and used exactly 1575 CP (all I had) to create the new one; every attack card with a 9, 8, 7, 6 or 0 I own, three cures (8, 7, 6), two potions (both 9s) and a Hi-potion (a 6, unfortunately), as well as 7-ish enemy cards.

Believe it or not, there is a card reward for winning this fight, and it is awesome. Shame there's nothing worth actually using it on, outside of multiplayer, because there's no super boss to fight. I'll demo it in a bonus update. Probably.



Repliku: I'm not Riku. I'm fake. I can't remember when I was created, or why... All I've got left is you and Naminé. But those memories aren't real...
Goofy: Naminé, can you put Riku's memory back to normal?
Naminé: It...It doesn't work that way.
Repliku: It's all right. Don't worry about me.

Not-Riku starts to walk off, as if nothing ever happened, when...

Sora: Wait! Who cares if someone made you? You have your own heart. Those feelings and memories are yours, and yours alone. They're special!
Repliku: Sora, you're a good person. I don't have to be real to see how real your feelings are. That's good enough for me.



And, now, Fake-Riku just stops existing as far as the plot is concerned. This would be a bad thing... if it wasn't already over. I'm still confused as to why he attacked us on floor 12 and is now helping us on floor 13. He doesn't even have a reason to; we kicked his ass and then Naminé practically killed him. Defeat, in that case, SHOULD NOT EVER result in friendship. That's just bullshit.

Donald: Can you fix our memories, Naminé?
Naminé: Yes. Just because you can't remember something doesn't mean it's gone.
Goofy: What do you mean?
Naminé: Remembering one thing leads to remember another, and another... Your memories are connected, like links in a chain. Those same chains are what anchor us all together. I don't destroy memories; I just take the links apart and rearrange them. You still have all your memories.
Jiminy: So you can put them back together?
Naminé: Yes, but first I have to undo the links I made. Then I have to gather up the memories scattered in your hearts and reconnect them. It will take time. But I think it will work. No, I'll MAKE it work. It's my turn to help you out.
Sora:All right. We're in your hands.
Jiminy: Wait just a second! You said you'd have to undo the links you made. But that means -
Naminé: Yes, Jiminy. You won't be able to recall what happened in this castle.
Sora: Not even you?
Naminé: I'm sorry. It's the only way. You have to choose, Sora. You can lose your memories of this castle and reclaim your old memories...or keep your memories here and give up the memories that you've lost.
Sora: Put me back the way I was.
Naminé: Okay, I understand. Who needs false memories, right? Especially when you have real memories of people who are really important to you. Anyone would say the same.



Either Marluxia had a flower fetish bigger than was displayed, or the person who built this thing had some really... bizarre issues.



Naminé: You'll be fine. It might take a little time, but I'll take care of you.
Goofy: But when we wake up, we won't remember you anymore...
Donald: How are we going to thank you later?
Jiminy: No problem! I'll make a note in my journal: "Thank Naminé."

This note does, indeed, come up when they awaken. It's existence is important for all of one scene, in Kingdom Hearts II, and is then never mentioned again even when they re-meet Naminé.




Sora: Yeah, me too. When I found you... Even when I remembered your name, I was so, so happy. The way I felt was no lie.
Naminé: Goodbye.
Sora: No, not goodbye! I'll find you again after I wake up. And we'll be friends for real. Promise me, Naminé.
Naminé: You'll only forget.
Sora: I won't. Even if you take apart the chain of memories in my heart, the links will stay there. This memory will always be inside me somewhere.
Naminé: I guess you're right. Let's promise, then.
Sora: I'll see you again, Naminé.
Naminé: Sora... The loose links will sink into the darkness in your heart. You won't be able to just reach in and pick the one you want. But there's another promise you made — a promise to someone you could never replace. She's your light. The light within the darkness. If you can remember her...all the memories lost in the shadows of your heart will come into the light.
Sora: Another promise...
Naminé: Look at the good luck charm. I changed its shape when I changed your memory. But when you thought of her, it went back to the way it was. You're remembering...


^ Click for ending. Also credits.

But is that everything?



New title screen! And it looks way better than the first one in my opinion.



The "New Game: Riku" is basically just nothing but plot with some fun fights in it. It also contains the best character in the game, in my opinion. So the question is: do you guys want to see it?

Next Time: Reverse/Rebirth? Bonus content? Who knows! (I certainly don't)

Shadow - Incrementor: Increase card value by 1. Does nothing to 9s.
Soldier - Combo Plus: Adds an extra hit to a combo.
Large Body - Guard: Prevents any Physical damage that hit Sora from infront. Doesn't work on Magic or AoE attacks.
Red Nocturne - Fire Boost: Increases damage by Fire attacks.
Blue Rhapsody - Blizzard Boost: The above for Ice.
Yellow Nocturne - Thunder Boost: The above for Thunder.
Green Requiem - Cure Boost: Cure spells heal more HP.
Powerwild - Retrograde: Reverses card values; 1 become 9s, 2 become 8s etc.
Bouncywild - Draw: All drops, and friend cards, are drawn to Sora.
Air Soldier - Reload Kinesis: Can reload while moving.
Bandit - Combo Finish: Every attack is as powerful as the final hit of a combo.
Fat Bandit - Back Attack: Attacks to the back of enemies deal extra damage.
Barrel Spider - Quickload: Cards reload instantly, like using an item.
Search Ghost - Drain: Regain some HP when attacking physically, but enemies drop less.
Sea Neon - Random Values: Values of all cards are randomised.
Screwdriver - Decrementor: Decease the value of all cards by 1.
Aqua Tank - Auto-Reload: Cards automatically reload when runout. (I erroneously stated this effect applies to Barrel Spider when I originally acquired that.)
Wight Knight - Float: Can jump higher.
Gargoyle - Vanish: Become invisible making it harder to be hit.
Pirate - All Zeroes: Turns the value of every card to 0.
Air Pirate - Item Bracer: Any item cards used cannot be broken.
Darkball - Cardblind: Opponent cannot see the cards in your deck.
Defender - Protect: All physical damage is reduced. Magic damage is not affected.
Wyvern - Reload Lock: The regular reload counter doesn't increase.
Wizard - Magic Boost: Prevent summon card use to increase the effects of magic cards.
Neoshadow - Bio: Slowly reduce the enemies HP.
White Mushroom - Hyper Healing: Regain some HP everytime a friend card is used.
Black Fungus - Random Flush: Randomly use any enemy card effect.
Creeper Plant - Lead Bracer: Cure spells cannot be broken.
Tornado Step - Reload Haste: Reduces the reload counter by 2.
Crescendo - Summon Boost: Same as Wizard, only the other way around.

[img[http://i42.tinypic.com/2hzr43k.gif[/img]

Part 1: A New Beginning



Upon completion of the main game, the title screen changes to this picture of Riku chilling with his sword in hand. It's possible to change the title screen by loading data of either story; loading Sora's data will restore the default title screen until you load Riku's. Simple, no?

What is simple, however, is how Reverse/Rebirth starts. You don't get any flashy FMVs or fancy scenes of any kind. Oh no, Riku forgoes all that stuff, and instead, the game throws you head first into the plot.

I remind you again, that this story spoils Kingdom Hearts 1's ending within the very first cutscene. This is your final warning.



Riku: Where...where am I...

Our hero, folks. Starts the game pretty much unconscious; fortunately, he's far too badass to be phased that much.



?: Here, between light and dark.
Riku: Between...what? The king! Where's the king?! Together we closed the door to darkness, and after that... Grr, why can't I remember?
?: Your king is far away. Sleep, and leave the war with darkness in his hands. The thorny light of awakening will bring only anguish to one in your state. Turn from the light. Shut your eyes.
Riku: You talk like I'm some kind of demon of the dark.
?: Can you face the truth?



?: Here, blanketed by the darkness, sleep is safety. Sleep is eternal.
Riku: Is this...a card?
?: It is a door to the truth.

Guess what world card it is. Go on, guess.

?: Take it, and your sleep ends. Take it, and take the first step toward the truth. But know this: The truth will bring you pain. Will you still go? There can be no returning to the sweet security of sleep.
Riku: Seems like a boring place to take a nap anyway.
?: Well said, Riku.




That's right; it's Hollow Bastion! Unfortunately, this is a rather deadly place to have for the first world. Why? Oh, you'll see.



Riku: Someone must have brought me here while I was sleeping. But who?
?: What you see is not real. It's the world of your memory.
Riku: My memory?

Much like in Sora's story, the world cards are formed from the memories of Kingdom Hearts 1. It makes sense that Riku's first world would be Hollow Bastion, but it's still a dick move.

?: The things you remember of Maleficent's castle from your time there. Those memories became a card, and that card made this world. The things you see — you've seen them all before, haven't you?
Riku: Yeah. So what now? Am I supposed to learn something while I'm here? Maybe run into someone I know?
?: Ordinarily...yes. You would meet the people in your memories.
Riku: Ordinarily? Hey, I'm asking you a question! Fine. But it'd better be you I run across next, Voice. I'm sick of talking to thin air.



Déja vú, isn't it?

Now, earlier on I said this is a bad world to be in for the first floor. Why? The enemies, and thus boss, are going to be scaled to be much easier than they would be for Sora right? Well, yes. They are weaker... but the main problem lies in this:



The enemies are the same as they were in Sora's story. Even the card values they can use are the same. This is bad, and it gets worse...



Fortunately, the deck changes throughout the castle. Hollow Bastion's deck is actually pretty good;




Unfortunately, the Defender is pretty much useless. The Potion is superfluous, for reasons that I'll explain shortly, and the deck is fairly annoyingly set up. However, Riku can't use any sleights so stocking cards (other than to use the low numbered ones) is completely pointless. It's also worth noting that Riku only has one attack card; the Soul Eater. This is the only keyblade card Riku will ever get, and it's all he ever needs.

I'm sure you noticed something rather important with this deck: Riku has no means to heal. This is the only point of difficulty with all of Reverse/Rebirth; Riku will never get a Cure card. It's not that bad, however, as due to Riku's fixed deck he cannot gain any Moogle Points or any extra cards from scenery and thus gains HP from everything (given that he gets something).

Additionally, due to Riku's locked deck, and lack of Sleights, his level up options are different;



Attack Boost is like the Sleight option for Sora; it only comes up every few levels. It's more important to select, though, because without it Riku will only deal weak damage because he can only use the Soul Eater card to attack. Darkness Boost is currently meaningless (however it doesn't remain that way for long) so selecting HP is pretty much the best thing to choose whenever not boosting Attack... for now. It's worth noting that, much unlike Sora, it doesn't really matter what you choose to level up because all of Riku's stats will be maxed by the time he reaches level 99. This is unavoidable.



Riku notably levels up much faster at first, since he's able to reach level 5 by the second room of Hollow Bastion. Level 5 is also when he gets his second possible attack upgrade.



Such an easy room, to get into, and I'm all for it. Been a while since it's been this easy.



Voice: Must be nice, being back in your old bedroom. Think of all the memories...
Riku: Sorry, but these memories I could do without. Maleficent gave me this room.
Voice: So she did. And you lived here, tempted by the darkness she offered. You cast away your home, your friends, everything... But at least they have you a nice room.



Man, Voice is a jerk. He doesn't even have a clear goal in mind at the moment, so I can't begin to comprehend what he's doing.



Another easy door. No complaints here.



Riku: There's nothing but Heartless in this castle. Voice! I know you're watching — so explain this. Where are the people from my memories? Tell me!
Voice: Are you sure you want to see them?
Riku: Of course I do.
Voice: But you cast them aside. To reach the outside world, you passed through the door to darkness. Behind you, you left family, friends, home — everything — all in pursuit of darkness.
Riku: But I cast that aside, too!
Voice: Then what do you have to show for it? First your home, then the dark. Your heart only knows how to throw things away. It's empty, like that room. Like your memories. That's why no one is in the castle with you. Your heart is hollow except for the darkness you couldn't quite shake off.
Riku: You're full of it! I rejected the darkness!
Voice: Ha ha ha... Did you really, now?



I can't help but see some foreshadowing in that statement. Maybe it's just me?

Also note that this is the only Key to Truth in all of Reverse/Rebirth, and thus it's going to be hard to get into... right? Uh...



Not exactly.



Oh hey, it's her. Didn't Sora kill her twice now?

Riku: Maleficent! You're alive?!
Maleficent: You haven't been paying attention. I am but a figment of your memory.
Riku: Of all the people I could run into, it had to be you...
Maleficent: Who else? Your heart is steeped in darkness.



Oh, so that's what Voice meant. She neglects to mention, though, that she's the only one who can talk for some reason.

Maleficent: Be grateful you have someone to keep you company. Your heart is empty. Were it not for the darkness in your heart...you would be completely alone.
Riku: That's sounding pretty good right about now.
Maleficent: Come, now. You once clung to me to sate your hunger for darkness. You want me here. Who else but I can give you the darkness you long for?
Riku: There was a time I did want you around. I surrendered my heart to the dark. But never again. You and your darkness have nothing to offer.


"Relieve myself in the middle of your room!"

Oh god, this is getting emo isn't it? I was really hoping it wouldn't stoop to this from Riku, but I guess I was far too optimistic. Shame too, because this actually is kinda good.

Riku: I'm finished with all that. If I'm stuck seeing people like you, people of the dark... I'll take you out one by one.
Maleficent: Then don't forget to take yourself out last. Because you, like me, are one of the dark.
Riku: That's fine with me. I turned to darkness because my heart was weak. I hate that weakness. It's like I'm my own enemy. And seeing people like you embrace the darkness just makes it worse!



Man, I like where this is going. I really like where this is going.

Maleficent: So you hate the darkness enough to fight it... Oh, the agony you must feel!



Yep, boss fight with Maleficent



Because enemy card effects haven't changed for Riku's use, and he can use all boss cards from the moment he acquires them, Maleficent has suddenly become one of the most useful cards. You may have noticed that Riku has no reload counter; this is what makes the Potion superfluous and it's what makes Maleficent so damn useful. Riku never takes longer to reload, and so the power boost from Maleficent has no negative reprecussions at all.

Also note how Riku's hilariously powerful compared to Sora. I'm an average level for this fight, and I took out Maleficent in less than a minute. The best part? Riku gets even more broken.



All that's left is to head to the next floor.

Next time: Riku gets even more broken.

As was the norm in Sora's part of the game, upon leaving the world, Riku stumbles upon a rogue cutscene.



If you haven't guessed who Voice is yet, it's just become really obvious to anyone who's played Kingdom Hearts 1 and if it still isn't... it will be within seconds.

Voice: Darkness is your weapon. I need you to accept it.

See, really obvious isn't it? Realistically, there was only one person it could even be from the start but that's only because Marluxia and co. are busy getting their shit wrecked by Sora. Probably.

Riku: What do you care?
Voice: Stop resisting and accept the darkness. You must...



Oh snap, his silhouette has changed to that of the guy it blatantly was in the first place.



It was so obvious, even Riku worked it out. Nice change of pace from Sora most protagonists who need everything repeating for them about twenty goddamn times.

Riku: You always were chatty when it came to darkness. So let me guess... You want to pull me back into the darkness and play puppet master again... right?
Ansem: Clever boy. You'll make a fine host. Now, surrender to me again and —
Riku: You're insane! There won't be an "again"!



It's not particularly apparent, but Riku tried to smack Ansem with Soul Eater and got sent flying by psychic powers or some other bullshit.



Ansem: Did you really think you could harm me? A weakling like you couldn't even defeat Sora - and you had darkness on your side. You need the darkness. Submit! Bow to the darkness, and bow to me. Only darkness can help you now.

Blahblahblah darkness blahblahblah. Hey, Ansem, remember the last time you had a spiel about darkness? And how that ended with you getting killed by a blast of light? That's what I thought.



Well, gee, I wonder who that could be. (If you can't guess you seriously need help, and I feel bad for you and everyone you know.)

Riku: That voice...! Your Majesty, is that you?!



This is more important than it seems. Yes it was obvious, yes he's part of the reason Sora even bothered coming to the castle in the first place, yes he's a dick for disappearing on everyone. Twice. But he's much more important than that. Why? You'll see.

Also, because I'm sort of lazy and "Mickey" sounds kinda stupid in a script format, I'm going to refer to him as King. Because he's royalty, and anything else would be disrespectful and stuff.

King: Listen careful now, Riku. The light'll never give up on you. You'll always find it, even in the deepest darkness! But you have to believe!
Riku: I will. Hear that? I'm not losing to the darkness today, Ansem.



So, boss fight with Ansem (link in text only this time).

Unfortunately, this is the first of a few boss fights where you don't get an actual reward for winning other than being able to continue, which barely counts really, but that's not important. What is important is that since Ansem was the main antagonist of the first game, he's going to be a hard fight right? Well, no. Not in the slightest. Dude's the biggest anticlimax possible for an RPG. Even if I didn't corner-rape the bugger he still would've been unable to do anything basically. The deck your given for this fight makes it an outright joke, and his attacks are easy to break and don't deal much damage. Rocksplitter was the most dangerous... and that hit me for negligible damage, which was immediately healed via the King friend card.

This is what makes the King actually important. He's a Cure and a Potion. Combined. Unfortunately, he's also random as to whether or not you can use him, meaning even though he's the only method of healing in battle you can't rely on it. Fortunately, Riku is still a God in combat at this point, and so it doesn't really matter. If you ever come close to dying, especially at this stage, you're doing something horribly, horribly wrong.



You know, Riku's amazingly cocky but the point he's making is a valid one; Ansem was a fucking joke.

Ansem: It seems you are intent on resisting the darkness. Very well. See with your own eyes.



Padding! Hurray! Fortunately, in Reverse/Rebirth there's literally nothing to these worlds other than a single boss fight. No plot, no dialogue, no unwanted self-contained angsty bullshit. Just good clean asskicking.

Ansem: They are cards crafted from your memory. Advance through the worlds they beget, and you will come to understand... Chasing the light will not distance you from the dark. You cannot run.
Riku: Who's running? Give me the cards. I'll enter those worlds. And in the end, if I haven't given up...I win.
Ansem: I have one more gift for you.



He just became even more broken. This cannot ever go wrong.

Riku: What did you do?!
Ansem: I tempered the darkness that remains in your heart.
Riku: What, you still think that I'd rely on darkness?

Lie! This is a lie! You have virtually no control over whether or not you use this super-breaking mechanic; if you reach the single requirement for entering it... you do. The catch? So long as you play the game, as a normal person would, you will inevitably use it. Does it matter? No, not really. But it's still irritating, since you can't save it or anything.

Ansem: I'l be waiting, Riku...for you to come to your sense and yield to the darkness!

And now: a tutorial!



Dark Mode is what those Dark Points at the level up screen are for; once you reach 30 in battle, by either taking damage or card breaking the enemy (the latter can only increase it by 9 at most unfortunately), you enter Dark Mode and the DP you have is then used to gauge how long you stay in Dark Mode. You lose DP, in Dark Mode only, by being card broken or taking damage and if it reaches 0 you return to normal. It's also worth noting that at this point Riku can officially use sleights... when in Dark Mode. He only has 3. He only needs 3. Dark Break, Dark Firaga and Dark Aura. Dark Break (total value of 3 Soul Eaters from upto 15) is homing damage that never misses, Dark Firaga (total value of 3 Soul Eaters from 16 to 26) is semi-homing damage that sometimes, but rarely, misses. Dark Aura (total value of 27) is a full screen nuke. Of course, this means that the latter can only be used in rare occasions, but Dark Firaga is technically better because it's more likely to be used, doesn't miss that often and deals more than enough damage to make short work of... everything in the entire game. That's to not even get into the Double Jump Slash which is a massacre without sleighting. Broken, thy name is Dark Mode.

Next time: We meet the best character in the entire game! (Also every world card because they're all short and easy.)

Once again, a move that is practically the same as it was in the main game; heading between floors causing a cutscene to happen. Much like with Sora, it's a cutscene that Riku has no way of seeing or knowing about.



Then again, it has this dude in it and he's the most awesome.



Lexaeus (the taller dude with brown hair) just teleported in and didn't utter a word.



Before Lexaeus can even say anything, Vexen walks in. Yup, that's how you can tell that this game runs parallel to Sora's and doesn't come after it; Vexen isn't dead yet.



Okay, I said that the dude with gray hair (Zexion) is the best character in the entire game. I lied; he's the best character, in my opinion, in the series. The dude is so awesome, he can tell who's in the castle purely by smell. His weapon is a goddamn Lexicon (more specifically, the "Book of Retribution") but since Riku doesn't fight him no one even knew what it was for an exceptionally long time. This is only the beginning of what makes Zexion so damn awesome, however...

Zexion: Nice to see you too, Vexen. You know, it's deplorable... The Organisation used to be the rope that binds us. And now it's full of kinks.
Vexen: How dare you!

Seriously. the dude has the balls to sass Vexen. How can you not like this guy?



Lexaeus: Zexion, tell us. What did you detect?
Zexion: Visitors. I picked up two scents in the castle's lowest basement. One of them was Maleficent, but —
Vexen: Absurd. The witch is gone. She cannot return from the realm of darkness of her own volition.
Zexion: If you'd let me finish... The scent belonged to a very convincing double. But I can't say much beyond that, since the would-be Maleficent is no more. Our other visitor saw to that.

Oddly, Zexion was unable to detect Ansem. You'd be forgiven for mistaking this as a form of foreshadowing, since it does seem oddly appropriate, and yet... it just doesn't seem right.

Lexaeus: Who is it?
Zexion: I don't know...



The Superior doesn't appear in Reverse/Rebirth. At least, not in the way that you'd think; his name gets thrown around a fair amount but beyond that he's non-existant until Kingdom Hearts II.

Vexen: Rubbish!
Zexion: Fact, Vexen. Now, what shall we do?
Lexaeus: Let us bide our time and see what develops.

Back with Riku, however...



Riku: What is it? It's so familiar... Darkness. The taste of darkness. What's happened to me... The darkness even seeps into my senses.




That's about as solid as he's going to get. There's an obvious reason for it, and it's not too stupid. It's certainly logical at any rate.

Riku: What happened to you? You're all...fuzzy.
King: I can only send a little bit of my power here. But I have a request.
Riku: A request? From Your Majesty?
King: Riku, don't let go of yourself just because darkness has a hold on you. Fight the darkness inside you! It won't be easy... But don't forget! Even in the darkest darkness, there's always a little light.

This does seem like it could easily about moral issues and how they're not all black and white, how there's a lot of gray area where it depends mostly on perspective... but then you realise that's stupid, because Ansem specifically refers to the darkness as being darkness; if it was about morality he'd believe his actions were that little light or some other overanalytical bollocks.

Riku: Light...within darkness?
King: You and I have seen it! The far-off, welcoming light inside the door to darkness... The light of Kingdom Hearts, Riku — it'll show you the way. Please don't give up. Believe in the light. That's all I ask.
Riku: Okay...I'll try my best.
King: And I'll try to find a way to reach you. I'll come, I promise.



I told you it makes sense; he's "all fuzzy" because he's a hologram/illusion. It's still better than most of the other possibilities.

Riku: You're...an illusion? My hand passes right through you...
King: But we shook hands, in our hearts. We're connected, you and me.

This is really goddamn cheesy, but thankfully that ends the cutscene.



Whilst Sora is making his way up through the regular floors, Riku is making his way up through the basement. I say "up" because it makes more sense than "down" given that the numbers get smaller as you get higher, the stairs are all going upstairs and it gives me less to bitch about later.

Now, what were those world cards?






Well, none of these are actually difficult. Sure, in the main story being able to do Neverland this early would be painful but this is Riku... and he has Dark Mode... This is going to be a massacre.

I've said it before, but I'm saying it again there's thankfully no plot whatsoever in these worlds. Because of that, they're all blissfully short and so breaking them up would be completely pointless so I'm not going to do that. Instead, let's just dive head first into the blatant, blatant padding these things provide.



Starting with Traverse Town since it's done first in the main game and I like consistency.

You may recall that Riku's deck changes for worlds and such, and so here's Riku's deck for Traverse Town:



The fact that it contains a whole 5 cards that are usable normally makes this both a very good deck and a very, very crappy one at the same time. It drags normal fights out for far too long, but it takes mere seconds to regain the cards so it doesn't really matter. The whole point of the Shadow card is likely to make it easier to use Dark Firaga but it's still pointless since the effect will be gone within seconds. Malifecent is still very useful, however.



The overall map of the world is dependant solely on the floor, unlike for Sora where it's a combination of floor and world card. This is the map for B11, because, well, there's pretty much nothing in Riku's worlds making it even more obvious that they are blatant padding.



At level 10 Riku gains his third Attack point. Nothing left to do here, since there's no treasures or anything, other than the boss fight. Speaking of:



The map cards required to get into the boss door are based on floor just like the floor layout. Another easy door at that. Behind the door lies...

Guard Armour



Easy boss fight, just drawn out a bit too long due to the small deck and having to kill 5 parts of the bugger. I used Shadow because, why not? None of his attacks are too dangerous and he goes down in no time, really, as is. The card is just as "useful" for Riku as it is for Sora, and by that I mean it's still useless so using it makes you look stupid.

No cutscene on the latter half of B11, so let's go on up to the next floor.



I could rag on Zexion for not knowing that already, buuuuuut he had no way of actually knowing it was Riku until he figured it out just like how Organisation members we've seen will end up re-introducing themselves, since Riku doesn't know who they are.

Vexen: But Riku is gone! He and that king were lost when they ventured beyond the door to darkness. How could he have escaped?
Zexion: Riku once shouldered the darkness. Perhaps that made him half-dark.
Vexen: And that's why you mistook him for the Superior. Fascinating... The dark power given to Riku facilitated his escape from the realm of darkness. One with ties to both the Keyblade and the powers of darkness... This merits further research.

Double whammy of foreshadowing right there. Part of it is Kingdom Hearts II stuff, the other part is really obvious.

Zexion: What I want to know is why Riku appeared here in Castle Oblivion.
Vexen: Ha! That's simple. His existence resonates with that of another hero.



I just know that somewhere a yaoi fangirl took that line out of context and it creeps me the fuck out. What it really means is that Riku is there basically because Sora willed it. I don't know how that works either. Don't expect it to be explained.

Zexion: Sora's in the castle?
Vexen: Yes, he and his companions arrived earlier. By now that dog Marluxia is already using Naminé to meddle with Sora's heart.
Zexion: Interesting. I had no idea.
Vexen: I don't think Marluxia plans to hand Sora over, but...he can play his little game. If he gets Sora, then we need only acquire Riku. If he truly is like the Superior, then we will be untouchable!

I can't help but get the feeling from this that Vexen was originally intended to be either a double-crosser like Axel or the double-crosser instead of him. That or Vexen and Zexion secretly just hate everyone else in the Organisation (can't blame 'em for it), aside from the Superior most likely, and so want to kill them all. Well, I think it's more likely that they hate Marluxia and want to kill the bugger.

Either way, B10 is ahead. No cutscene with Riku either, so onwards to the next world:



Hardest regular mooks since Hollow Bastion, by technicality alone. Is it important? Eh, not really. Are they actually hard? Pfft, no. Does the deck suck?




Sort of. It's a fairly good, strong deck that allows for some sleights with minimal reprocussions but the numbers are just too goddamn randomly placed for my liking.



B10's map is even more linear than the last. You can't even accidentally head the wrong way here, since the room at the top-left is blocked off until after beating the boss.



Level 15 and Riku can get another Attack point. I'm beginning to notice a pattern here...



B10 boss door. Hardest door thus far, but that's not saying much. Just head on in and...

boss fight with Jafar



Once again a very easy boss fight. Jafar himself can't be attacked so just wail on the lamp and the fight will be over pretty fast. Even easier than with Sora because Riku can jump higher, even when not in Dark Mode. The Jafar card is just as useful here as it was in the main game, if not moreso, because not getting your attack cards broken is very useful and it makes it near enough impossible to come out of Dark Mode when in it and since nearly ever card of Riku's IS an attack card...

Next time: The rest of the early game. Yes I said I'd do it all now. I lied.

The next between floors intermission contains that Vexen fellow. Gee, I wonder how this will end



Vexen certainly is pretty good at coming to blatantly obvious conclusions; there's no one else it could have possibly been this low down in the castle at the moment, since the only intruders are Sora (and friends) and Riku... and Sora is fighting his way up the higher floors. And Vexen already knows this.

Vexen: You are half correct. Let us say that it's not the Ansem you know. He is Ansem and he is not — which is the say he is nobody.
Riku: Nobody, huh? Sorry, riddles aren't my thing. Try making some sense.

That sounds oddly familiar... Axel refered to himself as being nobody to Sora at the end of his journey. I doubt this is merely a coincidence, because it isn't. Much like the thing with the "Superior" it means bugger all without Kingdom Hearts II information unfortunately.

Vexen: He belongs to neither the light nor the dark, but walks the twilight between. As do I. And for that matter — Ha ha, that's right. We have much in common.
Riku: Maybe we do... But so what! Is that an invitation to join your club? Yeah, there's darkness inside me, just like you said. But darkness is my enemy! And you are, too, for making everything around here reek of it!



Vexen fight! (text only again)

I want to say this is an actually hard fight in Reverse/Rebirth... but that would be lying. Massively. It's just annoying here due to the bloody shield that blocks everything you try and do. Fortunately, it is completely useless if you hit him from behind or do the much smarter thing and kick his ass via Dark Mode. Note the first use of said mode thus far because it cuts the time for this fight down massively. It's only longwinded because of his two full HP bars; his sleights are nothing to worry about. Oh and he absorbs ice whilst being weak to fire, but that really doesn't matter here since you have no way of using them (Dark Firaga being an arguable exception but that appears to be non-elemental but it does seem like it deals extra damage to Vexen regardless).



Vexen: The darkness coursing through you is a tremendous power. All you needed was the right provocation.
Riku: Great. So this was a trick?
Vexen: Precisely. Your fiery reaction provided just the data I needed. You have my thanks, Riku!

Hmm, he just got data from a fight with Riku? There's no chance of this ever being important. Well, regardless of whether or not it is (definitely not), there's nothing left in this interlude so... upto B9!



Monstro has no really hard enemies. The fights can be annoying, however, because...




The deck is a complete goddamn mess. On the plus side, Riku can actually heal at will in this world! The Search Ghost card is a welcome reprieve, if you somehow have difficulty, since it gives Riku the drain effect, restoring his HP with every hit he deals.



The map is straightforward as per usual, but not quite as linear as B10's.



Disappointingly easy map card, right? Well, no. Blue cards are quite hard to get for Riku since there's only two of them; Moment's Reprieve (save points as per normal) and Mingling Worlds (completely random effect). Fortunately, since there's been no real reason to use any thus far you should have at least one, however if you only have the one blue card and it has a 2 or lower on it do not use it oh dear god dont this is important.

Boss fight with Parasite Cage



There's bugger all that makes this fight difficult other than the constant damage you take from the floor if you stand on it (you can just tank it though since it's like 1 HP of damage every few seconds) which means Search Ghost can be a viable card to use in this fight if you really need it. The card is also disappointingly useless since there's next to no enemies that use enemy cards in Reverse/Rebirth making it's effect to automatically negate any effects that could be used in that manner pretty much pointless. Shame too.

Going on up to the next floor...



Back to the two Organisation members unique to R/R. Much like Lexaeus, I, too, am curious where Vexen is now. He's not scheduled to be killed by Axel for a while.

Zexion: He's off using Riku's data to create some kind of replica.
Lexaeus: And what of Sora?
Zexion: Naminé is shuffling his memories as we speak. Marluxia may well get his puppet. He's a danger to us all. Larxene's not to be trusted, either.
Lexaeus: Nor is Axel. Who knows what that one is thinking...
Zexion: Let's observe a little longer, then speak with Vexen.
Lexaeus: But Vexen despises Marluxia. Think of the mess it would create...
Zexion: That's why Vexen must be told. Better he clean up the mess than us.

Metric ton of foreshadowing for later events in this game there. A lot of which doesn't even count, truth be told, since the requirements for getting this far require you to already know most, if not all, of this.



Last world for the early game, and it's disappointingly easy.



The map is actually sort of convoluted on this floor, but there's not much that makes it hard to navigate. There's also one thing to note about this deck that makes me absolutely fucking hate it;




If you don't have the Jafar card yet when you come here this deck becomes borderline unusable outside of sleighting as without it you can only really use a few cards (like 4 of 'em) and the Pirate enemy card, whilst being a seemingly useful effect - All Zeroes - it's pretty much useless unfortunately. To use it effectively, you have to draw out battles longer than you'd ever want to, and just using it casually leaves you wide open. If you could combine it with Attack Bracer it would be awesome but since only one effect can be used at a time...



Another Attack point at level 20; there's an obvious pattern here. I'm sure of it.



Okay, this door is a genuine annoyance. Usually, here I wouldn't bother trying to get it the "official" way and would just hack it in (because I can) but fortunately I didn't need to because I had a few Red-0s already. I didn't even intentionally hold onto one; it was just pure coincidence.

Boss fight with Hook



Out of all the fights that become disappointingly easy in Reverse/Rebirth this is one of the most apparent ones. It goes from being sort of difficult to being a joke. There's no real reason for having any difficulty in this fight since you're given a 0 in the middle of your deck, and if you're smart and use Attack Bracer, you can corner rape his ass pretty easily and none of his sleights are worth worrying over. Finished him off with a double jump attack because I haven't used one in video yet and it's seriously awesome. Shame about it missing once, somehow, but it was still nothing major.

Next Time: Plot! And the mid game. Maybe all of it?

Crap, it's the ghost of John Wilkes Booth! Kill it! Kill it with fire!



Oh it's only... Riku in... Dark Mode... wait, what? What the fuck is going on here?

Riku?: I bet it's not every day you meet your twin. Too shocked to speak? This should come as a relief, then: I'm a replica of you that Vexen made.

Repliku, huh... well, no matter how this ends I don't think it'll end badly. Because Repliku is, and always will be, a complete pussy.



Repliku: I didn't mean "fake"! Just because you're real doesn't mean you're better! We share the same body and the same talents. There is one easy way to tell us apart, though. Know what that is? Unlike you, I'm not afraid of anything.
Riku: Are you calling me a coward?
Repliku: You ARE a coward. You're afraid of the dark! The darkness inside you scares you witless. But I'M different. I embrace the darkness. I can make it do whatever I want. In other words...



Fight with Repliku

This fight is completely unremarkable in just about every way. He's a noticably crappier version of Dark Mode Riku; he can use Dark Firaga and Incremator (since he has the Shadow enemy card) but... that's it. He doesn't have any truly dangerous attacks, and he even seems slower than Riku. I dragged this on longer than I probably should have, but what's done is done.



Repliku: Go on, laugh. I'm still new. I'll get stronger and stronger, just you wait. It won't be long before I surpass you. Next time we fight, you're finished!
Riku: Sorry, you missed your chance. I'm finishing you first, right here!

Riku tries to attack Repliku here but due to cutscene power gets sent halfway across the room.



Repliku: How could you be scared of something so thrilling! You're missing out.
Riku: Shut up!
Repliku: So now the coward is playing tough guy. That's cute. See you next time, Real Thing. Try not to miss me.




Y'know, I never saw the point of insulting someone who's already run off.

Moving on up in the castle;



Man, Repliku must run fast to get to wherever that room is so quickly.

Repliku: He's spineless. I'll be running circles around him in no time.
Vexen: Before that, wouldn't you like to meet another hero?
Repliku: You mean that Sora kid. He's here in the castle, I hear. Want me to take care of him?
Vexen: Nothing's definite, but yes, it may come to that. I intend to make good use of you.

...Reverse/Rebirth really does have a lot of easily twistable things in it, that would make any yaoi fan squeal in pleasure. I'm just disturbed by how I can see these things without intending to.



And on that overly optimistic note, let's leave the slightly competent members of the Organisation to go back to Riku.




Since no world cards were acquired from Repliku, this does make sense.

Riku: What are you saying? He's just a copy of me — he said as much himself.
Ansem: A copy, yes — or maybe a model. He is an example of what you should be. He accepts the darkness... just as you once accepted me. But now, you are afraid. Perhaps YOU are the one who is being fake.

I'd make a comparison about how Ansem is like a broken record etc. but even they have more than one track. Occasionally.

Riku: Name one time I've been afraid of the darkness!
Ansem: In the card-worlds, you grappled desperately with the darkness. Desperation is a product of fear. You fight the darkness because it frightens you.
Riku: Oh, I get it. You think I'll stop fighting the darkness just to prove I'm not afraid of it. Nice try. But I'm gonna keep fighting.
Ansem: Tsk, so stubborn. Then continue your fight, if you must. Eventually, you will see. You cannot resist the dark.



And with that, more world cards are acquired. What are they, how ridiculously easy will they be and what broken hijinks will Riku be able to pull off? Find out next time on -- wait, wrong thing. But, yeah, next time: mid-game content.