KINGDOM HEARTS Re:Chain of Memories

it com out in america Dec 2 but to all u UK fan i still do not now when it coming out Square Enix sure does love tugging at the heartstrings of Kingdom Hearts fans. Instead of giving us what we really want (a true sequel to Kingdom Hearts II), we're instead getting a remake of a 2004 Game Boy Advance title. Normally, we'd complain (more), but since Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories isn't looking like a typical half-hearted remake, we're actually excited about reshuffling this card-based action role-player. Wanna know why? Glad you asked: Here are five reasons why Re: COM is better than the original. No. 5 -- New Tunes Listen up, music lovers: Re: COM contains updated ditties. Of course, most of the music's recycled from the previous two Kingdom Hearts games, but for the purpose of pimpin' this remake, it's new. And, hey -- new is, well, new. So expect to hear all your favorite Disney sing-along hits, but now in ear-pleasing CD-quality sound. Trust us -- while listening to an ongoing loop of "Under the Sea" can be mighty maddening, it's slightly better to hear it clearly than through the teeny-tiny speakers on your GBA. SCREENS: Click the image above to check out all Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories screens. No. 4 -- New Voice acting For everyone who played the original COM, do you remember what happened? Don't lie -- of course you don't! Thankfully, catching up with all the confusing nonsense is more entertaining thanks to additional dialogue. Don't get too excited -- not everyone from the previous games returns, but Square Enix did manage to wrangle series star Haley Joel Osment to reprise his role as Sora. Even Donald's back to confuse you with his impossible-to-comprehend duck-accented blabber. No. 3 -- Minigames While the majority of Re: COM's a straight remake, one section of the game is entirely new: Winnie the Pooh's Hundred Acre Wood. Just like in both Kingdom Hearts I and II, Hundred Acre Wood houses a bunch of minigames. In the original COM, you had to lead Pooh through his 'hood while avoiding obstacles like bees and holes. Yes, holes (Pooh's No. 1 weakness). For Re: COM, the developers smartly opted to ditch the paw-holding, instead adding four new minigames related to Pooh's best buds. The games -- ranging from whacking vegetables off the screen to bouncing on tree stumps with Tigger -- are a nice little diversion from the monotonous, button-mashy battles of the main game. SCREENS: Click the image above to check out all Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories screens. No. 2 -- Improved Battles Even though we still think the card-based battles are a bust in Re: COM, we can at least appreciate the addition of Kingdom Hearts 2's reaction commands. These timed button presses (performed during the flashy special movies called "sleights") make battles slightly less annoying, because you're doing more than spamming the X button until your cards reshuffle. Oh, and for you gotta-collect-em-all types, Re: Com also features new cards to collect. No. 1 -- 3D Re: COM's biggest improvement, by far, is the level-up in dimensions. The jump to 3D is certainly an easy one, too, as the game essentially uses the same engine from the other PS2 Kingdom Hearts games. That means Re: COM looks exactly like the original Kingdom Hearts. Heck, if you glance by it, you'd think it was the original game, as this remake borrows tons of environments. Sure, it's sweet to now see everything in 3D, but what does that have to do with the gameplay? A lot, actually -- all the boss battles have been completely redone to make them work in 3D. And some confrontations are even different this time around, so if you've got a pixel-perfect memory of the original version, it'll be fun to see these encounters reimagined in 3D. <img src="http://uk.ps2.ign.com/dor/objects/14282207/kingdom-hearts-re-chain-of-memories/images/kingdom-hearts-re-chain-of-memories-20081105044146273.html" border="0">