I don't understand the game

[VaryNia]

Hi,

yesterday I bought the KH 1.5 + 2.5 compilation on Steam and started playing it on normal mode.

Sadly, I don't really understand the combat system of the game. The camera is too much zoomed in on Sora, so enemies can hit you even though you don't see it. Donald dies in most battles very quickly (~20 seconds), even if I give him potions. Some enemy attacks don't seem to be telegraphed at all or are very hard to dodge, even using the dodge roll. Sometimes my spells hit the targeted enemy, sometimes they don't.

These problems lead to me being stuck on the heartless boss that you fight in Wonderland , even though I bought many (hi-)potions and gave them to everyone. You also cannot hit that boss without jumping, but sometimes the boss can't be targeted even though you jump.

I feel like I make a crucial mistake, but what mistake?

I would appreciate any help, so I can also enjoy this game :)

[Seb | セビ]

some basic ass tips - maybe try leveling a bit more and remember to use the lock on with R1

[Drake Platinum THE WORLD]

The combat isn't amazing in these games. KH1 was the very first one so its even more clunky and cooked. You just need to get used to it and adapt essentially. It does get better as the games go on though. You can always level up and grind to mitigate any shortcomings though (no matter how boring it is). If you really don't want to jump to hit the boss the deep jungle keyblade is long enough to hit it from the ground IIRC. Also get used to donald dying. He's known for that. As you level up and give him better gear he will live longer but bro is a glass cannon.

[Sting]

Donald is going to die a lot. If you don't set up his AI, he'll usually just blow through his MP then start smacking whatever's closest to him.
If you're locked on to an enemy, hit the button you use to open chests with (Triangle, Y(Xbox), X(Switch)), that'll prompt the AI to focus on that enemy.

[Banshee]

KH1 combat is worse than I remembered. If you think it's bad at Wonderland already, it only gets worse near the end of the game. You do get broken enough to survive it by then, but it seems to be a test of patience more than anything. It really is a slog, and leaves me with no desire to 100% it as an adult.

I do like the world design of KH1 however. Very interactive and encourages you to explore and think. Some of the puzzles in Hollow Bastion almost felt like something you'd find in Resident Evil, which I enjoyed.

[PKblaze]

Use the table for the boss.

[Terra]

The boss in Wonderland is straight up just hard.

Actually a lot of the early bosses are hard. All three of the first worlds are fairly difficult.

But Wonderland especially. It's invulnerable except for its head, which means that you need to do aerial attacks to hit it... except you can't hit it at the top of your basic jump. Instead you need to use the environment to get extra height, which would be fine if the platforming to grab onto the table or onto the chair weren't EXTREMELY fiddly in a fight where he can just kill you in 3 or so hits. He has a ton of health, and also later in the fight fires projectiles with half decent tracking and the ability to, at the right angle, orbit you for a while so each shot has multiple chances to hit you. Also, when you jump at him from the table there's a greater than zero chance that he puts his batons up to block you which hurts you if they're on fire.

This, plus your not having a lot of magic or abilities, means that it's going to whip you a few times.

[mdesaleah]

Lock-on helps a lot. So does magic.

Partners getting killed happens frequently but they come back over time. Dont waste potions giving it to them.

You can order them to charge an enemy instead.

[Frisky Dingo]

Originally posted by Varyn:

Hi,

yesterday I bought the KH 1.5 + 2.5 compilation on Steam and started playing it on normal mode.

Sadly, I don't really understand the combat system of the game. The camera is too much zoomed in on Sora, so enemies can hit you even though you don't see it. Donald dies in most battles very quickly (~20 seconds), even if I give him potions. Some enemy attacks don't seem to be telegraphed at all or are very hard to dodge, even using the dodge roll. Sometimes my spells hit the targeted enemy, sometimes they don't.

These problems lead to me being stuck on the heartless boss that you fight in Wonderland , even though I bought many (hi-)potions and gave them to everyone. You also cannot hit that boss without jumping, but sometimes the boss can't be targeted even though you jump.

I feel like I make a crucial mistake, but what mistake?

I would appreciate any help, so I can also enjoy this game :)

lol I remember when I first played on ps2 and I had the same problem. its time to level grind, my friend.

[Elvick]

What game are people playing. Later games are way less fun for me because the way it makes you move with everything. Everything is so flashy instead of more purposeful and "clunky". Plus I always liked TP and hated when they got rid of it for counters which was really rewarding.

For Wonderland, just hop on the chair/table and jump at him. If he breaks the chair bait him near the table with the book to jump at him.

Between your aerial combos and magic it isn't hard at all. Then again I always stop off at Olympus first to get Thunder since it's really good against him and good at clearing weak Heartless like the soldier and shadow quickly (and there's some flowers in Wonderland that need it for chests). I beat him before he even moved away from the chair so he never lit his things on fire.

Donald, if on Proud at least, takes awhile before he can survive a decent amount of time in battles. I just did Jafar and Genie Jafar and it was cake. Once Goofy can give MP to Donald, you have Cure and Donald gets MP for being hit it's really helpful.

Donald has already came in with clutch heals for me as he always does because I set his AI properly and I've only completed Agrabah. In the past he's come in clutch during the final bosses for me too.

[Caern]

KH1 was a bit more harder on the beginnig compared the other games, and yes, the zoomed camera was ever a problem

[Luski]

Ah, the hardest boss of the Kingdom Hearts 1 to master: the camera controls!

As everyone else has mentioned, grinding helps in the early game and patience to learn the telegraphs of attacks. This will be key to a lot of the later bosses coming up. The amount of times I yelled at the screen when Donald would just act like a Muppet in the early game was tricky (looking back at it now I can laugh). Look at customising his AI to better suit what you need.

I would say that once you finish the next two worlds, it will become a bit easier to manage what you are doing :) i.e. getting Thunder from Olympus and Cure from Deep Jungle

[I AM BAYTOR]

Originally posted by Luski:

Ah, the hardest boss of the Kingdom Hearts 1 to master: the camera controls! [/spoiler]

And it's not even the original horrible camera controlled by L2/R2.

[Mr Musturd]

if u use blizzard on the stove he cant light his sticks on fire for about 100 seconds

[KaosReigns]

Spam attack... especially on normal... Combat is not deep in the first one at all... You can get by 100% with just spamming, and your luck will hold up that you will parry a CRAP TON, simply just from that.

Dont even try Re:CoM if you are having combat issues in the first game.

[Everybody do the flop]

Originally posted by Luski:

Ah, the hardest boss of the Kingdom Hearts 1 to master: the camera controls!

I literally can't even get right stick to work.