

I know you can see the various Kingdom Hearts-related image in the space between squares, but I’d rather have the whole thing be those emblems. The plaid pattern though, I didn’t care for. I do like how Deluxe Edition owners do not lose out on the standard game package, as that also is a great image. For me, this is the most Sora-esque image out of them all. Unlike the Sora-on-throne series, which I dislike, the Sora-on-beach pictures are always good. I do love the front cover thought, which is also the image used on the game disc. That’s where this mini-artbook would have shined - as an art section in a guide. Which yes, I’m still salty that the game isn’t getting one. Why wasn’t there more of sketch art or something? I admit not taking an in-depth look in case of spoilers, but most of this looks like pictures you would find in a strategy guide. Chances are, if you don’t know this by now, you’re going to be confused as heck by the game. Also, the timeline is very basic, really just a list of the Kingdom Hearts games. Most I believe you can download right from the Kingdom Hearts III website because they’ve been in just about every article for the game that’s come out. The artbook itself is just renders of the character or screenshots. Of course, you can never open a book fully (except if it’s a spiral bound), but from the side, it’s obvious they went too far in and part of the actual pages are stuck together. It’s hard to tell, but the image with Nomura’s message? That’s as far as I could open it. It was like extra glue was used on it, and I couldn’t open it all the way. Maybe it was just my copy, but the binding - particularly for the first two pages - was poor. Speaking of the artbook, I was not impressed. Plus, it was on the Kingdom Hearts soundtrack, although he didn’t look cocky on it but rather was sulking. Plus, the Sora-on-throne bit has been done, what, at least three times now? It was on the 1.5 box, almost identical to the artbook image. I like PS3 1.5‘s using the Re:coded image of Sora and Mickey. It’s not my favorite Sora expression either. Personally, I’d rather have several can badges over one shaped metal one. I haven’t been a big fan of the pins, but obviously there’s a whole market for these official Disney pins. It looks really nice against the black background, and it’s much nicer than 2.8‘s solid black box. The logo is slightly raised and iridescent. I really like how the Deluxe Edition cover went with the simple design.
