History VideoGame / KingdomHeartsChainofMemories

[[caption-width-right:300:Not to be confused with the [[Franchise/YuGiOh other card-game playing kid]] with AnimeHair.]]

->''"Adventure is in the cards."''

->"In this place, to find is to lose and to lose is to find."

* NoPronunciationGuide: English-speaking players of the text-only GBA version were very surprised upon playing the fully-voiced remake to learn that Marluxia was actually pronounced "Mar-loo-sha".

* BalanceBuff: The ''Re:Chain of Memories'' version increases the effects of leveling up Riku's Attack Points, making him stronger than the original.

* DevelopersForesight: [[spoiler: Marluxia's]] second phase in both versions is a FlunkyBoss who likes to summon laser flower petals with low health. If a clever players thinks to use the UselessUsefulSpell Synchro, which sets all enemies' remaining health to the targeted enemy's, on one of the flowers...the boss will just NoSell it anyways.

Beating the main story unlocks an additional campaign titled ''Reverse/Rebirth'', which takes place simultaneously with Sora’s story, and features Riku as the main character. Having mysteriously been rescued from the Realm of Darkness and ending up in Castle Oblivion’s basement, Riku fights his way up to the ground floor while dealing with not only other members of Organization XIII, but also the remnants of Ansem still within him after his possession of him in the previous game, and an internal struggle between the powers of light and darkness. ''Reverse/Rebirth'' plays similarly to the main story but with several key differences; you can’t edit your deck, you have only one type of attack and Friend card to work with no magic cards and limited healing options, and have to work with different fixed decks on each floor, making battles a matter of using the right cards at the right time. But Riku has several advantages to compensate; he can reload cards at any time with no waiting, can attack harder the faster he breaks enemy cards, and can enter Dark Mode, where he uses the darkness to enhance his power and gain access to some powerful sleights.

** Pluto (exclusive to the remake) uses Lucky Bounty to dig up used cards and HP Orbs. His Sleights increase the number of cards and HP Orbs found.

''Chain of Memories'' was later remade as a UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 game (titled ''Re:Chain of Memories'') as part of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] release of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII: Final Mix+'' in 2007, which released as a standalone game in North America the following year. [[NoExportForYou Europe and Australia never got it]], but did get ''Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'' in 2013, which contains ''Re:Chain of Memories'' remastered in HD. The remake replaces the 2D sprite art with 3D graphics, has voice acting in the Castle Oblivion cutscenes[[note]]Otherwise, this version still uses pure text, although small voice clips can still be heard during the battles, which mainly consist of voice grunts, and other battle clips that previously appeared in both VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI, and VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.[[/note]], adds an additional boss battle and a new form for the FinalBoss, includes some new Attack Cards based off of Keyblades and Enemy Cards based off the Organization XIII members that appear in ''Kingdom Hearts II'', makes small tweaks to the battle system such as adding or removing some sleights, adds the new Duel mechanic to ''Reverse/Rebirth'', and completely removes the PlayerVersusPlayer mode. The ''HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'' version is mostly identical to the the [=PS2=] remake, but has higher graphics resolution, trophy/achievement support for the various platforms, and replaces the Attack Cards of the ''II'' Keyblades with some from ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2''.

''Chain of Memories'' was later remade as a UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 game (titled ''Re:Chain of Memories'') as part of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] release of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII: Final Mix+'' in 2007, which released as a standalone game in North America the following year. [[NoExportForYou Europe and Australia never got it]], but did get ''Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'', which contains ''Re:Chain of Memories'' remastered in HD. The remake replaces the 2D sprite art with 3D graphics, has voice acting in the Castle Oblivion cutscenes[[note]]Otherwise, this version still uses pure text, although small voice clips can still be heard during the battles, which mainly consist of voice grunts, and other battle clips that previously appeared in both VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI, and VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.[[/note]], adds an additional boss battle and a new form for the FinalBoss, includes some new Attack Cards based off of Keyblades and Enemy Cards based off the Organization XIII members that appear in ''Kingdom Hearts II'', makes small tweaks to the battle system such as adding or removing some sleights, adds the new Duel mechanic to ''Reverse/Rebirth'', and completely removes the PlayerVersusPlayer mode. The ''HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'' version is mostly identical to the the [=PS2=] remake, but has higher graphics resolution, trophy/achievement support for the various platforms, and replaces the Attack Cards of the ''II'' Keyblades with some from ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2''.

Beating the main story unlocks an additional campaign titled ''Reverse/Rebirth'', which takes place simultaneously with Sora’s story, and features Riku as the main character. Having mysteriously been rescued from the Realm of Darkness and ending up in Castle Oblivion’s basement, Riku fights his way up to the main floor while dealing with not only other members of Organization XIII, but also the remnants of Ansem still within him after his possession of him in the previous game, and an internal struggle between the powers of light and darkness. ''Reverse/Rebirth'' plays similarly to the main story but with several key differences; you can’t edit your deck, you have only one type of attack and Friend card to work with no magic cards and limited healing options, and have to work with different fixed decks on each floor, making battles a matter of using the right cards at the right time. But Riku has several advantages to compensate; he can reload cards at any time with no waiting, can attack harder the faster he breaks enemy cards, and can enter Dark Mode, where he uses the darkness to enhance his power and gain access to some powerful sleights.

Beating the main story unlocks an additional campaign titled ''Reverse/Rebirth'', which takes place simultaneously with Sora’s story, and features Riku as the main character. Having mysteriously been rescued from the Realm of Darkness and ending up in Castle Oblivion’s basement, Riku fights his way up to the main floor while dealing with not only other members of Organization XIII, but also the remnants of Ansem still within him after his possession of him in the previous game, and an internal struggle between the powers of light and darkness. ''Reverse/Rebirth'' plays similarly to the main story but with several key differences; you can’t edit your deck, you have only one type of attack and Friend card to work with limited healing options, and have to work with different fixed decks on each floor, making battles a matter of using the right cards at the right time. But Riku has several advantages to compensate; he can reload cards at any time with no waiting, can attack harder the faster he breaks enemy cards, and can enter Dark Mode, where he uses the darkness to enhance his power and gain access to some powerful sleights.

Beating the main story unlocks an additional campaign titled ''Reverse/Rebirth'', which takes place simultaneously with Sora’s story, and features Riku as the main character. Having mysteriously been rescued from the Realm of Darkness and ending up in Castle Oblivion’s basement, Riku fights his way up to the main floor while dealing with not only other members of Organization XIII, but also the remnants of Ansem still within him after his possession of him in the previous game, and an internal struggle between the powers of light and darkness. ''Reverse/Rebirth'' plays similarly to the main story but with several key differences; you can’t edit your deck, you have only one type of attack and Friend card to work with limited healing options, and have to work with different fixed decks on each floor, making battles a matter of using the right cards at the right time. But Riku has several advantages to compensate; he can reload cards at any time with no waiting, can attack harder the faster he breaks enemy cards, and can enter Dark Mode, where he uses the darkness to enhance his power and gain access to some powerful slights.

Rather than the usual ActionRPG style of combat, ''Chain of Memories'' uses a combination of action and "[[FightLikeACardPlayer card battling]]". The player must prepare a deck of cards with numbers varying from 0-9 to use in their battles, with those cards determining if Sora attacks with his Keyblade, uses magic and summons, or uses an item to heal or reload cards, while being able to move him freely to dodge attacks. They can also be used to “break” opposing cards with lower or equal value and interrupt enemy attacks and items (that can break your own cards if you’re not careful), or be combined in "sleights", with specific combinations activating special moves that tend to be very powerful, but come at the cost of using up the first card used, meaning relying on them exclusively can use up cards completely for a fight. Special Enemy cards can also be used to grant temporary buffs that can turn things in your favor, while Map cards are used to synthesise rooms with various layouts, gimmicks, rewards and enemies.

''Chain of Memories'' was later remade as a UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 game (titled ''Re:Chain of Memories'') as part of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] release of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII: Final Mix+'' in 2007, which released as a standalone game in North America the following year. [[NoExportForYou Europe and Australia never got it]], but did get ''Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'', which contains ''Re:Chain of Memories'' remastered in HD. The remake replaces the 2D sprite art with 3D graphics, has voice acting in the Castle Oblivion cutscenes[[note]]Otherwise, this version still uses pure text, although small voice clips can still be heard during the battles, which mainly consist of voice grunts, and other battle clips that previously appeared in both VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI, and VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.[[/note]], adds an additional boss battle and a new form for the FinalBoss, includes some new Attack Cards based off of Keyblades and Enemy Cards based off the Organization XIII members that appear in ''Kingdom Hearts II'', makes small tweaks to the battle system such as adding or removing some sleights, and completely removes the PlayerVersusPlayer mode. The ''HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'' version is mostly identical to the the [=PS2=] remake, but has higher graphics resolution, trophy/achievement support for the various platforms, and replaces the Attack Cards of the ''II'' Keyblades with some from ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2''.

Picking up right where the first game left off , Sora, WesternAnimation/{{Donald|Duck}}, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} are wandering the worlds in search of [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse King Mickey]] and Riku. Eventually they are led by a cloaked figure to a strange place called Castle Oblivion, where memories come to life within its walls as illusions. As they climb the floors, based on almost every location from their previous adventure [[note]] With the exception of [[WesternAnimation/{{Tarzan}} Deep Jungle]], as [[ScrewedByTheLawyers Disney had lost the rights to Tarzan by then.]] [[/note]], they learn about a strange girl known as Naminé, a previously unknown figure from Sora's past, and are antagonized by a strange group of people called the Organization (Organization XIII in later games). Though not everything is as it appears in the castle, as memories can be tricky things...

Rather than the usual ActionRPG style of combat, ''Chain of Memories'' uses a combination of action and "[[FightLikeACardPlayer card battling]]". The player must prepare a deck of cards with numbers varying from 0-9 to use in their battles, with those cards determining if Sora attacks with his Keyblade, uses magic and summons, or uses an item to heal or reload cards, while being able to move him freely to dodge attacks. They can also be used to “break” opposing cards with lower or equal value and interrupt enemy attacks and items (that can break your own cards if you’re not careful), or be combined in "sleights", with specific combinations activating special moves that tend to be very powerful, but come at the cost of using up the first card used, meaning relying on them exclusively can use up cards completely for a fight. Special Enemy cards can also be used to grant temporary buffs that can turn things in your favor, with Map cards are used to synthesise rooms with various layouts, gimmicks, rewards and enemies.

Rather than the usual ActionRPG style of combat, ''Chain of Memories'' uses a combination of action and "[[FightLikeACardPlayer card battling]]". The player must prepare a deck of cards with numbers varying from 0-9 to use in their battles, with those cards determining if Sora attacks with his Keyblade, uses magic and summons, or uses an item to heal or reload cards, while being able to move him freely to dodge attacks. They can also be used to “break” opposing cards with lower or equal value and interrupt enemy attacks and items (that can break your own cards if you’re not careful), or be combined in "sleights", with specific combinations activating special moves that tend to be very powerful, but come at the cost of using up the first card used, meaning relying on them exclusively can use up cards completely for a fight. Cards are also used to create the world around you, as different cards are used to synthesise rooms with various gimmicks, obstacles, rewards and enemies.

Rather than the usual ActionRPG style of combat, ''Chain of Memories'' uses a combination of action and "[[FightLikeACardPlayer card battling]]". The player must prepare a deck of cards to use in their battles, with those cards determining every action Sora takes sans movement. Cards can also be combined in "sleights" or special moves that tend to be very powerful, but come at the cost of using up cards completely for a fight. Cards are also used to create the world around you, as different cards are used to synthesise rooms with various gimmicks, obstacles, rewards and enemies.

''Chain of Memories'' was later remade as a UsefulNotes/PlayStation2 game (titled ''Re:Chain of Memories'') as part of the [[NoExportForYou Japan-only]] release of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII: Final Mix+''. It was (much later) released as a standalone [=PS2=] game in North America. [[NoExportForYou Europe and Australia never got it]], but did get ''Kingdom Hearts HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'', which contains ''Re:Chain of Memories'' remastered in HD. The remake replaces the 2D sprite art with 3D graphics, has voice acting in the Castle Oblivion cutscenes[[note]]Otherwise, this version still uses pure text, although small voice clips can still be heard during the battles, which mainly consist of voice grunts, and other battle clips that previously appeared in both VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI, and VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII.[[/note]], adds an additional boss battle and a new form for the FinalBoss, includes some new Attack Cards based off of Keyblades and Enemy Cards based off the Organization XIII members that appear in ''Kingdom Hearts II'', makes small tweaks to the battle system such as adding or removing some sleights, and completely removes the PlayerVersusPlayer mode. The ''HD I.5 Re[=MIX=]'' version is mostly identical to the the [=PS2=] remake, but has higher graphics resolution, trophy/achievement support for the various platforms, and replaces the Attack Cards of the ''II'' Keyblades with some from ''VideoGame/KingdomHearts358DaysOver2''.

Picking up right where the first game left off , Sora, WesternAnimation/{{Donald|Duck}}, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} are wandering the worlds in search of [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse King Mickey]] and Riku. Eventually they are led by a cloaked figure to a strange place called Castle Oblivion, where memories come to life within its walls as illusions. As they climb the floors and partially relive the events of their previous adventure, they learn about the strange girl known as Naminé from Sora's past and are antagonized by a strange group of people called the Organization (Organization XIII in later games). Though not everything is as it appears in the castle, as memories can be tricky things...

Rather than the usual ActionRPG style of combat, ''Chain of Memories'' uses a combination of action and "[[FightLikeACardPlayer card battling]]". The player must prepare a deck of cards to use in their battles, with those cards determining every action Sora takes sans movement. Cards can also be combined in "sleights" or special moves that tend to be very powerful, but come at the cost of using up cards completely for a fight.

After the events of ''Kingdom Hearts I'', Sora, WesternAnimation/{{Donald|Duck}}, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} are wandering the worlds in search of [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse King Mickey]] and Riku. Eventually they are led by a cloaked figure to a strange place called Castle Oblivion, where memories come to life within its walls as illusions. As they climb the floors and partially relive the events of their previous adventure, they learn about the strange girl known as Naminé from Sora's past and are antagonized by a strange group of people called the Organization (Organization XIII in later games). Though not everything is as it appears in the castle, as memories can be tricky things...

''Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories'' is the second game in the ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' series, and the only one on the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance. Released in 2004, the game begins [[ImmediateSequel immediately after]] ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI'' and sets up new plot threads for ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII''.

* {{Catchphrase}}: This game was the progenitor of Axel's famous line, which was originally translated as "Commit it to memory." ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' streamlined the line to "Got it memorized?", which carried over to '"Re:Chain of Memories''.

* {{Catchphrase}}: This game was the progenitor of Axel's famous line, which was then translated as "Commit it to memory." ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' streamlined the line to "Got it memorized?", which carried over when the game was remade.

** The English version of the original ''Chain of Memories'' is the only time where Axel said "Commit it to memory" instead of the more popular "Got it memorized?" which would be used in the remake and later games.

* LevelOfTediousEnemies: Destiny Islands for both Riku and Sora serve as {{BreatherLevel}}s before the game's plot starts to really ramp up. Normal heartless they encounter will be weak, easily killed, and generally serve to annoy players more than challenge them, while also serving as grinding material. Tornado Steps will fly around and hit Sora with their arms for little damage, Crescendos will heal or summon other Heartless, and Creeper Plants will spit low-damage seeds at Sora or trip him up.

* {{Filler}}: The plot of the Disney worlds are rehashed from [[VideoGame/KingdomHeartsI the previous game]]. Details are tweaked here and there, but nothing you would miss. They are merely obstacles that hinder you from reaching the end and beginning of floors, where actually important events happen. It gets worse in Riku's campaign, since the cutscenes within the Disney worlds and Traverse Town are eliminated and Riku has no in-story reason to be there most of the time (Riku did visit Traverse Town, Agrabah, Monstro, and Neverland, but as a bad guy). [[UpToEleven It is a rehash of a rehash]].