Opening: Kingdom Hearts Ii 9

Choose your difficulty in kingdom hearts iii: Beginner, Standard, or Proud. Learn how choices affect stats and secret movie requirements.

Before starting your adventure, you must select a difficulty: Beginner, Standard, or Proud. There are no difficulty-related Trophies, but kingdom hearts iii is considered the easiest in the series due to its available tools. Beginner mode is not recommended as it plays itself, offering more Kupo Coins (which revive you upon death). Standard mode is similar to previous games' beginner modes. Proud mode is closest to a standard playthrough in prior titles, with the main difficulty early on before acquiring the Cure spell.

Difficulty also impacts unlocking the secret movie, which requires finding Lucky Emblems (hidden Mickey Mouse symbols). Beginner mode requires all 90 Emblems, Standard requires 60, and Proud requires only 30. If you've played previous Kingdom Hearts titles, aiming for Proud mode is advised, even if you haven't before. This guide is written with Proud difficulty in mind.

Following the opening cutscene (a non-interactive cinematic the game plays automatically) (a non-interactive cinematic the game plays automatically), you'll find yourself in the Deep Dive, witnessing memories. Take time to familiarize yourself with the controls for moving Sora.

You'll then be introduced to Situation commands, performed by pressing the [TRIANGLE]/[Y] button in specific situations. This is a crucial button throughout your adventure. Use it now to examine the mirror. The memories are from previous games, and you'll make important choices.

First, choose your Desire: Wisdom (more MP), Vitality (more HP), or Balance (a mix). These affect Sora’s base stats. While not drastically different, the extra HP from Vitality is helpful early on Proud mode. These choices determine your starting stats and the order in which you learn abilities.

Your second decision is to choose a Power: Guardian (survivability), Warrior (combos), or Mystic (magic). This choice affects the order Sora learns abilities. For example, at Level 2, Guardian grants Damage Control, Warrior grants Combo Plus, and Mystic grants Magic Combo Set. At Level 12, Guardian grants MP Haste, Warrior grants Attraction Extender, and Mystic grants Water Boost. Choose based on your playstyle: Warrior for aggressive combos, Mystic for magic, or Guardian for survivability, which is useful on Proud mode. There is no wrong choice.

You'll then face simple Shadows. Take this time to practice locking on with the [R1]/[RB] button and using the [X]/[A] button to chain attacks into combos. After defeating the Shadows, you'll face a Darkside, a large Heartless that summons darkness orbs and more Shadows.

Warning: On Proud mode, this fight is difficult due to the lack of healing items or spells. Keep moving and stay locked onto the Darkside's hand to perform air combos. Defeated Shadows drop HP prizes (green orbs) to restore your health. When the Darkside charges its attack, continue attacking it, then prepare to dodge the incoming orbs of darkness.

Upon defeating the Darkside, Sora will learn two new abilities: Fire and Water.