As of April 3rd 2013, one of the biggest names in the gaming industry—LucasArts—is no more. Rather, it won’t be creating games anymore. The studio’s staff of 150 were laid off and its new parent company, Disney, is using the name LucasArts as a licensing firm—so that third party companies can create games having to do with Star Wars, Indiana Jones and so on.

Although the studio was never as large or successful as say, Electronic Arts, it will always be remembered as one of the pioneers of modern video gaming. Out of respect for LucasArts’ brilliant minds and people, we at inMotion Gaming have compiled a list of some of our favorite games to ever be developed and/or published by this truly legendary studio.

The Secret of Monkey Island (1990)

When it comes to point-and-click adventure games you could easily make a strong argument for LucasArts as the be-all-end-all when it comes to developing the best of them. Nothing could be truer of this than the Monkey Island games; the first of which, ‘The Secret of Monkey Island’ has to be my favourite.

Monkey Island is a game with wit; its humour is a wonderful blend of deadpan comedy and outlandish situations that go together so well with its characters that seem so blissfully un aware of the idiotic of the world they inhabit.

It has truly earned its place in the nostalgic memories of the older gamers who originally played it and has been discovered by a new generation thanks to its HD revival. Perhaps its biggest strength is that you can talk about how much fun it still is to play without needing to ever spoil the plot, which I’ll summarise for those who’ve yet to experience this marvel.

You are Guybrush Threepwood, a wanna-be mighty pirate, who to become a full pirate has to undertake several trials. Things get out of hand when he falls in love with Governor Elaine Marley, who’s quickly kidnapped by a ghost pirate. Guybrush then embarks on a high-stakes rescue mission to save his love.

Play it for yourself and maybe 20 years on you’ll still remember how you wanted to be a mighty pirate, too.

-David Wyatt, Video Features

Zombies Ate My Neighbors (1993)

This gem of a game defined multiplayer for me as a child. In a game which was as weird as it was challenging, having a buddy blast zombies with waterguns with me was truly a childhood memory I’ll never forget.

Zombies Ate My Neighbors was released on the Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis in 1993. It was developed by LucasArts and published by Konami. For those who have never played it, I highly recommend that you do. The game is best described as a zany top-down shooter overflowing with personality.

The game had you control either Zeke or Julie—or both, in multiplayer—as they struggle to fight hordes of demons invading their neighborhood. That is basically the extent of the story. There’s no mythical blade to collect, no ancient demon come to life—just two kids, miles of zombies, and enough weaponry to rival that of the Worms games.

On their quest to rid their neighborhood and the rest of the world from the clutches of evil, Zeke and/or Julie must rescue at least one civilian per level. With 48 regular missions and 7 bonus levels, Zombies Ate My Neighbors lasted a good long while. Grabbing a buddy to play the game’s 2-player mode with is encouraged, as the game gets incredibly hard towards the end, in true Super Nintendo action game fashion.

I think that the kind of spunk Zombies bore defined gaming in the mid-90s. It was weird, yeah, but it was also really fun and very unique. Zombies Ate My Neighbors is fondly remembered by those who played (and were terrified by) it in their childhood. It had a sequel, entitled Ghoul Patrol, but that ended up how most sequels do—not nearly as good as the first.

-Chris Carlson, Editor

Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)

When I was a mere 8 year old lad I wasn’t lucky enough to have my very own PlayStation. We had a PC and an old Saga Mega Drive but the ‘new generation of console’ wasn’t on the top of my Christmas list back in 1999. As a young boy I had always been fascinated by the Star Wars franchise; to be honest, I liked the lightsabers. So, when I stepped into the kids play area of my local restaurant after a lovely meal I was, understandably, drawn towards the PlayStation in the corner of the room. The PlayStation was neglected as the other children opted for the climbing frames and foam swords. I, however, was enticed by the look of the game loaded on the console – Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace.

Developed by the short-lived Big Ape Productions and published by LucasArts, the game itself was incredibly detailed for its time. The graphics seemed smooth, the game play was quick, responsive and exciting. It goes without saying that attempting to play the game now would probably give me a headache but, at the time, I was captivated. I played for a good hour, slowly drawing a small crowd to watch my slightly pixelated adventure unfold. Sadly, I had to leave the quest unfinished as I was eventually torn away from the screen by my parents. However, after a few months of patiently waiting, my parents eventually bought me my very own PlayStation with a new copy of the game.

It was LucasArts that introduced me to the joys of console gaming. The Phantom Menace still is one of my favorite games. I am sad to see LucasArts go; it’s a loss to the gaming world indeed.

-Alec Ward, Assoc. Writer

Star Wars Galaxies (2003)

Star Wars Galaxies was developed by Sony Online Entertainment and published by LucasArts on June 26, 2003. Its servers were online until December 15, 2011. For seven and a half years, the game captivated subscribers like me with its limitless options and paths for players to pursue. You could be a gunslinger of many varieties, such as a marksman, or a pistoleer. “But wait,” a lot of gamers might say, “that sounds like every other sci-fi MMO ever made!” Au contraire, ladies and gentlemen.

Where SWG broke the mold was with its introduction of noncombat classes. You see, players could decide to be artisans. But within that path, they could also choose to focus on tailoring, droid building, gunsmithing, armorsmithing, mining, architecture, furniture, medical supplies…the list goes on and on.

And if that didn’t strike your fancy, but you still wanted to skip the nitty-gritty of combat, then you could take up the role of Medic. When players died, they accrued “wounds,” limits placed on their three status bars (Health, Action and Mind) that could only be healed by Doctors (Health and Action) and Entertainers (Mind).

While the game went through multiple redesigns and eventually suffered the fate of many an ailing MMO by turning into what was essentially World of Warcraft with Star Wars textures, it maintained a strong, loyal community that loved it to the very, very end. I played it from release to shutdown, and it provided me with many of my very favorite memories of gaming, and helped me develop friendships that I continue to maintain now.

The closing of LucasArts is like a pinch of salt dropped onto the wound left by SWG’s server shutdown last December. Knowing I may never again have an experience like the ones I had in SWG is a hard thought to bear, and I tip my hat in the memory of LucasArts as an oft-troubled, yet doggedly determined presence in the gaming industry.

-Will Brunelle, Assoc. Writer

Indiana Jones and the Emperor’s Tomb (2003)

Sure, it wasn’t the greatest Indy game to ever grace our consoles, but let me tell you—she’ll fool ya. Indiana Jones and the Emperor’s Tomb was a great game, even if it wasn’t a ‘great’ game. Emperor’s Tomb was developed by The Collective and published by LucasArts in 2003. Featuring several long levels and a surprisingly good Harrison Ford impersonator, Emperor’s Tomb did its best to capture all the adventure and suspense that is Indiana Jones.

And it achieved that, for the most part. The story was excellent, and the game leads right in to the classic movie Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The levels were partially interactive, as Indy could bash enemies with whatever he could find—chairs, barrels, and so on. Unfortunately, the game was weighted down by poor controls and an even worse camera system. One level—the clock tower in Prague, for those who’ve played it—was a notoriously hard challenge due to the lackluster camera angles the game presented.

I remember Emperor’s Tomb so well because it took my best friend and I years to finish. Part of that was due to the aforementioned clock tower level, part due to conflicting schedules as we entered our college years. Even today, we’ll occasionally call each other up to talk about how much we hated—yet loved—that damn game.

-Chris Carlson, Editor

Star Wars: Battlefront (2004)

In a time when the only games I had known were Ratchet & Clank, Need For Speed, and a handful of other games of similar styles, Star Wars: Battlefront was very refreshing. Not only was this little gem my first shooter, but it also introduced me to the idea of using strategy in any game I’ve played since. Hearing my friends talk about blasting droids to a million pieces, fighting for command posts, and zipping through the battlefield on Speederbikes instantly had me intrigued. LucasArts and developer Pandemic did something that is a rare find indeed in the gaming world; they made a great licensed game.

Frankly, Battlefront wouldn’t have been nearly as great if it weren’t for the Star Wars title and setting. It was splendid for a Star Wars fan such as myself to explore the popular worlds and battlefields from the movies. Half the fun was just walking around taking in the sights as the sounds of battle echoed in the distance. Back then, that was the ultimate shooter experience for me. I set the camera to first-person and went to town with my blaster rifle. After all these years of playing Halo, Call of Duty, and all the other more refined shooters, Battlefront didn’t age very well. However, the nostalgia never fails to wash over me when I pop that disc into my Playstation 2. I have LucasArts to thank for the memories, and for the game itself, and I’ll never forget that. You will be missed LucasArts. May the Force be with you… always.

-Jonathan Gipson, Assoc. Writer

Star Wars: Republic Commando (2005)

Developed and published by LucasArts, Star Wars: Republic Commando is an oddity in the Star Wars game library. It mirrors the experience of playing a modern Call of Duty or Battlefield entry, but covered in the livery of the Star Wars universe we all know and love. Rather than having you jump around with lightsaber(s) drawn and chairs being Force-thrown every which way, LucasArts threw you into the boots of RC-1138, “Boss,” as he leads his team of three fellow Republic Commandos on covert assignments to sabotage the Separatist’s campaign.

The game was gritty, visceral, and challenging. Enemies spurted blood onto your visor when you took them down with your wrist-mounted knife, and shootouts were intense, forcing you into cover and testing your ability to deploy your squadmates effectively and tactically.

By the end of the narrative, I found myself attached to my teammates, laughing at Scorch’s jokes and Sev’s dark, deadpan sarcasm. I cared about the outcome of my team’s efforts. I would throw myself into harm’s way if I saw a team member being outgunned, and consciously tried to protect them (something I don’t bother to do in Call of Duty, that’s for sure).

Republic Commando offered some of the most compelling FPS gameplay in a while, and it remains in my memory today as an example of how both a Star Wars game and an FPS in general should be made. I’m sad to see its creators close their doors, and I only hope that some other developer will pick up the reigns in the future and carry on the legacy of such great games.

-Will Brunelle, Assoc. Writer

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (2008)

I think LucasArts will mostly be remembered for its Star Wars games in the same way that any branding of a Lucas-owned company will be mostly related to Star Wars. Skywalker Sound was a nice name variation at least. For me the fondest game I have in memory that came from them was the more recent Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. In my opinion it has the story that any of the prequel films should have had; telling a tragic story that ends with hope (Episode IV: A New Hope if you’ll forgive the pun).

It was the most cinematic Star Wars game every made up to that point and at times felt like it was one of the films. The Force Unleashed told us the tale of Darth Vader’s secret apprentice, Starkiller, and the birth of the Rebel Alliance. I could leave it at that, but it would do the game a great disservice. There were many other things the game did that hadn’t been done before.

Using the new Euphoria engine developed at LucasArts you had a game where enemies and environments would dynamically react to your Force powers; for example, Lift a Storm Trooper and he would flail around. Move him near another Trooper and he would grab on to him (if you had the power you could lift even more up and watch them grab on for dear life).

On the gameplay side things were kept simpler, with a more hack-and-slash feel when it came to lightsaber combat. You were encouraged to use your force powers at every opportunity to wreak havoc upon the Empire. The Force has never been as destructive as what you can achieve in this game, with it shown as a vicious and spectacular power unlike its more down to earth portrayal it receives in other media.

The second game never received the praise that this one got but at over 5 million copies sold worldwide ‘The Force Unleashed’ no doubt has its share of fans across the world who will mourn the passing of LucasArts and the potential loss of Star Wars 1313, though I’d place my bets on it being acquired by another company.

-David Wyatt, Video Features

With an exceedingly large catalog of games the studio has either created or published, LucasArts will always be thought of as one of the most prolific games companies ever to grace the industry. We here at inMotion Gaming would like to wish the laid-off staff the very best of luck, and we hope they’re able to find new homes throughout the gaming world.

Written by

The inMotion Gaming Team

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Star Wars: Battlefront 3

I never realized how much of a following the Battlefront series had picked up in its two game run until relatively recently, when it was revealed that the third game was painfully close to being finished when Pandemic went under. Maybe if they hadn’t wasted their time on Lord of the Rings Conquest they could have squeezed it out.

Now that Disney bought Lucas Arts, we find a speck of hope in the darkness. It’s been quite a while since Battlefront 2 came out for Playstation 2 and Xbox. It was considered somewhat of a failure to fans of the first game. While the battles were larger, there was more diversity in class options, and you were even able to play as Jedi or Sith, it suffered from framerate issues that the systems of the time couldn’t handle. Now what if we saw a Battlefront 3 for this generation of consoles, or even the next? Framerate wouldn’t be nearly as much of an issue if handled correctly, whoever developed the game could make a much deeper system of class options, and even create a customization feature. Can you imagine creating and customizing your own Jedi and personally plunging him into an epic battle?

Why stop there? Space battles were introduced in Battlefront 2, but it was a shallow, unsatisfying experience after the glamour of the concept wore off. If the hypothetical developer could just learn from Pandemic’s mistakes, they could make it so much more. Here’s another fun thought: grant the ability to do an orbital drop from space to the battlefield on the planet and vice versa.

Kingdom Hearts 3

This is the one that I have a strong personal investment in. The Kingdom Hearts series is based off of a crazy idea of having a game with Disney and Final Fantasy characters mixed together to weave an epic tale through space. Personally, there isn’t too much improvement needed on my end. We all just want to see more of the story unfold. Since the release of Kingdom Hearts 2, Square Enix has done nothing but dance around the third instalment by making mediocre side-games that just fill in some of the gaps that were left by the first two games. While taking their sweet time is more than irritating for die-hard fans like myself, I can’t help but see the plus side of them taking all these side ventures. Square has been learning much about what works with fans in terms of gameplay and they’re doing wonders to build up tension leading up to the hopefully-soon-to-be-announced third instalment of the main story.

Half-Life 3

What’s with all of the threes? Here’s yet another case of the developer taking their good time making what their fans clamour for. Valve’s CEO Gabe Newell has become infamous over the years for teasing Half-Life fans about a sequel. He even released a photo of himself holding a couple of knives while standing in front of a television that has a Half-Life 3 logo on it. Not cool Gabe.

Valve is best known for their innovative and outside the box ideas for their games. Half-Life 2 had an amazing physics engine for its time, the concept and execution of the Portal games is genius, and Left 4 Dead takes zombie survival to a whole new level. It’s their knack for making unique games that makes the wait for Half-Life 3 all the more intense. What amazing new innovation to gaming will it bring with it? Perhaps that is what’s making Valve take so long.

Mirror’s Edge 2

Mirror’s Edge was an amazing idea that fell short due to a lack of planning. The game was way too short, combat was shallow, I can’t even remember the story it was so lacklustre, and the beautiful graphics were wasted on a pale, colorless city. Even the cutscenes were replaced by cartoon/anime graphics. I have all the faith in the world that Dice could learn from their mediocre first outing with the IP, and sling out a sequel that could be one of the most breathtaking experiences you can find in a game. We just have to hope that they’re given another chance.

Another Burnout

Burnout games are insanely fun. While I love the games that Criterion is pumping out for the Need For Speed series, I miss the ridiculous, fast-paced, crash-fuelled experience that is a Burnout game. The racing game genre just doesn’t feel the same without it.

It may very well be that all of these games will eventually be announced some day in the future, and I certainly hope that that’s the world we live in; where all the games we desire are made. What sequel are you dying to have put into production? Sound off in the comments below!

Written by

Jonathan Gipson

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5) Call of Duty 2

What’s that you’re asking? “Why, Alec; there are so many Call of Duty games, what made you pick number two?” Well, intrigued reader, I’ll tell you. It’s because the second Call of Duty was the best. Hands down, it gets no better than this. A good friend and I used to play Call of Duty 2, back in the day, on our old 20GB Xbox 360s. We were an unstoppable online team. We’d rack up the headshots with the Kar98k and tear people a new one with the PPSh – Rambo would literally eat his heart out. The reason that I loved it so much, and prefer it to the other CoDs, is because it’s simple. The teams were small (4v4) and the game modes were uncomplicated. There were no fiddly achievements to struggle to unlock, or unnecessary perk systems, it was all about having fun. And that’s what gaming with a friend is about, having fun … and winning, of course.

4) Army of Two

With the pending release of Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel on the 26th of March, I’ve come to realise how much I loved this game. To be perfectly honest, I don’t remember much of the story. All I can really remember about the game are a few of the main missions and key boss fights, that and dying a lot. What really sticks in my mind, though, was the fact that I played this with my brother. My brother and I love a good game or two, especially if it’s a co-op, and Army of Two is really built to play with a friend. If anything, the game seems sad when you play it alone. I’m pretty sure EA made the AI intentionally unresponsive and generally useless, just so that gamers would be forced to play it with a buddy.

3) Battlefield 3

Battlefield 3 has a whole bunch of stuff going for it. Its single player campaign was surprisingly fun and incredibly well designed, the game is responsive and realistic and you can blow the hell out of buildings – which is always fun. However, where it really shines is in its multiplayer modes. Online play is incredibly enjoyable, just because there’s so much to do. You can play the game in so many different ways that it’s almost impossible to be bored. Have your friend pilot a helicopter whilst you parachute out and capture objectives. Drive a tank whilst your buddy plays ‘let’s make that guy a colander’ with the mounted machine gun or bale a truck into a gas station and kill all of your friends onboard – Battlefield 3 is endless amounts of fun. The squad system makes it easy to play online with your friends and even easier to make new friends – as it randomly adds you to a depleted squad. You never know, you might just make a gaming buddy for life.

2) FIFA 13

There are so many reasons as to why FIFA 13 is both the best thing ever created and, at the same time, the bane of my life. The online play is one of those reasons … or all of those reasons. I’ve spent many an evening playing ‘Pro-Clubs’ with two of my best friends. If you’re not aware, ‘Pro-Clubs’ is an online game mode where players are able to create a ‘Virtual Pro’ and join a club with other friends. In this club of pros you will be able to pick a position and then play against other teams of like minded gamers. This is both an amazing experience and, I’d imagine, one of the reasons a person might turn to drink. It’s rewarding and frustrating, enjoyable and gut-wrenchingly painful – but it doesn’t half feel incredible when you win. But FIFA 13 is just as fun to play locally as it is online. Grab a few friends together and make yourself a little tournament or sit down with one other person and play against them to your hearts content. I shall warn you though; it will inevitably end in tears, so maybe stick to playing on the same team.

1) Left 4 Dead

So, here it is – my favourite game to play with others – Left 4 Dead. This game is incredibly well done. It doesn’t profess to be something it’s not. There’s no complicated story arcs or character development, nope – just shooting zombies in the face. Some of my fondest memories come from playing this game online with three of my school friends. We would band together, shotguns and machine guns in hand, and face hordes of the undead – side by side. This led to some of the funniest moments in my gaming history as well as some of the most frustrating. Valve have done such a great job with this game that my old gang has banded together once more and we’ve started playing it again – it’s just that much fun! It’s still as enjoyable and just as frustrating, even 5 years after we initially bought the game.

There you have it, my favorite five games to play with others. I won’t lie, there are tonnes of other games that could have been in here and I really struggled to choose the final five. I’m a firm believer that gaming should be a sociable pass time. There’s no need to play a game on your own if you can play it with friends – picking that special someone to sit by your side, grab a controller and play away will really make the experience that much more rewarding. But hey, I don’t profess to be a co-operative gaming guru. These are my favourites but not necessarily yours. Why not edit my list in the comment section below and tell us your favourite games to play with friends. Also, be sure to keep it here at iMG for a full review of Army of Two: The Devil’s Cartel following its release on March 26th!

Written by

Alec Ward

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“This is gonna go so wrong.”

“No it’s not; it’s going to go so well. Anyone got eyes on?”

The voices banter with one another with that particular subtlety unique to British accents. A rifle scope pans along a runway, a rusted and deserted group of military buildings standing across from the sniper’s position. Voices chatter back and forth until a truck horn interrupts them. A bright blue cargo truck races for the open runway, horn blaring.

The sniper adjusts his aim.

“Can you smash it with that gun?” one voice asks.

“Oh my God, Chris, do it!” another says.

The rifle fires with a deafening roar, and two shots later the speeding truck’s tires are shredded. The driver bails out and attempts to run, just as the powerful rounds cause the truck to burst into flames. Moments later, compliments ring out from the sniper’s comrades as the driver goes down in a hail of gunfire.

Then the video cuts out, and the sniper’s voice comes in as his name is displayed in bold gray letters on the screen:

“SACRIEL.”

“Well, there we have it,” Sacriel says, inviting viewers to “give [the video] a thumbs up” or a “favorite” if they liked it. Then Sacriel signs off, saying, “I’ll see you next time.”

Christopher Ball, 29, who uses the handle “Sacriel” on his YouTube channel and social media sites, is not a real sniper. His weapons are not long-barreled rifles, but a mouse, headset, keyboard, and top-of-the-line computer.

When he plays his games, Ball is dead serious. His performance determines whether or not he makes a paycheck for the week. Video gaming is Ball’s full-time job.

With the rise of social media and content sites like YouTube, Twitch.tv and own3d.com, many gamers have taken to the Web. They produce videos of their gameplay with voiceovers, to teach other gamers strategy or simply to show off their own experiences, for a laugh or for bragging rights. If they get enough people to watch, these media websites will offer them what may seem like a dream come true: the chance to make money from their content by running ads in their videos.

Ball records footage of his gameplay, records commentary into the video, and uploads the final product to YouTube for fellow gamers to watch. He also streams video on Twitch.tv, showing video of his gameplay live.

For many, the amount of income made from ad revenue is miniscule. It usually adds up to a small, supplementary paycheck compared to a salaried, career job. Christopher Ball is an exception to the rule. He has found his niche in the gaming community, and built a fanbase over several years to reach this point.

Roughly a month ago, Ball took a leap of faith into the arms of his fans.

Ball quit his job as Project Manager at a British internet company to make playing games and producing videos of his gameplay a full-time job. Now he focuses all of his efforts on streaming as regularly as possible, and on landing sponsorships from companies that make computers and computer accessories.

“It was quite scary,” Ball said, to actually commit to a future of uncertainty. His company had recently been taken over by a competitor, and he faced a promotion that offered a 25% raise. He was already making, in his own modest words, “a decent wage for someone my age,” and it terrified him to turn away from the money in order to chase a dream. Despite all this, he found support, and jealousy, in those around him, and it encouraged him.

“My father was proud of me for working so hard and getting said wage, and he was supportive of me chasing my dream,” Ball said. He and his father both also recognized that Ball could “easily” get another professional job if need be, due to the hard work he had put in for five years at his company. His coworkers jokingly mocked him, jealous that he could afford to walk away from his job to play video games all day.

“I needed time away from nine to five,” Ball said, and mentioned that issues in his personal life also prompted him to take the plunge.

Ball doesn’t meet the popular stereotype of gamers. He’s skinny, with clean cut features and a well-trimmed head of short brown hair. He’s of average height, and dresses like any other 20-something: in a hoodie and jeans. He’s soft spoken yet charismatic, light-hearted, and has pitch-perfect comic timing. He had a great job that paid well, and since the summer he’s been dating a young Canadian woman who traveled to England to visit friends and family and wound up staying to eventually move in with Ball.

Ball’s girlfriend Shannon, 29, who asked that her last name be kept private, runs the chatroom that is open to viewers of Ball’s live streams. Their relationship began in July, when Ball noticed Shannon, who goes by the handle “ShannonZKiller” (for “Shannon, Zombie Killer”), answering questions about Ball and his stream by the dozen. He recognized her as a knowledgeable fan, and they started talking about the games they played. It wasn’t long before the friendship grew into a romance.

Shannon said that she “resents how the gaming world is painted,” and that the idea that people should be doing something “better” with their time is unfair. She said that as a woman who is self-admittedly “alright on the eyes,” it’s frustrating to encounter so many social stigmas surrounding gaming, when in reality it is a passion for people of all ages, genders and backgrounds.

“People say gamers are socially stunted. That’s simply untrue,” she said. “I choose this life, because I find it fun…creative…exciting…and provoking, at times,” and other gamers share her perspective.

Tina Amini calls gaming “an escape.” Amini, the 24-year-old Reviews Editor for Kotaku.com, a major gaming news site, says gaming gives players “a new world to explore. Entertainment. Education.”

Blas Garcia, 24, a Dallas-based writer for That Videogame Blog, says that social media has helped video games into the mainstream. “10 years ago you wouldn’t see big actors, much less actresses, in a Call of Duty commercial,” Garcia said. “The generation that grew up with video games is now working adults. Now it isn’t your nerdy kid playing video games, but your average Joe.”

Kaila Streichert, a 21-year-old employee of Albany retailer Jay St. Video Games, says that “gaming means different things to different people. It can be a teenage boy wanting to form a bond with peers, or an adult having an escape from stress.” Streichert has gamed since age six. With thick frame glasses and multi-colored hair pinned up with black chopsticks, and as a woman, she defies the gamer stereotype just like Ball.

Jay St. Video Games sells classic, plastic cartridge Nintendo games alongside the new, high definition discs, in a store where young and old, tried-and-true and experimental all come together.

In a way, the store represents the modern gaming community at large. Gamers are no longer socially inept kids that spend their afternoons pumping quarters into arcade cabinets. Now they are children from preschool to college, and adults with kids, men and women of all backgrounds that, in one way or another, find amusement and solace in the artificial worlds of games.

Now they are Christopher Ball.

Streichert believes that while there “will always be some bias,” it’s “becoming more acceptable for different social groups and genders to play video games.”

One of the strongest forces behind gaming’s shift into the mainstream is the rise of a competitive gaming world, driven by the company Major League Gaming, Inc. Based in New York City, Major League Gaming (MLG) sponsors massive competitive gaming events where thousands of gamers gather to battle it out in all genres of games. They compete for thousands in cash prizes, and come with big name sponsorships sewn on their uniforms.

In 2012 the four MLG Pro Circuit Championship weekends had over 11.7 million unique viewers, based on information provided by Katie Goldberg, a spokeswoman for MLG. These people didn’t just sign in to see what the hype was about and then leave, either. The average viewer watched for more than three hours of competition. It was the ninth annual Pro Circuit since the organization’s founding in 2002, and since 2010 the amount of Pro Circuit online viewers has increased by more than 600%.

From June 8-10 of 2012, MLG hosted the Spring Championship in the Anaheim Convention Center in California. 20,000 people went to watch the tournament unfold, and all 20,000 erupted into roaring applause when gamer “DongRaeGu” won the $25,000 grand prize for his final victory in the game StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty.

The highest paid professional gamer in the world is 32-year-old South Korean StarCraft player Lim Yo-Hwan. It’s estimated that Yo-Hwan makes almost $500,000 a year in winnings and sponsorships.

Amini views this rapid growth of the competitive gaming world as a natural expansion on gaming itself. “Gaming is a competitive environment,” she said. “We’ve been competing since arcade days. The tournaments are like a modern, bigger expression of that.”

Why do people watch? Garcia believes it has something to do with comparing your own gaming style to those of gamers online and in competitions. “Just like sports fanatics…yell at the quarterback to throw the ball, you get that same excitement pointing to your computer screen for the guy to shoot the guy hiding behind the wall,” Garcia says.

Garcia and Streichert also said that the use of “walkthrough” videos to teach gamers how to complete challenging games popularized videos of gameplay online.

“Sacriel” fan “Sikoras” (who asked that his name be kept private) watches because he loves Ball’s personality. As a fellow live-streamer (on a much smaller scale, with only 149 followers on Twitch.tv), he learns from Ball, and gets a kick out of watching the gameplay.

When Sikoras finds out that Ball is streaming, he gets a hot mug of tea ready, sets up some homework (he’s a 20 year old university student from Plymouth, UK) on his secondary computer monitor, and settles in to watch the night’s events unfold. He likes to pitch in and chat in the chatroom during the stream, and “sometimes…but not often,” he’ll grab a beer to enjoy during the stream.

Ball currently has 57,515 subscribers on YouTube, and a total of 7.6 million video views. On Twitch.tv, where he provides his live footage, he has 19,044 followers, and has been watched by 1.5 million people. Ball allows YouTube and Twitch to place ads before and during his videos, which earns him a small amount of money per 1,000 viewers that see the ad.

Ball also asks for donations to support his Internet content. From Oct. 16 until Nov. 16, when his webpage stopped showing the total amount donated, he had made exactly $4,500. The average viewer donated $22.50. Now Ball also allows people to “Subscribe” to him on Twitch, giving fans the option to pay $5 every month in order to avoid watching advertisements during live streams.

“I am blown away by the support my subscribers have shown me, it blows me away every day,” Ball said. He said that some people donate over $150 to him, and others donate any small amount they can afford just to show support.

“I feel like I can relate to Sacriel’s situation, and this donation makes more sense to me than donating to big companies I feel nothing in common with,” said chatroom user “Burbsi,” a 27-year-old factory worker from Switzerland who has been watching Ball for over six months.

“I watch for entertainment,” said “Caboose7778.” “He quit his job. He deserves the money.”

“It’s how Youtubers and livestreamers make their money,” said Sikoras. “People like the idea of someone being rewarded for what they do.”

Ball admits that after the first couple months, donations may slow down as donators may either lose interest, or not have more to give for a while.

“I have had a massive burst of donations, but that will drop off sharply. Then I’m back to living off [ad] revenue.” But he’s confident he can make it work. “I have enough savings to get by for a year or two. My goal at the moment is to generate enough to comfortably live off, and my livestream and YouTube alone I can currently live off.”

The switch hasn’t been completely easy. “I randomly edit. I randomly stream. My sleeping is still all over the place,” Ball said. “Once everything settles down, I hope to put some structure in place to help my career grow properly.”

Two weeks ago, Ball was granted his first sponsorship by the company ROCCAT, which makes computer accessories. He also recently “shout-casted” from DreamHack Winter in Sweden, a major gaming convention and competition, and has been invited back to shout-cast the summer event in June.

While his life remains unbalanced by his new career, Ball is optimistic. As for what he looks forward to the most?

“I look forward to developing my already awesome community to continue to support me and make me smile at the end of each stressful day.”

Written by

Will Brunelle

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Open World Games are Born

The first real open world game came out in 1984—Elite, created by David Braben and Ian Bell. Elite put players into a believable open world made from a wire frame. The universe consisted of planets, politics, economies, trade, and space stations to explore. You as the player had the choice of what to do with your main character; you could be a trader or end up on the other side as a pirate. The trade encompassed space combat and a transport system to sell goods. From the sale of these goods players could purchase ship upgrades to make their unique spaceship. Back when Elite came out it was considered a technical innovation, although now gamers have come to expect more from their open world games.

Enter The Elder Scrolls

Jumping ahead to 1994, a groundbreaking release for open world games comes to the PC. The Elder Scrolls series’ beautiful 3D world sets high standards for other games to come. The series began with Arena and Daggerfall (both now are free downloads from Bethesda’s site), then Morrowind, Oblivion, and now recently Skyrim. Elder Scrolls creates a believable fantasy world where players can “live another life in another world” according to Todd Howard, executive producer for Bethesda. This quote became a motto for some, with people putting hundreds if not thousands of hours into the Elder Scrolls series. Players were able to choose from one of many races to play as and many classes that they felt suit them and their play style. Elder Scrolls has always had an amazing narrative to accompany its gameplay, but the main story wasn’t always the star of the show. As you immerse yourself into the world you feel as if you are a citizen of Tamriel, the vast continent on which the Elder Scrolls series takes place. There is no need to follow the main storyline, instead you can do anything you like–hunt bandits, forage plants, help locals from the bar. The world is yours to play with and do as you like.

Another notable series, known for its wide open cities to play around in are the Grand Theft Auto games. Cast in the role of a gangster or criminal throughout the series, players are thrown into a fictional city that looks as real as one you could walk around in the real world. GTA has always had players doing missions and side missions for mafia contacts and other shady people, while trying to achieve a personal goal of some kind. With loads of weapons and cars thrown in to the giant cities and hundreds of NPCs walking around at one time, the world is the definition of sandbox gaming. The addition of multiplayer later in the series has given even more life to this open world title. Creative players have come up with their own game mods and even created their own gangs and societies across the multiplayer platform. Despite Grand Theft Auto’s amazing gameplay and features, it has been widely accused of being the cause for many problems with kids and violence around the world.

Online Realms: Infinite Exploration

The worlds of Massively-Multiplayer Online games may be the biggest and most immerse of all open world games nowadays, however, with World of Warcraft being the largest among them. WoW currently has a total player count of over nine million, more than New York City’s population. MMO worlds (also referred to as Persistent Online Worlds) are already massive, but the developers devote a lot of time to the game and keep on adding well after release for some titles. Expansion packs and new in-game items add even more playability to the games and along with them bring more new players in all the time. Hundreds of side quests and main story lines abound, along with crafting and cooking and a host of other diversions keep gamers happy and busy within their chosen worlds of play. These games almost always have ways to promote social interaction as well, leading to a lot of friendships and even some marriages in real life with fellow gamers. MMOs create their own cultures and are quite dedicated to their games and lifestyle that has been brought about by it.

The Evolution of Open World Games

The open world game sub-genre continues to expand and bring about new features for loving fans. New releases are becoming more and more frequent, instead of the rare gem being produced every now and then. Some notable open world games to keep an eye on are Far Cry 3, Borderlands 2, and Assassins Creed 3. Each one should bring something new to the table, but all of them will have the opportunity of creating a new world for gamers to lose themselves in. Far Cry 3 is adding hunting to the series, Borderlands 2 has billions of different weapons, and Assassins Creed 3 is bringing vast wilderness and ship combat to the series.

Open world games can only go up from here, with new features and larger worlds waiting for those looking to “live another life, in another world”. Just don’t forget about all those other beautiful games coming out as well, and your real life–can’t forget about that either.

How about you? What do you think of open world gaming and which are your favourite games? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Written by

Brandon Morgan

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In case you missed last week’s Re: Cap, you can find it here.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Following the elimination of Ansem and Xemnas at the hands of Sora and Riku, Xehanort has revived. This is because when a person’s Heartless and Nobody are eradicated, their original being is resurrected. In light of this troubling news, Yen Sid puts Sora and Riku through their very own Mark of Mastery exams to make them Keyblade Masters and prepare them for Xehanort’s coming onslaught. For the trial, they are separated and sent to worlds previously destroyed by Heartless that have been restored, though now asleep and disconnected from other worlds.

Their ultimate goal is to reawaken the sleeping worlds by unlocking the seven Sleeping Keyholes they contain, and return from the realm of sleep. During the exam, the two both come across the resurrected Ansem, Seeker of Darkness and Xemnas, as well as a young Master Xehanort from an alternate past. The three reveal to Sora what Organization XIII’s true purpose was– to serve as vessels for Master Xehanort to place pieces of his heart inside, turning them into his clones. Near the end, Young Xehanort forces Sora into a comatose state and his heart is engulfed in darkness. However, it’s protected by Ventus’ suit of Keyblade armor, which is still residing within his heart.

Riku tries to save Sora, but is confronted by a new Organization, comprised of the newly revived Master Xehanort and his eleven vessels, whom Xehanort is plotting to have battle seven Keyblade wielders and once again forge the X-blade (through the penultimate clash of equal strengths of darkness and light). Master Xehanort tries to turn Sora into his last needed vessel, but Sora is rescued by Riku and several other friends including Lea–the revived human form of Axel–after which Xehanort and his Organization retreat.

At Yen Sid’s tower, Riku enters Sora’s body and releases his heart from Ventus’ armor in a fierce struggle. When Sora wakes up, only Riku is made a Keyblade Master, as Sora ultimately gave in to the darkness in his heart. Lea is revealed to be a Keyblade wielder, much to everyone’s surprise. Sora then begins a new journey to train by himself. Ven is shown still in Castle Oblivion’s Chamber of Waking, but smiling a bit. The secret ending reveals that Yen Sid is preparing to gather seven Keyblade wielders to battle Xehanort’s thirteen vessels of darkness. He has Riku bring Kairi to his tower to begin her training with the Keyblade she was given in the climax of Kingdom Hearts II.

So there you have it. The story of Kingdom Hearts recapped. Admittedly, it’s a lot to take in, but it’s worth it to prepare for Kingdom Hearts III.

Kingdom Hearts III Predictions

While I’m on the subject of Kingdom Hearts III, I would like to take a moment to speculate the events that could transpire in our long-awaited sequel. Here are 6 things I predict.

1. Terra, Ventus, and Aqua are trapped, and it’s up to Sora to save them. This will probably be the bulk of the game; saving them one at a time.
2. Riku passed his Mark of Mastery exam, but Sora didn’t. So either saving Terra, Ventus, and Aqua will earn him the mark, or he’ll have to find another way before he’s fit to take on Xehanort.
3. Xehanort is back, and he’s got a squad of versions of himself from different time periods. This will undoubtedly mean they will be messing with our hero’s head, as is tradition of Kingdom Hearts villains, and also that there’s going to be an epic battle in the climax of the game, similar to that of Birth By Sleep.
4. Yen Sid needs 7 Keyblade wielders to battle Xehanort. Right now, there’s Sora, Riku, the newly acquired Lea, and Mickey. That’s four, lets assume that Yen Sid won’t be taking part in the battle, so if/when Ventus and Aqua are retrieved, we’ll have six. Kairi will make seven. Unless we somehow get Terra back…
5. We know where Aqua and Ventus are, but what about Terra? He was trapped in his body with Xehanort. Now that Xehanort is back in his old form, what happened to Terra and his body? I suspect he’ll be the last of the three you rescue, with Aqua and Ventus helping you locate him.
6. The battle system has taken many different forms throughout the games. However, Dream Drop Distance looks to have the coolest one. For III, we can probably assume that there will be an awesome system, possibly combining the more popular ones. Or maybe they’ll just come up with something completely new.

The MoonLight of Keyblade Wielders | Image by MultiShadowYoshi

Thank you for joining us throughout this series! Keep it here at inMotion Gaming for all your Kingdom Hearts III news!

Written by

Jonathan Gipson

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Let’s face it, under the layers of conventional gaming today, we’re not finding many unique gems on any platform, and whilst there are adventure games and extensive plotlines that grab our attention, some of us just want to brush away the repetitive franchises on show and just play something original and challenging.

Banjo-Kazooie was widely recognised as Rare’s leap of faith into the games industry. Featuring a brown honey bear walking upright with a red-crested, fictional aviary race called a “bregull”, it’s safe to say that Rare had already gelled well alongside the other unique characters of the Nintendo vista, and expanded the complete lunacy which was platform-gaming. In many instances of Banjo-Kazooie, the player would find themselves fighting ludicrous boss battles in the form of giant crabs, exploding crates and invisible organ grinders – put to the test by a multitude of puzzles and environments. From my experience playing Banjo Kazooie at a young age and following up years later with a purchase on Xbox Live, as an adult, Rare efficiently created a game that would appear challenging to a broad audience.

Probably the most significant and certainly the most entertaining part of the gaming experience was the utter craziness of it all. As gamers, we do expect the odd creepy three-headed alien, the exploding creeper or the idiotic zombie with a bag on his head, but never would you expect to find such a vast array of insane NPCs, ranging from deranged camels to a tribal shaman, both willing to help you through your travels. But then again, for anyone familiar to Rare, this was the same company which created Conker’s Bad Fur Day – the story of a red squirrel lost after a heavy night at the local, fighting his way through wads of talking poo and defeating a cluster of Nazi German bears. Really, I’m not joking.

Banjo-Kazooie is coupled with not only a memorable gaming environment, but with an epic soundtrack. Similar to the style of Spyro, old platform Rayman and Croc, Rare really came into their own visualising the story of a bear and a bird on their quest to save Banjo’s sister.

Not every game has an across-the-board experience however, and Banjo and Kazooie isn’t without its faults. While it’s big, very big, and there are jigsaw pieces (unoriginally called Jiggies) for the player to collect, it sometimes felt a little tedious navigating a large central map just to place that one extra Jiggie you found by accident. Additionally, when I played the game, I found the camera angles demanding, and sometimes unintentionally distracting. Who wants to be walking across a thin surface above lava whilst the camera spins like a roulette table?

Nevertheless, Banjo and Kazooie is one of the pillars of the retro corner of pure sophistry. Dazzlingly unique, comedic and likable, I’m sure many of the more open gamers would find themselves replaying it for years to come. I mean, who doesn’t love some toilet humor while battling witches and dragons?

…You wouldn’t find a talking toilet in Skyrim.

Written by

Josh Carson

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inMotion Gaming presents Reminiscence, a new series of articles covering the games of yore which made us the gamers we are today.  Please join us as each member of our team takes a fond look back at the wonderful video games of yesteryear.

I was a late bloomer when it came to playing video games. My dad seemed to think my brother and I weren’t ready for them, save for the occasional game on our computer. Most games I begged for were denied for the sake of my innocence. However, one of the games that I managed to get my dad’s “OK” for was Rayman 2 The Great Escape.

It certainly wasn’t the first game I had ever played, but it was the first to open my eyes to the wonders and worlds that can be created in a game. Exploring Rayman 2’s fantastic world is one of the fonder memories of my childhood, and I vividly remember all the times I played way past the one hour of game time I was permitted a day, be it trying to beat the boss of a level, or trying to overcome a tricky platforming section. Even when I would get caught, it would always be worth it. My adventures with my favorite limbless hero took me to many different and unique places throughout the magical world he lived in. I was (and honestly, still am) thoroughly creeped out in the Cave of Bad Dreams, I marveled at the life-threatening temples, and I explored every nook and cranny to find all the lums.

If I had to describe myself as a gamer in one word, I would say completionist. I can’t stand leaving something unfinished, uncollected, or unseen. Though these days most of my completionist energy is focused on trophies on my Playstation 3, back then I had to settle with just beating a game to say it was completed.

I have to give Rayman 2: Revolution (the PS2 port of The Great Escape) the credit for unleashing the completionist monster I am today. Not only did it incorporate a way to spend the lums you collected to buy new abilities that I would have killed for when I played it on PC, but it also showed a percentage of game completion and had addicting minigames that when beaten, would give a nice little boost to your health bar. Needless to say, I thrived in this game that I felt was made just for me, pouring all my abundant free time into it until I saw that 100%, which I still keep as my own makeshift trophy on my memory card.

I recently went back and played through Rayman Revolution. Rayman Origins being my inspiration, it had been years since I’d powered up my PS2 with the intention of playing through again. I was happy to find it aged very well, though I found it a bit overly easy throughout, I still experienced challenge in the minigames and the bosses. The nostalgia I experienced was off the charts as I remembered where secrets were, the weaknesses of bosses, and laughed at the characters I had come to love all those years ago when their goofy humor delighted me.

So after reflecting back to the two versions I’ve played through, and playing it again years later I’ve come to one logical, heartfelt conclusion: Rayman 2 is, was, and always will be the game that made me the gamer I am today, and I’ll never forget it, or my hero Rayman, who in my eyes is The Limbless Legend.

Written by

Jonathan Gipson

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Miss the previous chapter? You can always find it here.

Kingdom Hearts: coded

Coded takes place immediately following the finale of Kingdom Hearts II, when Sora, Riku and Kairi receive the King’s note. While organizing the records in his journal, Jiminy Cricket’s curiosity about the line “Thank Namine” ends with him finding a message he didn’t write: “We must return to free them from their torment.” To investigate the message, Mickey digitizes the journal and enters the simulated world to investigate. He creates a Data-Sora to carry out the contents of the journal to find out who the mysterious note refers to.

As Data-Sora travels through the digitized world, Heartless appear in Disney Castle. Everyone is saved by Data-Sora, and a cloaked figure appears, informing the group that he is Jiminy’s Journal taking on the form of Riku. He explains they are now in the data world. Maleficent and Pete appear and there’s an encounter, ending with them abducting the journal. Mickey gives chase, while Data-Sora makes his way through Hollow Bastion. Later they are confronted by the Journal being controlled by Pete, whom they defeat. Jiminy’s Journal falls unconscious.

Mickey arrives full of knowledge as always, and tells them they need to destroy all the bugs in the data to awaken the journal. They then enter Riku’s data world, and find Maleficent and Pete once again. After defeating the two for what has to be at least the fourth time, Mickey discovers that he will have to return to the real world soon, but the journal will have to be erased once it’s completed. This means Data-Sora’s memories will go away, but Sora requests more time so he can save Pete and Maleficent. Though he finds them, they are seemingly erased by Sora’s Heartless before he can help them.

After defeating his Heartless, Sora learns the Journal saved Pete and Maleficent. They leave shortly before Mickey does, which destroys the Journal. A new message appears that says a new door has opened. Mickey returns to the data world and takes Data-Sora to Castle Oblivion, where he fights a man in a black cloak. Upon his defeat, this man is revealed to be Data-Roxas. He gives Data-Sora a card as Mickey appears.

He then opens the new door to find Namine behind it. She reveals Sora’s nature as the “Key that connects everything” through his ties with herself, Roxas, and Xion. She then goes on to tell him about three figures (remember Terra, Ven, and Aqua?) who are also tied to Sora’s heart that need his help. Mickey promises to notify the real Sora of this and heads back to the real world. The game ends with Mickey sending his note to Sora, telling him of these events.

That’s what the message at the end if KHII was about! See how everything is tied together? Roxas, Xion, Namine, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua are all tied to Sora’s heart. Before we move on to next week’s article, we must not forget Birth By Sleep’s epilogue.

Blank Points

This is actually a secret ending that has to be unlocked, but it holds importance nonetheless. It plays out as a cinematic, starting by showing Terra and Xehanort’s hearts lying dormant in Terra’s body, waiting to see who will gain control. Though Xehanort is stronger, Terra reveals he has Master Eraqus’ heart sealed within his own.

Now skip to after the end of Kingdom Hearts II, Aqua is still wandering the Realm of Darkness. She encounters Ansem the Wise who had survived the explosion of his Encoder with few of his memories remaining. He reveals to Aqua that while darkness threatens to swallow the worlds again, hope lies in Sora, who is preparing to set out on another journey to help those whose hearts are connected to his own.

So all this time after the events of Birth By Sleep, Ventus has been asleep, Terra’s heart has been trapped inside his body with Xehanort, and Aqua has been trapped in the Realm of Darkness. They’ve been waiting for ten years!  Make sure you don’t miss the final episode of Re:Cap, coming next week!

Written by

Jonathan Gipson

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In case you missed last week’s article, you can find it here.

Kingdom Hearts II

We begin with Sora nowhere to be found—still asleep, if you recall from the end of Chain of Memories. Instead, we’re following Roxas, enjoying his summer vacation with his best friends. He starts to have weird dreams, one of which is his Dive to the Heart. Strange things start occurring around town, and eventually he finds himself facing a lower-leveled Nobody called a Dusk. The Keyblade mysteriously appears in his hands and he defends himself from the Nobodies. He comes across Axel, who appears to know him even though Roxas has no recollection of their friendship. After a brief skirmish, he defeats Axel and makes his way to an abandoned mansion on the outskirts of town where he meets Namine (from Chain of Memories). She informs him he is a Nobody, even though he has no clue what that means.

Roxas then finds Sora, Donald, and Goofy in the basement of the mansion. He merges with Sora, who awakens along with Donald and Goofy, from a year-long sleep. They have no memory of what happened after they defeated Ansem. The only clue they have is in Jiminy Cricket’s journal, which has a single note reading, “Thank Namine.”

The trio meet a villain named Pete (from Disney lore) and meet Master Yen Sid, who is still acting as Mickey’s mentor. He informs them that they need to attempt to stop Organization XIII and a revived Maleficent, by traveling to several worlds once again. They eventually learn that the Ansem they fought, was actually the Heartless of Xehanort, and is more correctly referred to as ‘Ansem, Seeker of Darkness.’ The leader of Organization XIII, Xemnas, is Xehanort’s Nobody. Both were created when the Xehanort-possessed-Terra (referred to as ‘Terranort’ by the KH fanbase) unlocked his heart at the end of Birth By Sleep. They then learn that Terranort was actually the apprentice of Ansem the Wise (the real Ansem), who has been missing for quite some time.

Sora, Donald and Goofy take to the worlds once again. After the war-sized Battle of 1000 Heartless at Hollow Bastion, Xemnas appears to the group and reveals the organization’s true goal: to create another Kingdom Hearts, a doorway to the heart of all worlds that will allow them to reclaim their hearts. Sora then goes to The World That Never Was (the Nobody home world you could say) to confront Xemnas. He finds Kairi, who was captured by Axel, and Riku, who has been working behind the scenes with a mysterious man known only as DiZ. However, Riku had tapped into the powers of darkness in his heart (if you recall, from the end of 358/2 Days), and he now resembles Xehanort’s Heartless. Sora also learns the truth about Roxas and Namine; they are Sora and Kairi’s Nobodies, created when Sora used Riku’s Keyblade to unlock his and Kairi’s heart.

Meanwhile, Mickey has finally found Ansem the Wise. He was posing as DiZ the entire time, working on bringing Sora back and creating a machine to destroy Xemnas’ Kingdom Hearts. He uses his machine (the Encoder), and while it does work, it explodes in the process and takes Ansem the Wise/DiZ with it. All is not lost, however—it miraculously turns Riku back to his true form.

The group battles their way through The World That Never Was in a series of high-octane fights with the remaining Organization, during which Kairi is revealed to be able to wield a Keyblade (recall her ceremony with Aqua in Birth By Sleep). Xemnas then separates Sora and Riku from the rest of the group for one last battle. After they take him down in a string of fights, they are returned to the Destiny Islands along with the rest of the group. The game ends after King Mickey, Donald, and Goofy leave, with Sora, Riku, and Kairi receiving a mysterious note from King Mickey.

Stay tuned next week for the sixth episode of Re:Cap, covering Kingdom Hearts: coded.

Written by

Jonathan Gipson

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