Sora: Rating Smash’s Final Character

Since the first DLC was released for Smash Bros, one name has constantly been requested. With the appearance of Kingdom Hearts lead Sora, we’re given both our final Smash Bros. Ultimate character and that hugely requested figure.

I don’t know how they managed to wrangle the rights to this one – Disney and Square Enid work on the Kingdom Hearts series, with most of the rights resting with Disney.

Point being: it happened, and it’s here. But is this a character worth getting to complete your collection? Or is Sora’s power one that should have stayed much requested?

Friends Aren’t Your Power

Yes, it’s true. Perhaps the cheesiest Kingdom Hearts quote does not apply here. Not only is Sora’s power quite enough all alone, but none of his friends really appear either – at least the Disney ones.

And yes, that’s entirely looking a gift horse in the mouth. The lack of Disney characters is neither a surprise nor a giant loss. But they are quite obvious in their absence. There’s no two ways around it.

No Donald, no Goofy. Only the slightest hint at Mickey Mouse, in the form of the famous Keyblade chain. Yes, those who wanted this are going to be disappointed.

Everybody else should be thrilled. Genuinely.

Sora feels so much like his Kingdom Hearts character that it took practically no time to get used to his character in Smash. There are no other developers able to bring together so many different franchises and genres in a way that feels good.

And so Sora is instantly recognisable. His moves are instantly recognisable. And grin-inducing too. Hearing Haley Joel Osment is always a pleasure in this role, and it remains so here.

Certainly Sora can hold his own against some of the bigger hitters in Smash, even though he plays in his own special way.

Sora and the power of the keyblade

Sora’s biggest strength is his power in the air. That makes him feel quite different to most the other characters.

He can’t exactly fly, but he’s not far off. Once you get into the rhythm of his up-b and side-b moves, you’re able to massively recover from a move.

This isn’t as easy as it was made to look in the Sora reveal video. Panicked button bashing – my particular tool in trade – isn’t best used here.

Sora is an easy character to learn. But like so many of Smash’s characters, it takes a while to master him. I’m not going to pretend I have any tips to share at this point. What I can say is that it’s a great time to play as him and it’s well worth the money.

The Hollow Bastion map is a little underwhelming. The music is great – although you could always buy the latest Kingdom Hearts game if that’s what you’re looking for. The backdrop is pretty cool, in that you can see parts of the original Hollow Bastion level laid out below you. But it’s just a video. Unlike Midgar or many of the other maps, it doesn’t feel especially representative of the original game. I guess because that would involve Disney characters.

Overall this pack is well worth the money. We can dream about how things might have been slightly different, but I struggle to complain too much about what is an excellent value pack and an incredible final character.