Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories on GBA, between KH1 and KH2. Original card system, disorienting at first but convincing. Essential to understand the saga's timeline.
Your verdict
Category
Action RPG1 player7+
Description
Action RPG developed by Jupiter and published by Square Enix in Japan in May 2005. Sora and his companions explore Castle Oblivion battling enemies with magic cards representing Disney worlds and characters. Combat system based on selecting and chaining spell and attack cards, iconic Kingdom Hearts 1 worlds revisited as memories and a storyline connecting KH1 to KH2.
Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories review
4/5
Art direction
★★★★★
"Striking"
MAX
Music
★★★★★
"Legendary"
4/5
Story
★★★★★
"Captivating"
The idea of building each room from a card translates on screen into deliberately modular spaces: corridors and chambers repeat with different dressing according to the world evoked, jungle, city, ice palace. The battles, meanwhile, permanently display the player's hand at the bottom of the screen, layering a card game over the action.
From the pen of Yoko Shimomura, the sublime "Dearly Beloved" and dreamlike themes accompany the journey through Sora's memories. Between melancholy and grace, the music embraces the story's card-based structure with a raw, close-to-the-skin emotion. This melodic elegance, the series' hallmark, transcends the limits of the hardware.
The story rests on a cruel mechanism: climbing the castle means losing one's memories, and reunions with familiar faces gradually prove to be reconstructions. The second run, played from another character's viewpoint, casts a different light on the same events and completes a narrative the first crossing deliberately leaves unfinished.
Gameplay
"Solid"
Fun
"Pleasant"
Addictiveness
"Captivating"
Difficulty
"Balanced"
Lifespan
"Long"
Technical info
💾0,02 GB📅11/11/2004
Published by Square Enix
Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories (GBA) price, value & rarity
The original Japanese edition, out a year ahead of the West and the first appearance of the card system in the Square Enix saga. Loose copies stay very affordable thanks to a broad Japanese print run, yet sealed examples reach steep prices, the gap between ordinary and sealed here being among the sharpest in the series. Strong appeal for purists drawn to the original Japanese text and the domestic cover art.
Is Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories still worth playing in 2026?
Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories reinvents the series' formula by replacing free action with a card-based combat system, where Sora climbs Castle Oblivion while reconstructing his memories. This strategic mechanic, disorienting at first, reveals real tactical depth and a pivotal scenario essential to the saga. The polished presentation flatters the handheld. For Kingdom Hearts fans keen to fill in a key chapter and for fans of action RPGs with an original system, it is an essential entry.
