As I continue my Kingdom Hearts marathon, my next stop was Birth by Sleep, a prequel that was originally released for the PSP, but which eventually came to consoles.  Each of the three playable characters has their own story, during which you’ll be exploring different portions of the same worlds and experiencing different pieces of the story.  Today, I’d like to rank each world as a whole now that I’ve recently completed each character’s story.  Keep in mind I won’t be including the Mysterious Tower, a world whose only purpose is to visit Yen Sid, and the Mirage Arena, which serves as the site of battles, racing, and command board games.

10: Disney Town – Disney Town is a bright and colorful world that serves as a lighthearted breather around the midpoint of the game.  I’m not terribly fond of it, though, considering the required mini games each character must complete (the ice cream rhythm game with Ven is the absolute worst), and I hate any encounter with Pete, who keeps insisting on pestering me in his poorly thought-out disguises!

9: Land of Departure – This is the world where the game begins.  But unlike Destiny Islands and Twilight Town from the first two numbered games, it’s not properly utilized as a place to establish our main trio’s relationship.  It does, however, have some interesting story moments later on, even if it’s not much to explore.

8: Deep Space – I wasn’t too fond of this world and its many grey hallways.  There are some low-gravity sections to spice things up, but that wasn’t enough to make me enjoy my time here.  I did like meeting up with Stitch, though.  He’s an adorable little goober.

7: Olympus Coliseum – This is just the usual coliseum that we’ve seen time and time again, plus one spot in town that’s not terribly interesting.  Although the level is very short, the characters of young Hercules, Phil, and Zack are likable, making this a perfectly pleasant world to visit.  I’ve got two words for you.  Short, but sweet.

6: Neverland – Like Deep Space, Neverland is quite long, but it’s also far more interesting, with the jungle, Mermaid Lagoon (albeit with no mermaids!), and Skull Rock.  And it sure beats Hook’s pirate ship from the first game!

5: Keyblade Graveyard – This desolate wasteland was the site of an ancient Keyblade war, with evidence in the form of enormous craters and gouges in the mountainsides and a huge field of discarded Keyblades.  Although I really wish this world was longer, the history behind this place is pretty cool, and it serves as the backdrop to a handful of important battles in the lives of our three protagonists.  Those huge tornadoes that chase you down are pretty scary, too!

4: Enchanted Dominion – With Aurora already fast asleep from Maleficent’s magic, this world has a decidedly ominous feel to it.  This world also features Maleficent’s own castle, and as part of Aqua’s story, we get to team up with Prince Philip and fight dragon Maleficent, which is always cool!

3: Castle of Dreams – The highlight of this world is when Ven gets to explore a small portion of Cinderella’s home while being shrunk down to the size of a mouse.  It’s just so charming and helps this place to stand out from many of the others!

2: Dwarf Woodlands – Out of the three initial worlds, I always liked Snow White’s world the most, with the spooky forest and the dwarves’ charming woodland cottage, the Evil Queen’s foreboding dungeon, and a cool battle against the Magic Mirror.  And I always loved that beautiful courtyard with the wishing well.  It just feels so tranquil!

1: Radiant Garden – Radiant Garden, also known as Hollow Bastion in earlier titles, is always one of the best worlds in any KH game.  Unlike the Disney worlds, where minimal plot happens, it is in Radiant Garden where our heroes all reunite (if only temporarily) and a defining moment happens in Terra’s story.  Oh, and we also get to see many of the human counterparts to Organization XIII before they lost their hearts and became Nobodies (plus a young Kairi).  You can always depend on this world to be an integral part of the story!