Let's talk about mods. For those of you who aren't privy, Mods are essentially home brewed content that can be put into current, and past games. I don't know exactly how it's done, but when it's done properly, it's pretty fun to see the end result. I think mods are coolest when they don't give the game any sort of players advantage, or if they add on to the game with any sort of storyline. I get why people do get excited about them though. I've chuckled many a time at watching modders put Disney characters in Mortal Kombat 1, and I downloaded a mod for Streets of Rage 4, that put the characters from the Midway game Wrestlemania. I definitely get it. Not in a Palworld type sense, but I get it.
Kingdom Hearts has seen a lot of attention lately in the modding community, namely the PC versions. Some are randomizers, where they randomize the items and powers based on gameplay, and some are boss rushes, where you fight all the bosses and try to survive. Why am I reporting this? Well, I happen to know one. He goes by DanimalForLife, and his mod, named Technicolor River, is getting that good praise.
Let me explain. The Timeless River stage in Kingdom Hearts II is in black and white, to be just like the old cartoons like Steamboat Willie, so when the characters enter this world, they also become characters of the 1928 classic, and they too are in black and white. Danimal has added a technicolor feel to the entire world, and it is stunning! The mod is free from copywrite strikes, for Steamboat Willie went public domain in January 2024. Danimal, who has been streaming his playthroughs on Twitch, had been working on adding color to the stage for the better part of three months, or fourteen days accumulative. I asked what he wanted people to know about it. He responded with this.
"It's a visual mod that colors in all of the assets in the Timeless River world of Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix. It also lifts the black & white filter placed on the world. Everything is colored in--the map assets, character models, journal entries, photos, hud, etc. This works on both the Epic and Steam versions so anyone that plays on PC can enjoy this. The mod allows you to more easily see details you would normally miss due to the original being black & white. It's a fun way to mix things up on a game you've played many times before."
Looking at it is truly a sight to see. Especially if you do back to back comparisons, which DanimalForLife does beautifully in the trailer below. At the time of this writing, the mod is up to 100+ downloads, and is being streamed all over the internet. Danimal is excited about how successful this is, and invites you to give it a shot and see for yourself. You can grab it here. And we definitely want to shout out JacobV4260 for his Color TR Sora mod, also used within Danimal's mod. You need the Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix game to experience it, obviously.
