Riku and Regret

In the 2002 game Kingdom Hearts, a collaborative project between Square Enix (Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, etc.) and Disney, three young friends are separated from each other and their home due to the forces of darkness causing havoc across the worlds in-game. Adventurous by nature, Riku embraces this change, opening his heart to the darkness as it transports him to places beyond his wildest imagination. This is in stark contrast to his two friends: Kairi, who suffers a catatonia due to the effects of the darkness, and Sora, the player character who is thrust headlong into a quest to defeat the disruptive darkness and rescue his lost friends.

Over the course of the game, the player (as Sora) encounters Riku repeatedly and slowly comes to the realization that he is being manipulated and corrupted by the forces of darkness that separated them in the first place. Stoking Riku's jealousy regarding Sora's acquisition of the legendary Keyblade, a weapon to repel the darkness, Riku develops a malign rivalry toward Sora, a far cry from their friendlier childhood attitudes. Sora's rapidity in finding new travelling companions is even leveraged against him, framed as Sora replacing Riku and Kairi, rather than seeking to reunite with them thanks to his new friends' help.

Riku's spirit fights back against Ansem's control

Harnessing his new dark powers, Riku gains authority over the Heartless, creatures made of darkness that Sora has been fighting all this time, and eventually even gives over his corporeal form to the man who created the Heartless himself: Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. Only in the eleventh hour does Riku realize his mistake, struggling in vain to fight against his own body as Ansem uses it to strike down Sora and use Kairi for his own machinations.

After the final battle between Sora and Ansem, Riku reappears, in full control of himself once more. In a noble sacrifice, he helps Sora to seal the Door to Darkness, leaving himself locked on the inside.

As you can see, the plot of the first Kingdom Hearts game is rather dense, and it sets up many major points for the remaining games to come. Even leaving out other major points regarding the Keyblade and the various Disney-inspired Worlds the characters travel to, it takes quite a large chunk of paragraphs in order to cover just Riku's side of the story. It's important to understand these details, however, when it comes to following Riku's character arc across the remaining games in the series. The actions he took that led to him opposing Sora and using Kairi would weigh heavily on his heart for the remainder of the series, all the way until Kingdom Hearts III released in 2019, a whole 17 years after the first game.

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories

The next time we see Riku, he awakens in a nebulous realm in between darkness and light. Roused by an enigmatic voice, he finds himself in Castle Oblivion, a strange and seemingly infinite construction of whitewashed rooms and hallways that allows one to relive their memories. Unbeknownst to Riku, Sora is in the castle as well, and is dealing with the mysterious Organization as he tries to sort his real memories from fake ones.

Riku is also forced to cope with his memories of the events of Kingdom Hearts, only instead of reliving a fun romp with classic Disney characters, Riku is treated to...

nothing.

Although he travelled to the same worlds that Sora did, he didn't encounter the same characters, if he even encountered anyone at all.

As he comes to grips with his own loneliness, Riku is also tormented by members of the Organization, their enigmatic plans having something to do with the lingering darkness of Ansem that still exists within Riku. To those mysterious ends, the Organization creates an exact replica of Riku, forcing him to "face himself" in a very literal sense.

With help from King Mickey as well as the mysterious DiZ, a figure seemingly opposed to the Organization, Riku battles against this apparition of his dark side, as well as the manifestation of Ansem's lingering will attempting to reclaim Riku's body. At the end of Riku's story, he teams up with Mickey, DiZ, and Namine--the girl who had been messing with Sora's memory--to protect Sora while she works to restore his memories. In an attempt to redeem himself for his actions, Riku walks the "road to dawn" in order to save and support his friend behind the scenes.

Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days

Read "Three-Five-Eight Days Over Two," this confusingly-titled Nintendo DS game follows 358 days over the lives of 2 people: Roxas and Xion (pictured left, from left to right). In an attempt to save a little time by skipping over a lot of details: Roxas is the reason why Namine can't put all of Sora's memories back together. Abducted and inducted by the Organization, Roxas is unwittingly holding onto some of Sora's memories, including his most important ones: memories of Kairi. As if that weren't enough, the Organzation created Xion in order to siphon those precious memories from Roxas in turn. From their perspective, the more spread-out Sora's memories are, the more guarantee they have the he will never wake up.

While none of this is known to Roxas and Xion themselves, Riku and Mickey are working hard behind the scenes investigating the Organization in an attempt to bring all this to light. After Xion encounters Riku while on a mission for the Organzation, she begins to learn about her origins, eventually seeking him out to figure out what she should do.

As things come to a head, Roxas and Xion do battle, with Roxas coming out on top. This leaves Riku to dispatch him in order to save Sora. Roxas proves too powerful even for Riku, however, and so he is forced to unleash the dark power inside his heart. Removing his blindfold, Riku transforms into Ansem once again, defeating Roxas and setting the stage for Sora's reawakening. Despite being in full control of his body this time, Riku is once again trapped in the body and visage of the man who used him and his friends for his own dark ends.

Intermission

Okay, let's slow down a bit. Up to now, I've more or less been simply retelling the plot of the Kingdom Hearts series, spending very little time talking about the allegory we're actually here for. The trouble with Kingdom Hearts is that just about everything and everyone is connected, so it's very difficult to talk about Riku without needing to explain everything about Sora, Kairi, Ansem, Roxas, Xion, and even other characters we haven't encountered yet.

Everything that Riku deals with stems back to his actions in the original Kingdom Hearts. As a boy, he was fascinated with the idea of other worlds, and that fascination only grew with the mysterious arrival of Kairi to his home. This childhood obsession became his one and only focus in life, and the day his world was consumed by the darkness, it was a no-brainer for him to make a deal in order to see other worlds.

Riku is a bad guy in the first Kingdom Hearts game. More than just a rival for Sora, he's manipulated by the other villains, but at no point does he ever feel out of character. He's proud of his strength, jealous of Sora, and is willing to do almost anything in order to be the main character. This hunger for power leads him to kidnapping the Princesses of Heart (a collection of classic Disney princesses plus Kairi), from their homes in order to further the villains' plot.

Only after seeing how hard Sora is willing to fight for Kairi does it finally sink in for Riku that he hasn't been replaced, and that his friends are even willing to forgive him no matter how far he has fallen. This is the event that triggers Riku's guilt and sets him on the path to redemption.

Throughout the events of Chain of Memories, Riku is forced to directly confront the consequences of his actions, both in the form of the Riku Replica--a direct reminder of how he was acting toward his best friends in the previous game--as well as the lingering shadow of Ansem, attempting to retake the boy's body in order to give his evil machinations a second chance. Riku is offered little comfort as he struggles against these two forces (as well as the added threat of the Organization), but finds strength in the form of King Mickey, whom he encountered on the other side of the Door to Darkness, and the distant rumblings caused by Sora's own journey through the upper floors of Castle Oblivion.

Defeating the Riku Replica and successfully suppressing the lingering spirit of Ansem does little to quell Riku's brooding, however; Sora's trip through Castle Oblivion left his memories scattered, and it was Riku's own actions that caused the birth of Roxas, the inadvertent vessel for these memories. It is in the spirit of active atonement for these actions that Riku decides to infiltrate the Organization, track down Roxas and Xion, and defeat them in order to return Sora's memories to him.

Riku is not satisfied with Sora's forgiveness. He needs to forgive himself as well. This is the purpose of donning the blindfold he's seen wearing between Chain of Memories and the final act of Kingdom Hearts II: he can't even look himself in the eye until he has fixed all the problems he's created. Unfortunately, this quest for atonement ends up leaving him scarred in a way no one could have foreseen.

Kingdom Hearts II

In order to capture Roxas and reawaken Sora, Riku is forced to tap into the lingering dark power that Ansem left behind--transforming the boy into Ansem himself, if in appearance alone. Because of this, he is unable (or unwilling) to directly assist Sora in his new adventure, as the allies of light are forced to deal with the remaining members of Organization XIII. Appearing as a tall, cloaked figure, he often shows up just before or just after Sora, leaving cryptic clues or providing covert assistance in his journey. This lasts until the final act of the game where, in order to protect the again-abducted Kairi, Riku blows his own cover and infiltrates the Organization's stronghold.

Coming face to face with Kairi, Riku is unable to deny her when she pulls back his hood to reveal Ansem's face. Despite his altered appearance, Kairi recognizes him, and even convinces Sora that he is truly Riku and not the evil Ansem they thought they'd defeated. Sora becomes distraught at the realization, as he doesn't understand why Riku felt the need to remain in the shadows instead of just joining them directly. In part due to Riku's embarrassment about his new appearance, it is mostly because, despite helping Sora to reawaken and even to make it all the way to the Organization's base, Riku still cannot shake the guilt he feels for betraying his friends. After being confronted directly by Sora, Riku finally relents, joining the party as they approach the final fight. After a rigorous boss-rush and thanks to some miraculous magic, Riku is returned to his original appearance and is finally able to join Sora and Kairi back home on Destiny Islands. The adventure, however, is not over just yet, and neither are Riku's troubles.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance

Released on the Nintendo 3DS (hence the title), Dream Drop Distance sees Sora and Riku participate in a prolonged Keyblade-wielder exam in order to hone their skills in preparation for the return of Master Xehanort. Xehanort is a character we have yet to discuss, as he first makes his appearance in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, a prequel game in which Riku has little more than a cameo appearance and, as such, is not terribly relevant to this discussion. That said, much of the plot of this game is also not entirely relevant, save for a few scenes.

Through methods that are rather loosely explained, Sora and Riku are sent backward in time in order to fix the problems that arise in the Sleeping Worlds, Disney worlds that were prevented from being fully reformed after the events of Kingdom Hearts. Some of these worlds are new to the franchise, but one in particular is a returning world that has specific implications for Riku: Prankster's Paradise. Based on Pinocchio, Riku once again comes face-to-face with a version of himself.

As a mirror to the events in Kingdom Hearts, where Riku kidnaps the titular puppet in order to understand how he is animated, Riku encounters a hooded figure playing out the same scenario. After revealing himself, the "other Riku" (dark Riku? Fake Riku? Replica Riku? Who knows anymore) simply exits the narrative, no longer a threat. In this realm of dreams, Riku comes to the conclusion that, despite his efforts, some lingering doubts still reside within him; he still carries the guilt that has followed him since the very beginning of his story, even after all he's done to mend the hurt he has wrought.

Riku's resolve is further tested later on in the story, where he is once again confronted by Ansem, Seeker of Darkness. Unlike his other self, however, this version of Ansem is no mere reflection of his past mistakes, and has returned for real in order to facilitate Xehanort's plot and to torment Riku about his shortcomings.

Using all his newfound strength, Riku defeats Ansem once again, but he is still not spared the torment. Thanks to Xehanort, he and myriad other villains that Riku and his friends have already faced are returned, and the forces of light must regroup in order to face off in the final battle.

Kingdom Hearts III

The long-awaited Kingdom Hearts III was both an end and a beginning for many of the converging character arcs and plotlines of the series running so far. This remains true for Riku as well, marking a final end to the symbols of his regret, and allowing him a fresh start on a new journey by the end of the story. The bulk of the game sees Riku joining Mickey in the Realm of Darkness--a place the two haven't been since the very first game--in search of the lost Keyblade Master Aqua.

After the events of Dream Drop Distance, and with the return of most of the myriad villains we've seen in the series so far, the heroes need to bolster their ranks. Between Sora, Riku, and Mickey, they have a mere handful of full-fledged Keyblade wielders against the forces of darkness numbering more than thirteen. While Sora, Donald, and Goofy travel the worlds to unlock the Power of Waking in an effort to rescue the missing Ventus and Terra (two other Keyblade wielders and contemporaries of Aqua), Riku and Mickey encounter a corrupted Aqua in the Realm of Darkness. A Keyblade Master in her own right, Aqua proves too much for Riku to handle alone, shattering his Keyblade, forcing him to find a replacement.

A Key Moment

Way to the Dawn (Left) and Soul Eater (Right) (Not to scale)

I've kind of glossed over Riku's Keyblade so far, but it's worth bringing up now specifically because of the change made. During the events of Kingdom Hearts and most of Kingdom Hearts II, Riku is seen with a curved sword in the shape of a stylized bat-wing. Not much is known about how he acquired it, but it is associated with the powers of Darkness. In the final act of Kingdom Hearts II, when Riku regains his true form, his sword is also replaced by a Keyblade called Way to the Dawn. This name is a direct reference to Riku's line at the end of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories and is itself representative of Riku's journey toward redemption. Early on in Kingdom Hearts III, Way to the Dawn is broken (something we weren't sure could even happen to a Keyblade until that point) and Riku replaces it with a new Keyblade called Braveheart.

Braveheart, in addition to being a reference to the Final Fantasy roots of the series, is far less iconic in terms of Riku's journey. When I first saw it in promotional material for Kingdom Hearts III, I kind of hated it because of that, but now that the game has been out for years, I think I understand why they made the switch.

Way to the Dawn is a symbol of Riku's journey through darkness and into the light. It's rather on-the-nose name and design is meant to convey the fact that Riku is still in a sort of in-between state. Braveheart contrasts this by being a sort of end-goal for Riku. Now that he has this drastically different blade, he is no longer in between; he has become a Keyblade Master and has entirely redeemed himself, even if the specters of his past are still haunting the worlds. The strength Riku gained on his journey is exemplified in the bulky design, starkly contrasting the slender curves of Way to the Dawn.

Back to Business

This strength boost on its own isn't enough to defeat Aqua, and so Riku is rescued by an unexpected ally: himself. The Riku Replica from Chain of Memories, just like Xion of the Replica Program, has developed a heart of his own, completely independently from the "real" Riku. Because of this, he's able to exist as his own person, and joins his strength with Riku's own, in a very literal Jungian integration of the shadow.

Even still, Aqua proves too powerful a Keyblade Master for Riku alone, but Sora arrives to assist, and the two are able to defeat her and bring her back to her senses.

With Aqua's help, Ventus can be found, and with Kairi and Lea (don't ask), that brings the number of Keyblade wielders on the roster up to seven, just enough to take on the thirteen, as the prophecy foretold.

A lot of video-gamey stuff happens where the player, as Sora, must help out the good guys in a gauntlet of boss fights, eventually leading up to a final showdown between the final bosses of the previous major titles: Sora, Riku, and Mickey versus Ansem (final boss of Kingdom Hearts), Xemnas (final boss of Kingdom Hearts II), Young Xehanort (final boss of Dream Drop Distance) and Master Xehanort (final boss of Birth By Sleep). As the team defeats each boss, a small cutscene plays as they disappear for the final time. The one we're most concerned with is, of course, Ansem.

A Real, Final Conclusion

As he begins to vanish, Ansem and Riku seem almost to reminisce about their experiences. Riku spent the past few years of his life struggling with the betrayal of his friends, the consequences of those actions, and the lingering spirit of Ansem trying to make him do it all over again. Ansem, on the other hand, has been a slave to his purpose for most of his existence, yet when he reaches the end of the road, we find that he almost regrets his actions. Xehanort used him as a means to an end, just as he did with every villain we fight during the final act, but Ansem claims that he no longer cares to see that end.

The shaky look that Riku gives to Sora before they're forced to continue the fight is some incredible facial acting. Riku will miss Ansem--despite all the hurt he caused, despite all the struggle Riku had to put up to resist him, Ansem was a huge part of Riku's life.

When you do something wrong, and you know you did something wrong, and you genuinely want to repent, how does it feel when you do? If you hurt someone, and they forgive you straight away, do you feel like you don't deserve it? Is it more important to seek the forgiveness of the ones you've wronged, or to forgive yourself even if they don't? How heavy do guilt and regret weigh in a heart? When is it okay to let go of that weight? I don't have a solid answer for any of these questions, but Riku seems to make the case that Regret is a far more powerful force than we give it credit for. Sora, the cheerful youth that he is, forgives Riku so immediately it's almost as if he had never done anything wrong in the first place. Riku can't quite accept that--he doesn't forgive himself--so he insists on working in the background rather than at his friends' side.

When he finally does accept that he's done enough to redeem himself, he doesn't let that stop him. He continues to protect his friends from the forces of darkness, because no one knows how powerful that darkness can be more than Riku.

Riku and Kairi battle Heartless to protect Sora

Riku uses Dark Shield, leaping in to defend Sora mid-battle

Riku defends Sora from a powerful Nightmare

Riku confronts Armored Ventus Nightmare deep in Sora's subconscious

Riku defends Sora from a tide of Heartless

The concept of the deepest darkness still having a glimmer of light is a pretty obvious theme across the entirety of the Kingdom Hearts series. The message to take from Riku's story in particular, is that that light is still there no matter what you've done in the past. For as long as you walk the Road to Dawn, whether your friends are waiting for you or not, being able to forgive yourself is important for your own well-being. No matter how deep the darkness, keep reaching for the light, and even if you falter, not all hope is lost.