Do I need to play the first kingdom hearts game to understand the DS version?
No. You don’t need to play the first Kingdom hearts game. It is about Roxas, who isn’t even in the first kingdom hearts game, but he is in the second. It is not necessary because the storyline is different, but you may miss some inside jokes or meanings that the KH veterans would catch. If you want a summary you can go to http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0322968/plotsummary for a brief overview, or you could go to http://www.khinsider.com/kingdom-hearts/storyline.html for a more detailed summary. Hope this helps you out.
