Kingdom Hearts 3 may mark the end of Sora’s saga that began in 2002, but he’s won’t be the only playable character in the game. KH13’s translations from a fifteenth anniversary gathering at the Square Enix Café in Japan reveal a few interesting new tidbits about the upcoming title.
When asked about additional playable characters, Director Tetsuya Nomura reportedly said “such a world will come out [where this is possible]... But it is something we cannot tell you right now.” This echoes statements Nomura made to IGN shortly after the reveal of the game’s Toy Story world in July. “There is an intention of adding a playable character aside from Sora,” he teased. Nomura refrained from naming the character in both circumstances.
Aside from that brief implication, Square Enix didn’t offer up much more information about the developing project at the anniversary event. Character Designer Yoshinori Yamagishi mentioned that the team is still working on models for key characters, like the young versions of Xehanort and Xemnas. “Since they're different from Kingdom Hearts 2, the jaw is getting longer and the adjustments are laborious,” he admitted.
Yamagishi also said that Riku and Kairi’s outfits are “evolving everyday” and that they will be characterized by hooded designs. These hints may call back to franchise-related art released by Nomura in 2016. As seen in the picture below, both Riku and Kairi are wearing hoods.
We can only speculate as to which playable characters might assist Sora on his journey. In past interviews, Nomura has suggested the conversation with young Xehanort featured in Kingdom Hearts 3’s E3 2015 trailer takes place at the start of the game. Similar to the infamous Roxas segment of Kingdom Hearts 2, might we also begin the third installment from a fresh perspective? There’s a case to be made for Aqua as well. Players controlled her through her toils in the Realm Of Darkness in Kingdom Hearts 2.8, and she still hasn’t been freed from that unfortunate prison. Her narrative could very feasibly continue in the early hours of the forthcoming chapter.
Any update about Kingdom Hearts 3 is welcome for those who simply can’t wait for the game’s planned 2018 release date. Unfortunately, it may be a while before we get a substantial development akin to U.S. D23 in July. While D23 2018 kicks off in Japan this February, staff at last week’s anniversary event said Square Enix has not yet decided if it will show Kingdom Hearts 3 at the convention. The gathering has been a site for Kingdom Hearts reveals in the past, but there is currently no guarantee the same will be true this year.
Kingdom Hearts 3 is set to release on PS4 and Xbox One in 2018.
What playable character beyond Sora would you like to see in Kingdom Hearts 3? Will there be another big reveal this February? Tell us in the comments section!
