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'Kingdom Hearts' PlayStation VR experience launches tomorrow
Square Enix released a VR Kingdom Hearts experience for Japanese gamers in January, so where's the release for everyone else? Right around the corner, apparently. Sony has confirmed that Kingdom Hearts: VR Experience will be available on February 28th. The free PlayStation VR title serves as a sort of trip down memory lane, letting you relive key scenes from the Disney/Square crossover from Sora's perspective. This isn't a slice of familiar gameplay in 360 degrees, unfortunately, but it might spark some familiar emotions.
What's on TV: Super Bowl LIII, 'Kingdom Hearts' and 'Velvet Buzzsaw'
And we're back! After a few weeks off we're catching up with what's coming to your TV screens this week, including the Super Bowl and Netflix's art-world thriller Velvet Buzzsaw. In gaming, Kingdom Hearts III is the biggest release this week, and ESPN's 30 for 30 focusing on Deion Sanders airs Thursday night. Look after the break to check out each day's highlights, including trailers and let us know what you think (or what we missed).
‘Kingdom Hearts 3’ brings you closer than ever to Disney’s worlds
People love Kingdom Hearts, the long-running Disney and Square Enix mashup, for a few reasons. There's the accessible and mesmerizing combat, which trades the turn-based roots of the Final Fantasy franchise for a frenetic blend of keyblade combos, summons and transformations. Some fans also enjoy the bizarre and, at this point, borderline nonsensical storyline concerning Sora, his friends and the eternal struggle between light and darkness. Others are simply enamored by the chance to explore their favorite Disney worlds with Donald Duck and Goofy. If you fall into the latter camp, good news: The Disney and Pixar-themed locales in Kingdom Hearts 3 are absolutely stunning.
'Kingdom Hearts 3' leaks six weeks early
It's not unheard of for games to reach players days before launch thanks to supply chain leaks, pirates or overeager retailers. Square Enix, however, is dealing with something considerably worse. The developer's Tetsyuo Nomura has confirmed that copies of Kingdom Hearts 3 are circulating roughly six weeks ahead of the game's January 29th debut. While Nomura didn't say how the Disney-tastic crossover RPG got loose, he did confirm that Square was "aware as to how this all happened."
Sony has a PS4 Pro bundle for 'Kingdom Hearts III' fans
If you're a Kingdom Hearts super fan, you know the third installment of the franchise is just around the corner. Don't worry if you're currently without a console to play it on, Sony has you covered. On January 29, the worldwide release date for the upcoming Kingdom Hearts III, Sony is dropping a limited edition PS4 Pro bundle centered around the title. The package is available for $400 in the US or $500 in Canada.
Square Enix removes three mobile games in Belgium after loot box ban
Square Enix will no longer offer three of its mobile games in Belgium after the country banned loot boxes this year. You'll no longer be able to pick up Mobius Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts Union X or Dissidia Final Fantasy Opera Omnia in the nation.
'Kingdom Hearts 3' trailer shows off 'Big Hero 6' world
Back in 2015, Square Enix confirmed that Big Hero 6 would be a playable world in Kingdom Hearts 3. Since then, though, we've heard zilch about Hiro, the lovable Baymax and the rest of San Fransokyo's residents. Well, the wait is finally over. During a "Lineup Tour" event ahead of Tokyo Game Show, Sony revealed a new Kingdom Hearts 3 trailer that shows cutscenes and gameplay from the superhero-inspired locale. As expected, Sora, Donald and Goofy team up with Baymax and eventually acquire a transformational Big Hero 6 keyblade called Nano Arms. Combat sequences take place on a bridge, atop a skyscraper, and on the city streets.
'Kingdom Hearts 3' made me feel 15 again
Kingdom Hearts II was my jam. I can't recall the number of times I've played those opening hours in Twilight Town. When the game came out in 2005, I was a 15 year-old grappling with adolescence and the relentless pressure to figure out my career path. Kingdom Hearts, with its colorful Disney worlds and random Final Fantasy cameos, was the perfect escape from reality. Over time, though, my interest in the series has waned. I enjoyed Birth By Sleep, but found the rest of the spin-offs to be underwhelming and full of needlessly convoluted story beats.
'Kingdom Hearts III' will land on PS4 and Xbox One in January 2019
Kingdom Hearts fans will have to a wait until next year to finally play the franchise's next installment, but a few more months don't sound that bad when they've been waiting over a decade for the game to drop. Square Enix has announced at the KH Orchestra World Tour that Kingdom Hearts III will arrive on PS4 and Xbox One on January 29th, 2019. Series director Tetsuya Nomura apologized for the delay since the game was supposed to come out later this year, telling fans that his team is sorry to ask "for a little more time than initially planned."
'Kingdom Hearts III' will feature retro games within the game
Kingdom Hearts' long-awaited sequel comes with a surprise for anyone fond of those old LCD games from the '80s. At the first official Kingdom Hearts Union χ convention, Square Enix has premiered a new Kingdom Hearts III trailer showing retro style games within the game based on classic Disney cartoons and 1980's handheld consoles. You can start spending your time playing black-and-white virtual handhelds instead of the actual game once Sora gets the machine in Twilight Town. And, yes, you control a small black-and-white Sora!
The world of 'Toy Story' is coming to 'Kingdom Hearts 3'
Kingdom Hearts 3 has been slow in coming, but you'll at least get a reward for your patience. Square Enix took to Disney's D23 stage to announce that the action role-playing game will have our heroes visit the world of Pixar's Toy Story -- yes, you'll be helping Buzz Lightyear and Woody clear the neighborhood of villainous toys. There's even a bit of Titanfall-style action as you jump into plastic robots to do battle. Oh, and did we mention that KH3's release has finally been narrowed down, to 2018? That could still put a release well into the future, but it's a relatively short wait given that fans of the Disney/Square crossover series have already gone more than a decade without a sequel.
Watch Disney's D23 video game event at 4PM Eastern
You probably don't think of a Disney fan expo as a go-to source for video game news, but you might need to reconsider this year. The media giant is livestreaming a Video Game Showcase starting at 4PM Eastern, and it promises better looks at Disney-themed games than you might have had in the past. The event will center around Square-Enix's elusive Kingdom Hearts III, Insomniac's take on Spider-Man and EA's much-hyped Star Wars: Battlefront II -- those first two in particular haven't had much screen time. Whether or not there are any big revelations, you'll have plenty of opportunities to tune in. Hosts Jacksepticeye and Strawburry17 are streaming the event on their respective Twitch and YouTube channels, while Disney itself is offering a live feed through the D23 website as well as its Facebook games page.
'Kingdom Hearts 3' trailer shows combat, but no release date
Our long wait for Kingdom Hearts 3... is probably not close to ending. Still, fans can enjoy a new trailer that Square Enix premiered tonight at the LA performance of the Kingdom Hearts World Tour. There's plenty of gameplay and combat, as Sora, Donald & Goofy team up with Hercules in a Mt. Olympus level, as enemy bosses Maleficent, Pete and Hades discuss a mysterious box that could be linked to last year's Kingdom Hearts 2.8. Four years after our first glimpse of the game we still don't have a release date, but this ends with a tag promising another trailer and a new world at the D23 Expo on July 15th. Last month Square Enix informed investors that KH3 (and the Final Fantasy 7 remake) are part of its release plans for fiscal year 2018 and beyond, so keep those PS4s and Xbox Ones on ice, for now. Oh, and dedicated fans can expect patches tomorrow that will fix some issues on the PS4 Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX edition.
Disney-Square mashup 'Kingdom Hearts 2.8' is delayed to 2017
Kingdom Hearts 3 is a long way off. To tide keyblade fans over, Square Enix has been remastering the previous games -- both the console and handheld instalments -- and releasing them as three-part collections for the PlayStation 3. The latest instalment, Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, was due to come out on the PS4 in December, but that's now changed to January. The slight delay was announced at the Tokyo Game Show alongside a new trailer, which teases the ongoing adventures of Sora, Riku and Kairi, as well as older keyblade wielders Aqua, Terra and Ventus.
'Kingdom Hearts 2.8' sets up 'Kingdom Hearts 3' this December
Kingdom Hearts 3 is still a long way off. In the meantime, fans of the Disney and Final Fantasy mashup are being treated to a part remaster, part compilation called Kingdom Hearts 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue (yep, that's the official name.) The games comes with a HD version of Dream Drop Distance, originally released for the 3DS, and two new experiences called Back Cover and A Fragmentary Passage. Confused yet? Don't worry, Kingdom Hearts is known for its convoluted storyline. Today, Square Enix is announcing that the PS4 game -- already confirmed for Japan -- will also be coming to the West. It'll be out "globally" sometime this December. To whet your appetite, the Japanese publisher has released a new trailer. It starts with Dream Drop Distance but quickly switches to Fragmentary Passage, a new playable chapter following Aqua in the realm of darkness. You'll then see a snippet of Back Cover, a movie exploring a mysterious group called the "Foretellers." It's supposedly tied to Kingdom Hearts Unchained X, a smartphone game that recently launched in the US.
'Kingdom Hearts 3' promises bigger, almost seamless, worlds
Blending different fictional universes together is kind of a thing now in gaming. However, Kingdom Hearts was fusing together the Final Fantasy and Disney universes back in 2002. Before chewing director Tetsuya Nomura's ear off about a Final Fantasy VII remake, we got some insight into the still in-development Kingdom Hearts 3. With a PS4 (as well as Xbox One) powering Sora, Goofy and Donald's cartoonish battles, it's already looking damn gorgeous. But aside from grander scale, Disney ride-based attacks and a likely head-spinning storyline, what else can Nomura tell us? And is there a stage where we can hum along to "Let it Go"?
Kingdom Hearts composer Yoko Shimomura talks PS3 musical freedom
While video game music is no longer simply the series of 'beeps' and 'boops' it was in the past, it has nonetheless remained one of game design's -- groan -- unsung heroes. This isn't lost on tune-focused Music4Games, and in a recent interview with Kingdom Hearts composer Yoko Shimomura, she spoke out on a number of topics, including her thoughts on creating music for the PlayStation 3.According to Shimomura, who is responsible for the tunes we'll be humming along to in Square Enix's upcoming Final Fantasy Versus XIII for the PS3, composing on Sony's current platform is much less limiting than it was in previous generations. "With the PlayStation 2, sound production...was a constant battle with memory and limitations," she recalled, adding that "with the PlayStation 3, I'm expecting to have it sound the way I please, without limitations." It's encouraging to hear someone at any level talk about creating content on the PS3 that doesn't involve the words "difficult" or "costly." However, with Square Enix continuing to play coy with regards to when its decade of Final Fantasy will actually kick off, it may be some time before our ears ring with the fruits of Yoko Shimomura's musical labor.
Super Mario Fusion makes Mushroom Kingdom Hearts a reality
You may remember last year's April issue of EGM particularly well, as it included the breaking news on a hot new title making its way onto the Nintendo Wii: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts. Then again, you might remember the chorus of angry Nintendo/Disney/Square Enix fanboys screaming when they realized that the announcement was one of EGM's annual April Fools' Day pranks. If you also smacked your head in realization when the initial excitement subsided, we've got great news for you (and this time, it's on the level).JudgeSpear has lovingly crafted his take on the game-that-never-was, titling it Super Mario Fusion: Mushroom Kingdom Hearts. Much like the legit Square Enix franchise, Fusion features a dimension-hopping Mario, and worlds based off of other video game franchises, including Halo, Sonic, Doom, Castlevania, Ghouls and Ghosts, Mega Man, and a handful of other Nintendo titles. Using familiar controls similar to those of Super Mario World, and a new gunplay mechanic using Covenant weaponry, this programmer has created a Frankengame that is definitely worth checking out.A demo for the game is available on his site. Sure, it's still a tad buggy, but it's free, and it's probably the only time you'll see Mario packin' heat. We hope.
Rad keyblade auction also benefits Child's Play
We love helping sick kids as much as the next staff of surly bloggers, but even our moral compass is being tested by this eBay listing for an incredible Keyblade replica. We'd like to say the best part is that 35% [Update: In their FAQ, the seller says 100%] of the funds raised are going to Child's Play. But alas, we're pretty sure that the best part is the above video from the listing that features one of our favorite things: Cosplayers who've just lost the game of Chicken they've been playing with e-infamy and insanity and have ended up splattered all over the internet. Happy holidays, kids.Of all the images the video, we're especially terrified of Pikachu holding a sword. Because, you see, even if you're properly grounded and insulated against electricity -- he's still got a sword.[Thanks everyone who sent this in.]
TGS07: New Kingdom Hearts games coming to DS, PSP, mobile
Disney/Square/Enix fans will be happy to know that three new Kingdom Hearts titles are on the way, as Square Enix announced brand new titles in development for the DS, PSP, and mobile phones at the 2007 Tokyo Game Show.1UP reports that these will be three entirely different titles, although all three will share the theme of "time." Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep will be headed for the PlayStation Portable as a single-player action-RPG romp in the same vein as its PS2 brethren. Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days for the Nintendo DS is a full-3D game starring Roxas from KHII, and featuring simultaneous four-way multiplayer.The final title, Kingdom Hearts: Coded, is being developed for mobile phones, and features the original Kingdom Hearts cast in a story that appears to take place in between the first and second PS2 games.
