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World Ends With You countdown for iOS port, Square Enix leak reveals
The countdown linked to The World Ends with You is for an iOS port of the DS game, a leak on the Square Enix's Japanese eShop has apparently revealed. A listing for an upcoming soundtrack of the game disclosed that an iOS version would be released later this year. It also mentioned that the port will feature new music, including arranged tracks from Kingdom Hearts 3D.Square Enix quickly deleted the incriminating info, but Siliconera has the screencaps for evermore. Hopes of that elusive sequel appear dashed once more, but we hope we're proven wrong.
Kingdom Hearts 3D review: Dreams dropped
Growing up is weird. Where once things were simple, they quickly morph into a terrifying nightmare labyrinth of complexity. You've got bills to pay, billowing lists of day-to-day chores to attend to, legions of people to keep up with, and so very little time to make sure it all gets done. In that sense, growing up alongside Square's Kingdom Hearts series presents some eerie parallels. Many melodramatic heart-shaped moons ago, it was about three friends battling evil to keep each other safe. Sure, there was some romance, rivalry and Donald Duck along the way, but it was ultimately easy to follow and, frankly, heartfelt. Slowly but surely, though, the series added Keyblade Wars and shadowy Organizations and clones and 365/2 days and digitized worlds and... yeah. You get the idea.But growing up doesn't just mean inheriting a world of convoluted complication. It's about, well, growing – changing, evolving and taking a measured, realistic look at your own flaws. And in that respect, Kingdom Hearts really hasn't grown up at all. Case in point: Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. It isn't bad by any means. Rather, the spin-off with the goofiest name yet (though sadly, perhaps the least Goofy) is simply a mishmash of middling new ideas and the clunky, frustrating and otherwise upsetting bits that have polluted the series over the years.%Gallery-160510%
Why Kingdom Hearts must return to consoles
This is a column by Kat Bailey dedicated to the analysis of the once beloved Japanese RPG sub-genre. Tune in every Wednesday for thoughts on white-haired villains, giant robots, Infinity+1 swords, and everything else the wonderful world of JRPGs has to offer. It's time for Kingdom Hearts to go back to home consoles. Square Enix have scrunched four of these games onto tiny handheld screens now – five if you want to count the oddball Chain of Memories. That's five games worth of parsing the shadows of Traverse Town in the glare of the sun while riding the bus. Five games worth of Kingdom Hearts' nausea-inducing camera on those tiny screens.Enough already. If Final Fantasy Versus XIII is actually dead and buried (which Square Enix says it isn't – but whatever), then shift all those internal resources to Kingdom Hearts 3 and be done with it. It's a disservice to the franchise, the source material and the platforms to keep squeezing these games into such ill-fitting confines.Okay, I've got the light rage out of my system. The sky is not falling. Birth by Sleep and now Dream Drop Distance are perfectly serviceable games. But is the series reaching its potential on those platforms? I don't think it is. Barring some drastic change, Kingdom Hearts is always going to be better-suited for home consoles than handhelds. It's in the franchise's DNA. It's even evident in additions like Dream Drop Distance's new "Flowmotion System," for instance, which sends Sora bouncing off walls and objects, like lamp posts and even enemies. It's not a bad idea and would be a nice addition to a console game. On the 3DS screen though? There's just too much going on.%Gallery-160510%
Kingdom Hearts 3D arriving soon, so here's the 'launch' trailer
Square Enix is celebrating the imminent release of Kingdom Hearts 3D with – you guessed it – a launch trailer. If you still haven't seen enough of the Disney X Squeenix mashup just yet, here's another chance to remedy that.
Let's think about Kingdom Hearts 3D for a minute
There is a series of games about some kid in big puffy pantaloons swinging a key at monsters, with his pals Donald Duck and Goofy. Sometimes they go into the world of Tron and meet Jeff Bridges. Sometimes they hang out with Pinocchio. Mickey Mouse is there, and he's an imposing figure. Also, Final Fantasy characters hang around sometimes.We have to point this out from time to time, because getting used to something like that would be an official indicator of loss of sanity. Let's all keep one foot in the real world while we watch this Kingdom Hearts 3D trailer.%Gallery-160510%
Raid, Ruin, Sleep, and Dream with Square Enix at Comic-Con
Square Enix is going to be basically everywhere at San Diego Comic-Con this weekend, with playable demos in multiple locations, panels, and various other events. The booth (number 3829) will host demos of Hitman Absolution, Kingdom Hearts 3D, Sleeping Dogs, and Tomb Raider.In addition, Kingdom Hearts and Heroes of Ruin will be at the "Nintendo Lounge" at the Marriott Marquis & Marina. Square games will also be on display at the GameSpot Gameroom, Spike booth, and the Xbox Lounge.In addition to all that, Square Enix will sponsor the "Nerd HQ" event and show off its games there, including over 20 playable Tomb Raider demo stations. There will also be a Tomb Raider panel on Saturday, a Hitman "photo sniping contest," a cosplay event, and several other ways to spend your whole Comic-Con only looking at one publisher's video game lineup.
Don't eat any dreams right before watching this Kingdom Hearts 3D trailer
This Kingdom Hearts 3D trailer is all about the Dream Eaters, a group of mysterious, adorable creatures that take on various disguises. And with the way the screen spins and bobs around within a frame, we suspect some Dream Eaters may lose their appetites after watching it.
Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance demo on 3DS right now
The demo for Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance is available right this very second in North America on the 3DS eshop, Nintendo announced during its US livestream.Dream Drop Distance is scheduled to hit North America in full form on July 31.Update: We originally referred to a digital release, as evidenced by the slide discussed here. Nintendo has since updated the information with that slide to specify first-party releases only, leading us to question what all those logos were doing there. Kingdom Hearts 3D is currently confirmed only for a retail release.
3DS digital releases to include Epic Mickey, Scribblenauts Unlimited, Kingdom Hearts [update: Nintendo says only first-party games]
We knew that Nintendo planned to release the "majority" of its retail 3DS games digitally on eShop going forward, but a note in an E3 investor presentation from NOA president Reggie Fils-Aime reveals plans to release third-party games digitally as well."We've got a massive list of AAA content on the way from all of the biggest names in gaming," Fils-Aime said, "that are all proven franchises, all exclusive to our platform, and all coming to stores both in physical and digital formats in the second half of 2012." Accompanying this statement is a slide featuring confirmed eShop/retail releases New Super Mario Bros. 2, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, and Paper Mario: Sticker Star, along with third-party games Kingdom Hearts 3D, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate, Scribblenauts Unlimited, and Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion.Unless this slide isn't meant to lay out the "massive list of AAA content," we can expect to see all of these games on the eShop alongside their retail releases.Update: Nintendo added text to the explanation of the slide, to say "refers to first-party titles only" in regards to the dual digital/retail releases. It was just a super misleading slide, then.
Ensemble voice cast returns for Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
Despite the diminutive size of the 3DS cartridge, Square Enix managed to find space to pack in voice overs for all the established Kingdom Hearts voice actors. Many of the big guns are returning to reprise their roles in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Drop Distance, including Leonard Nimoy, Haley Joel Osment, David Gallagher, Hayden Panetierre, Jesse McCartney and Quinton Flynn.Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance launches on July 31.%Gallery-156546%
You can Dream Drop more cash for a 'Mark of Mastery' edition of Kingdom Hearts 3D
There's no better way to flaunt your mastery of the art of having $55 than with the Kingdom Hearts 3D "Mark of Mastery" edition. The newly announced special edition comes with a clear 3DS case and a set of art cards that look like they can be slipped into said case, and five AR cards to unlock in-game Dream Eaters. All of this comes in a big box with a magnetic clasp.This edition shows one of the advantages of portable games: the limited edition boxes don't cost quite as much as those for console games.
Pre-order Kingdom Hearts 3D for 'Dream Eater' AR cards
Kingdom Hearts 3D is taking a page from Kid Icarus: Uprising's book ... or a card from its album, maybe? Square Enix is handing out a semi-random selection of AR cards with pre-orders in North America.Every pre-order gets the card that unlocks the "R&R Seal Dream Eater" and the card that unlocks a viewing stand for 3D Dream Eater images. A third card will unlock one of three other Dream Eaters: Ursa Circus, Sudo Neku, or Meowjesty. These characters can be recruited to join you in battle.You can see the Dream Eaters for yourself in the gallery below (they're the cute monster things), along with character art of The World Ends With You's Neku and others, and some shots of Traverse Town.%Gallery-155236%
Kingdom Hearts 3D closes the Dream Drop Distance in Europe July 20
One of the announcements from Europe's Nintendo Direct presentation this weekend was the release date for Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance], whose punctuation we had to look up just now. Today, Square Enix issued its own announcement, which doesn't require watching a video.The 3DS Disney/Square crossover game will arrive in PAL territories on July 20, ahead of the July 31 release date in North America. You'll all be keyblade masters, having earned the respect and high fives of King Mickey, by the time the game shows up domestically.
Square Enix hints, nudges and winks about The World Ends With You sequel
The World Ends With You is, besides being an excellent name for a My Chemical Romance song, one of the few non-Final Fantasy RPGs from Square Enix to obtain cult classic status. The last we heard of a potential sequel to the teenager-infused romp through Shibuya was in August of 2010, when series artist Tetsuya Nomura said "I definitely want to make a sequel."Fast-forward about a year, and The World Ends With You protagonist Neku is spotted as one of the many cameos during Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance's Tokyo Game Show demo. Now, Nomura has said that TWEWY supporting character Raimu, who never spoke during the original game, will also be in Kingdom Hearts 3D and will be fully voice acted "out of consideration of the future of The World Ends With You series," according to an interview translated by Andriasang.If that weren't powerfully tantalizing on its own, Nomura also said that "there probably is something" coming in the series' future, though he couldn't speak in specifics at the time. He also laughed mid-sentence, according to the translation, although there's no context provided to indicate whether the laugh was the playful chuckle of an appreciative artist, or the maniacal cackling of a man manipulating the hearts of thousands. Without this vital context clue, we'll just have to wait and see what happens.
Kingdom Hearts 3D drops into North America on July 31
Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance] -- also known by its maiden name: Kingdom Hearts 3D 24/365 Deplorable Overdrive Cross-Fiction Heart Battle -- will be available on 3DS in North America on July 31.%Gallery-151730%
Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drops into America and Europe next year
Square Enix is bringing its 3DS Kingdom Hearts adventure to North America and Europe next year -- and, don't worry, it's keeping that memorable name. In fact, the official title of this new game is Kingdom Hearts 3D [Dream Drop Distance], with brackets for that extra touch of Dissidia-esque charm. Dream Drop Distance is "the opening chapter of the final conflict" in Kingdom Hearts, according to director Tetsuya Nomura. It stars both Sora and Riku as they enter the "Sleeping Worlds" to become Keyblade Masters at the behest of King Mickey, who is presented in this series as a totally tough, intimidating guy (but still Mickey Mouse). That journey still takes them through several Disney-inspired locales, including new ones based on The Hunchback of Notre Dame -- which means it's a pseudo-real place, filtered through the lenses of both Disney and Square Enix -- and Tron: Legacy.%Gallery-142187%
Get your keyblade fix with this 8 minute long Kingdom Hearts 3D trailer
Aside from the usual inscrutable plot points and familiar Disney characters with unfamiliar Japanese voices, the Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance trailer above has a lot going for it. Namely, eight whole minutes of keyblades and keyblade-based combat.
Nintendo Direct trailers: Monster Hunter Tri-G, Kingdom Hearts 3D, more
Nintendo's inaugural "Nintendo Direct" presentation in Japan also came with a host of new trailers for 3DS games. Above, new footage of Kingdom Hearts 3D, which we regret to inform you, continues to be called Dream Drop Distance. After the break, you can see two videos for Monster Hunter Tri-G, and a couple of new games. The first is a retail game from Banpresto called Lost Heroes, which puts Ultraman, Gundam, and Kamen Rider characters in the same dungeon-crawler world, and is thus super unlikely to see release outside of Japan. The second is an eShop game called Nimble Sakura Samurai, a simple action game in which you dodge and slice enemies. There are even more videos than that on Nintendo's site, if you want to see trailers for Dillon's Rolling Western or Koei's fashion game FabStyle.
The World Ends With You cameo in Kingdom Hearts 3D notice of 'something' new
Kingdom Hearts producer (and theoretical Final Fantasy Versus XIII lead) Tetsuya Nomura told Famitsu that the appearance of The World Ends With You's Neku Sakuraba in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance portended other things for the character in the future. According to Andriasang, Famitsu asked Nomura if Neku's appearance provided notice of a sequel to the Shibuya-based DS RPG. Nomura didn't quite confirm a sequel, but he did say that the appearance suggested "something" that Square Enix is working on. Last year, Nomura said he wanted to make a sequel to TWEWY "when the time is right." Perhaps the time will be even closer to right two minutes from now, when you've watched the new trailer above (featuring Neku).
The World Ends with You character spotted in Kingdom Hearts 3D
While Kingdom Hearts is usually the domain of Final Fantasy and Disney characters, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance features a small crossover with The World Ends with You. Specifically, The World Ends with You protagonist Neku made a brief appearance during the TGS demo. It's likely just some simple fan service, and doesn't necessarily mean we're getting the sequel that we've always wanted -- and that designer Tetsuya Nomura "definitely" wants to make -- but it's nice to dream, isn't it?
