Kingdom Hearts 4 is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 at launch

In what was, for the most part, a pretty ho-hum Nintendo Direct with no surprise announcements, aside from that Ocarina of Time version, Kingdom Hearts 4 getting a new trailer and release dates felt like it came out of nowhere.

It was first announced in 2022 during the 20th anniversary of the franchise, we know that the game will start a new saga of Sora and friends. Details are, understandably, sketchy, as this is the first we’ve seen or heard about the game in years, but we have a brief description of each of the press releases.

“The new installment in the action simulation series developed and published by Square Enix, Kingdom Hearts 4 follows the protagonist Sora and other familiar characters as they travel through the mysterious city of Quadratum. Sora will once again travel to various lands, where new figures cross his path and new powers arise in this next chapter.”

Apart from that, we also know that Kingdom Hearts 4 will be a full multiplatform game, released on Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. This is in line with what we will see in Final Fantasy 7: Revelation, which will be relaunching on all platforms in 2027.

We’re One Step Closer To Kingdom Hearts 4, But Will The Anticipated Sequel Fix Its Dirty Story?

Like many, I was absolutely sure that it will be at least a year until we hear anything new in Kingdom Hearts 4. After all, Tetsuya Nomura, the director of the game, is working hard to wrap up the Final Fantasy 7 Remake trilogy. I think you have time to work on both projects.

Here’s what we know so far: Kingdom Hearts 4 will begin the “Lost Master” story, which takes place in the city of Quadratum, which is heavily inspired by Tokyo. Quadratum will serve as a hub world, allowing players to explore various Disney-themed levels, as is the tradition of the franchise.

What is also the tradition of Kingdom Hearts, especially after the first game, is one of the most confusing and strange stories in a video game. Even if you were able to play all the games in the franchise (and there are more than you might think), this is by no means a method, structure, or construction of anything that comes close to resembling a cohesive plot.

The confirmation that Sora will “visit various worlds again” means that the game will not only take place in that Tokyo-inspired city. Whether Square leans more towards the Disney side of things, though, remains to be seen.

This is Square Enix’s chance to focus on what makes Kingdom Hearts Great

It’s been almost a decade since Kingdom Hearts 3 was released, and since then, we’ve seen the birth of several Disney franchises. I’d be shocked if Moana wasn’t heavily featured in the game, for example, if the movie got a sequel and a live-action remake since the 2016 original.

We also saw the release of Zootopia last year, not to mention the growing presence of the Marvel Cinematic Universe under Disney. Now, I’m not saying that Sora will meet the Avengers, but that’s the magic of Kingdom Hearts: there are so many possibilities here, and I hope that Kingdom Hearts 4 leans more towards the Disney aspect than the JRPG side of things.

Starting a new story arc is a great way to give a soft reset, get away from the confusing backstory and focus on what makes Kingdom Hearts so great: action-RPG battles around your favorite Disney characters and worlds.

Whether or not Kingdom Hearts 4 can deliver on this remains to be seen, as we are undoubtedly a ways out from release. Here’s hoping we’ll have a glimpse when we see it again, hopefully before 2030.

Kingdom Hearts 4

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The ESRB

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Engineer(s).

Square Enix

Publisher

Square Enix