In early 2002, a role-playing game known asKingdom Heartswas released for the PlayStation 2, earning the curious gaze of many gamers due to just how unexpected it was. It was a game created by Square Enix with the help of Disney, as it featured an original story of a boy named Sora who traversed worlds inhabited by bothFinal Fantasycharactersand familiar Disney faces; from Mickey Mouse, to Jack Skellington ofNightmare Before Christmas. Despite how unorthodox the title was, it proved to be rather successful.
It’s been 20 years since the first title was put in the hands of fans worldwide, and theKingdom Heartsfranchise has continued to reach new heights almost constantly. The game has released 13 titles across numerous consoles, and Sora has consistently beaten the odds, resulting in things like his surprise inclusion inSuper Smash Bros Ultimate. The series has also become a rather infamous Disney product, with Donald and Goofy even making surprise appearances in theirKingdom Heartscostumes at Disney parks worldwide. It makes one question just what led toKingdom Hearts' massive popularity.
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Final Fantasy Meets Disney
Out of the many crossovers the video game world has witnessed, hardly anyone expectedFinal FantasyandMickey Mouseto unite into one grand RPG epic. Those that worked on the series often stated thatKingdom Heartsonly come about due to the fact that the two companies shared a building in Japan, more than 20 years ago. It’s due to the close proximity that the idea was pitched, and then greenlit shortly after. Considering how the companies treated the project compared to how it is treated now, the experimental nature of it may have been its saving grace for how it began.
If one looks back at the development of gaming and entertainment history, Square Enix couldn’t have chosen a better time to releaseKingdom Heartsin the long run. The game was released at a key point in the anime subculture’s history, as it was just starting to build itself in overseas markets, which made what would be affectionately dubbed the “anime Disney game” something of interest to the budding anime fans back then. It ended up being the perfect gateway to introduce these fans to theRPG genre, assuming players hadn’t tried other games likeKingdom Heartsbeforehand.
The Length of Kingdom Hearts' Lore
When it comes to many of the most well-known role-playing video game series, a good number of them make it a point to leave their stories as self-contained adventures. EvenSquare Enix’s other RPGstry to keep their titles in separate universes apart from special events and crossover titles. That’s whereKingdom Heartsdoes something rather different. Each game plays a role in what happens next in the series, andKingdom Hearts 3even serves as the ending to an “arc.”
Due to this,everyKingdom Heartsreleaseleads to new avenues that keep its lore evolving, leading it to adopt concepts such as time travel and unreality as it expands its story. Fans have been able to tell thatKingdom Hearts 2was the start of the franchise adopting a spawling and overarching storyline. However, while things growing to this scale where in service to keeping the magical nature of its world rather vague, hardly any fans expected something like whatKingdom Heartsbecame over time. Fans are either intrigued or utterly confused by the scope of its story, and that in itself has grown to be part of its charm.
Kingdom Hearts is Accessible In Every Way It Needs to Be
One thing that tells fans thatKingdom Heartswas an experimental project is that at some stage of the series' history, the developers lost the entire source code for the firstKingdom Hearts.Tetsuya Nomura has statedthat as a result, when it came time to make theHD ReMixversion ofKingdom Hearts, they needed to remake almost all the graphics for the HD version of the game from scratch. However, the effort has paid off tenfold, as now theHD Remixtitles are available on numerous console generations. If any new players decide to pick up the series, there’s no need to worry about missing out on titles, as they’re all readily available.
While even the oldest games are accessible to newer fans across their platform of choice, theKingdom Heartsseries has also been known for many years to have different difficulty settings. WhileKingdom Heartsis most known for its toughCritical Mode, there is also a Beginner Mode for those who want an easier experience while playing. While playing on the easier difficulties used to lock players out of the secret endings, more recent entries such asKingdom Hearts 3have changed that. This makesKingdom Heartsone of the most accessible RPGs out there in many ways.
Like many relevant franchises in video games,Kingdom Heartshas done its part to keep its gameplay evolving, but the core formula has always stayed the same. Players can look forward to picking up the latest installment and still have a general idea of what they’re doing, with Sora still playing relatively the same as he did in the first game. The only times the titles ever change things up with how the gameplay works are with the spin-offs, which by nature have a right to do things like changing the battle style to focus on cards or commands, rather thanKeyblades.
Due to the series' length, be it the number of games or the scale of the franchise’s lore,Kingdom Heartsmay seem intimidating at first glance. However, it’s because of its charm and accessibility that fans are welcomed in with ease, and many who try it learn to appreciate the series for what it is soon after. As more and more years pass, the number of fans questioning just where Sora’s next adventure will take him seems to only grow over time. Luckily for fans, that question may have some answers soon, asKingdom Heartsis holding a20th anniversary livestreamon April 10 that may shed some light as to what’s coming up soon.
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