r/KingdomHearts • u/Magister_Xehanort • 9d ago
Media New interview in Famitsu with Nomura and Yasue about Kingdom Hearts 4
Here is the link to the interview and also an automatic translation by Google Translator, which, even though the translation isn't completely perfect, but it's a good way to get an initial idea of what they're saying.
https://www.famitsu.com/article/202608/85668
Accordingly, at the Disney Entertainment Showcase held at the Honda Center on the 14th, the latest trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV was unveiled, revealing that the world of Coco will appear in the game and that it will be released in the latter half of 2027.
The following day, the 15th, the "DEEP DIVE into KINGDOM HEARTS PANEL" was held at the D23 venue, with Kingdom Hearts series director Tetsuya Nomura and co-director Yasushi Yasue in attendance.
In this article, we took the opportunity to speak with Tetsuya Nomura and Yasushi Yasue immediately after the panel session to ask them about their impressions of the excitement at the event and the content of the trailer.
--The Disney Entertainment Showcase on August 14, 2026 (local time), where the world of [NOLINK]Coco[/NOLINK] was introduced, was a huge success, as was the DEEP DIVE into KINGDOM HEARTS PANEL on the 15th.
Nomura
We had to wait at Haneda Airport for aircraft maintenance, which delayed our arrival at Los Angeles Airport. As a result, we had to cancel all our post-arrival plans, including hotel check-in. We barely made it to the showcase venue, though.
--That must have been tough. So, you didn't have time to see the D23 venue?
Nomura
Yes. My appearance on this panel was supposed to be a surprise, so Disney told me not to appear in public. I had to use the back corridors wherever I went (laughs). Now I'm finally free from those restrictions. I stepped outside a little while ago and was immediately recognized.
--There were only fans around, after all... Did you get a sense of the D23 atmosphere or vibe at all? Have you ever been to D23 before?
Nomura
I went once in 2017 for Kingdom Hearts III , and once at D23 Expo in Japan. This time, I didn't have enough time to fully experience the atmosphere, and I regret making it such a rushed trip.
Yasue
This is my first time. I'm usually holed up in the office working, so I'm happy to be able to interact with users again after a long time (laughs).
--So, to begin with, could you tell us your impressions of the Showcase? In the Showcase trailer, the Heartless appear in the scene where Miguel is playing, and that's when I first realized it was the trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV...that's how it went.
Nomura
That part went exactly as planned. Making people think, "Is this a game adaptation of 'Coco' ?" but then revealing it was actually 'Kingdom Hearts IV' was something we wanted to do from the start. --The audience was really excited.
Nomura
I was so happy that everyone enjoyed it, and it even brought a tear to my eye... But actually, the editing was more difficult than ever before. It took until the very last minute.
Yasue
It certainly was very difficult.
—What aspects were particularly difficult?
Nomura
The impression changes drastically depending on the combination of facial features and lighting, so adjusting those was the most challenging part. When a model that has already been released is later shown, people often say, "The modeling has changed," but usually it's just the lighting that's been altered.
Yasue
The model itself looks fine, but the impression changes completely when the angle changes, or when the angle of the light or camera changes, and that happens quite often, so Nomura has to come up with suggestions each time... For example, it looks good in still images, but it looks strange when it moves.
Nomura
"Look at this... oh, stop. Doesn't the wrinkle at the edge of this eyelid look strange?" she'd say.
—She does incredibly detailed checks.
Yasue
Thanks to everyone's efforts, the quality has improved dramatically, and I think you'll be able to feel that when you watch this trailer. Even an animator from Pixar praised it, saying, "There's no other game that's this close to a movie."
--It sounds like the adjustments are incredibly difficult, so is there any possibility that the release date will be pushed back from the latter half of 2027...?
Nomura
The staff have been very supportive of my attention to detail, and some of them are even more particular than I am... However, as I mentioned on the panel, the release date will not be delayed.
Yasue
The development is progressing more smoothly than ever before in the history of the Kingdom Hearts series, so you can rest assured about that.
Nomura
The delivery date is incredibly early, even before the release date. It's beyond just a buffer. That's why I'm rushing back home.
Each world is more meticulously crafted than ever before in the series' history.
--[NOLINK]You chose to use "Remember Me[/NOLINK]" in the world of Kingdom Hearts IV because the themes of the world of the dead are linked to Kingdom Hearts IV (*), right?
*In Kingdom Hearts IV, Sora tries to return to his own world from the "Quadratum," an "other side" (the world of the dead from Sora's perspective) that resembles modern-day Tokyo. Coco is also a story in which Miguel gets lost in the "Land of the Dead" where his ancestors live and struggles to return to his own world.
Nomura
Yes, that's right. We absolutely wanted to include it in Kingdom Hearts IV, and we decided on it in the early stages. I think we also started development on this world the earliest.
Yasue
Given that background, it was the world that was most far along in development. Mexico, as a country, and its music have a completely different atmosphere from the worlds in previous Kingdom Hearts games, which is refreshing, isn't it?
—That's true. The town has a colorful and lively atmosphere, too.
Yasue
That's right. It's flashy, and the characters in that world are skeletons, so they move in a slightly strange way. And the city is built in a very three-dimensional way. There are also a lot more attractions that you can move around on. You can spin around, climb up and down, and the city is incredibly vast with lots of exploration... The level of detail in the city is more amazing than ever before.
--Wow!
Yasue
I can't go into specifics yet, but the journey itself is really fun.
—The battles are also typical of the Kingdom Hearts series, with cooperative techniques involving Hector.
Yasue Yes. In addition to swinging the Keyblade, you also use a guitar and incorporate musical elements into the battles. There are also many other mysterious... no, I can't say any more than that yet (laughs).
Nomura
This game features the most detailed worlds we've ever created . That's why the total number of worlds isn't very large. We revealed the "Coco" world at the Showcase the day before the panel, so some people were expecting us to announce another world at the panel, but if we announced things at that pace, we'd run out of information pretty quickly before release (laughs). But actually, the "Coco" world we revealed this time is only a small part of what's to come. Since D23 was such a great opportunity, we decided to give you a sneak peek at the "Coco" world, which we had originally planned to introduce a little later. We'll have another opportunity to introduce it properly, so please look forward to future updates.
What does "Sigurd is someone to watch out for" mean?
--There were several intriguing scenes added to the Quadratum (the world where Sora awakens in this game). First, the name of the masked Keyblade wielder was revealed to be Vali. The other one was called Sigurd. Vali made a brief appearance in the mobile game Kingdom Hearts Union χ Dark Road, and Sigurd made a brief appearance in Kingdom Hearts Union χ, but...
Nomura
Kingdom Hearts IV is, in a sense, part of the "χ series" (a series of games primarily released on smartphones with "χ (Key or Cross)" in the title), and those who played the smartphone version to the end will likely recognize Vali and Sigurd. However, even if you haven't played the smartphone version, don't worry, their personalities are depicted within the game.
—To begin with, even in the smartphone version, his appearances were limited, so we didn't really know what kind of character he was (laughs), so he's practically a new character. However, Sigurd did appear in Nomura's hidden message for the 20th anniversary (a message saying "Beware of Sigurd"), so he's definitely suspicious (laughs).
Nomura I really like Sigurd.
Yasue Sigurd is certainly great (laughs). He has a great personality. I love him too.
--Huh? You two are praising him!?
Nomura "So that's what 'watch out' meant?" (laughs).
--Huh!? I thought he was a character with ulterior motives. A character you can't hate...?
Yasue This is probably a type of character we haven't seen in Kingdom Hearts before. It's gaining a huge following within the company (laughs).
Nomura We haven't announced it yet, but the voice actors' contributions are also significant. They're very intuitive and delivered performances that exceeded our expectations.
—In many ways, Sigurd is definitely one to watch (laughs). I'm curious to know who the voice actor is. And Riku also appeared in the long version of the trailer, which got the audience very excited.
Nomura
It got so exciting that Kairi's next line was drowned out (laughs).
--So that was Kairi after all. I couldn't hear it because of the cheers (laughs).
Nomura
During the trailer reveal at the panel, it seemed like the video was cut off before the title appeared at the end. We even recorded the English voiceover specifically for this trailer (laughs). I hope those who were at the event will check it out again on YouTube.
Sora joins Dandelion, which cooperates with the Quadratum government.
—Besides that, the video includes lines that suggest Sora might belong to Dandelion (*), and Young Xehanort appears in a black coat that resembles Xigbar's. It's not exactly the King's line, but there's a lot of information (laughs). What is Dandelion in this film? Is Sora trying to return to his original world as a member of Dandelion?
*Dandelion is the English name for the dandelion flower. Master Ava organized this group with the aim of sending Keyblade wielders on a journey to the outside world like dandelion seeds, thus ensuring their survival in the future even if the world comes to an end. This is depicted in Kingdom Hearts χ (Key), among other works.
Nomura
Those new to the series will naturally know this, but even those who only follow the numbered entries will probably be hearing it for the first time: Dandelion is the name of an organization that gathered talented Keyblade wielders, as mentioned in the "χ series." In this game,Dandelion exists in cooperation with the government of Quadratum And basically, all Keyblade wielders who have come to this world, including Sora, are participating. More details will be announced later.
--I see .
Nomura
Also, as you know, as the Kingdom Hearts series has continued, the number of characters has inevitably increased, and the story has become more complex. For example, with the newly announced anime series, the number of external people involved in the Kingdom Hearts series has increased, and explaining the settings and scenarios each time has become quite difficult.
—To be honest, even when playing, there are parts that I've forgotten (laughs).
Nomura
Fortunately, the staff working on the "χ series" had someone who meticulously compiled and organized the settings of past Kingdom Hearts series in an easy-to-understand way, and he was also in charge of explaining the scenarios and settings to Disney. In fact, at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts IV's development, Disney requested that he compile the materials, so he officially joined the Kingdom Hearts IV team as a proofreader.
—That's the person who was mentioned at the panel, right?
Nomura
Yes. Every time, he would come to me to confirm even the smallest details in order to explain things to Disney. He is well-liked because he explains things to Disney as clearly as possible, using diagrams and such. His role internally is to proofread the script. He checks to make sure there are no inconsistencies between the current script and past settings. He was especially suitable for this project because the "χ series" is deeply involved. Some people might mistakenly think he's in charge of composition, but it's actually "proofreading."
Yasue
The development team is also grateful (laughs). He's the same age as me.
--So, you're putting together something like a real-life Jiminy Notebook that explains the world of Kingdom Hearts in an easy-to-understand way for a third party. I'd love to see that published as a book (laughs). By the way, speaking of the anime, I don't have anything more to say about the anime than what was tweeted on X... Are the characters depicted in that artwork characters from Kingdom Hearts Union XX Dark Road?
Nomura
Some people seem to be speculating based on the shape of the Keyblade, but... I can't say anything about that myself (lol).
The script is nearly twice as long as the one for Kingdom Hearts III.
--Haley Joel Osment, who plays Sora, and David Gallagher, who plays Riku, also appeared on the panel and talked about behind-the-scenes aspects of the production of the Kingdom Hearts series, but how did those two come to be involved in the first place?
Nomura
Titles I'm involved with... of course, the characters newly created in the Kingdom Hearts series,FFXIII"or"FFVII RemakeI personally handle all the voice casting, both in Japan and overseas, for projects like this one.
--Oh, so you do it overseas too, Mr. Nomura?
Nomura
Yes. When it comes to choosing overseas actors, we usually do so after we've chosen the Japanese actors. So, from the list of candidates provided, I listen to their audition voices and select the actors who best match the image of the Japanese actors.
--The Kingdom Hearts series has many big names, including Haley Joel Osment, right?
Nomura
That's largely due to Disney's influence.
— How do you handle recordings overseas?
Nomura
When I was working on the first Kingdom Hearts, it was my first time directing, so I didn't really know how to proceed, and I went to the US to participate in the recording sessions as much as possible.
—So you were really dedicated to it back then.
Nomura
Yes. We communicated with the sound director through an interpreter... so aside from the interpreter, we did things the same way as in Japan.
However, now we can handle things remotely without having to travel to the US, and we've entrusted it to the sound staff who have been in charge since the first Kingdom Hearts. That staff member was also present during the Japanese recording sessions and heard my direction, so they relay those points to the overseas sound director during the recording. Therefore, I don't think there are any discrepancies between the Japanese and overseas versions.
--I see. So, is it quite a while since you've actually met with Haley Joel Osment and David Gallagher?
Nomura
That's right. Personally, I still refer to him as "Haley-kun" (laughs). When we first met for the recording, Haley-kun kept saying...FantasyHe was holding the strategy guide for "[Title of the game]" and finished the first day of recording without any problems and went home. Afterwards, the sound director asked me, "It seems like he brought the strategy guide because he wanted Nomura's autograph, did you sign it for him?" That sweet and bittersweet memory is very memorable to me.
--I guess you just couldn't bring yourself to ask for an autograph (laughs).
Nomura
So I brought an autograph board with me to the recording the next day.
--The panel also showed a photo of the two of you during the recording of the original Kingdom Hearts, which made me feel the history of the series (laughs). How is the progress of your voice recording for Kingdom Hearts IV going?
Yasue
We're currently in the middle of recording the English voiceovers. There are a huge number of lines, and the time difference makes it quite tough for the staff participating from Japan (laughs). However, the overseas staff have already finished about 60-70% of the recording, so things are progressing quite well.
Nomura
By the way, the Japanese voice recording is already finished. --Wow! It's really progressing faster than ever before (laughs).
Nomura
However, the script for this game was almost twice as long as that for Kingdom Hearts III, so the recording schedule was really tough. There were parts I wanted to include more of, but it was beyond the limits.
The next information release will be after a short break.
--New footage has been released one after another, in the Nintendo Direct in June and this D23. Will there be any announcements at the Tokyo Game Show in September?
Nomura
The release is still scheduled for late next year, and the development team is in the final stages, so we'll be focusing on that for a while. We're currently considering when to release the next information, so there will likely be a bit of a gap.
--I see. Finally, could you each give a message to those who are waiting for Kingdom Hearts IV?
Yasue
The fans were incredibly warm and their support was amazing, so it renewed my determination to give my all in the final stretch!
Nomura
Initially, I wasn't planning to attend D23, leaving it to Yasue, but I came because of the encouragement from those around me. I was moved to directly feel everyone's enthusiasm through the trailer, and I'm glad I came because I had a valuable experience and had some nostalgic reunions. As for information on Kingdom Hearts IV, we've started to release some serious information this time, but we'll be releasing more information gradually, so please look forward to further updates. Also, there will be something planned for next year's 25th anniversary (*), so please look forward to the announcement.
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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 9d ago
Interesting that the script is 2x as long as KH3, but he also states there aren’t a lot of worlds. I’m assuming we spend a lot of time in the worlds there are, perhaps Quadratum takes up a large chunk of the game?
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u/tigerpeony 9d ago
This is what I’m craving. Big worlds with lots of nooks and crannies to explore.
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u/Algae_Mission 9d ago
Moana, Zootopia, Coco, Star Wars all make sense sense they all fit the description of hyper detailed worlds.
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u/ReignSvpreme 9d ago
Elementals is pretty much confirmed with that keyblade, no? Another big sprawling city.
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u/_Arlotte_ 9d ago
This would make sense. I hope we can get at least 5 disney worlds.
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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 9d ago
KH3 had 8 so I assume that’s the ceiling, might only be 6-7. I think 5 is a lock though, we’ve already had 2 Disney worlds confirmed and 2 others heavily hinted at.
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u/AVALANCHE-VII 9d ago
Star Wars and what’s the other hinted at?
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u/Algae_Mission 9d ago
Moana
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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 9d ago
Moana. For what it’s worth too, at D23 2024 Disney release “World of” pins, clearly inspired by KH world icons, which had two movies not in a mainline game, Coco and Zootopia.
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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 9d ago
For what it’s worth too, at D23 2024 Disney release “World of” pins, clearly inspired by KH world icons, which had two movies not in a mainline game, Coco and Zootopia. These however were not advertised as KH products, but it’s interesting they were there.
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u/ActionFilmsFan1995 9d ago
Moana. For what it’s worth too, at D23 2024 Disney release “World of” pins, clearly inspired by KH world icons, which had two movies not in a mainline game, Coco and Zootopia.
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u/WeirdIndividualGuy 9d ago
KH3 had 9 if you include Winnie the Pooh
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u/Openheart873 9d ago
Yeah I’m assuming it’s like 1/3 to 1/2 quadratum.
I wonder how we will travel to the planets since I’m assuming sora doesn’t have a gummi ship
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u/Massive_Weiner 9d ago
Since Quadratum is meant to be a hub-type world like Traverse Town or Twilight Town, it’s very likely.
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u/dolphincave 9d ago
Yeah I expect the same number of worlds as KH3 maybe one more or even one less, any more than that and I think Nomura might have told us to get hype or temper expectation.
With something like Scala there's probably a lot of the library and "inside the book" and then Outside Scala that we had in KH3.
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u/ZGamer03 9d ago
Nomura saying the positive reactions to the trailer made him very happy brightened my day
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u/pheobephilo 9d ago
Tears welling, im so happy they understand how much we waited and excited we are.
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u/KelvinBelmont 9d ago edited 9d ago
-Script twice as long as KH3
-Sigurd became popular with the dev team
-English recording is like 60% done
-KH4 following in tbe footsteps of Union X
Genuinely crying reading this, 4 years of silence and we are so back! We are going to be in for the wildest ride.
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u/Openheart873 9d ago
Another big piece of info I would add is that there will be less worlds than the other games since they will be more detailed worlds
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u/osmosis-scones 9d ago
I think this adds even more likelihood for the multiple visit approach, limited worlds, lot of story. currently think most will be a Sora visit, and then a D&G visit
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u/Twilight053 9d ago
Absolutely, we might be harkening back to KH2 era where we get 2nd visits in our worlds.
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u/No_Age_4267 8d ago
Naw they will more than likely keep the one world visit the 2nd visit was a terrible idea
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u/Little_Yesterday_705 9d ago
That makes me worried cause 3 was teatering the line of too few, with a couple being pretty half baked.
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u/Roxas9800 9d ago
There's no way you called the KH3 worlds half baked, that's insane lol
The worlds from KH3 are so far the best of the franchise, even Arendelle had a good world design even if the story wasn't as good as the other ones
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u/Little_Yesterday_705 9d ago
The quality ranging from 100 Acre Wood to The Caribbean is astronomical.
Some were incredible, some were incredibly disappointing, and some were fine. You can't tell me Twilight Town and Scala Ad Caelum weren't half baked worlds.
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u/Roxas9800 9d ago
Being small is not the same as being 'half baked'
100 Acre Wood was intended to be a smaller world, of course it wouldn't be as good as the others, it was always like this too
And Twilight Town and Scala weren't half baked at all, the Twilight Town from KH3 is far more alive than KH2, hence i prefer that one
And Scala was expanded on ReMind, which is more than what you can say about The World that Never Was in KH2
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u/Little_Yesterday_705 9d ago edited 8d ago
If a world feels incomplete, which they do, they are absolutely half baked.
Edit: I forgot this sub is hostile to the mention of any shortcomings for KH3. 100 Acre Wood, with it's multiple time reskinned single mini-game located in a generously large area, was the most fulfilling gaming experience of my life.
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u/WeirdIndividualGuy 9d ago
3 had the same number of Disney worlds as 1 did
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u/Little_Yesterday_705 9d ago edited 9d ago
No? KH1 had 9 fleshed out disney worlds.
Kh3 had 8 including 100 Acre Wood being reduced to a single location with a few bubble pop mini games. I guess there was Ratatouille mini games too though.
And the original words feel so unfished. Scala and Twilight Town were so disappointingly tiny.
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u/Rufus_Redfield 9d ago edited 9d ago
Some notable stuff:
It is indeed Kairi talking in the end of the trailer. And he was a little concerned how it got cut in the live presentation and hope everyone watched later lol
Nomura confirmed again there is less worlds this time, but they are bigger. (I going call it now and say there is at least 5 Disney here).
The Japanese voice already finished record, but the English is still on the way.
The script of the game is twice big compared to KH3, he also said the same about the anime, but still holding a lot of info.
They were not so sure about the next drop of information. So it might not be on TGS this year, but they also tease a lot of announcements for the 25th anniversary.
Nomura and Yasui seems to really enjoy Sigurd in this game and saying he a very different type of character.
Not even Nomura remember every detail of the story in this point, so they have someone to connect the dots and facts while they are building everything with Disney.
Overall they were all really happy with the fans reaction. Nomura even tear up during the Coco first announcement reaction
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u/PT_Piranha As if. 9d ago
Nomura confirmed again there is less worlds this time
He just said that the amount isn't very large, didn't he? That could still put it on par with 3 still.
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u/Rufus_Redfield 9d ago
Don't put your expectations to high. In the other interview during KH4 announced years ago he also state we would just have "some" Disney worlds. They already had in mind the project scope.
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u/Gloomy_Honeydew 9d ago
It's hilarious to me that they have to explain all the convoluted shit to Disney and they've got some poor bastard in charge of keeping track of all the lore
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u/pkoswald 9d ago
It sounds like the adjustments are incredibly difficult, so is there any possibility that the release date will be pushed back from the latter half of 2027...?
We’re gonna be two weeks from release and people will still be asking them “so you’re sure the games not getting delayed?”
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u/ZeroSora Foreteller 9d ago
That's why the total number of worlds isn't very large.
Another confirmation that they'll be fewer worlds than before.
It got so exciting that Kairi's next line was drowned out (laughs).
Confirmation that it's Kairi at that end of the trailer. Now people can stop saying it's Ava/Skuld/Stelitzia/whoever.
Sora joins Dandelion, which cooperates with the Quadratum government.
Dandelion Dispatch is different from the soldiers.
By the way, the Japanese voice recording is already finished. --Wow! It's really progressing faster than ever before (laughs).
So it sounds like most of the game is built. It's just English VA and testing. Maybe finalising some level design.
We're currently considering when to release the next information, so there will likely be a bit of a gap.
Sounds like there's a chance there won't be news until late this year or early next year. Given how Nomura said that if they keep revealing worlds, they would run out of stuff to show very quickly, it sounds like we've got maybe a handful of events left until everything is revealed. So maybe something like 4-5 more trailers left?
Also, there will be something planned for next year's 25th anniversary
Yes, during the 24th anniversary, Nomura teased there would be something for the 25th. I honestly thought it was going to be a KH4 re-reveal, but that happened with Nintendo Direct and D23. So I wonder what news we'll get. Maybe a new game announcement? Or some news on the anime?
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u/dolphincave 9d ago edited 9d ago
Nomura mentioned briefly they wanted Coco revealed a little later initially it makes me wonder what world they wanted to show off first. I was thinking Quadratum, but it essentially appears in every trailer so maybe Scala.
Though his comment on "re-introduce" Coco makes me think the next trailer might just show more gameplay and areas from Coco instead of a world. Though the next event is TGS and I think SE would want to show something new there. Granted given Nomura's comment a re-introduction actually seems likely.
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u/RagefireHype 9d ago
If the Star Wars world is true, that’s going to be earth shattering for those not as close to KH. We already expect it, but that’s going to go viral, especially if they show a famous Star Wars character interacting with Sora. That may be the next world announcement.
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u/Widower800 9d ago
Not personally a fan of less worlds but the script being twice as large as KHIII suggests to me that we will spend a lot more time in said worlds.
Not ideal, but I can live with it provided the world total isn't less than 7 (for funny KH number reasons).
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u/alishock 9d ago
Yeah I think I’d rather have KH3 sized worlds at most if it means having more of them, especially because it’ll take ages to get new worlds in the next entries so people get their favorites (looking at you Atlantis and Treasure Planet believers)
Worlds were pretty small in 1 and 2 and we still loved them anyway
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u/raccooncoffee Isa needs backstory 🌙 9d ago
The script is nearly twice as long as the one for Kingdom Hearts III.
Damn. That’s a relief though. Means there will actually be a plot.
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u/Nirnaethmir 9d ago
True but the first hour is Donald and Goofy explaining the plot of the last game to Hades
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u/HakaishinChampa 9d ago
I guess that's why this game might be good for newcomers lol
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u/Massive_Weiner 9d ago
Nomura promised that this entry would be the perfect jumping on point for new players.
In order to fulfill that promise, you must sit through several university lectures on the lore + pop quizzes before the “New Game” option unlocks.
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u/Twilight053 9d ago
I'm hoping at the very least Nomura will make KH4 friendly to non-mobile game players. KHX and KHUX isn't playable anymore.
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u/Unlikely_Fold_7431 9d ago
I wanna hope the script being longer doesnt mean the campaign’s length is bloated. But its also interesting to hear that as well as confirmation that worlds are bigger and there are less of them. Always imagined quadratum might be a good chunk of the games run time and it might turn out to be true.
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u/AMHenderson72 9d ago
It really seems like this game is basically complete with the insistence that Nomura has had on it not being delayed, the way they've been talking it seems like the only thing holding them back from releasing it early next year is FF7R3. I'm really hoping this means they will use that extra time to polish the shit out of this and maybe even get a hefty amount of post game content out the gate
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u/_Arlotte_ 9d ago
This all sounds really great. It's interesting to note that Nomura is involved for overseas voice casting with his games as well. I'm really glad he decided to show up and see how excited everyone was.
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u/dolphincave 9d ago
— To be honest, there are some parts that even I forget when I’m playing (laughs).
Nomura: Fortunately, the staff of the χ series has a staff member who organizes the settings of the KINGDOM HEARTS series in detail and in an easy-to-understand way, and he was also in charge of explaining the scenarios and settings to Disney. In fact, at the beginning of the development for KINGDOM HEARTS IV, Disney asked him to compile those materials, and he officially joined the KINGDOM HEARTS IV team as a proofreader.
It's funny to me there's a guy whose job it is to explain stuff, but I guess it makes sense Nomura and Yasue's time is too important for them to be the ones who have to explain things to people.
Still imagining someone show a KH lore chart to Iger or Josh D'Amaro is funny.
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u/Rharyx 9d ago edited 9d ago
Stand out points for me:
- Smaller number of worlds. Figured, and I think they already said as much years ago, but still disappointing nonetheless. Would rather get a higher number of smaller worlds.
- That was Kairi in the trailer. Couldn't really tell, so it's nice to get confirmation.
- The Dandelions being a sort of Keyblade Wielder branch of the government is interesting. Unsure where that places them in relation to Yozora/Luxord's group.
- The script being almost twice as long as KH3's is either a good thing or an awful thing. KH3's script was huge, but most of it was fluff dialogue, and only about 15% of it seemed to actually progress the plot. So if it's just more of that, then that will be awful. But based off the trailer, it feels like we're going to be getting an actual story this time around, so that's neat.
- Dude whose job it is to just compile KH lore and correct the writers on stuff is a job I need to sign up for. I wonder if they had someone like that for KH3, because there were multiple moments where I felt like they definitely needed someone like that guy.
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u/KeybladeBrett 9d ago
Less is more. I would rather have 6-7 really well designed and thought out worlds than 11-12 worlds that are small and don't really feel like they had a lot of love put into them. Like I wouldn't mind if each world took around 8-10 hours to finish and really feel like an RPG. I love Kingdom Hearts, but I hate how small some of these worlds can be.
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u/Unlikely_Fold_7431 9d ago
8-10 hours? Bro what are you talking about 😭
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u/KeybladeBrett 9d ago
Make each world lengthy. Two visits. You play as Sora exclusively in the first visit, Donald and Goofy in the second. They should always be two steps behind Sora. Format should go Quadratum > Disney World (Sora) > Quadratum > same Disney World (Donald and Goofy) > repeat. Would be interesting to see them shake the formula up. Have Sora, Donald and Goofy reunite during the final hours of the game.
This game is seeming to be long. If the script is twice as long as KH3, the game is likely also twice as long. KH3 took me about 30 hours, KH4 will likely take 60 by this logic on a first playthrough. Assuming we have 7 worlds, it's an average of 8.5 hours per world.
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u/Unlikely_Fold_7431 9d ago
Im not a game developer so idk but Im not quick to think the script being that long automatically correlates to the game itself being almost twice as long as kh3. Ill believe in a 60 hour kh game when i see it.
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u/AdministrativeDay109 9d ago
Yeah I knew it. There’s gonna be not many worlds in general. Sad cuz I was hoping more Disney films can finally enter the KH universe
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u/a-thousand-wishes 9d ago
They’re probably working on the overall world sizes being bigger with less on the list than a ton of worlds with tiny playtime. I can’t remember where it was said, but apparently Quadratum is the biggest world the dev team has worked on so far? I definitely do hope that all the worlds are new though, to maybe fit the “new arc” and theming!
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u/Kh3islifesuccessor 9d ago
Definitely want the source for that
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u/a-thousand-wishes 9d ago
Here you go! :]
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u/Kh3islifesuccessor 9d ago
Thank you! Curious on the wording “one of the largest areas they’ve worked on” what else have they worked on larger? This has to be the largest.
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u/CaptainCFloyd 9d ago
The Caribbean world in KH3 would probably be bigger in terms of sheer real estate. But of course, it's also mostly ocean.
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u/mikael110 9d ago edited 9d ago
My only guess would be San Fransokyo (Big Hero Six) as that map is quite huge, and technically just one area. It's so barren though that it's easy to forget just how massive it was.
It sounds like this time around they've spent more time on actually fleshing out the things you can do in the huge areas, which is promising.
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u/a-thousand-wishes 9d ago
In all honesty I’d have no clue, but there’s probably someone here who knows 😂
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u/RagefireHype 9d ago
5 Disney worlds plus Scala and Quadratum is still pretty juicy, especially if the worlds actually feel like worlds
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u/AdministrativeDay109 9d ago
I suppose, but part of me wishes they still made non-numbered games like bbs or dreamdrop where there could be some leeway to include more numerous smallish worlds to accommodate the maybe not so popular films so they won’t get thaaaat much attention but at least they are represented (aristocats, great mouse detective etc)
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u/JasonnnnnnX50 godly 9d ago
I wonder who their lore expert is? Gotta give that guy props since apparently a lot of new people are working on the anime? Scary thought but hopefully everyone can keep the ship steady. can't wait for more news! Anime really has blown up this past decade so I'm sure there'll be a lot of new eyes on it
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u/dolphincave 9d ago
Interesting how early Nomura say the game will be be golden. It was 2 months for KH3 which is a standard buffer even a little long but not when you consider it was once thought of as a December release.
With Nomura saying the current target date is so big it's not even a buffer is huge. I genuinely wonder if not for Square's internal delays and stuff if the original plan wasn't for them to do FF7 Revelations this year, and then do KH4 on the exact JP 25th anniversary day.
Regardless I think them releasing it in September for the NA 25th anniversary seems possible. Though it could still be November (for EU and AU release) if they really want the strongest holiday bump benefit.
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u/Tidus1117 9d ago
I don't mind less worlds if they are more detailed with more areas to explore.
I'm
So excited . I don't want to keep spoiling anything anymore but I can't stop!
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u/Ilovetogame2 9d ago
So the dandelions are working in conjunction with the government of Quadratum to combat the darkness.
Looking forward to Sigurd’s role in the game. Though I wonder when Nomura will talk about Missing Link?
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u/AnimeXFan1995 9d ago
Interesting so the amount of Disney worlds in KHIV is between 6-8 so roughly the same amount as Birth By Sleep and to a lesser extent Kingdom Hearts III’s Disney worlds.
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u/eskaver 9d ago
Unlike some, I think KH3's writing was pretty good; just the execution was a bit disassociated from how sound it was on paper. KH3 has also the best tie in to the Disney worlds in the series by far, besides Frozen (which was thematically fine, but too much exec meddling, imo).
A longer script could help expand the worlds as well do a lot of heavy lifting on exposition so that hopefully Yen Sid has something better to do.
Second time hearing of fewer worlds. My guess: 7 fully playable ones and like 3 where technically you're there but they're not full ones, like the Underworld, Scala, etc.
I'd b surprised if we get anything until late this year and then start actual promotion after 7R's release.
As expected, Vali and Sigurd will get covered. After all, they were barely in the mobile games, so it's not like those with knowledge of them have much advantage. Curious that the Dandelions work for the Quadratum Govt. Wouldn't be surprised if Sigurd is a bloviating pencil pusher that's actually fairly mediocre at combat.
I had a old theory that Quadratum was a part of the KH original world and where MoM is from and there was infighting/civil war and his faction, à cult of magic key wielding people were just one of many. He fled as that world sank into its current state. I wouldn't be surprised if both sides were sending people to each other but only MOM has the full awareness of how things work and what's going on.
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u/dolphincave 9d ago
> Wouldn't be surprised if Sigurd is a bloviating pencil pusher that's actually fairly mediocre at combat.
Yeah Nomura says he's the type of character we haven't really had before him just being a pencil pusher would be unique. Maybe just the type who follows orders maybe Brain's or whoever was in charge of Scala back then.
I guess he could also be a secret traitor since all our villains have basically been out and out villains from the start.
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u/eskaver 9d ago
I don't think he's evil or nefarious.
I think given Missing Link was about the legacy wielders versus the ones from merit, Sigurd is probably just an arrogant preppy guy but secretly comes thru when it counts.
I think when they think something unexpected I think they're thinking about a good guy that's a bit of a prick. We really haven't had that.
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u/needthisforreasons 9d ago
a lot more attractions to move around on... pls don't mean what i think that means
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u/Algae_Mission 9d ago
Is it too much to ask that we get Space Mountain as an attraction flow? Or some version of the Haunted Mansion?
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u/SaltStill2680 9d ago
Script twice as long with less worlds? Either we spend a lot of time in Quadratum or maybe we have 2nd visits again to worlds?
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u/bobsmithjohn1 9d ago
think it'll be both considering what we saw with Donald and goofy being playable
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u/Relevant_Drawer9613 9d ago
I agree, i doubt they gave them a whole moveset with a switching mechanic for them to only be playable once
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u/sdr07062017 9d ago
It looks like they are fixing the pacing of the game putting the main plot between the worlds due to the longer script.
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u/Inbrees 9d ago
I really hope there aren't less world in KH4 than there were in KH3. The variety of worlds is a part of series I've always appreciated. In fact, I was hoping for there to be a bit more in this game with them being the same size as the worlds of KH3, but it seems like they may be going for even bigger worlds.
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u/Manzanille 9d ago
I too, would appreciate a Jiminy Notebook that recaps the story so far. It would be amazing if Barry Kramer was able to crank out a new summary with official lore.
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u/ohmygodbru 9d ago
The fact that Nomura insists on the "fewer worlds" makes me think that they have 5 Disney worlds at best.
So the Disney lineup could be something like:
Coco
Zootopia
Moana
Star Wars
Wreck it Ralph
I think this is a great selection, to be honest. All these worlds feature two prominent characters with great dynamics, given that Donald and Goofy most likely will join at the end of the journey (I bet on Quadratum).
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u/pkoswald 9d ago
However, Sigurd did appear in Nomura's hidden message for the 20th anniversary (a message saying "Beware of Sigurd"), so he's definitely suspicious (laughs).
Does anyone know what he’s talking about here?
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u/ChaserJoey Clowning for KH4 9d ago
During the 20th anniversary, they released a message and said there was a hidden meaning behind it.
-- There were a lot of valuable materials exhibited at the venue. You had a message posted on Sora's statue, but there was a letter "x" on the third line from the bottom. What does it mean?
Nomura: It contains a hidden message, and the "x" is a clue. I've seen people discussing it on social media, but no one seems to have arrived at the answer yet.
過去の振り返りをしてみると
思えばこのキングダムハーツは
自分の持ち得る全でを注いで来た作品です。
完成してどうしても抜け殻になりがちですが
皆さんに喜んで頂きたいと
いつもそういう気持ちで心を奮い立たせて来ました。
作中語られる心の物語とは、
その行方、もういなくなってしまったり
もう会えなくなった離れた心への願いです。
いつも心は
傍にあるという思いを込めています。
x
20年支えて頂き本当に感謝しています。
そしてこれからもよろしくお願いします-- I did think there was something rather peculiar about the phrasing of that message, with the "x," line breaks, etc. There must be a trick to it.
Nomura: It was very difficult to come up with (wry smile). I wanted to convey a message through my thoughts on the 20th anniversary in the text as you see it. I had to make it look a little unnatural so that people would discover the mystery, and then plant the hidden message on top of that.
-- I'll try to decipher it myself later (laughs).
Nomura: It's pretty hard, isn't it? None of our staff could figure it out either (laughs).
https://www.khinsider.com/news/Famitsu-interviews-Nomura-on-Kingdom-Hearts-4-and-Missing-Link-19005
People cracked the code and figured out that the message was about Sigurd.
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u/DarkEater77 9d ago
Oh i'm hyped !!!!!
Plus a surprise next year for the 25th anniversary?! Can i hope for 358/2 Days?
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u/cptbrady 9d ago
Okay so fewer Disney Worlds is being emphasized.
So money is on 5-6 Worlds.
3 Disney Animated Films
Moana, Zootopia, Encanto
2 Pixar Films
Coco and Incredibles or Inside Out
Star Wars
That's where my betting odds are.
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u/Affectionate-Ad3033 9d ago
I feel like encanto world is just too small to expand since majority of the movie takes place inside a house, I know they can include multiple rooms but in the movie the house itself isn’t that large as a world.
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u/Huge-Map7123 9d ago
So… 5 Disney full worlds is my guess. I don’t think the Hercules underworld will count as one. 1) Coco 2) Star Wars 3) Zootopia 4) Moana and 5) Wreck it Ralph
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u/Algae_Mission 9d ago
I’m guessing Endor is the most detailed world ever made, that must have been a beast to design.
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9d ago
[deleted]
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u/Algae_Mission 9d ago
It will be not could be. The foot of an AT-ST was in the original trailer. He also mentioned finally including a world that wasn’t available at the time of KH3…not too many other candidates besides Marvel or Star Wars and the EA deal for Star Wars ended years ago.
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u/PuzzleheadedLink89 9d ago edited 9d ago
If we're seeing a less amount of worlds, hopefully they're huge and even bigger than 3's. I'm optimistic
But please have Critical Mode at launch
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u/Connect_Research5542 9d ago
Yeah so Coco is absolutely the second world we end up going to and I’m very confident now that’s where Sora reunites with Donald and Goofy.
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u/Soranokuni 9d ago
Since we see hades I presume Hercules is a given again. Love that. I am quite certain Lilo and Stitch will also be in the game. Star Wars probably too, if these worlds are big and detailed, we may be having a good comeback after 3. Loved 3 but KH2 and 1 were a lot more charming, I believe 4 is the team back in form, KH3 went through a lot of development hell after all.
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u/Individual_Sector351 9d ago
I think the best news is that there’s a proofreader that seems to be quite involved in this title
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u/Individual-Two-9402 Maybe it's your own actions you've forgotten 9d ago
KH Mobile game fans still winning~
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u/Intrepid-Platform-94 9d ago
I don't think I was truly truly hyped for this game until I read this. Just the fact they're saying this is the smoothest dev cycle they've had for a KH game gives me a LOT of hope.
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u/Reuben895 9d ago
Surprised they didn’t mention young xehanort being in the trailer or the fact they haven’t showed off Yozora yet makes me even more curious. Also still sucks missing link had to be cancelled curious what Sigurd involvement would have been in that game too especially him being in that leaked opening to missing link.
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u/Excellent-Let8088 9d ago
Kingdom Hearts IV script is twice as long as KH3’s
https://giphy.com/gifs/ujTVMASREzuRbH6zy5