how did you feel about dark road? it personally salvaged kh3's ending to me even if it was slightly. it was really cool to finally see some part of xehanort and eraqus' history even if it was majorly overdue.
I really enjoyed it and I wish that it had gotten to be a full console game. I agree that it recontextualized the KH3 ending and made that final scene feel more earned and impactful. I'm one of the few people who always loved the scene where Eraqus forgave Xehanort and they both went to the next life together. It was my absolute favorite scene in KH3 and I thought it was beautiful and the perfect ending for the Dark Seeker arc.
I remember so many people were furious and thought that Xehanort being redeemed made no sense. And I cannot say that they were wrong. At the time KH3 came out, such an ending was not properly foreshadowed. But KH is all about nostalgia for childhood and the characters trying to get back the people they lost. So, when we saw Xehanort and Eraqus as kids in the KH3 intro, I always figured that there was some extremely tragic backstory between them. I wasn't frustrated by Xehanort getting redeemed. I was just frustrated by how underdeveloped he was. DR humanized him in a way that, as you said, was long overdue.
The writing for the first few chapters was fantastic and very well-paced. When the rest of the story got dumped, it was very rushed. And it also felt like we were missing the other half of the plot, which was the part where Xehanort was a young adult and got the yellow eyes. I hope that Missing Link will be able to flesh out the young adult part of Dark Road's story. And there's a lot of lingering mystery regarding Master Odin.
In your weapon analysis for Axel, you wrote:
Moulin Rouge is French for “Red Mill”. It is a cabaret in Paris, France. Its iconic red windmill originally had a Sun in the center and a Crescent Moon at the top. The original house burned down in 1915 and the new house no longer has the Sun and Moon design on the windmill.
I think the intended reference may be to the 2001 film Moulin Rouge!, in which (spoiler alert ig) writer Christian falls in love with terminally ill actress Satine, whose dying wish is for him to write their story so they can always be together.
Oooh, damn I think you right. Have you seen this article?
"While still on the topic of film, Nomura told us that he likes to leave work at work, so he tends not to play a whole lot of games at home. Instead, he consumes movies like a junky – 2 or 3 of them on most nights. His biggest cinematic inspiration is Baz Lurhman, the visionary Australian director behind Romeo + Juliet, Moulin Rouge, and most recently The Great Gatsby."
Yeah, I think it's safe to say that Nomura was a fan of that movie, lol. He must have seen some association between that film, a story about a pair of star-crossed lovers, and Axel's character arc in some way.
"Along with Lea, sneaks into the sage's castle and makes friends with a girl being used as a test subject (Isa)"
When our parenthetical expression was supposed to clarify that Saïx was Isa but we did an oopsie
LOL, I like that error. Isa is girly enough. It still drives me nuts how heavily it was implied that Isa was a test subject and then KH3 just said "haha NOPE!" It was actually some girl from Union X that was never mentioned until now. Like, wow. Way to throw away literally everything interesting about Saix.
Xehanort was conducting experiments to create human puppets. In DDD Xemnas said, "Our experiments creating Heartless were attempts to control the mind". All the subjects besides Subject X suffered mental collapse. Saix has a big ass scar of death directly over his "mind's eye" which is the psychic eye that lets you see into other realities. He was the ONLY Organization member who could not see Xion as Kairi. And this had NOTHING to do with him being experimented on?
The fact that Saix was so nasty to Xion was one of the most interesting things about him. Yes, he was jealous of how close Axel was getting to his new friends. But Roxas was arguably even closer to Axel than Xion was. Yet, he only singled Xion out for his worst abuse. Xion is described as a mirror that reflects the memories of the person looking at her. She didn't look like anything but a puppet to him. But to Saix, that was no different than looking in the mirror.
Saix was a human puppet. In a figurative sense, he had no choice but to act subservient to Xemnas, who was the one pulling his strings. But he was also a puppet in a literal sense. He had the gold eyes and pointy ears, the same physical characteristics of his puppet master. Not to mention the gigantic scar across his face. Apparently, he could not even stand to look in the mirror long enough to style his hair.
The only person that saw any value in him was Lea. But as far as Saix knew, Axel didn't have a heart and didn't have the capacity to feel anything for him anymore.
Isa was branded with the sigil of a "recusant", a person who refuses to submit to an authority. Of course, to Xemnas, failing is the same as disobedience. So, Saix's scar was probably meant to be the mark of a failure. He was a twisted lunatic. His eyes glow yellow like a Heartless when he's berserk. Literally everything about him was designed with the backstory of being a test subject. One who was considered a "broken, defective failure" that would not wake up and that was disposed of in the Chamber of Repose. What does he even have left if you take that away from him?
Why do you think Square still keeps Nomura around when everything he touches turn to shit, is it simply his work ethic?
Well, the stuff he has directed has been commercially successful. They'll keep him around as long as that continues to be the case.
-Yes, Versus XIII turned to shit. But that was related to the struggles with the Crystal Tools engine more than anything. This leaker who worked on the game says that it would have been good under Nomura, but it would have taken longer to release. Also, Nomura wanted to make it a trilogy, which was not gonna happen. Development for XV was still a mess, even after it was handed over to Tabata. In the end, it still sold rather well, though.
-KH3 was the bestselling entry in the franchise. It had mixed reception, and it absolutely did burn bridges with many fans. But I highly doubt KH4 will be a sales flop or anything. Especially because it almost looks like a completely different IP with the Verum Rex stuff. The afterlife stuff also sounds a lot like what that leaker said about the original VXIII plot. ML seems like it is meant to fill in a lot of the plot holes that KH3 left. While KH4 is much more of a blank slate.
-FF7R has been successful. Sure, plenty of people were critical of the changes and how the ending segment was "too KH-like". And I do get where people were coming from with that. I didn't really care for it. But the only thing that matters is whether most of them will buy the next part and Rebirth sells well. And all signs suggest that it will.
The short answer is that the series experienced a gradual decline after the release of BBS. I think it officially went to shit with Union X, particularly the story arc that started after the Keyblade War. The longer answer will be under the cut.
KH2FM/Days/BBS (2007-2010)
Since Birth by Sleep is the first part of the Kingdom Hearts storyline, I'd like if you considered it as Kingdom Hearts, "Episode 0". This title isn't placed as a side story, with its storyline and battle system, it is substantial like that of a numbered title.
During this time, the series was extremely healthy and at its peak of popularity, with a bright future. KH2 was a beloved JRPG classic (and still is). The Final Mix introduced interesting new mysteries surrounding Xemnas and solid gameplay extras like the Lingering Will. Days was a side game, but it gave more development to fan favorites Roxas and Axel. The PSP wasn't the most popular system in the West, but BBS still sold quite well. It was a bit of a downgrade from KH2 due to the lesser hardware, but it was still a true mainline numbered sequel in the spirit of KH2 and was well received by fans. Tbh, I'd consider BBS the last truly great game in the series.
Re:Coded (2010)
After BBS the next new installment was...a filler game in the spirit of CoM. Recycled Disney plots, and an even more nonsense story with the datascape stuff. But it was just a DS port of a Japanese flip-phone game. It was a title that you could completely ignore and not really lose out on anything. Still, it is a low-quality title that didn't need to exist and wasn't doing the reputation of the series any favors.
Birth By Sleep Final Mix+ (2011)
[D]uring that movie there were the words ‘A fragmentary passage’, weren’t there? That means a ‘bits and pieces of something whole’. In short, a story for ‘Volume Two’ exists that ought to be told, but the story cuts off with those scenes. Because of that, I won’t say there is absolutely no chance that we will produce a title to follow KHBBS, but there are no plans as of now.
This game had an interesting playable secret ending and video. Volume 2 was supposed to be a numbered game (KH0.5), a mainline title that would fill in important gaps from across the timeline. But BBSFM didn't sell well in Japan. Which isn't surprising. Final mixes made sense in the PS2 era. But the extra content for BBS could have been released as DLC. Not many people want to buy the same game again for some new content.
Dream, Drop, Distance (2012)
KH3D was put together relatively quickly, I was still concepting the story when I brought it to the table.
This is when the series started going to shit. It started gaining quite a bad reputation and articles like this began to pop up. Re:Coded could easily be dismissed as filler, but 3D was advertised as more of a mainline game. People were eager for KH3, or at least a game with the same quality as BBS. DDD isn't terrible or anything. But you could tell that it didn't have as much thought put into it as BBS.
It was originally just the beginning part of KH3 that got stretched out into a full game and it shows. The Disney worlds don't fit into the normal timeline, there's fewer of them, Disney party members were replaced with animals, and the drop gimmick was controversial. There's weird time travel stuff that is convoluted and not explained very well. This didn't help with the story's reputation.
I originally planned to make that [a mystery KH title] after KHBBS, but we ended up making KH3D and the project was stopped. It’s a shame, but we won’t be starting that project again.
BBSV2 was planned after BBS. Production stopped to make DDD. The secret ending of DDD showed Young Xehanort on the beach of Destiny Islands, which was one of the events shown during "A Fragmentary Passage". There may have still been plans to start production of BBSV2 again after KH3D finished. But Square changed their minds. I suspect the reason for that has to do with Versus XIII.
Versus was being developed by the Tokyo team which made KH2. BBS was made by the Osaka team, which also made DDD. The original plan was for the Tokyo team to finish Versus and then make KH3. But things were a mess with Versus and eventually it was decided that the Osaka team would make KH3. So, if the Osaka team was busy on KH3, then they wouldn't be able to make BBSV2.
X (2013)
To tell the story about the Keyblade War we need the capacity of hi-spec hardware and we need to accumulate all of our knowledge on this hardware. And in telling this story, we will need to tell it in separate episodes, and how specifically to tell it has yet to be figured out.
There is evidence that X was probably intended to be an MMO on high-spec hardware. Square had a lot of trouble with the transition to HD consoles, so it was downgraded to a minor release on browser. It's an okay title. Interesting lore that expands on the fairy tale of Kairi's grandma. But it's got the typical recycled Disney plots and low-budget gameplay. Not exactly lighting the world on fire for the core audience.
If you do know, then you will enjoy the world of KH all the more, make no mistake. However, you don't have to know everything. The protagonist himself, Sora, doesn't know everything. That said, I'd be happiest if you did play it (laughs). If you do give it a try, I think you'll be surprised at what a rich experience you get for free.
But X was not meant to be a title with an emphasis on story. It was a spin-off, totally separate from the main plot thread. It was written alongside KH3 and the two were intimately related. If you played X, it would enhance your enjoyment (Ephemer cameo), but it was not essential.
X was rebranded as Unchained X and rereleased for mobile in 2015. X was also remade into Back Cover, which was included in the 2.8 HD Remaster collection. People would naturally assume that Back Cover told you everything you needed to know about the X story in preparation for KH3. And maybe at one point, that was the plan...
0.2 A Fragmentary Passage (2017)
As far as content goes, we can’t include a full volume of content to play with like the second chapter of KHBbS, so it’s just a “fragment,” and we left that part of the subtitle. 0.5 is one of the letters and numbers that appeared in the secret episode of KHBbS FM, and that meant full volume, so we decided on 0.2 this time, to indicate that there will be more content to come.
IMO, this is the first high-quality release since BBS. But it's still just a 3-hour prologue instead of a complete game. The events with Aqua are interesting, but they are just one "fragment" of the whole 0.5.
Actually, this was what I worried about the most. We showed this for a bit in the secret episode of [KHBbS FM], but the concept for two chapters of [BbS] is something we've had for a while, and because of problems with time, it's become just a morceau.
Releasing it as a full game on consoles would have delayed progress of KH3. And after nearly a decade of nothing but remasters and low-quality spin-offs, that was the last thing Square wanted. Despite how important 0.5 was, fans would be upset if the next mainline game wasn't KH3.
Union X (2017)
As a gacha with a worldwide audience, X was extremely profitable, so its storyline was extended past its natural ending. Even though X was a complete story that was meant to lead directly into KH3, Nomura retconned the ending, allowing the story of Ephemer and friends to continue in a new story arc called Union X which began in 2017. UX was...strange. It took place in the afterlife? Or the datascape? It had tons of filler, very infrequent story updates that barely progressed anything, and weird retcons, like character backstories that felt like they were in the wrong game (Why tf are Ventus and Marluxia here???).
Unlike X, the story of UX felt like it was being made up on the fly. Also, UX did not directly tie in with KH3 anymore. Its run actually continued past KH3. It was as if Nomura knew there were going to be too many plot holes for KH3 to properly resolve. So, he began using UX to set up the plot of KH4. People who only played the remasters were going to be completely blindsided when they played KH3. It wouldn't conclude anything that was set up in Back Cover, like the black box. KH3 would actually just be one big "to be continued" for KH4 with UX acting a band-aid. IMO, this is the point when the series had officially gone to shit.
KH3 (2019)
I had quite a tough time writing the story this time around. So many characters appear in this game, with each of them having their own set of problems and needing to choose their own fate. [...] I believe that KINGDOM HEARTS III is truly completed when the two thoughts - whatever you feel from playing the game, and my thoughts that I’ve secretly placed in the game - match up together. I hope that everyone playing the game will complete the game for us.
The long-awaited big budget mainline title on home console was a decent game, but it just wasn't a complete experience like KH2 was. 0.5 should have properly developed the relationships of Lea/Isa, Ansem the Wise/Ienzo, and Xehanort/Eraqus. Instead, these backstories only get lightly touched on in the Secret Reports and then one cutscene was given to "resolve" their problems. The new original world that was shown off in a private trailer in 2014 dubbed "Cable Town" was completely absent from the final game, except as the final battle stage.
KH3 had beautiful production values, solid gameplay, and vastly improved level design. But it didn't capture people's hearts like KH2 did. More incomprehensible time travel, rushed unsatisfying reunions for the trios, plot holes galore, and a cliffhanger ending only made things worse for the reputation of the series. The story is infamous in the gaming community now. A meme. KH4 doesn't have anywhere near as much hype as KH3 did.
Fans all have different favorite characters, so I thought I should give each of them their own time to shine, but because the amount of things needed to be explained was too large, I had to find a way to have Sora move forward, at the very least. Actually, when the scenarios were being written, the Keyblade Graveyard part was the most difficult. If I focused on each character at a time, the progression of events would be quite slow, and the battles involving Sora were necessary to be shown, so making allowances for everything was difficult. The way I imagined it, all of the characters tied to each other should fight in order and put an end to everything [themselves], but if I did that, the explanations would end up being too long.
Re:Mind was content that should have been in the main game, but was removed due to time constraints. For instance, the Final Fantasy characters from RG. Also, being able to play as the various guardians of light in their respective battles, rather than just Sora. Roxas and Xion weren't even supposed to be revived in the middle of Lea and Kairi's fight, but were included to please fans. The focus of the DLC is on Yozora, a new OC reminiscent of Noctis, showing that KH4 will be an attempt to revive the cancelled Versus XIII. The series is just...a hot mess at this point.
Melody of Memory (2020)
Another budget side game nobody wanted. Only has a tiny bit of story at the very end. Similar to Re:Mind, the plot felt like cut content from KH3. Stuff like Kairi's childhood flashbacks of Apprentice Xehanort, her arrival in the Final World to look for Sora's soul, then having a confrontation with old man Xehanort. All stuff that should have been in KH3. Ya know, when Xehanort was still alive...
Dark Road (2020)
I know what you're probably thinking: the Dark Seeker Saga, which depicted the battle against Xehanort, finished with KINGDOM HEARTS III, didn't it? Well, it's a grey area, but I wouldn't call this title part of the Dark Seeker Saga. Why? Because this isn't about battling against Xehanort—it's about the battles of Xehanort.
And maybe you're thinking that's a bit of a reach, but… okay, maybe it's a bit of a reach. However, I had the concept in my head for many years. It got shelved because it never really fitted what our team wanted. But around then, I heard from the Union X team that they'd like to do a parallel title with a new protagonist. And, since it seemed there was an unexpected number of Xehanort fans out there, it all came together like it was destined to be.
This story was no doubt one of the missing "fragments" of 0.5. Unlike many KH games, DR has a very solid premise and an interesting storyline. It's just a story that should have been told in a mainline game before the Xehanort saga ended. Because it was rebranded as part of the X series, there were weird retcons like Xehanort being the reincarnation of the UX Player. However, the main problem was the VERY low budget. The chibi pop-up book graphics fit the childish fairy tale story of X, but don't fit this story. Story updates were slow and gameplay was trash. Didn't even last a year. The scenario was truncated, and we got an abrupt ending that didn't even delve into Master Odin, how Xehanort fell to darkness, or how he and Eraqus grew apart. At this point, the state of the series is just pitiful.
Missing Link (2024)
"Kingdom Hearts: Missing Link" is a work that fills in the blanks between the two arcs and acts as a bridge, so it doesn't belong to either the "Dark Seeker" or "Lost Masters" arcs.
When UX finally ended, the Player, who was already dead, dies again. Only, instead of going to the Final World (X's ending) it's implied that they're reborn. This is because Square wanted to make a new UX with a parallel protagonist. But DR flopped. So, they retconned things yet again. No, no. Xehanort wasn't the reincarnation of Player-kun. Rather, it's this new robed person and Xehanort just absorbed their memories. ML is the REAL mobile follow-up to UX.
Honestly, ML doesn't look too bad. Unlike UX, it will be able to deliver a console-like experience (yay controller support!) and the story seems like it will be closer to a mainline game. I imagine most of the unused "fragments" from 0.5 will be included as "missing links" this time around. Better late than never. But fans are definitely burned out from the vast amount of side games and most just want KH4. Fortunately, mobile games only need a few dedicated whales to stay funded. ML won't delay progress of KH4 and it can dole out its story gradually, and it won't have to be rushed or shortened like KH0.2.
Is Ventus the most unoriginal lazy design in gaming history?
Haha, yeah. I know a KH fan in real life who told me that they wish Ventus had a more original design and he had no idea why Nomura designed him that way. Back when I first played BBS, it never bothered me or felt like a lazy design. BBS was an origin story. Terra was the original self of Apprentice Xehanort. So, naturally Terra looked like him. And Ventus was Roxas's original self. So, it made sense that the character design would maintain that visual consistency.
But they are now canonically two separate people. And I really don't like them being identical now. Online KH fans have criticized my opinion on this. They say stuff like "well you must hate identical twins then." But the thing is, Roxas and Ventus aren't identical twins. They have no biological, emotional, spiritual, or narrative connection. They're just two people who look identical. Essentially, by accident because Ven's heart just randomly happened to be there when Roxas was born. Their only interaction in the story is that awkward glance, like, "why does this total stranger look like me?" It's played up for comic relief because Nomura was aware of how goofy it is.
Their resemblance doesn't serve a purpose or add to the story in any way. And as a completely new original character with a unique backstory, it takes away from Ventus to make him copy-paste Roxas. And Roxas already had an identity crisis due to his existence being an offshoot of Sora. So, making him a visual offshoot of Ventus didn't help with that whatsoever.
Absolutely love your akusai analysis stuff its so good omg.
Do you have any more thoughts on them?
Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it! As for my thoughts on Akusai, well, after beating Fire Emblem Three Houses recently, I do have a few thoughts. I know, I'm late to the party on 3H. (I actually loved 3H and would love to write metas about those ships lol). But anyways, regarding Akusai. It's a bit of a rant and there's minor spoilers for FE3H, so I'll put it under the cut.
Okay, so Sylvix felt like it was everything Akusai was supposed to be. It touched on all the same themes, too. In 3H, you've got a childhood friend trio. The standard two males and a female. On the surface it seems like the girl and the outgoing redhead goofball are a thing. But they treat each other more like bros. He and the quiet blue-haired sword guy had a much more intimate bond with each other, complete with a special promise™ to always be together and redhead being protective of blue. The redhead never wants to grow up and change because he doesn't wanna fulfill the heteronormative life script of getting married and having kids.
He is longing to go back to his childhood days but is sad at how much blue has changed since they were kids and has apparently outgrown their closeness. He hides his angst behind a smile and womanizing. Blue was once a meek clingy crybaby but now he is surly and obsessed with growing stronger. Deep down he is still an uke who secretly longs to be redhead's waifu. But he has a lot of shame related to his sensitivity and gender nonconformity. He distances himself from others, but boy does he get irritated if redhead flirts with anyone else.
I do wish the game would have just come right out and tell you that they're gay for each other (and so does this gaming site). I get why it didn't. Still, it didn't really hide it too much. They have a paired ending where they spend their whole lives playfully teasing each other like just when they were kids, never get married, and die together in each other's arms. It's the most romantic ending in the whole game, if you ask me. And Sylvix is SUPER popular and well received by the fandom. Both in Japan and the West. They have soooo much fan content. There are still some dudes who say they're just friends because ew icky gay. But most people in the fandom are able to tell they're queer-coded and are fine with it. In fact, the fandom was so fine with it that they released an overtly queer dude in the DLC, strictly due to popular demand.
3H is not a slam dunk with gay romance since much of it (particularly MLM) relies on subtext. But it still had more balls than most JRPG series and it definitely was a step in the right direction. We all know that Soriku is the most popular ship. The end of KH2 was total fujoshi fuel. But Soriku never had any chance in hell of being canon. KH is a video game shonen anime. Sora/Riku bromance is "safe". They can capitalize on shipteasing them to their female fans, but they won't alienate their male fans because Kairi is still very obviously the love interest for Sora. I found Akusai to be a lot more compelling because it was legitimately queer-coded.
Axel was queer-coded from the very beginning. His close friendship with Roxas in KH2 made people question his sexuality all the way back in 2006 and Akuroku rivaled Soriku for a time. And I do think that Axel always meant to be queer. Although personally, I did not get the impression that he was in love with Roxas. I got the sense that he probably had a best friend back when he was a human. And it was this dead best friend that he truly yearned for. The sweet and innocent Roxas reminded Axel of his human best friend and he latched onto him to help him forget the memories of days long past. That was my headcanon back in 2006 when KH2 first came out.
So, I was really happy when Days/BBS came out and it basically confirmed my theory that Axel was truly hung up on his human best friend and saw Roxas as a kind of replacement for him. And Isa was also very queer-coded. BBS!Isa has a more distinctly feminine design than any other boy in the series. He had very girlsh eyes and lips, small hands, long hair. And Saix's Mystery Gear is very cutesy-looking. Traditionally, the moon is viewed as a feminine symbol. And Saix's weapons in 358/2 Days were named after moon goddesses. They could have easily picked male moon gods, but they chose female goddesses like Selene and Artemis. It signifies to the player that, "Hey, this character does not follow the conventional gender stereotypes."
When you play 358/2 Days, and you get to the part where Axel is talking about love, you realize he's talking about his most precious memories from his human life, just like with all the other stuff like summer vacation and the red sunset. Akusai was not just superficial fujobait. Even if it was all subtext, it was a genuine depiction of two queer male characters who loved each other romantically. Axel is not straight. That’s a big reason why I was so mad that KH3 pushed their relationship off to the side and treated saving Isa as so much less important compared to saving Roxas. And it was so annoying how Saix had to mention Subject X whenever he might have seemed a little too obsessed with Axel otherwise.
Last year, Nomura said that he intended to show more of Lea and Isa's backstory in the future, so I've just been waiting for more content. I hope that we can get their story without Subject X overshadowing them like she did in KH3. I'm...cautiously optimistic. I expect this subplot to be included in Missing Link, since it is quite literally a missing link of the story. Axel is super popular and a queer-coded backstory with his childhood best friend would be very well received by the modern KH fandom, IMO. People are a LOT more accepting of gay content than they were in 2006. We've come a long way. And personally, I just love the idea that the tough cold asshole Saix's human self was actually a super sweet cutie who was in love with Lea. I really think the KH fandom would love that idea, too, if the writers were ever allowed to actually explore it. And a niche mobile game is probably a safer medium for that type of content than a mainline console game overseen by Disney, I guess. At the very least, if they ever put an Isa figurine into ML, I will whale for it if I have to.
I’ve been playing the Kingdom Hearts series for the first time. I’ve been familiar with the lore for awhile since my little brothers have been longtime fans. I know about the retcons about Xehanort and the Ansems, and the bullcrap behind Xehanort’s plans.
Just yesterday I finished Hollow Bastion and read most of Ansem’s Reports. Reading them makes me a bit upset that Ansem SoD was retconned into being Xehanort’s Heartless. I think the original concept behind Ansem added some juicy nuance and intrigue to his schemes. I wish they stuck with it. Also, imo Ansem SoD’s inclusion in KH1 feels haphazard. Do we even know his connection with Maleficent and her council?
"Behold, the endless abyss! Within it lies the heart of all worlds—Kingdom Hearts! Look as hard as you are able. You’ll not find a single speck of light. From those dark depths are all hearts born—even yours!"
Regarding his connection to Maleficent, we do get some backstory on that in BBS. Xehanort's original human self is the one who told her about Kingdom Hearts and set her on her path of collecting the seven princesses. As for the rest of your point, I agree that OG Ansem was quite interesting and the KH1 Ansem Reports do give a lot of nuance to his schemes. He was researching Kingdom Hearts, which was the origin of life as well as the place where hearts go when people die. And he was convinced it was all darkness. Even back then he came across like he had lost all hope, which is consistent with his KH3 self. That's why I think Ansem/Xehanort's Heartless could have still been interesting even with the retcons. If they actually delved into his past properly.
I actually think 3d is a good spinoff, but if rather it be riku and kairi
Sora felt less needed since really we know more of riku, plus we could have known more about kai
Yeah, I wish Kairi had gotten more development by now. It's sad because the secret ending of DDD showed YX on Destiny Islands. Then it had the text "The light in the darkness leads to the last key." It showed Aqua in the RoD, then Kairi becoming a Guardian of Light. Hinting that Kairi's connection to Aqua would be focused on in the next game. Which would no doubt mean we'd be seeing more of her childhood. I got the sense that her character arc was supposed to come full circle by the end of KH3. But it really didn't.
Then start from the ground up. How would you approach 3D knowing KH3 is next - no other spin offs in mind.
I don't even think KH3D really needed to be its own game. Most of it is just filler and it was only made because KH3 was taking so long. You could easily incorporate its basic plot elements into KH3, which was the original plan. Have the mark of mastery exam take place in one Disney world, instead of seven. Maybe the Symphony of Sorcery, since it is very dream-like. The only other key plot stuff was the revival of the Organization in TWTNW, Axel summoning a Keyblade, Maleficent's revival, and Sora encountering Roxas and wanting him to be his own person. All of which could have happened in KH3 and probably should have anyways.
Yeah that makes sense to adjust.
BTW: if you could fix KH 3D, how would you go about it and why?
Oh God. I'm not even sure, honestly. So much of that game revolved around time travel and the Sleeping World stuff. Which I am still not sure what Nomura was trying to go for there. For instance, there's the whole final level in KH3. Sora turns MX into a portal, then apparently dives into his dreams, similar to what Riku with Sora in DDD. And MX's dream world was the past version of Scala ad Caelum. You fight the 13 Replica Organization members, but it's never explained what they are exactly.
Nor was it explained why Xemnas was so determined to complete Kingdom Hearts in Days and KH2. In DDD, it was revealed that he planned to "round up a bunch of empty husks, hook them up to Kingdom Hearts, then fill them all with the exact same heart and mind." But...how would completing KH turn them all into vessels? In KH2, there was that Armored Xemnas sitting on the throne inside of KH. It looked like those Replicas as well as the secret boss No Heart from BBS. But none of these things are ever explained.
I can go back and play DDD even today. And I still have no clue what it was supposed to be leading to. It set up many important things that just never got followed up on. There was a secret ending at the end of DDD hinting at another game that was meant to come out before KH3. I think the only way to "fix" DDD would be to release that game and actually finish telling the story DDD was setting up. We got some of that with DR. But DR itself was unfinished. At this point, the storyline has moved in such a different direction from how it was originally intended back when DDD came out, so I'm not sure the ideas from DDD will ever be properly followed up on.
That's certainly a way to go about it! What things in this adaptation would you go about fixing and adjusting specifically that you feel was improperly executed in the dark seeker saga?
IMO, the thing that was most improperly executed was the time travel. I could have handled it if it had been limited to the 13 Xehanorts. It's still kinda silly, but it was cool in KH3 to have one last showdown with Xemnas, Ansem, Riku Replica, etc. I think most people could have forgiven that. But now the series has become reliant on time travel as a crutch for everything and the timeline is incomprehensible. KHUX should have remained its own separate thing, a prequel set in the distant past about the Keyblade War.
If they were going to depict Ventus, Lauriam, and Elrena's past, I would have preferred if they had just made a new game depicting the time period several years before BBS. It could have shown how Master Xehanort met Ventus and made him an apprentice and how Ventus killed Strelitzia. But now everything is tied in with UX. It is so convoluted with time travel and giving characters amnesia to explain why they don't know they're time travelers. Even though Larxene and Marluxia were never hinted to be amnesiacs like Ven. I honestly think it ruins their character arc in CoM by retroactively making them amnesiacs.
The plan was apparently for Xehanort was to have his backstory depicted in its own game. This was teased in the secret ending for DDD. But they decided to make DR a UX spin off for mobile. Now there's a lot of stuff shoehorned in there, even when it doesn't fit. Stuff like Xehanort having memories of Ephemer. And those "friendships" from his dreams seemed like they were more important than the friendships with his classmates, even though narratively they turned out to be completely pointless. These storytelling decisions don't feel organic in the slightest. It seems like the only reason characters like Xehanort or Marluxia have any connection to UX was because, as a mobile gacha game, it was making decent money and Square-Enix wanted to draw out its lifespan and milk it. The games that were supposed to show these backstories got cancelled.
Question: if you were commissioned to show run a KH Disney Plus show, how would you go about it?
Well, I have heard rumors that the Disney+ series would use the Unreal Engine, but I would honestly prefer a 2D style. There was that pilot episode that Seth Kearsley made, and he said the final art style was probably going to look like a cross between ATLA and something similar to the Aladdin animated series on Disney Channel. Which...would have been amazing.
If a Disney+ adaptation gets made, I'm sure it will be very different than canon. The story has gotten very crazy (too crazy IMO) to be marketable to a new mainstream crowd. But for me personally, I would do an adaptation that was similar to the KH manga. And I would just stick to a reboot of the Dark Seeker Saga.
Season 1: A KH1 retelling, similar to the manga. The reboot could be used to add in foreshadowing of stuff like Ventus's heart being released when Sora stabs himself with the Keyblade. And also flesh out the stuff we were supposed to get in BBSV2. Riku's blank period, Pluto and Mickey shenanigans, etc.
Season 2: CoM/Days retelling. Focus on the sea-salt trio and Organization XIII. Much of the story takes place at Castle Oblivion. Instead of focusing on Sora's memories of KH1 and rehashing the Disney plots, I would focus on the Organization members' memories.
We STILL don't know much about Luxord and Demyx's pasts, but I would use the animated series to flesh them out and explain their motivations. Apparently, Demyx rejoined the True Organization XIII because he wanted to be with his old friends again. He probably has a tragic backstory. And Luxord was hoping to find the black box. This makes me think he was from Scala ad Caelum and knew about the Book of Prophecies, etc. I'm sure we'll learn more about them in ML (if it ever comes out...)
Marluxia's past with his sister could be explored via flashbacks. Although, I would not write him to be a time travelling amnesiac Keyblade wielder. I don't even think that's the backstory they had in mind when Days was written. Ventus, Lauriam, and Elrena were probably just aspiring Keyblade wielders from Scala ad Caelum. We would learn that Marluxia wanted to acquire the Keyblade and the Replica Program to resurrect Strelitzia, whom Ventus killed when he became possessed by Darkness. And Larxene was his accomplice because she had feelings for him as a human.
We could also explore the apprentices' past and go more into detail regarding their relationship with Ansem the Wise. Also, the experiments of the heart. I would change Subject X to Kairi. Kairi was experimented on as a child and locked up in the Chamber of Repose. I would use those dark memories to draw a connection to Namine, Kairi's shadow. After Lea and Isa had a chance meeting with Kairi after sneaking into the castle, they became apprentices to save her and got experimented on themselves, which I certainly think was strongly hinted at in Days. That part of the story needed to be fleshed out. We needed to learn about how Isa got his scar and the meaning of Axel's tear marks.
Season 3: A KH2 retelling. It could incorporate a lot of additional stuff that was only in the novels/manga. The Saix vs. Axel fights, more of what Riku was up to behind the scenes, etc. Re:Coded is...really not necessary. Just the letter that Mickey wrote to Sora is required.
Season 5: A BBS retelling. You could also include the stuff from 0.2 as well. Like Aqua being stranded in the Dark Realm.
Season 4: A Dark Road retelling. DR always felt like a visual novel more than a video game anyways. They could flesh out Xehanort's classmates, Master Odin, and go into more detail about how YX descended into darkness. An animated adaptation could actually finish that story. Also, the stuff from Back Cover could be included in this season.
Season 6: A KH3 retelling. Some of the stuff from DDD could be included, but DDD doesn't deserve its own season IMO. DDD was originally just the beginning part of KH3 anyway. There's a lot I would change about KH3's story. I already wrote an entire fanfic about that, so I won't go into detail here. But KH3 definitely should have felt like a much more conclusive finale than it did.
I saw your post about the 7 lights being the heavenly virtues to the deadly sins and i have feelings about Lea being the patience to Isa’s wrath
That's exactly how I saw it, too. Especially after reading the 358/2 Days novel. Axel was the epitome of patience. No matter how nasty Saix was to him or how callous his remarks were, Axel never reacted in kind. He really only lost his cool one time, which was when he told him to keep his mouth shut on Day 193. But even after that, he still stood by his old friend. Even when Roxas and Xion suggest that they run away at the end, Axel just sighs. He could have run away with them if he really wanted to, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Saix behind. He just continued to put up with his verbal abuse, hoping that one day, when Kingdom Hearts was completed, their relationship could go back to how it used to be. Axel really embodied that specific heavenly virtue and that's why I think he deserved to be a guardian of light.
Are you done writing much for your blog now that your fic is done?
No, I was just taking a break. I am sure that I'll have more things to write about once Missing Link comes out (hopefully soon). I saw some of the leaked footage from the beta, like the opening cutscene and some exploration of the Scala hub world. It looks like it will continue the story from Back Cover properly. And visually, it is really nice. ML seems like it'll be a lot more like a main title than the past mobile games.
Do you think the the black box contents were originally supposed to be revealed in KH3? Do you see a place it would have fit into the story? I thought maybe as a way to defeat the darknesses in their final form since that would be a reason for MoM to want it available in the future. Like if it was pandora's box and now the darkness has to go back inside.
Do you think the black box contents were originally supposed to be revealed in KH3?
Yes, I do. There was an interview with Nomura (Famitsu January 2017) that implied that, too. Here is an excerpt:
Famitsu: The Master appears to be quite the important character, will we find out the reason for his disappearance in [KHIII]?
Nomura: Some of the story developments from [KHxBC] will be touched upon in some way or shape in [KHIII], but the Master won’t make an appearance. As for his “surprise” on the other hand…
Famitsu: By that are you talking about the box that the Master called a “Suprii~se!” and entrusted to Luxu along with the Keyblade? There was also something written on it…
Nomura: The perceptive fan may have already worked it out but, it still remains a secret. In [KHIII], a certain person is looking for that box…
Famitsu: So the box’s contents will be revealed in [KHIII]…
At the time KH Back Cover was released, I think we were supposed to learn what the big "surprise" was inside the black box in KH3, but the story was changed later on. Like with FFXV, the development of KH3 seemed to be a mess and the story was constantly being rewritten late into development.
After reading the Character Files book, I believe there are enough clues to ascertain what was inside the black box. Here is an excerpt from the official localization of Xigbar's short story, entitled, "The Fool":
"Now, as for that box, do you want to know why it's gone? You want to ask something? But there are limits to what I can say right now. It's that difference between knowing and understanding. And, of course, there's the possibility of secrets that no one knows, like the contents of the box. You could say it's a surprise."
"Say, if someone told you the world would end tomorrow, what would you do? Would you think there's nothing you can do about it, or would you try to do something about it? Remember what I said about that black box. No one knows what shade of black it is."
The card that Luxord gives to Sora is the wild card. In the tarot, this is The Fool arcana. In the tarot, The Fool can be placed either at the beginning of the Major Arcana or at the end. It represents new beginnings and is the number 0. It is empty, yet signifies infinite possibilities. Because of this, I believe the box WAS EMPTY. Luxord was told that it contains "hope". And figuratively speaking, it does, because there are infinite possibilities about what's inside. IMO, Xigbar knew that it was empty. But Luxord was desperate for a way to change fate, so he used the black box as a way to convince him to join the New Organization XIII.
Do you see a place it would have fit into the story?
Yes, I think it could have fit. Perhaps Xigbar, bereft of all hope of acquiring the Keyblade, realizes that he had been played for a fool. And with nothing left to lose, he would tell Sora and Riku about the empty box before taking his own life. (Yes, I think Xigbar was actually supposed to die during that scene and his role in the story was done). That is one possibility. Or it could have been shown in a flashback.
At the very least, narratively, I absolutely think it would have made the most sense for the box's contents to be revealed in KH3, and here's why. The box was a red herring. Sora is actually "The Fool". He was the child of destiny, able to change fate, even when the Book of Prophecies had predicted Light would expire.
I thought maybe as a way to defeat the darknesses in their final form since that would be a reason for MoM to want it available in the future. Like if it was pandora's box and now the darkness has to go back inside.
I think that is the right idea. The black box was definitely meant to be a parallel to Pandora's Box. In the myth, all the evils of the world had been let out into the world and all that was left inside the Pandora's Box was hope.
On the black box was written "Xsuper". Superbia=Pride, the deadliest sin/darkness. IMO, the ending of KH3 was meant to convey a certain idea. Eraqus was sure he had won when he confronted Xehanort with the words:
"There’s more to light than meets the eye. As I told you."
It was a reference to the chess game from their childhood where Eraqus told him:
"There’s more to light than meets the eye. You might be surprised".
Eraqus beat him at their chess game, and Xehanort admitted defeat. He told Eraqus that when the world needed a defender, it would choose him. Xehanort probably thought that Eraqus was the child of prophecy. And child Eraqus acts surprised. Now, consider this exchange between Sora and Xehanort:
"The world needs someone to stand up and lead. Someone strong to stop the weak from polluting the world with their endless darkness. Someone to dictate their destiny."
"If so…you’re not that person, Xehanort. A real leader knows destiny is beyond his control…and accepts that."
"You…make me think of an old friend."
How did Sora react when he realized destiny was beyond his control?
"Without them… I… All my strength came from them. They gave me all of it. Alone, I’m worthless. We’ve lost… It’s over."
He GAVE UP!
"What do you think the power of waking is? It’s for traversing hearts to reach worlds. Not for traversing worlds to reach hearts. There’s a high price to pay for wielding such power foolishly."
Objectively speaking, Sora was A FOOL! Vexen's short story really drives this idea home.
The popular idea in the fandom is that Xehanort surrendered because he had been backed into a corner and had no choice but to admit defeat. I disagree. Xehanort had won. He chose to give the X-blade to Sora because he was able to admit defeat. Sora gave Xehanort more hope than Kingdom hearts did. He genuinely believed that Sora deserved to be the world's defender more than himself, because Sora was the person Eraqus was as a child. This action humiliates Eraqus, who then goes on to say:
"Terra, Aqua, Ven. Forgive your foolish teacher."
There's that "Fool" symbolism again.
"The world began in darkness. And from that darkness came light. From the light came the people, and the people had hearts. Evil burgeoned in those hearts, begetting more darkness. And that darkness spread across the world like a plague. The light, the symbol of the world’s hope, was devoured by shadow, leaving nothing but ruin… An utter failure. But the first light—the light of Kingdom Hearts—it can give us a new start. An empty world, pure and bright…"
And here it is again, too. Kingdom Hearts was the world's hope. It is empty, but represents infinite possibilities. It is like the number 0. Just like The Fool. And just like the black box. Ergo, the black box was a key part of KH3's narrative.
Sora would not defeat Xehanort outright; rather he would defeat the pride of Xehanort. A "surprise" ending. I think this idea was not realized because there was too much necessary groundwork for KH3 to cover for this ending to make sense. The stuff with the seven deadly sins/darknesses, the child of destiny, Scala ad Caelum's history, Xehanort's backstory and his relationship with Eraqus, Luxord's backstory and how he knew of the Book of Prophecies, etc.
In August 2016. Nomura said KH3's story was "overwhelmingly big". The KH3 team didn't have time to incorporate all of this plot into the game. I suspect that there was an internal decision at Square-Enix for the KH3 team to just focus on the "bare necessities" like bringing back Roxas and company and to save all of the rest of the main plot for a new story arc. Unfortunately, this left KH3 an unfinished product and not much of a finale.
That transgender Xion headcanon some have...thoughts? But if Xion is made of Kairi then it doesn't make sense,?
I've seen that idea before. Ever since the game was new, actually. It's a cool idea and it doesn't bother me if people have it as a headcanon. But personally, I don't think the story of Days has anything to do with gender identity.
I think the convoluted story and lore made Xion seem more complex than she really was. Sora's memories of Kairi were replaced with memories of Namine, so his real memories were sleeping inside of Roxas. Then those memories were absorbed from Roxas and put into a puppet. Xion is referred to as a Sora Replica and even a Roxas Replica.
But the story explains Xion as the physical embodiment of Sora's memories of Kairi. The point is that she looks, sounds, and acts like Kairi. Personality-wise, she doesn't borrow from Sora or Roxas. She's just Kairi. Not a Sora/Kairi mix or a Kairi/Roxas mix. She's a blank puppet who took on a female identity. She knows Sora is her "original self" but that's not quite analogous to our understanding of gender identity.
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