A New Era of Kingdom Hearts?

After seven years of waiting, Kingdom Hearts is finally moving into its next chapter! The story of Xehanort has ended, and the Dark Seeker Saga is over. But Sora has disappeared into a new location, which means the franchise is about to expand in ways we’ve never imagined. 

 

Thanks to the official announcement at D23, we now know that there are two major projects on the horizon: Kingdom Hearts IV and a mysterious upcoming Kingdom Hearts anime series. Currently, we know considerably more about the game, while the TV project remains almost completely under wraps. 

Let’s talk about it!

 

Where it Started

Since 2002, the Kingdom Hearts story has captured the attention of players of all ages, thanks to the collaboration between Disney and Square Enix. Sora, the main character, has traveled through multiple worlds to find his best friends, Riku and Kairi. But what began as a simple search for his chosen family evolved into a giant universe filled with tragedy, mystery, intrigue, love, and death. 

Throughout the many games that preceded Kingdom Hearts IV, players learned about an ancient war that shattered the original world and created the fragments that became the setting for Sora’s journey. The conflict surrounding the Keyblade War continued to affect the generations that followed, eventually leading to Xehanort’s obsession with Light, Darkness, and Kingdom Hearts. 

Sora’s story tied multiple loose ends together and saved entire worlds. Thanks to the hard work of Sora, Donald, and Goofy, several hard-won victories were finally achieved: 

• Terra, Aqua, and Ventus were saved.
• Riku overcame his struggle with Darkness.
• Kairi was finally able to return to her friends.

Most importantly, Xehanort was finally defeated, and the Dark Seeker Saga came to an end. 

…Then Sora disappeared.

After using his Power of Waking to restore Kairi’s heart, Sora vanished from his own reality. Now, he’s stuck in a place called Quadratum, a strange world that seems wildly different from his previous adventures. 

That’s where the next chapter begins!

 

Kingdom Hearts IV

In this chapter, players will continue Sora’s story now that the Dark Seeker Saga is over. 

This latest game will follow Sora in Quadratum while also showing what is happening to the people who remained behind. Recent footage shows Donald and Goofy searching for information about Sora, while Mickey appears in a separate sequence. The game also follows those who are searching for Sora, whose efforts should play a role in what comes next. 

Of course, Quadratum is still the biggest mystery of them all. 

Sora wakes in a realistic-looking city and encounters Strelitzia before facing a gigantic creature that is not unlike a Darkside in appearance. The setting looks dramatically different from traditional Kingdom Hearts worlds. Strelitzia describes Quadratum as a world that resembles an afterworld for both herself and Sora. 

We also know that Strelitzia has a connection to the ancient Keyblade storyline. She was introduced in Union χ as a Keyblade wielder associated with the Player’s story. Her appearance in Quadratum creates a potential link between that ancient history and the new saga, but her exact role remains unknown for now. 

Then there’s… Coco?

The D23 footage revealed a world based on Disney and Pixar’s Coco, officially establishing the film as a part of Kingdom Hearts IV. We don’t yet know how extensive its role will be or exactly how its world will function within the game, but the choice fits remarkably well with the franchise’s continuing interest in hearts, memories, identity, death, and how people remain connected after they’re gone. 

Then, underneath all of this, is the Lost Master Arc. 

The ending of Kingdom Hearts III, along with revelations from Union χ and Dark Road, established that the story surrounding the Master of Masters and the Foretellers extends far beyond Xehanort’s lifetime. Xehanort was not the beginning of the conflict. He simply became caught in a much older scheme. 

Exactly how that history connects to Kingdom Hearts IV remains unknown. 

The game is tentatively scheduled release in late 2027 and will be available for the Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Tetsuya Nomura remains closely involved with development, with Tai Yasue serving as co-director. 

 

And then there’s the TV Series!

The upcoming anime series is a completely separate mystery.

Also at D23, Disney announced that an original Kingdom Hearts anime series is being developed for Disney Channel and Disney+. Tetsuya Nomura and the Square Enix creative team are involved in this project. 

And that’s essentially where the confirmed information stops. 

We don’t know when the series takes place. We don’t know whether it will follow Sora or introduce an entirely different cast. We don’t know whether it will tell a story that fits somewhere within the established Kingdom Hearts continuity or tell an entirely new story. 

The announcement simply confirms that the series exists and that the Kingdom Hearts creative team is involved. Beyond that, almost everything remains unanswered. 

 

What now?!

After more than twenty years of Sora’s convoluted story, we’ve finally reached the end of Part One. Xehanort is gone. The people who were hurt or trapped by his actions have been restored. The ancient Keyblade wielders are becoming relevant again. Quadratum has opened an entirely new corner of the universe, and Kingdom Hearts IV will take us there. 

Meanwhile, we get to sit and wait while Disney prepares to emotionally destroy another generation. 

 

Fantastic.