The official Kingdom Hearts account has been releasing short 10-second videos for each Disney world in Kingdom Hearts III to promote the game in the last days before its international release. In the past three days, they have published promos for The Caribbean, Arendelle, and Toy Box, showcasing the worlds and their music. You can see each one below.
Previously, they also published short promotional videos for Kingdom of Corona, San Fransokyo, Olympus, and Monstropolis.
Kingdom Hearts III's international release has already started, with countries like Australia and New Zealand who have already crossed over to January 29! Less than 15 hours remain until it is available worldwide.
Follow our master coverage of Kingdom Hearts III and stay up to date with the latest news via our Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Discord!
Latest news:
- With Kingdom Hearts III and Update 1.01 now pre-downloading on consoles, here’s how the release is going around the world
- Memory Archive recap videos have been uploaded to Kingdom Hearts Youtube channel
- Kingdom Hearts VR Experience Review
With only two days to go until the international release of Kingdom Hearts III (or one, depending on your timezone), fans who have pre-ordered the digital version are now pre-downloading it on consoles! The Update 1.01, comprising several data fixes and the Memory Archive for the series recap videos, is also available to download on PlayStation 4 ahead of schedule.
Many fans around the world were able to receive their pre-ordered physical copies of Kingdom Hearts III ahead of its international release on January 29 due to early shipping. Many also reported that they have bought the game from various retailers. Reportedly, many European stores have also started soft launches of the game, some even bumping up the release date on their listings to January 26. Multiple stores in the UK will be selling the game starting Monday, January 28. Older reports state that the game had broken street date even in some countries in the Middle East such as the UAE.
With many fans already owning the localized versions of the game, they will now able to download Update 1.01 and enjoy the game with the intended updates before their scheduled release.
Amongst the physical copy pre-orders of the game is the Limited Edition Kingdom Hearts III PlayStation 4 Pro Bundle; some fans have already received theirs in the mail, whilst others are still waiting for their delivery. Unfortunately for American fans, GameStop US - who were selling the PS4 bundle exclusively in the country - have cancelled multiple orders due to overselling the product. You can read their statement below.
If you have pre-ordered the bundle from GameStop US, make sure to contact their customer service to check up on the status of your order.
Some branches of GameStop US will be holding a 9 PM (local time) release for the game. The main EBGames branch in Melbourne, Australia, will be holding a midnight launch, as will GAME UK (Stratford, London branch). Gamers Hideout branches in Malaysia will also hold a midnight release, during which they will host activities such as cosplay photo session & giveaway and photo op with Kingdom Hearts props. Don't forget to inquire at your local retailer about midnight launches if you're interested!
Furthermore, Game Realms in Burbank, California, will be holding a post-launch party on February 2nd! Special guests include Quinton Flynn and Bill Farmer, the voice actors of Axel and Goofy. You can read their rules and policies for the event here.
Follow our master coverage of Kingdom Hearts III pre- and post launch here! Stay up-to-date with the latest news on our Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, and Discord!
Recent news:
- Memory Archive recap videos have been uploaded to Kingdom Hearts Youtube channel
- Our Kingdom Hearts VR Experience Review
- Content creators release Kingdom Hearts series retrospectives looking back on the long wait for Kingdom Hearts III and recapping the series' story
The five stories of the Memory Archive (Departure, Memories, Twilight, Dawn, Darkness) have been uploaded to Kingdom Hearts' Youtube channel. All five videos are English dubbed. You can watch them below.
Episode 1 - Departure
Episode 2 - Memories
Episode 3 - Twilight
Episode 4 - Dawn
Episode 5- Darkness
Renders of the five books have also been posted on Kingdom Hearts' Facebook page. You can view them in the gallery below.
At the PlayStation Lineup Tour last September, a surprise announcement for a free Kingdom Hearts VR interactive movie surprised everyone. The trailer showed off the player swinging their Keyblade at some shadows in familiar locations, however, this was not the case for what released. After being delayed twice, fans who own a PSVR were getting impatient. Currently, it is exclusive to the Japanese PlayStation store which makes it a bit difficult for most fans to experience. A worldwide version has been confirmed, but so far no current release date has been announced.
Now the question rises, was it worth the wait?
Once it's booted up, you're greeted with a title screen with two options:
Start
Collection
Collection is currently unavailable and won't be until Spring, when the second part is expected to release. Start brings you to a new menu showing off a world selection screen. Since it's just a preview, only Gummi Ship and Destiny Islands were available, with a "coming soon" spot for Twilight Town. It was very weird seeing Twilight Town in the coming soon section, seeing how it was in the original trailer. It is however teased at the end of the Destiny Islands section!
Gummi Ship
Choosing the first option, you're immediately sent inside the Gummi ship during the cut scene titled "2.9 - The First Volume-" with the Mickey Mouse Club March playing in the background for the intro. You experience the cutscene in a first person perspective as Donald and Goofy talk to Sora inside the cockpit of the Gummi ship. I originally thought this preview required PlayStation Move but it does not. Pressing the trigger on the back of the right Move controller does clench Sora's fingers on the steering wheel I noticed, but other than that nothing else seems to work with it.
After there's a bit of talking, Sora takes out his Keyblade, points it in front of the ship in the space and opens a portal. Once you shoot through the portal, you enter a kaleidoscope like tunnel filled with scenes from the series. It moves quite slowly, so you can see all kinds of scenes from Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts II, and Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep. Strangely enough, Donald and Goofy have completely disappeared so you're in the cockpit all by yourself. I do wish there would be more of an interactive part in this section, but it did it's job. Once you reach the end, you're taken back to the world selection screen.
Destiny Islands
The second world, Destiny Islands drops you right above the entrance to the backside of the island in the old game engine. As it fades out and back in, you're in Sora's perspective as he's sitting on the Paopu fruit tree with Riku and Kairi. Riku and Kairi have a bit of a conversation, as they look out at the ocean for a few minutes before a projection light show of Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance's opening starts playing out in the ocean.
Destiny Islands was definitely really nice, and the longest of the two for sure. I definitely enjoyed the really pretty light show with the stars that fell down during the experience, and the detail of Riku and Kairi both watching the opening as they move towards wherever the projection currently is.
Once the opening ends, it fades out and after a few seconds fades back in at the top of Twilight Town's clock tower. You're able to look around only shortly as it plays a short scene with Roxas, Xion, and Axel talking as they sit at the top eating ice cream before fading out to a "coming soon" screen. Once that scene ends, it concludes the preview for the Kingdom Hearts VR Experience.
Before jumping into right into the Kingdom Hearts VR Experience and downloading it for yourself, people have to realize that it's not the game that was shown off at the PlayStation Lineup Tour back in September in it's current state. For now, it is merely an interactive video experience where you are put in Sora's perspective in specific locations throughout the series and nothing more.
Now to answer the question I stated above, "Was it worth the wait?" I could say both yes and no. Yes to those who wanted something to experience in VR that's related to the Kingdom Hearts series and understand the fact that the "swinging Keyblade" section has not been released yet and this is merely a preview. I loved the experience not only because I love everything related to the series, but it was really cool being in the pilot seat of a Gummi ship, or sitting on top of the clock tower and looking off just to see how it's like.
The reasons I could say it isn't worth the wait was because of how short it was, and it containing barely any content after being delayed twice. With a run time of just 10-15 minutes, it goes by quick without feeling like anything really happened. Being advertised with interactive fighting sections at the reveal, it's easily understandable being upset they weren't included in this preview. Your experience playing it will definitely differ, but it all depends on the person.
The wait for Kingdom Hearts III is nearly over! While the game has already been released in Japan as of January 25th, and has garnered critical acclaim from a variety of major gaming publications, the game will release worldwide in just a few more days, on Tuesday, January 29th! After five and a half years of news and updates regarding the game's development, as well as nearly 17 years of story buildup, the Kingdom Hearts community's long journey toward the final entry in the Xehanort saga has finally come to a close.
To celebrate this long-awaited occasion, several content creators have produced retrospectives covering Kingdom Hearts III's development, while also asking several fans for their perspectives on the series. In addition, many content creators have released videos that retell the long-running lore of the franchise, assisting newer players in getting caught up for Kingdom Hearts III and allowing older fans to reminisce on some of their favorite moments.
We at KH13.com would like to highlight a selection of these content creators for their hard work and dedication toward the franchise, and give fans one last chance to catch up on the storyline and development history leading to Kingdom Hearts III!
Development Retrospectives
KH13.com has produced its own development retrospective, which was released earlier this month, on January 19th! Several content creators such as KZXcellent and KeybladeSarah were involved with this project, narrating the film and giving their opinions on every step the franchise has taken over its 17-year history.
Additional development history retrospectives can be found at the following links:
Kingdom Hearts 3 Retrospective: The Story & Journey So Far - VoltEditzz
The History of Kingdom Hearts - GameSpot
Storyline Recaps
We would be doing a massive disservice if we did not particularly highlight longtime contributor Everglow's KINGDOM HEARTS TIMELINE video series. Spanning 122 episodes with over 65 hours of content, this series recently reached its conclusion on January 13th, and has been widely praised as one of the most well-produced Kingdom Hearts fan works ever created. While there unfortunately isn't enough time to fully enjoy this video series before the release of Kingdom Hearts III, it will undoubtedly continue to capture fans' hearts for years to come.
Additional storyline recaps can be found at the following links:
Kingdom Hearts Story Summary - Suggestive Gaming
The complete story of Kingdom Hearts - Eurogamer
The (Simplified) Kingdom Hearts Timeline - The Leaderboard
While we sadly cannot cover every single retrospective that has been released in recent memory, we appreciate every single content creator who dedicates their time to the Kingdom Hearts series!
Kingdom Hearts III is now available in Japan, and will be available worldwide on January 29th!
Which of these videos did you enjoy the most? Is there one that we missed that you absolutely adore? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to check in on our release coverage of Kingdom Hearts III!
Famitsu.com have posted a summary of Kingdom Hearts characters and events leading up to Kingdom Hearts III, and with this, have shared many Kingdom Hearts III character renders. Check these out below!
The February 7, 2019 issue of Famitsu Weekly, released on January 24, has celebrated Kingdom Hearts III's release in Japan with a 30-page spread on the title. The spread features many new screenshots, and gives a detailed overview of many of the game's Disney worlds. If you want to go into the game completely blind, make sure you don't look too closely below!
Square Enix has announced a new collaboration between Kingdom Hearts III and Final Fantasy Record Keeper. More details about the event will be announced on February 5th. The event is slated to begin on February 22nd.
This is the second collab between Kingdom Hearts and Final Fantasy Record Keeper. The first one happened last February with both Final Fantasy Record Keeper and Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross].
PlayStation Blog has revealed their 2018 Game of the Year Awards list and Kingdom Hearts III has been voted as the 2018 "Most Anticipated Game".
Kingdom Hearts III previously won Momocon E3 Choice 2018 Game Award along with nominated by IGN for Best of E3 and is also a candidate for Unreal E3 Awards 2018 during E3 2018 as well as being nominated for "Most Anticipated Game" at last year's Gamers' Choice Awards.
Kingdom Hearts III is now available in Japan and will be available worldwide on January 29th.
What do you think of this award? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to check in on our release coverage of Kingdom Hearts III!
The official Kingdom Hearts Twitter have posted a 10-second promotional video showcasing the world and music of Kingdom of Corona in Kingdom Hearts III! Take a look at it below.
You can join the adventure in this world with Rapunzel in Kingdom Hearts III when it releases on January 29, or in the Japanese version which is out now!
Recent articles:
- Worldwide reviews for Kingdom Hearts III published - Tetsuya Nomura discusses the power of awakening, Roxas, and secret ending requirements in Kingdom Hearts III - Tetsuya Nomura discusses writing the scenario (including dialogue) for Kingdom Hearts III and the game's own Instagram-like social network
- Tetsuya Nomura talks aboutfree and inclusive DLC for Kingdom Hearts III, prioritizing the next title, and rethinking simultaneous worldwide releases after leaks
![Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross]](https://www.khwiki.com/images/9/93/Kingdom_Hearts_Union_X_Logo_KHUX.png){kind=logo}
