Kaweebo

More than likely 2.8 will have custom artwork like 1.5 & 2.5 had.

I wonder what the cover art will look like. Also, did they just put the Sora and Riku models into the same poses the DDD cover had them in? That's kind of weird.

Probably not, actually. We know she's 'of age' to be a Keyblade Master, but that could - like Jack Snow said - make her anywhere from 18-20. Given that alcohol, it's consumption and legality isn't really a thing in the KH verse (worlds like Port Royal notwithstanding) it doesn't even really matter whether she's 21 or not. She's an adult and the most adult character we've played as, mentally and physically.

I would be surprised if we didn't get a KHIII trailer with gameplay. I'm not expecting them to announce Toy Story as a world or anything, but I can't believe they'd skip at least offering us something to tide us over until winter.

Okay well can you point to a place where it was specifically said that was the case? Because I've never heard Nomura say it was because of Ventus. My point was that they didn't do that. Ventus's heart taking harbor in Sora was just to explain why Roxas looks the way he does, not explain how Sora got the Keyblade. That was already explained in the first game.

I'm pretty sure that's been dismissed. That obviously wasn't the case when they made the first game and using that as an excuse now is basically retconning the original intent. Sora got the Keyblade because he was the closest to Riku at the time, not because of Ventus. Ventus was a broken heart, hell, you could argue Kairi gave Sora more a reason to hold the Keyblade given her heart was fully functioning when it entered him. But neither did a thing, because it was entirely circumstantial for Sora to wield it. That's why it's fun. That's my point. Their fight is a a more violent version of the times Terra and Aqua have fought each other. Whereas in BBS, Terra and Aqua fought for an exam, here their other versions are battling over philosophical differences. I never said it hinted at a relationship between them. I just think it's interesting that the only scene Ephemera has with a Foreteller is with Ava, given that in this theory they both represent people who grow to care about each other in the future. I'm not shipping Ephemera x Ava lol You misunderstand the point behind this theory. They're not 1:1 the exact same person, just spiritual successors that have similarities in their dispositions. Their hair color, faces, none of that matters. Riku can't be Ephemera in this theory because his character is Ira, the Unicornus Foreteller. And if anybody represents YX, it's the hooded man. Though I admit, the only reason I even say Ephemera is Sora is just to have Sora be there somewhere. It's likely he's not part of events at all. Jessie McCartney? Well, he's not playing Ephemera anyway. It's a guy named Michael Johnston. Oh, I have. And I believe it's too deliberate to be left up to random chance. Some of this is just for shits and giggles, like Sora=Ephemera, but the Foretellers were obviously designed to resemble in their color coordination and now demeanors, several of the main characters we already know. Are you going to sit there and tell me this isn't at least a tiny bit worth looking at?

That's one of the links from before but I couldn't access it, even WITH a Dreamwidth account. It says 'one of the tags no longer exists'. It's completely unaccessible, account or no.

There was a thread on this forum from some three-odd years ago that put up links to some translated works for KH novels, back before they started getting official English novels. However, only KH1 and CoM have been translated into English so far and it's unknown if they're doing any more. That being said, in that thread there was a (broken) link to a Coded translation. I've found translations for others that I want to read (I picked up a copy of CoM on my own a while back) but Coded is the only one I want that I can't find a translation for. I was hoping somebody had a working link to an unofficial translation for the Coded novel, if there is any. Google is not helping.

I was 14, so not really.

Well, the trailer said 'announcements' so it looks like we won't be getting NEW stuff until December, but I don't think they'd go the whole E3 without SOME KHIII gameplay to tide us over, even if it's just more of the same.

They were common enough to the point that there was a war featuring thousands upon thousands of wielders. I'd say that'd make Ephemera pretty common considering we don't know how many people exist in the 'world' of KHchi. Even if there were plenty of non-wielding people (and I don't doubt there probably were), that still doesn't mean Sora comes from anybody important. Ephemera is just some kid who decides to investigate what's going on of his own volition, just like how Sora is just a kid who happens to get swept up in an adventure that sees him saving the universe, twice.

Everybody was a Keyblade wielder in the past, though. If Sora is Ephemera (or really, anybody from the past) he'd still be 'normal' because everybody had one. The only difference is he'd get one in this new life as well by the same virtue of just being in the right place at the right time.

He does remind me of Braig/Xigbar a little bit.

No, they shouldn't. They're not exact copies, just reincarnations, which can mean anything. As long as they share traits, it still works. It still doesn't discredit the design similarities or now the similarities in their personalities. (Aced is brash like Terra, Ava more peaceable, Invi responsible, etc.) I don't believe the Rebirth theory is 100% exactly like it looks to me. I refuse to believe the way they look is all coincidence, however. There's some correlation between the Foretellers and our main characters and reincarnation seems the most likely option. It could mean anything, though. I just think it's fun to speculate.

Probably not. But this does make me hopeful.

To recap, the KH Rebirth theory posits the idea that each member of the Foretellers is a version of characters we know and love from the KH series based on their respective color schemes and designs. From top to bottom, Unicornus is Riku, Ursus Terra, Anguis Aqua, Leopardos Ventus and Vulpes Kairi. Obviously, there's a very important character that's been left out of this: Sora! In a previous thread, I figured that maybe Sora is the character known as Ephemera. Obviously, that leaves out a few other characters but Ephemera and the Foretellers seem to be the most important ones (along with the mysterious man in the black robes) As is obvious from the fact that each of the Foretellers' names come from the seven deadly sins, if they are indeed versions of characters we already know, then they are also darker versions of characters we already know. Which means they're put in situations that are similar to what we've seen, but under much more hostile circumstances. Now, the most poignant line that leads to this subversion of character that I've seen is the Ursus Foreteller's - from now on, 'Aced' - line: "We need to defy the Master's teachings to protect the world!" Now, whatever 'the Master's teachings' are, it's not a stretch to assume that means they must protect (and collect) the light. Also known as 'lux'. After all, that's what we've been doing in the Unchained X game, right? They've gathered Keyblade wielders together in order to collect it. However, much like Terra before him, it may be that Aced believes that collecting and protecting light isn't good enough - they need the power of darkness in order to save the world. He seems very intent on this position, even going so far as to incapacitate (if not outright murder) the Leopardos Foreteller, Gula. To the other Foretellers, Aced is the instigator. The one straying away from the path. Much like how Aqua and Master Eraqus were not sure if Terra wasn't succumbing to his desire for darkness. Obviously, the situations differ in each respective character's demeanor. Terra felt the pull of darkness, but every time he used it, he felt terrible for defying Eraqus. However, Aced believes he is justified in rebelling against his Master's teachings. Another aspect of that confrontation with Gula is that it mirrors that of the struggle between Ventus and Terra, though obviously more violently. Ventus, too, was afraid Terra would fall to darkness in BBS. It's possible that Gula suspected the same of Aced (given his demeanor) and found him doing something wrong, resulting in a fight that leaves him injured. Seeing this is Ava, the Vulpes Foreteller. She seems distraught by all the fighting as it is and watching two of her fellows killing each other must be horrifying. Ava is also, so far, the only Foreteller to ever interact with the regular Keyblade wielder, Ephemera. Is it possible that their interactions here set the stage for the eventual relationship between Sora and Kairi, even if barely? The Unicornus Foreteller, Ira, through it all, appears to be trying to find more information from whatever source he can. His copy of the Book of Prophecies and even a mysterious hooded man. Much like how Aced could possibly be swaying from the path through coercion (perhaps he's meeting with the same man) it's possible that Ira is conversing with him too, though more for informational purposes than anything else. Which, of course, leads us to the idea that the hooded man is some form of Xehanort. It makes sense, the coat is a symbol of the Organization and of him. It's possible the hooded man is playing sides, trying to turn everyone against each other for his own purposes, much like how Master Xehanort (and Ansem, SoD) played on Terra and Riku's feelings and turning them slowly to darkness. There isn't much we know about Invi, the Anguis Foreteller, but she seems responsible just like Aqua and most of her scenes involve interacting with Aced.(Though she's there when Ira is reading from the Book) Much like how Terra and Aqua clash in BBS, so too do their other versions in Chi. To sum up, I think the events that lead up to the Keyblade War are an amalgamation of events concerning our main characters in the games. I think the hooded man is playing everybody and has convinced Aced to turn his back on his Master's teachings and fooling Ira into believing he must embrace war because it's 'not possible' to stop it. Invi and Gula both fight with Aced, though only Gula loses so far as we know, either injured or dead. (similar to Ventus's fate at the end of BBS) And Ava, the Kairi representation, is trying to find alternatives to war and asking the people of her Union to flee. Everybody dies and are reincarnated into more hopeful incarnations. Or this could all be bullcrap and none of it matters.

That was better than all 20 minutes of HMK's slurring words and annoying voice.

It's obviously inspired by BBS and DDD but I actually thought Aqua's attacks looked like they had a bit more force behind them. It's kind of hard to see but I think the Heartless flinched like they do in the original games.

If she's too strong to be beaten down, then they'll have to break her down from the inside. That's awesome.

These in specific.

I wanna lick Aqua's armpits.

I can't fault you for your opinion, but the comparison to Lucas is 100% wrong. None of the stuff in the Prequels was always intended. That was written up on its own. It's just the fact that it sucked. And tbh, it's not even so much that it sucked in it of itself, just that Lucas kept so much of the control to himself that none of the movies were peer-reviewed creatively. Nomura, by contrast, while he's the head guy, has a team of people who all have their own input. And personally, any changes he's made creatively, better or worse, are leagues beyond the buttfiretruckery Lucas put upon his own franchise. I can admit that KH has faults, a lot of faults, but none of them even come close to the Prequel trilogy.

I don't miss that. Know why? Because this was always intended. And it's obvious that it was always intended because the hints were there even in the vanilla release, the mysteyr surrounding who Xehanort is, as well as the Birth by Sleep secret ending. Xehanort being that bald old man was always the intention. And personally, I like BBS's story. I don't think it convoluted Xehanort anymore than KHII did. The only point of confusion is the 'do you create the X-blade with two hearts or not?' thing which got retconned in DDD. I guess it's up to personal preference but MX is one of my favorite villains. Besides, it's obvious it's not just MX planning all of this. Xehanort's Heartless, Xemnas, young Xehanort; they're all basically distinct beings who take on his traits even if they're all 'him'. Yeah, MX started it and he'll be there by the end but it's obvious his plan is fluid. It's changed since BBS, even if slightly. Contrast that with the very much not planned change to have ANSEM, SEEKER OF DARKNESS actually have the name Xehanort for no reason. Like the Marathon Retrospective guy pointed out, they could have easily given Ansem the Wise a completely different name and it would have worked way better. Instead they confused everything and now Xehanort's Heartless always has the stigma of being called Ansem for no good reason. He didn't intend on Terra's armor kicking his ass, either. His plan was to seek out thirteen individuals to create the Keyblade War (which is ultimately what his other halfs end up doing) and using Terra's body was the easiest way to do it cause he's so old. Getting beaten and living as an amnesiac for a year was not his plan, it merely produced his Heartless and Nobody which both tried to do what he wanted in their own way. Now, you could argue the time-travel thing was what elevates him to a villain who's too convenient but I liked that, too. It gave the formless, robed 'Ansem' something to do more than just wait on Destiny Islands forever. Plus given the nature of reality and everything in KH, it's not too much of a stretch that you can magically travel through time, too. (Also I've never bought that Timeless River was a one-time thing.) Sure, it gets even more complicated and I'm not even disputing that (trying to wrap your head around everything in DDD is pretty much impossible) but it all started not with Master bald man taking over Terra's body, but with that damn name change Nomura only did because he liked the name Xehanort and didn't know where else to put it. That's when this series got needlessly convoluted. As for MX's character, again, we all have different opinions.

TRAILER!! AAHHH!!! WILLA HOLLAND AAAAHHH!!! AMAZING BACK COVER CUTSCENES!!! AAHHAHSHSJHJKSA WORLD-WIDE RELEASE DATE!!!!!!! AMFJDNGEJFHGEJRGHESOGJOGJK'ZFJSEKGJFDO;IBNR;

It's more confusing in the sense that it was unnecessary. It's a needless complication in addition to everything else you have to keep track of. And the worst of it is it's almost played like a running joke. Even up to DDD, you've got characters saying "Ansrm, I mean Xehanort ('s Heartless)