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Though finding a potential Kingdom Hearts reference in a closely related Disney/Pixar film is a treat in itself, finding an absolutely confirmed Kingdom Hearts reference within a completely unrelated animated series is something else entirely. Keen viewers of the Archer television series spotted a very well-hidden nod to Kingdom Hearts in season 2, episode 6, "Tragical History", which originally aired on March 3, 2011. In that episode, one of the main characters, Pam Poovey, can be seen holding a key ring with a Kingdom Key-shaped keychain partially visible in two shots. In these shots, while the Keyblade's signature golden hilt is mostly obscured by Pam's hand, the key's teeth and their distinctive crown-shaped negative space are prominently displayed. When fans brought this to the attention of the /r/ArcherFX subreddit, one of the show's production staff, going by the username Domirillo, responded, saying that while they are personally unfamiliar with Kingdom Hearts, the illustration file for the key ring prop confirms that the keychain was absolutely based on the Keyblade. KH13's own @HaakonHawk reached out for further information, and you can find a transcript of their conversation below. This is quite an interesting place to find a reference to Kingdom Hearts! Have you found any other nods toward the series in other media, or are there some properties that you want a Kingdom Hearts reference to appear in? Let us know in the comments below! View full article

With the inclusion of Pixar's Toy Story in Kingdom Hearts III, references to the Kingdom Hearts series may have found a new place to hide! Eagle-eyed Kingdom Hearts fans have noticed that some trailers and TV spots for the upcoming Toy Story 4 seem to contain a brief yet interesting homage. During a scene where the toys are attempting to rescue Forky, a spork-based toy, from the local antique store, Buzz Lightyear ponders the idea of obtaining a key from one of the shop's employees. The key in question happens to bear a striking resemblance to Sora's signature Keyblade, the Kingdom Key. While the head of the key is almost a spitting image of the iconic sword, the teeth take a few creative liberties, lacking the distinctive crown shape of the Kingdom Key's teeth. The staff of Pixar worked closely with Square Enix when Kingdom Hearts III was in development, so this may be a clever nod to their relationship. Toy Story 4 begins playing in theaters tomorrow, on June 20th! Do you think this key could be Toy Story 4's way of referencing Kingdom Hearts? What other types of references to the series would you like to see from Disney and Pixar? Have you found any other interesting nods toward the series? Be sure to share your thoughts in the comments below! View full article

While this isn't part of the SE conference, I'm really excited for Mana Collection (out now!) and the new Seiken Densetsu 3 remake! Combined with FFVII-R, FFVIII, Re:Mind, Avengers, and a whole bunch of other stuff, I think it's safe to say that SE stole the show for me.

Hot Topic and Fan Factory are currently running a contest where Kingdom Hearts fans can submit an original t-shirt design, to potentially be sold at Hot Topic locations. Submissions are accepted until June 11th at 11:59 PM PST, while the voting period for the contest takes place from June 12th at 12:00 AM PST until June 18th at 11:59 PM PST. The grand-prize winner of this contest will be awarded $2000 USD, and will have the opportunity for their design to be sold through Hot Topic. In addition, four runners-up will be awarded $300 each. This contest is limited to residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Entrants must be above the age of 18. According to the contest's guidelines and FAQ, t-shirt submissions must adhere to the following: Designs cannot use intellectual property that has not been featured in the Kingdom Hearts series. This includes Marvel, Pixar, and Lucasfilm franchises, as well as material that infringes on non-Kingdom Hearts copyrights and brands. In addition, for legal reasons, elements from Tarzan, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Final Fantasy cannot be used in any capacity, despite their inclusion in the Kingdom Hearts universe. Furthermore, obscene/inappropriate content or content touching upon polarizing topics will not be considered. Lastly, entrants must not copy existing artists or artwork. Each individual entrant can submit up to 10 designs, so if you have plenty of ideas, don't feel as though you have to narrow it down to a single choice! Hot Topic and Fan Factory have stated that designers are also free to promote their submitted work to friends, family, and followers, so let people know that you've entered! We look forward to seeing upcoming submissions, and we would be thrilled to share the news that your shirt design has won and is available for sale! Good luck, everyone! You can view winners of previous Fan Factory contests here. Are you going to enter this contest? Do you have any other ideas for Kingdom Hearts-related products that you want to see in the future? Let us know in the comments below! View full article

In an interview conducted after the premiere of the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra -World of Tres- in Tokyo, Kingdom Hearts series composers Yoko Shimomura, Takeharu Ishimoto, and Tsuyoshi Sekito were asked about how it feels to work on live music for an orchestra. Among the topics covered, they talked about the creative process that goes into the Kingdom Hearts concert tours. They revealed that they experienced difficulties in choosing a setlist and arranging each track, ultimately settling on 77 tracks which represent the entire series and Kingdom Hearts III in particular. They also discussed what they found appealing in each others' musical styles, and expressed gratitude toward the fans for continuing to enjoy their concerts. Following this interview, series director Tetsuya Nomura wrote a short comment, where he described the editing process for the concert's video footage and talked about his previous appearances at the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra performances. Here, Nomura noted that it's no longer a surprise when he appears. Hinting that he may no longer show up, he told fans to be eager about the next event. You can view a translation of the full interview below. Translations for this interview have been provided by KH13 staff member Mio-chan as well as Katie Armstrong. What did you think of this interview? Are you excited for the upcoming international performances of -World of Tres-? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! View full article

Hot Topic is now selling four t-shirt designs based on Funko's Kingdom Hearts III line of POP! figures. Announced by Funko last Wednesday, these shirts feature Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey depicted in Funko's signature style. At the time of this article's publication, the shirts are currently 20% off their standard price; where they would normally range from $22.90 to $24.90 USD depending on size, they are instead retailing for anywhere between $18.32 and $19.92 USD. The four designs available are a Monsters Inc.-inspired design, Mickey against a Station of Awakening platform, Sora against a checkered background, and Sora in a Toy Story-inspired design. Thank you to Churro for the tip! Will you be picking any of these shirts up? Do you own any of the Funko POP! figures they are based on? Let us know in the comments below! View full article

I certainly believe it will. Considering how well Infinity War did, this only has the potential to surpass it. Combine that with the record-breaking ticket sales, and it's absolutely looking like their most profitable work yet. That said, in the future, I think they are bound to release a film that does even better at the box office, especially with the acquisition of the X-Men and the Fantastic Four. I think they've ended up proving that superhero fatigue isn't much of a threat, and long-form storytelling is likely going to be their goal for the next few phases, as well, so I don't think they are in any danger of losing steam any time soon. I'm personally hoping for an adaptation of the Secret Wars storyline at some point in the upcoming phases, since that's an event on a similar scale to Civil War (both the comic and the film) and the Infinity storyline (mostly the two films, but also the comics). The big events are what get the most people into the theaters, so I am willing to bet that they won't break from the formula of releasing one every few years. Along those same lines, I also wouldn't be disappointed by an adaptation of Secret Invasion, but given how Captain Marvel's version of the Skrulls ended up, it would take a lot of work in a setup film to get to that point.

Amazon is now selling official Kingdom Hearts III t-shirts! Each of the shirt designs is retailing for $22.99 USD, all featuring renders of the main characters from Kingdom Hearts III, while one design simply features the game's logo. Each shirt design is also available in a variety of colors. These new shirts can all be found at the links below. Characters and Symbols Group 1 Group 2 Action Grid Mickey Sora Kairi, Sora, Riku Sora, Donald, Goofy Sora Silhouette Kingdom Hearts III Logo Thank you to Churro for the tip! Do any of these shirts catch your eye, in particular? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, and Tumblr for updates and information on all things Kingdom Hearts! View full article

Hey HMK! Thanks for being here with us! Now that the Xehanort Saga has come to a close, and KH news might get a little quiet for a while after we get the DLC, are there any other IPs that you're looking to start covering on your channel in addition to your main lineup of KH, Zelda, Pokemon, Smash, etc.? Something to help grow your numbers and "fill the void", as it were? Keep up the great work, bro!

I make my own! I have fallen in love with Keurig coffee makers over the years, so I use mine for coffee, tea, hot cocoa, or any hot drink I care to have, really.

In an interview with GameReactor during the 2019 Game Developers Conference, Kingdom Hearts series co-director Tai Yasue took the opportunity to speak about the development of Kingdom Hearts III, while also touching upon the team's plan for the future. Yasue mentioned that one of the primary goals during development was to understand and learn what players wanted out of Kingdom Hearts III. On the game's upcoming Critical Mode, Yasue said that the development team wanted to "do it the right way," instead of solely altering HP and damage values. They decided to implement new abilities that will resonate with a more technical playstyle, and also focused on making players think about their actions both inside and outside of battle. In addition, Critical Mode will feature AI adjustments to prevent it from feeling unfair, but it will still push players to their limits and encourage them to utilize the game's full array of options, such as cooking meals to gain stat benefits. Yasue stated that the team is very happy with the warm and positive response that Kingdom Hearts III has received from both fans and critics, especially since the team was very worried about how fans would react. He said that they really focused on exceeding fans' expectations and wanted to do as much as they could. While other games end up cutting various elements due to cost or time constraints, Yasue feels confident that the team was able to accomplish everything that they wanted to implement. He thanked the fans for their encouragement throughout the development process. View full article

The EP for "Face My Fears" by Utada Hikaru and Skrillex is now available as a set of vinyl records! Previously released as a CD and also available on various digital storefronts, the Face My Fears EP features both the English and Japanese versions of the opening and ending themes for Kingdom Hearts III. The first disc features the English tracks, Face My Fears and Don't Think Twice, while the second disc features the Japanese tracks, Face My Fears and Chikai. This vinyl release is available for $22.98 on Amazon. Are you a vinyl collector in addition to being an Utada fan? Let us know in the comments below! View full article

As part of Epic Games' "State of Unreal" presentation during the 2019 Game Developers Conference, Kingdom Hearts series co-director Tai Yasue gave a brief keynote statement about the development of Kingdom Hearts III, detailing the technical advantages that Unreal Engine 4 provided. Yasue spoke about Kingdom Hearts III's basic gameplay systems, the animation process for the game's special effects, and the technical features that Unreal Engine 4 provided, including volumetric clouds, water effects, and lighting, which can all be easily changed to suit the different environments of each world. Alongside this speech, testing and development footage was shown. This footage included Sora and a player-controlled Rapunzel roaming around a test room in a showcase of their movement, the clouds of Olympus being given different shapes and volumes, the waves of The Caribbean changing in intensity, and the lighting of the Kingdom of Corona lantern scene changing with the placement of additional lanterns. All of these adjustments were done in real-time as the game was running, showcasing the flexibility of the engine. What did you think of Tai Yasue's brief presentation? Do you hope to see the Kingdom Hearts team utilize Unreal Engine in even bolder ways in the future? Let us know in the comments below! View full article