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During the Kingdom Hearts 2020 trailer released earlier today, it was revealed that the long-awaited Kingdom Hearts III official soundtrack will be releasing later this year. While there is no definitive release date as of yet, a window of autumn 2020 was provided. Which songs from the OST are you looking forward to listening to? Let us know in the comments!

Kingdom Hearts III has been nominated for the Excellence in Animation award from the SXSW Gaming Awards! Other nominees for the Excellence in Animation category include Apex Legends, Death Stranding, Luigi's Mansion 3, and Mortal Kombat 11. The winners of these awards are chosen via public vote, and you can cast your votes on SXSW's official awards page. Voting will close on Sunday February 23, at 11:59 PM CT. Be sure to watch the livestream for the SXSW Gaming Awards Ceremony on Sunday, March 15th to see if Kingdom Hearts III takes home the award!

A new announcement related to Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] is set to be made on January 23rd at 10 AM JST/5 PM PST, following shortly after the release of Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind. This news was tweeted simultaneously by both the Japanese and English Twitter accounts for Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross], so whatever this news is about, it is likely going to affect both versions of the game around the same time. Both of these tweets were accompanied by a piece of artwork by series director Tetsuya Nomura, depicting Young Xehanort and Young Eraqus alongside several other characters whose figures have been blurred out. What could this announcement possibly be about? Let us know what you think it is in the comments below!

Kingdom Hearts III version 1.09 is now available to download! This free update includes the much anticipated version 1.07 data, and prepares the game for the release of the Re Mind DLC. All in all, this update adds the Oathkeeper and Oblivion Keyblades, the Light Form, Dark Form, and Double Form formchanges, and various fixes and stability improvements. For those who are looking to obtain Oathkeeper and Oblivion, you must first obtain the two Proof items, Proof of Promises for Oathkeeper (find all 90 Lucky Emblems), and Proof of Times Past for Oblivion (complete the game on Critical Mode). These items can be turned in to the Moogle Shop in order to obtain the Keyblades. Like previous Keyblades, both the Proof items and their corresponding Keyblades will carry over between save files, allowing you to keep the Keyblades when starting a new playthrough. Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind releases in all regions in less than 24 hours! We hope everyone is prepared for what it will bring!

Square Enix have released a blog article which looks back on several instances of Kingdom Hearts news in 2019. This article recaps events such as the release of Kingdom Hearts III, the announcement of Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind, the announcement of the Kingdom Hearts compilations coming to Xbox One, and the public release of the Kingdom Hearts III demo. While the article serves as a great look back at the time since Kingdom Hearts III's release, the section which covers Re Mind's announcement also included something far more interesting: a statement referencing a "new world" included with the DLC. This section of the article has since been edited to remove said statement. Thank you to Kingdom Hearts Insider for finding this information! It is currently unclear whether this is referring to an existing world being given much more content, such as Scala ad Caelum or The Final World, or if it refers to an entirely new environment which will contain some of Re Mind's features. It is also possible that this might be a simple mistake. Regardless, Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind releases on Thursday, January 23rd, so we will find out exactly what this entails soon!

At the Kingdom Hearts Orchestra World of Tres performance in Osaka, series director Tetsuya Nomura made an appearance in order to speak about the upcoming Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind DLC. Although a majority of Nomura's discussion focused on new features for the DLC, it seems that a new trailer and a release date announcement are coming soon. While we do not have an official statement from Square Enix at this time, two attendees of Osaka's Kingdom Hearts Orchestra (@mel_lifluous3 and @kyo0607_KH) have reported on this development via their Twitter accounts, stating that this information will be coming in December. Despite this information, it is important to note that Re:Mind's newest features, such as Fast Pass mode, Black Code mode, and Photo mode, will not be included in the upcoming trailer. We eagerly anticipate this upcoming news! What do you think might be shown in the next Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind trailer? Let us know in the comments!

Richard Epcar, voice of Ansem and Terra-Xehanort in the Kingdom Hearts series, has made a guest appearance on the "Definitive Discussion" talk show by Kingdom Hearts fan Jakejames Lugo! During the show, the two spoke about Epcar's extensive voice acting career in anime and video games. While the bulk of the discussion was centered around Kingdom Hearts III, a significant portion of Epcar's other work was also touched upon, including Jojo's Bizzare Adventure (parts 3 and 4, as Old Joseph Joestar), various DC fighting games (as the Joker), and the Mortal Kombat series (as Raiden). During this interview, at the 9:55 mark, Epcar also mentioned that he recently recorded lines for Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind, the game's upcoming DLC. You can listen to the show here, or via the YouTube video below. For those so inclined, a longer "EX Mode" version of the show is also available for those who subscribe to Jakejames' Patreon! What did you think of the show? What are some of your favorite roles from Richard Epcar, both inside and outside of Kingdom Hearts? Are you excited to hear him return in Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to follow us on our social media to keep up to date with all the latest Kingdom Hearts news!

The newest Kingdom Hearts light novel, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance The Novel, is now available from various retailers in both paperback and eBook formats! The paperback is priced at $16.00 USD/$21.00 CAD, while the eBook is retailing at $7.99 USD/$9.99 CAD. The paperback version of the novel can be purchased from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Indigo, Indiebound, and RightStuf, while the eBook version can be purchased from Amazon, BookWalker, ComiXology, iBooks, and Kobo. The cover for Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance The Novel can be seen below. A description of the novel follows. Follow us on Twitter, Tumblr, and Facebook for updates on Kingdom Hearts news!

As announced by the official Kingdom Hearts Twitter account, a new trailer for Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind will be released in one week, on September 9th, 2019. According to the Japanese Kingdom Hearts Twitter account, the Japanese version of the trailer will be releasing at midnight (JST) on September 10th (8 AM PT on the previous day), exactly one week after both the English and Japanese Twitter posts were made. A translation of this tweet follows, courtesy of Goldpanner, This trailer will be releasing in the days before Tokyo Game Show 2019. While Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind has been excluded from Square Enix's announced TGS lineup this year, it appears that announcements will still be made around the time of the event. What do you think this new trailer might contain? Let us know in the comments! UPDATE [Sep 2, 2019]: Kingdom Hearts series director Tetsuya Nomura has released a cryptic statement alongside the recent Kingdom Hearts III Re:Mind trailer announcement, and Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] update announcements. Translation for this interview were provided by KH13 Staff Solis. UPDATE [Sep 10, 2019]: Official translations of Tetsuya Nomura's message have now been posted by Square Enix. Note that it has now been made clear that the "third KH line" refers to "an unannounced KH storyline." You can read the full message below for further details.

AmiAmi are now accepting pre-orders for Kingdom Hearts travel stickers. These eight stickers each feature artwork and characters related to a world from Kingdom Hearts II. The available varieties are themed after Hollow Bastion, Port Royal, Twilight Town, Disney Castle, Atlantica, Space Paranoids, Halloween Town, and Pride Land. Each sticker retails for ¥320 (about $3.00). The stickers are set to release in September. You can check out each of the stickers in the gallery below:

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!