TheKingdom Heartsseries began its unlikely life as a mashup of both its Disney andFinal Fantasyroots. The latest mainline releaseKingdom Hearts 3had a very noticeable lack of any characters until after its story DLC was released, though. While the move to further distinguish itself as a separate property makes sense, many fans worry thatKingdom Heartsmay be abandoning an important part of its heritage if it leavesFinal Fantasybehind going forward.
Kingdom Heartshas become one of the most popular franchises in gaming today, and a large part of that success came from its unlikely blending of the Disney andFinal Fantasyworlds. Many fans felt spurned byKingdom Hearts 3leaving the latter outof its narrative. This likely stems from two different feelings about the presence ofFinal Fantasycharacters inKingdom Hearts:their inclusion can be both great fan service and helps serve the larger narrative in most of the games. Including the characters again in the story DLCReMindwas likely an attempt to assuage those fans.
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Should Kingdom Hearts 4 Include Final Fantasy Characters?
Again, wanting to distinguish itself as a unique property is an understandable inclination for theKingdom Heartsfranchise, but for many, what makes the game’s so unique is specifically because of its blending of Disney andFinal Fantasy. Many moments that revolve around the characters admittedly do feel tacked on specifically as fan service. The struggle between Cloud and Sephiroth spilling over into another world was many fans' favorite side events inKingdom Hearts 2,and since mostFinal Fantasygames don’t receive sequels,Kingdom Heartswas a fun way to see characters like Squall again.
At other times, theFinal Fantasycharacters play pivotal roles in the overall story and in their appearances in some of the Disney worlds. Squall, Cid, and Yuffie were some of the first friends that Sora makes at the onset of their journey and reclaiming their world, Radiant Garden, from the grips of the Heartless was an emotional moment that impacted the overall narrative in a big way. So, these characters suddenly missing inKingdom Hearts 3impacted some fans' receptionof the game. Even small roles in Disney worlds can create interesting blends of both ofKingdom Hearts’parents' like Cloud and Zack both appearing in the world ofHercules, and the way their stories mimicked that of the originalFF7.
Sometimes, the fan service and important story beats collided in big ways as well. The 1000 Heartless fight inKH2was preceded by emotional moments that mixed interaction with Disney andFinal Fantasycharacters all alongside Sora. Fighting alongside Yuffie, Squall, Tifa, and Cloud was a culminating moment of the unlikely crossover as Sora looked to avenge Goofy with Mickey in a way that many fans of the series will never forget. And withKingdom Heartsclearly bringing in elements fromVersus 13, the lack of these characters inKH3was jarring to many veteran fans.
Kingdom Heartsis still incorporating elements fromFinal Fantasy, so it seems odd to leave out some of the newer characters as well. Despite some mixed reactions to the game,FF15’sNoctis is still one of the most popular heroes, and the classicallymoodyFinal Fantasyprotagonistscan be fun foils to the more happy-go-lucky Sora as evidenced by his affect on Cloud over the first twoKingdom Heartsgames. Overall, it makes sense forKingdom Heartsto want to chart its own path forward, but it shouldn’t lose out on some of the characters that fans love and really helped shape Sora’s early adventures.
