The issue ofFinal Fantasycharacters being absent fromKingdom Hearts 3has been touched on before. Both Nomura, the director ofKingdom Hearts, and Tai Yasue, the co-director ofKingdom Hearts 3, have provided answers to the question, but becauseRe: Mindofficially releases tomorrow, Nomura has addressed the issue once more.
Tai Yasue claimed thatFinal Fantasycharacters were absent for story reasons. The team wantedKingdom Hearts 3to focus solely onKingdom Heartscharacters, and they didn’t expect fans to miss theFinal Fantasyappearances that much. Nomura later claimed that they didn’t appear because there wasn’t enough time. Apparently, the team had the models and everything ready to go, but didn’t have time to put them in the game.
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Now, however, Nomura has given a definitive answer, and it’s a combination of his and Yasue’s. The information comes from a two-part QA series titled “7 Lights and 13 Darknesses.” While handling the 13 Darknesses portion, Nomura received a question asking whyFinal Fantasycharacters didn’t appear in the original version ofKingdom Hearts 3. He replied thatKingdom Hearts 3’s story didn’t go in a direction that required a visit to Radiant Garden; that combined with work-related issues lead to the decision not to putFinal Fantasycharacters in the original story.
As for whytheFinal Fantasycast has returned forRe: Mind, Nomura stats thatRe: Mind’s story requires them. He also notes that the passion from fans to see these characters again affected the decision to bring them back. The roleFinal Fantasycharacters have inRe: Mindwon’t be a big one, butRe: Minddoes at least give them a presence inKingdom Hearts 3. From the looks of the trailer that announced their return, they’ll be helping Riku and the others locate Sora to some extent.
The lack ofFinal Fantasycharacters inKingdom Hearts 3was bizarre. But if fans really did sway the decision to bring them back, it’s likely they won’t be missing from another numberedKingdom Heartstitle (barring work-related issues, of course). Still, some reoccurring members are still missing. Cloud and Sephiroth are not confirmed to return with everyone else inRe: Mind. It’s possible Sephiroth may come back as a surprise secret boss, and Cloud would likely accompany him if he does, but whether or not he will remains to be seen. Nomura claimsRe: Mindwill be the only DLC forKingdom Hearts 3, so if the duo doesn’t show here, they may not show at all.
Kingdom Hearts 3is out now for PS4 and Xbox One.
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