Oh man. Nintendo finally hit the big red button labeled “New Kingdom Hearts IV Trailer” during its Direct showcase, giving us our first look at the game in several years.
In the trailer, a figure clothed in the trademark black cloak of Organization 13 members is talking about this new world they’ve discovered and how the concepts of light and dark do not exist there. The character’s little speech makes it sound like the plot of Kingdom Hearts IV is that Sora, Donald, Goofy, and a bunch of new friends and enemies have gotten isekai’d from their world of hearts and Disney characters into the modern world. Think Manhattan Island instead of Destiny Island.
Kingdom Hearts IV was revealed in 2022. In the time since its first reveal, Square Enix has had to cancel other Kingdom Hearts projects while sharing little info on the new entry. Last year, Square Enix shared images that implied KH4 might let players control Mickey Mouse, though none of that footage appeared in today’s new trailer. Kingdom Hearts IV seems to draw on its predecessors’ combat mechanics. Sora is seen fighting what looks to be the same gigantic heartless monster he’s faced throughout the series, and it looks like the theme park ride attacks from KH3 have returned as well.
But even I have to admit, this first look is a little strange. Kingdom Hearts IV seems to be going for a somewhat realistic look, a departure from the stylistic cartoon aesthetics of the previous games. The environments we see in the new trailer look taken from a regular cityscape with skyscrapers and traffic lights instead of the chunky clockwork buildings of Traverse Town or Hollow Bastion. The problem is that Sora, Donald, and Goofy don’t look like they left Traverse Town, and their bright, colorful clothing and fantastical accessories (Sora’s still wielding a keyblade) clash kinda garishly with their surroundings. Its a weird, off-putting look, but I’m curious to see how the team at Square Enix works with it in the overall game. There’s no release date yet, but Nintendo has confirmed that it will be available at launch on the Switch 2.