What Is The Story Behind Disney’s Kingdom Hearts?
Kingdom Hearts!
The Kingdom Hearts franchise is probably one of the most unique gaming properties of the twenty-first century. It is a crossover between the two giants of their respected industries. One is Square Enix, responsible for the famous role-playing game series Final Fantasy. The other is Disney, one of the most powerful movie studios of our time and holder of dozens of IPs of all genres. No one would ever think that putting these two together would work. Yet, it has created one of the longest-lasting video game franchises of the modern age.
Kingdom Hearts has gone on for twenty years, telling an epic story of good versus evil, light versus darkness, and how the power of friendship can triumph over everything. Through several gaming systems and decades of development, it has created its own mythology, the likes only seen by that of say Star Wars or Lord of the Rings.
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Many would consider so much lore a bit overwhelming to get into with twenty years of history behind it. This vast and expansive universe has several characters and worlds, so it might be hard to know where to begin. With the announcement of Kingdom Hearts IV, here are the basic facts of Kingdom Hearts for the unacquainted.
An Original Disney Character
It would be hard to pick a main hero for the ultimate Disney crossover out of the many amazing Disney characters. Instead, Kingdom Hearts decided to create an original character in Sora.
Sora is our main hero, a young boy from a place called Destiny Island, who has been given a mythical weapon known as the Keyblade. It is a weapon he uses to destroy a dark force known as the Heartless as he travels across the universe. With the aid of Donald and Goofy, he traverses various worlds, each based on a Disney film like Aladdin, Little Mermaid, Toy Story, and the rest.
One of Sora's main goals throughout the original game is to find his best friends Riku and Kairi. With a strong heart and will he is able to battle against all sorts of evils throughout the game series learning much about the world of Kingdom Hearts and the ancient weapon that is the Keyblade. As Sora continues to grow, he will become a key figure in the epic battles of good versus evil, essentially becoming the hero of the Disney universe
An Original Disney Villain
Every hero needs a villain, and that villain has a name, Xehanort. Like Sora, Xehanort is also a Keyblade wielder. Unlike Sora, however, he uses his Keyblade to gain the grand power of Kingdom Hearts for himself and reshape it in his own image. He will take on various forms throughout the series, but always with the same goal: to gain power and knowledge for himself.
Through the powers of darkness, Xehanort controls the various antagonists and forces of darkness. The Heartless are creatures who take hearts and consume them in Darkness. The Nobodies are leftover husks of the individuals whose hearts have been stolen. The Unversed are creatures created through various emotions. Xehanort is also known to manipulate various Disney villains to achieve his goal, such as using Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty in the first game to search for a way to open a mythical door known as the Door to Darkness.
Despite being defeated and destroyed in every game, Xehanort always finds a way to return. His quest for ultimate knowledge and power to become ruler of Kingdom Hearts, and engulf it in darkness is never-ending.
Explore The Disneyverse
Every hero and villain needs a world to explore and fight in. Luckily for them, Kingdom Hearts has the full power of Disney under its purview. As Sora, players get to explore various Disney worlds, each based on a Disney movie. One moment you can explore Agrabah and fight alongside Aladdin while taking down the wizard Jafar. Then, you can go to the world of Sleeping Beauty and take down Maleficent in her dragon form.
The world is rich with Easter eggs from the movies and gives players the opportunity to partake in the famous story they are based on. Each world also has an array of non-playable characters, each one finding a way to integrate itself into the wider story. All the while you as Sora are fighting the Heartless, Disney villains, as well as original enemies.
The Final Fantasy Element
While Kingdom Hearts is a Disney game they are made by Square Enix, the maker of the famous Final Fantasy saga. Throughout the game, one might also find Final Fantasy characters and elements scattered around the Disney worlds. Characters like Yuffie, Cloud, Leon, and Cid may lend a hand in the background, helping Sora and his Disney friends against the forces of evil.
Kingdom Hearts also utilizes the RPG style of Final Fantasy combined with a bit of hack and slash mixed in. As you progress through the game, you grow in power and magic, making it easier to take down hordes of enemies as well as the more powerful boss battles in your way.
Twenty Years of Magic
For twenty years, Kingdom Hearts has entertained and created a lot of magic to a whole generation of gamers. Its expansive lore might seem a bit hard to get into at first, do not let that discourage you. It is not as bad as you would think. All the games in the franchise are currently available in the All-In-One Package on the PlayStation 4. From a gameplay perspective, Kingdom Hearts is a lot of fun with various dazzling worlds and levels.
Cheers to Kingdom Hearts and hopefully to another twenty years with even more games on the horizon.
May your heart be your guiding key.
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