#kingdom hearts iii (2019)

[oktaviaslabyrinth]

Forza Finale // Kingdom Hearts III (2019)

[holly-natnicole]

Kairi's canon abilities & skills

As a Princess of Heart:

Together with the other 6 Princesses of Heart, Kairi's Heart reveals Hollow Bastion/Radiant Garden's Keyhole. Their Hearts of pure Light are 7 of the 20 pieces of the χ-blade.

Kairi was born with a Heart of pure Light. This makes her able to sense Darkness, able to hold Darkness back temporarily (but it's draining to her), and immune to Corridors of Darkness' corrupting influence since she has zero Darkness in her Heart. Losing her Heart wouldn't have resulted in Naminé's (Kairi's Nobody's) creation if her Heart hadn't taken refuge inside of Sora's; being a regular Somebody, Sora had a small amount of Darkness thus resulting in Naminé when he freed Kairi's Heart from Sora's own by using the Keyblade of Hearts. When she had lost her Heart, Kairi's body (&, presumably, her Soul) was comatose 'til Sora's sacrifice.

It's kinda unclear whether Kairi stopping Sora from fading away in K.H.3 was a Princess of Heart power or solely a Kairi power. The same goes for Sora in K.H.2 reading Kairi's letter opening a Corridor of Light from the Realm of Darkness to the sky above Destiny Islands. And for Kairi in K.H.1 transforming Sora from a Shadow Heartless into either a Somebody (therefore creating a body for Sora) or into a human-looking Heartless same as Ansem the Seeker of Darkness a.k.a. Xehanort's Heartless is (I prefer this one since it'd mean Sora still needs a Replica or a Nobody to become complete). I'm more inclined to see all 3 as Princess of Heart powers, but it's not explicitly confirmed in the videogames.

As a Keyblade-wielder:

Kairi starts out weak for the 1st 15 years of her life, unable to do better than any other non-combatant civilian. She doesn't summon her Keyblade when she gets it; instead, Riku is the one who gives Destiny's Embrace to Kairi.

However, the instant it's given to her, she easily destroyed 2 Shadow Heartless on her own with a single slash each. And, right before Riku gave Kairi her Keyblade in K.H.2, she jumped off a very high up balcony & landed in a squat with no injury.

But Kairi then (instantly after her landing) froze in fear when a bunch of Shadow Heartless surrounded her thus they easily piled up over her. In K.H.3, she froze again when Xehanort-possessing-Terra's-body was 'bout to slash down at her face with his Keyblade; possibly due to P.T.S.D. from the time he grabbed her face with his hand when she was age 4 or 5.

Kairi's main issue is her emotions. "Please work!!" she pleads her Light when using Flower Shoot (a ball of Light) or her magic when casting elemental spells; her self-confidence low or non-existent even after training with Lea, Merlin being their teacher. Understandable, considering the times Kairi had faced enemies she could barely run away from and who easily dragged her around by the wrist. Kairi knows that even after training she isn't strong enough to fight World-ending threats the way Sora and Riku can.

However, after being trained by Merlin, Kairi (despite her troubles) is a competent enough fighter to go toe-to-toe with much more experienced and powerful enemies; e.g. Xion, Saïx, and Xemnas. In that last one's case, she even breaks his Ethereal Blades with her Keyblade and forces him on the defensive 'til he uses Nothingness to drain her energy. With Sora's help, Kairi in K.H.:ReMind kills Armoured Xehanort. Shown in each fight she's in (including when the redhead fights her memory of old man Xehanort in K.H.:Melody of Memory), Kairi focuses on speed & quick attacks that repeatedly cut the enemy thus accumulating damage instead of killing them with a single powerful blow or a single massive magical attack. She's agile enough to dodge the enemy's hits and spells in mid-air, maneuvering herself without Gliding. Kairi also is strong enough to block the enemy's strike at least for a little while, causing a temporary stalemate. She can dismiss & fast re-summon her Keyblade in K.H.:Melody of Memory to keep attacking Xehanort, having learned from when Xemnas grabbed her wrist & twisted in K.H.3 (she stopped moving at the oain whereas her Keyblade being grabbed instead of her wrist prompts Kairi to dismiss Destiny's Embrace then quickly re-summon it). Kairi in K.H.3 can easily slash a Shadow Heartless in half same as she did in K.H.2, but has improved into using Spiral Bloom (a spinning attack) to rapidly cut the enemy several times in a row. She's also able to cast Cura to heal her friends. Kairi in K.H.:ReMind can cast Firaga, Blizzaga, Thundaga, Curaga, Waterga, and Aeroga. Her Shotlock is Heart of a Princess, which allows her to rain down orbs of light on the battlefield. When Kairi is a certain distance away from the enemy, she can use Strike Shift to quickly teleport to them by throwing Destiny's Embrace at them. She can also telekinetically spin her Keyblade around her, then catch it to give the enemy one final slash. With her Seven Wishes attack, she dashes towards the enemy 7 times with Destiny's Embrace held in front of her; it kinda stabs & slashes the enemy as Kairi goes (or tries to go) through them fast then whirls around to do it 6 more times. Same as Terra, she uses Slide to dodge the enemy's attacks when on the ground. Like Riku and Aqua, Kairi uses a hexagonal barrier made of magic to defend herself and she can use her unique counterattack Starcracker to shatter her barrier into a bunch of thalassa seashell shaoes that cut the enemy who is attavking her. With Sora, Kairi sometimes does the team attack named One Heart where each gains a golden wing made of Light & memories whilst they hold hands then together Kairi and Sora fly towards the enemy before using their wings to cut the enemy several times before their wings fade away in a shower of magical feathers displaying memories and they let go of each other's hand to land on the ground.

Kairi at the end of K.H.:Melody of Memory asks for Keyblade Master Aqua to teach her, as she wants to become stronger to fight beside her best friends Sora and Riku.

[holly-natnicole]

[Image Description: a digital drawing of Sora and Kairi from 'Kingdom Hearts III' (2019), 'Kingdom Hearts: ReMind' (2020), and 'Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory' (2020) videogames. Only their arms, chests, shoulders, necks, and heads are shown. They're in a cartoon heart. Below it is text: 'HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY']

Happy Valentine’s Day!

[videogamepolls]

Requested by @rockstarpurpp

[mangamithedragon]

Xemnas and Ansem (Kingdom Hearts III 2019)

[passive-t-u-m-b-l-r-user]

I hate this horrible game of telephone people are playing with Nomura's Interview.

Read it yourself. Stop freaking out and misinterpreting.

...

Young Jump Interview Page 3

(Translated by Liodin on KHInsider)

Q1: The Kingdom Hearts series has many intricate settings and characters. How do you consolidate these and communicate them to the team?

TN: I don't think the team fully understands everything. For example, during recordings, sometimes the staff explaining the settings or characters to the voice actors will ask me, “This is correct, right?” and I might respond, “No, not quite.” This kind of back-and-forth happens (laughs). However, it’s understandable because I’m the only one who knows the parts of the characters that haven't been depicted yet. I personally navigate through the complex storylines, constantly swaying between different directions. On the other hand, I encourage the team to question or point out anything to me.

Q2: Do you have a sort of "bible" or documentation for the settings?

TN: I do have personal notes to ensure I don't forget things. These include the footsteps of important characters, events that haven't been depicted yet, and future developments.

Q3: So, these aren’t shared with the team?

TN: No, I keep them a secret (laughs). But when necessary, I sometimes write sudden bursts of detailed settings into the script to make sure the staff understands.

Q4: In Kingdom Hearts, you seem to lay out foreshadowing that spans multiple installments. How do you keep track of everything?

TN: A lot of it is written in my notes, but I also rely on the staff to remember things. Since I enjoy watching videos, I sometimes check gameplay footage and fan theories on YouTube. Rather than relying on my notes, I often ask the staff how things played out in previous titles.

Q5: Do you watch fan theory videos? Do you ever think, “They’ve figured it out, so I’ll change it,” or “They don’t get it at all”?

TN: I find them genuinely interesting to watch. Often, I think, “It’s not as complicated as people think.” I’m frequently impressed by how deeply people analyze things. For instance, some people try to connect Kingdom Hearts to the Final Fantasy series, but the writers for each are different, and even though I’m involved with both, there’s no connection between the titles.

Q6: At the time of the first Kingdom Hearts, I assume you didn’t have the entire current storyline planned. As the series progresses and more settings and characters are introduced, does it become increasingly difficult to maintain coherence? Do you mostly make things up as you go?

TN: I had a general direction from the first game. As I mentioned earlier, I do take notes on future developments. When things don’t quite align with the planned direction, I make adjustments on the fly. While the details weren’t fully fleshed out at the time of Kingdom Hearts I (released in 2002), I had thought about the next few installments ahead of time. So, while we were working on Kingdom Hearts III (released in 2019), I already had Kingdom Hearts IV and beyond in mind and worked toward that.

Q7: This year, Kingdom Hearts: Missing-Link, a mobile app, is also set for release. With important story elements being released on mobile or handheld devices, are you concerned that some players may lose track of the storyline?

TN: Yes, that is a concern (laughs). That’s why Missing-Link takes place in a much earlier timeline than the main Kingdom Hearts series. However, as fans often joke, “Even though Kingdom Hearts IV is coming out, it’s really more like Kingdom Hearts XIII” since the non-numbered titles are obviously connected. Still, I believe it allows for a deeper enjoyment of the Kingdom Hearts universe. That said, both Missing-Link and Kingdom Hearts IV are being designed with a strong emphasis on being standalone titles rather than just sequels. For instance, a new approach in the scenario writing is that I’ve had staff members who haven’t been involved in Kingdom Hearts before join the writing process. Of course, I’ll make final adjustments, but the base script was written by people unfamiliar with the series, which is why I don’t think these projects will feel like obligatory follow-ups. With Missing-Link, we’re addressing “the lost history,” so the expectation is that not knowing everything is part of the experience. If you know the lore, it’s more enjoyable, but it’s not a prerequisite.

Q8: Much like how starting a long-running manga series can be daunting, the large number of Kingdom Hearts titles poses a similar challenge. How do you plan to attract new users?

TN: I’d love to know the answer to that (laughs). As I mentioned earlier, Missing-Link and Kingdom Hearts IV are kind of reset points for me. I felt like Kingdom Hearts III was a natural conclusion of sorts, so we’re resetting things by bringing in new writers and even redesigning the logo to make the series more accessible.

Q9: So, that’s why the logo changed.

TN: If you’ve seen the ending of Kingdom Hearts III, you’ll understand, but the way Sora’s story ended was a way to reset things, so Kingdom Hearts IV should be more accessible than previous titles. Of course, longtime fans will recognize the familiar feel of the series, but we’re designing it to be approachable for newcomers as well.

Q10: In a past interview, you mentioned that players would spend a lot of time in “Quadratum” (a field resembling Shibuya) in Kingdom Hearts IV. Why bring in a more realistic setting to a world that was previously pure fantasy?

TN: There are a few reasons, but I personally like settings that are slightly removed from reality rather than being completely fantastical. It’s the same with films—I find it harder to get immersed in worlds that are entirely fictional with no connection to reality. That’s why Quadratum is based on Shibuya but isn’t the real Shibuya. I’m fascinated by the idea of a slightly off-kilter version of reality, rather than a pure fantasy world.

Q11: Manga like Tokyo Ghoul, set in Tokyo, and Jujutsu Kaisen, with its Shibuya arc, are similar in that they use real-world locations. Perhaps fans of both manga and games enjoy these grounded yet fantastical settings.

TN: That might be true. It’s easier to relate to. Additionally, I’ve always thought there were plenty of creators already doing medieval high fantasy, so I didn’t need to. In 2007, we released The World Ends with You, which was also set in Shibuya, but now many works use Shibuya as a setting. It feels like everyone has come to Shibuya (laughs).

Q12: It does seem like more works are set in Japan these days. Speaking of the mix between reality and fantasy, at the beginning of Kingdom Hearts, there’s a monologue where Sora says, “I’ve been having these weird thoughts lately… Like, is any of this for real or not?” Did you already have Quadratum in mind back then?

TN: The name “Quadratum” didn’t exist at that time, but I had the concept in mind. It was a long-term plan that I knew we would eventually reach (laughs).

Q13: So it’s a 20-year-long payoff for that foreshadowing. Lastly, do you see the ending of the Kingdom Hearts series in the future?

TN: To give you a realistic answer, I’m approaching retirement age, so it’s becoming a race between retirement and finishing the series (laughs). However, I am creating Kingdom Hearts IV with the intent of leading toward the series’ conclusion.

https://www.khinsider.com/forums/index.php?threads/when-are-we-expecting-news.238707/post-6668282

[holly-natnicole]

Awesome!! I hope you're having fun!!

I started playing KH 3 today without playing any other ones and the music hits so far

[sanitizarium]

happy birthday to hit game Kingdom Hearts III (2019)

[fuck-yeah-intro-movies]

Kingdom Hearts III (2019)

[oktaviaslabyrinth]

Hearts as One // Kingdom Hearts III (2019)

[holly-natnicole]

It'd be so awesome to see the sapphic girlfriends fighting any evil Heartless, Nobodies and Somebodies side by side together and back to back!!

[holly-natnicole]

In my K.H. rewrite timeline, all the children have at least 1 mentor.

Vanitas' are Xehanort (who is emotionally & physically abusive) and Cloud (who starts out aloof & not even meaning to be zir mentor, but ends up giving zem advice often by accident then later on purpose teaches various skills to Vanitas).

Ven's are Xehanort (who is emotionally & physically abusive), Eraqus (who is genuinely nice despite his strict nature, but their last interaction is him trying to murder Ventus for the greater good without even trying to think of an alternative solution), and Leon (who initially reminds Ven of Eraqus, which makes their platonic friendship toxic since the lack of communication between Ven & Leon causes both to severely misinterpret what's going on; but they learn to talk properly to each other thus causing them to become close and Ven to slowly regain his trust in adults). (Terra and Aqua are more not-biological-nor-legally-adoptive older siblings to Ven than being his mentors.)

Roxas' are Axel/Lea (their not-biological-nor-legally-adoptive-siblinghood starts out casual then becomes toxic, but they work through their issues with some help; especially since Lea/Axel was the one causing all the toxicity and had learned the hard way that many of his decisions in regards to Roxas & Xion have been mean at best & cruel at worst) and Merlin (who helps Roxas study and provides a safe space to work through his various emotions).

Shion/Xion's are Axel/Lea (coz Lea/Axel is in Castle Oblivion when Shion first starts gaining personhood through Sora's lost memories, it takes a few weeks after his mission for him to warm up to her; then their not-biological-nor-legally-adoptive siblinghood gets toxic before it eventually improves), Saïx/Isa (starts out toxic, stays that way for many months whilst his firm belief that she's solely a puppet with no thoughts nor feelings bit by bit gets disproven, and slowly improves when an incident forces him to accept that she's actually a person then he bit by bit starts to platonically love her as a daughter or little sister when continuing to teach her things), and Barret (who helps Shion find her individuality and provides a safe space for her to talk through how she feels 'bout everything that happened in her short life so far plus he very much holds Lea/Axel and Saïx/Isa accountable for their treatment of the children).

Sora's are Donald & Goofy (who initially see her solely as a means to an end, but quickly grow to sincerely care 'bout Sora then – aside from 1 incident where they abandon Sora in favour of Riku who got 1 of the Keyblades from the enbe thus Goofy & Donald obeyed Mickey's order to stick by the Keyblade-wielder, but less than half an hour later they chose Sora over their mission – stick by her no matter what Mickey or anyone else says; they learn through Aerith shouting at them that their student's/not-biological-nor-legally-adopted child's mental health has taken a fast nosedive & that their meant-to-be-harmless teasing is why, so they apologise to Sora & make amends to the kid who they've been helping keep up with school ever since the Trinity Trio formed in Traverse Town), and Aerith (who platonically bonds with Sora coz he has an affinity for healing magic same as Aerith does then later she's who he confides in 'bout everything he has gone through on her adventures and Aerith helps Sora become less insecure in the enbe's abilities & skills).

Naminé's are Ienzo/Zexion (who starts out manipulative, but redeems themself after she changes from a Nobody into a Somebody since regaining his Heart awakens his conscience), Demyx/Myde (who aids Naminé in learning to simply relax & to take care of themself instead of being filled by self-hatred), and Tifa (who helps them become a badass fighter and is a confidant who they tells every insecurity & issue to then eventually Naminé tells her 'bout the emotional abuse from Marluxia/Lauriam and the emotional & physical & magical abuse from Relena/Elrena/Larxene, plus Tifa realises thanks to Naminé how hurtful secrets from people who the secrets are 'bout can be thus she grows as a person).

Kairi's are Minnie (who teaches Kairi music magic and helps her learn how to use her pure Light instead of throwing herself – and Selphie, who literally jumped through the Corridor of Light when Kairi semi-accidentally created it & fell into it – into unfamiliar places with no clue what she's doing plus Minnie assigns Pluto to guard the girls and gives them a Star Shard to travel with since it's not safe for non-Guardians of Heart to use Corridors of Light or Corridors of Darkness) and Aqua (who she specifically requests to be her mentor, as Kairi is the only one who explicitly feels the need to find someone to teach her new skills; Aqua quickly becomes a not-biological-nor-legally-adoptive big sister to Kairi who she helps regain self-confidence and improve as a fighter).

Selphie's is Daisy (who gladly teaches her how to use hand-to-hand combat whilst Kairi is busy with Minnie's lessons on music magic & intentionally using Light and she's the one who Selphie talks through with all the wild stuff that's been going on, their conversations helping the girl make sense of everything).

Riku's are Maleficent (who manipulates him), Xehanort's Heartless/Ansem the Seeker of Darkness (who manipulates him then in Castle Oblivion literally controls Riku's body for a short time twice thus taking away his autonomy before Riku finally kills the human-looking Heartless), Terra (whose Heart is freed from the Guardian Heartless form it was stuck in when Riku defeats Ansem, as the boy used his ability to communicate with Heartless therefore finding out Guardian was Ansem's victim just as much as he was plus Kairi purifying Riku from the lingering taint of Ansem lets Terra to regain his Heart & properly communicate with Riku instead of staying as Guardian Heartless; they both learn from each other to be better people just as much as Riku learns new fighting skills from Terra), and Mickey (whose support is pivotal in Riku not being stuck as Ansem's victim forever).

Shiro/the Riku Replica's is Cid (who is a very grumpy man, but still good at teaching him various computer & aeroplane skills) and his wife Shera (who takes over handling the lessons whenever he has to go do something very important same as how he helps Shiro learn whilst she's busy plus both help the enbe find hir individuality).

Ephemer's is Ava (who in some ways is more a not-biological-nor-legally-adoptive older sister than a mentor, but does teach the enbe a lot 'bout various magic).

Skuld, Strelitzia, Olette, Pence, Hayner, James, Amber, Sofia, Lani, Kari, Ruby, Jade, Yufi, Yuna, Paine, Rikku, Tidus, and Wakka each have a mentor too. But this post is getting kinda long already, so maybe someday I'll write a Part 2 & a Part 3 covering theirs. Plus some of the adults had their own mentors, so I might do a Part 4 for them.

[smash-or-pass-hear-me-outs]

[crystal-bytes]

GIFTOBER 2023

DAY SIXTEEN: TROPES

ALLIANCE OF ALTERNATES in

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) / My Adventures with Superman 1x07 "Kiss Kiss Fall in Portal" (2023) / Kingdom Hearts III (2019) / Loki 1x04 "The Nexus Event" (2021) / The Flash 4x06 "When Harry Met Harry" (2017) / Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)

[holly-natnicole]

That's why Sora being the heroic Protagonist for most of the K.H. videogames works so well. The sadness and tradegy hits hard coz Sora is usually a cheerful, happy kid who simply wants to hang out with his friends and is excited to befriend new people. If Sora (or, in K.H.:Birth by Sleep's case, Aqua) was some angsty brooder most of the time, none of the bittersweet endings would have felt impactful; it all woulda been Heart-crushing.

You ever think about in almost every kingdom hearts game, it's a sad or bittersweet ending? Like pretty much every game ends on a low note. The characters are lost, or away from their friends, or just straight up die.

Kingdom Hearts is such a sad, tragic story.

[yankaze]

KH OC week 2024 - Day 2: Past What was your character creation process like?

this one will be morally difficult for me 😭😭

I didn't find much old art to show, but I think these ones will say a lot.

Hajime as a character has existed since 2016. In March 2016 (I was 13 uuum 13 ehem) I learned about KH and somewhere around the same time I came up with this, at that time - eh, I don't know- at least unoriginal character who was literally a goth Roxas (I didn't knew about the existence of AUs idk, and Roxas is already ''emo boy'', but 2007 was almost here idkkk, we can joke about it for a very long time actually, but the fact remains a fact).

His name changed many times and there was no special meaning behind them (Sea, Syon), I just liked the way they sounded. I can answer the question why I named him ''Hajime'' right now. Internet says: ''Hajime (Japanese: はじめ) is a Japanese name meaning "beginning" (初め, 始め)''. I liked the way it sounded and its meaning and it gave me a hint where to move the character's story now.

+ in the Hajime's story he chooses this name for himself, because obviously no one gave name to him, but he needed a word to talk about himself and (i'm not sure about that) in the book he finds this name and I can say that it was chosen by him randomly.

He had a terrible written story on the basis of some other AU (???) and without сorvalol I can’t read it, even though it’s stored somewhere in my old dms from those years, I still don’t want to show it 😭

Around 2017 and up until 2019, I tried to make... something... out of him. It feels more like I just periodically returned to KH in a fit of baseless nostalgia and I really wanted to shove a “piece of myself” into this universe (which was already tired of me lmao).

2019 reminded me about KH in the form of KH III release and... this character again (+ my friend's kh oc- Jun).

I think that for a long time I didn't wanted to fundamentally change his concept (which was literally just that he exists and somehow travels around the worlds) because I was emotionally attached to this character. In essence, he was not just a character for me, but also memories that were triggered by each repeated hyperfixation on this universe.

It seems to me that the most obvious indicator of how I jumped back and forth into the KH universe is noticeable by the fact that it gave me the opportunity to look at one of my redraw series with this character through the years.

From 2020 to 2023 there was a long lull with this character.

2023 has been jUiCy in rethinking from the start because the long break gave me the opportunity to finally stop give in to nostalgia (or at least less) and loosen my emotional attachments to unworkable concepts. Therefore, this character now has the opportunity to finally become something better than a copy of another character.

However, this epic attempt was quickly abandoned as soon as the hyperfix ended.

We've reached the present time (mid-2024).

I slammed my fist on the table and decided to finally play through ALL the Kingdom Hearts games (that was therapy for my soul) and finally my understanding of KH universe became kinda complete (I still don't understand everything, the plot is very complex u'know). From what I began to understand, I decided to give this character another chance and close this damned gestalt.

This story is still ongoing, but I told in general details everything that happened to this character all these 8 years. This actually shows not only how the character changed, but also how I changed as an artist. Even my ''psychological problems'' can be seen through this story, and what amazes me the most is how over the years, using Hajime as an example, my drawing skills improved.

At such moments, you understand that you are not standing still and thoughts about "I have no progress in my art" no longer arise.

@khoc-week