lightmywaytodawn

[lightmywaytodawn]

Can we talk about Riku’s ending for a minute?

We’ve focused so much on the other trios finally getting their happy endings that I feel like something very important has gotten swept away on the tide. It’s totally understandable—we’ve waited nearly a decade for closure on the Wayfinder and Sea-salt trios, so of course that takes precedence. In fact, their fates are what make the ending so happy in spite of the agonizing blow we suffer with Sora and Kairi.

At the end of the game, everything is bright. Those who were lost have been found; those who were forgotten, remembered. Reunions, tears, embraces—it was everything we wanted and then some. Now, everyone faces the shining moment when they can go home together, just like they wanted. Another ice cream under a brilliant sunset. Another night shared beneath the same stars. It’s achievable now. It can happen.

But not for Riku.

This isn’t joy. This isn’t victory.

It’s loneliness in the middle of a crowd. It’s despair even when the hearts connected to his are still right there. We know this. We’ve seen it before.

This is how Riku handles being alone, sacrificing what his own heart desires in order to do what he feels is best for the people most important to him. As he steels himself and prepares to let Sora venture—alone—into the unknown, he is very well aware of what it means for him. He’s been there before, after all.

For someone who believed on so many occasions that he would never make it home, how odd it must feel to be the only one going.

That’s what’s so heartbreakingly tragic about Riku’s ending compared to the others: there’s no together for him. Everyone else has people to go home with and lives to get back to.

But what’s Riku doing? He’s still working. He doesn’t clock out, because why should he? What’s waiting for him at home besides an empty place where his best friends used to be? (And probably a truancy officer, but I think we can safely assume his parents unenrolled him from school a while ago at this point.) Riku is a Keyblade Master now, and without anything to return to, it’s understandable that he takes this opportunity to keep working. To fulfill a promise to an old friend. What else does he have to do? If he doesn’t busy himself with that, he’ll be all alone, right?

Wrong.

Riku doesn’t get a touching trio scene. He doesn’t get the sense of normality the others can claim again. Two pieces of him—of all of us—are missing, possibly forever as far as they know.

But he’s not alone. He was prepared to be, but he’s not. His friends won’t let him, which I like to think Sora knew.

That’s why I loved that they saved his scenes for last. Seeing all those beautiful moments of friendship and camaraderie between the other groups built up to this: a chance to witness him surrounded by friends instead of darkness, not isolated by his solitude so much as comforted by the people who care about him. Included. Perhaps even more heartwarming is that they all came together here on the Destiny Islands—Riku’s territory—in the most obvious, amazing show of solidarity possible. Words aren’t needed. It doesn’t have to be explained. You can feel it.

See that smile? I didn’t notice it until I paused for the screenshot. Maybe it’s not the best quality image, but I decided not to get another one. That smile explains why all on its own.

[lightmywaytodawn]

They did do this in the JP version

Okay, but imagine Repliku, right before he fades away, looking at Riku and saying, “Take care of her.”

[lightmywaytodawn]

Riku cat

[lightmywaytodawn]

a pledge to always keep you safe

[lightmywaytodawn]

Kingdom Hearts III manga confirmed by latest issue of Shonen GanGan; Shiro Amano returning to the series!

[lightmywaytodawn]

Repliku Death Scene JP to ENG Comparison

Repliku’s final line was supposed to be a parallel to Riku’s from the KH1 ending. In the Japanese version it was, but it was something that got overlooked in English.

Riku: カイリをたのむぜ (kairi wo tanomuze)

Translation: I’m entrusting Kairi to you.

Repliku: 頼んだぞ (tanondazo)

Translation: I’ve entrusted you [to take care of Namine]

Compared to the English...

Riku: Take care of her.

This is pretty accurate to the JP.

Repliku: Good luck.

This completely misses all nuances and parallels of the scene.

The rest of the scene was fairly 1:1 from Eng to JP, so I found it a bit odd that only this callback got seemingly glossed over.

[lightmywaytodawn]

On the sleepng realm theory....

It points out some interesting things, but on the whole, I'm not finding myself on board with it.

I don't have an issue with people making far-fetched theories, and I think people are allowed freedom in expressing them. But I do feel that it also creates a bit of false hope, especially with how far spread this particular one went.

This isn't directed at anything or anyone, I just want to put my thoughts out there. Includes some ship talk.

First, things I did find interesting. One was Kairi's hoodie. The whole time I actually thought they were panda ears as I didn't look closely enough to notice the drooped shape. Whether it actually has meaning, I don't know, but the ears are indeed Chirithy-shaped.

KH3 did at its very core feels odd. But whether that’s just a case of bad writing, or some ridiculously convoluted bs-plotline going on in the background, is another matter.

I will admit they clearly put a lot of thought and effort into the theory. The dedication to write that much and find screenshots and gifs of all scenes in question must have taken a lot of time. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that over-analyzing every small detail is a good thing.

My biggest issue is on the things that they really reach for, especially regarding Kairi’s scenes. Saying that she didn’t take a bite of the paopu fruit, or that the scenes aren’t romantic-coded is cherry picking. I also have serious contention with her being labeled as “not the real Kairi”, as she already gets shafted by the writing staff enough without that. I flat out don’t like Sora and Kairi in a romantic relationship--but KH3 has made it explicitly clear that they are endgame. The signs have been there since KH1. While I do think the whole thing regarding her heart missing raises a lot of questions, I can’t bring myself to agree that they’ve gone through the same scenario x amount of times. Time loop has been done a million times before, and very, very few series have actually made it worthwhile. As convoluted as KH already is, this is one route I really don’t want it to take. Time traveling as it is is messy enough, and if Nomura really goes for time loop, then I really might quit.

The writers also seem to be writing off the fact that only Dream Eaters can appear in the Sleeping Realm. They also seem to be confusing the Datascape of KHUx with it, or mixing them to create an entirely unheard of Realm altogether. Any response I see in question to that evades really answering the question. Though by far the most reaching part might very well be the logo. I can’t see it as anything but a diagonal gradient.

The whole doc also reads from a shipper bias. Which is not something I think is particularly bad, and you can never hide your biases 100%. But when it comes to the fact that they’re very clearly downplaying Sora and Kairi scenes, while overanalyzing every Riku and Sora scene, it comes off more as a disappointment with what they were given. While I won’t defend Sora and Kairi’s relationship, since she’s off screen 95% of the time and never given a chance to actually gain natural development with him, it’s just silly to go and say that those scenes had no romantic intent. I’ve seen both the JP and Eng version, and based on cultural nuances, I don’t think those scenes were intended as friendship or parting. They were clearly wrapping up the romantic sub-plot that’s happened since KH1. Hand-holding in particular is a much bigger thing in Japan than it is in the West.

I will admit that JP->Eng translation for some scenes on Riku’s part came off with less impact. Japanese however is a very contextual language, and the same word can be translated multiple ways depending purely on context. The one that comes up in the document most is 大���な人. Essentially meaning, someone precious. For it to be translated on Hercules side as the one he loves most makes sense, because we all know Hercules and Meg’s relationship is romantic, and the West in general writes far more openly romantic than Japan does. While I didn’t like how it was translated on Riku’s side, using “important/precious person” over “true love” still would have made more sense. Again with the Elsa and Anna mirrors. The intent was familial love. I do wish they had translated the 俺は信じる、お前はあきらめない part more accurately, as it does show his faith  in Sora better.

And this brings me to the false hope part. Kingdom Hearts is, for all intents and purposes, a Japanese game made by middle-aged Japanese men, and co-owned by Disney. Even if I could argue that Riku maybe has one-sided feelings for Sora, if you expect the game devs to ever confirm something to that extent, then you’re barking up the wrong tree. And this is from the point of view for someone who has shipped them for 13 years of my life. Because yes, they have a really well developed relationship, due to the amount of focus both characters get in each game. But I knew deep down since KH1 that it would never go anywhere. I accepted it long ago. Yet now I’m seeing people gain hope from this doc that maybe it still has a canon chance, and this is what I feel is disingenuous to the fandom. I don’t want to see others get their hopes up for future installments only to end up getting hurt.

I want to be clear that I won’t stop shipping them just because my ship sunk in canon. And I won’t say I’m okay with it either. At first I shrugged it off, but it kind of hit much later on that I wasn’t really ready to see it happen. The writers of the doc seem to be dealing with escapism. Which is fine, you don’t have to accept canon, but that they or others who’ve read the theory seem to aggressively be pushing it, is what puts a bad taste in my mouth.

They also give Nomura a lot of credit for things he’s pulled out of his ass for the past 17 years to keep the series going. And I’m just personally not a fan of the whole “it was all a dream”. I feel that to say that for a game people waited so long for is a low blow to the fans. At least in DDD, the dream instances were obvious from the start, and Riku had the big glowing Dream Eater sigil on his back. It wasn’t using hidden or trick narrative--it was stupidly simple, and in plain sight. Which is what a lot of KH is, under the surface--stupidly simple. Just told in an overly convoluted, pointlessly roundabout way.

I also fail to see how anyone can take Yozora as anything but Nomura’s salt about Noctis and Versus. How his salt affected KH3 though is a topic for another time.

Either way... people are free to believe what they want, and support what they want. But I can’t in good faith tell people to have hope that Riku and Sora would ever become a canon couple. Not with my extensive experience with Japanese media.

[lightmywaytodawn]

Xehanort takes the saying “If you want something done right, do it yourself” to a whole new level.

[lightmywaytodawn]

I meant just the worst version of Kairi. I thought she was at her worst in KH2, getting kidnapped twice, being used for fanservice with the programmers having rendered her panties for you to see if you adjusted the camera just right, and so on.

I think getting kidnapped and then dying twice is worse, especially after her speech, but to each their own.

I’ve admittedly never actually tried to get a panty shot in KH2, so I can’t confirm that without checking, but I honestly would not be surprised. So many games have done it.

[lightmywaytodawn]

The way heroines and love interests are treated in shounen series is actually the #1 reason I’ve sworn off shounen manga (Weekly Shounen Jump especially, in particular). Times like these, I think it’s a shame that shounen is the most widespread of any genre.

I definitely agree on the use of that trope. I was very disappointed that they gave Kairi strong lines like wanting to be the one to protect Sora this time, to do nothing with it. It was a cheap attempt to make it look like he had plans for her, only to ultimately make those words mean nothing. Right now I’m more let down than angry, but I almost had to put down the controller and walk away while I played. I’m quite upset that Ultimania revealed Kairi had no part in rescuing Namine. It could have been a great chance for her to gain the Power of Waking that Sora and Riku have to bring Namine back into existence, and to put her on equal footing with them. It’s just as you said, Nomura is such a misogynist that he can’t even fulfill promises for the female characters. It’s a bit sad that Xion, who came into existence from Sora’s memories of Kairi, ended up having a better developed character arc than Kairi herself. KH3 in many ways was a disappointing follow up to several female characters arcs, and like you and I, many of us female fans are beyond sick of seeing it. Unfortunately I don’t think old male Japanese writers will change their way anytime soon, but I’ll be damned if they still fail to gain any consequences from it. And with KH3′s sales numbers, that time is likely still yet to come.

Over 20 years of consuming media and growing up on shounen works, I really am far past my limit of seeing it, and trying to accept that it’s something that will keep happening for quite a while still. I can’t blame you for leaving KH after this--even I’m not sure how to approach the future of the series. At best I’ll give the next game a chance, and if Nomura still persistently continues his sexist ventures, then I’m out.

I didn’t expect this to go anywhere since I was just blurting out my unfiltered thoughts, but I’m glad you pointed out things that I missed or had simply forgotten (which, it’s admittedly hard to remember everything in a series this long). It’s also given me some new things to think about.

KH3 and Kairi

This is a topic that’s been covered a lot, and while I don’t think I have any new insight on the matter, it’s something that’s still egging me on enough to write about.

I don’t dislike Kairi but I’m really neutral to her existence, mostly for the fact that she’s just… kind of there.

Kairi has always existed in a sort of vacuum–she exists only when the plot calls for it, and has otherwise been fairly irrelevant. She’s used to give Sora motivation, and never got a chance to grow into her own. Even for a Nomura heroine, she’s by far the most detached, and least developed as a person that he’s written.

Despite this though, her roles in KH1 and 2 were tolerable. In KH1 she was just the waiting girl, in KH2 she at least tried–albeit failed–to do something about her situation. At the very least I appreciate that small bit of character we got from her in KH2.

Then KH3 comes along and blows any chance of her getting a proper character arc into oblivion. She’s training to use a Keyblade, though very inexperienced. So while she wouldn’t be able to stand her ground against Xehanort, it could have been beneficial to at least have her help out now and then on the journey. We have her as an NPC in one battle only, and in the cutscenes during that battle, she lacks any kind of role, except for getting kidnapped. Again. She’s again sort of just there, like she has been the whole game. We get glimpses of her training scenes, and she’s there when everyone regroups at Yen Sid’s Tower–and that’s about it.

I can’t say I expected her to actually be well written at this point, especially with my experiences of other games Nomura has worked on. But the fact is that quite a lot of people did expect something greater for her. She was hyped up to finally amount to something–only to get fridged again. Only to be used as a cheap plot device to make Sora sad. Again.

And this is the thing that I have most contention with. While it was fairly obvious from KH1 that Sora and Kairi would eventually be endgame, it’s still on my list of top 5 worst written relationships I’ve ever seen. Nomura made no effort whatsoever to develop their relationship past that what we’re told. We know they’re childhood friends, that they care a lot about each other. We see it in some scenes–but what we never actually get to see is a solid foundation for their relationship, or get to see it naturally develop, because Kairi is off screen for 95% of the series. They don’t even talk to each at Yen Sid’s Tower. Their only interactions in all of KH3 was near end game, when the writers seemed to suddenly remember “right, they like each other.” After this many games and so little connection, it was hard to watch. The scenes themselves were actually fairly decent, and would have been touching had they actually had proper buildup and if their relationship had any context. Kairi had more natural chemistry with her few interactions with Axel/Lea than anything. I kind of wanted to root for this.

At one point I had hoped that Nomura might drop the romance subplot, and go for a purely friendship trio, a la Wayfinder Trio or Sea-Salt Trio. Based on what we were given, I can believe that everyone in those trios equally care for one another. But the Destiny Islands trio is bogged down by bad writing. Sora and Kairi care for each other, Sora and Riku care for each other, and while we’re told that Riku and Kairi care for one another, when do we ever get to see them interact? I’m honestly trying to remember if those two ever had a private conversation in the course of the series. While both Riku and Kairi are connected to Sora, I still cannot feel any connection between Riku and Kairi. 

Kairi has again and again been the weakest link in the series, and KH3 was the epitome of it. I have no reason to hope or believe at this point that Nomura will actually do anything substantial with her. I’m just disappointed at how long this act has gone on.

Nomura writing a heroine solely to be a love interest and with no real depth is nothing new, and it’s such a common trope in Japan that it’s not something that will change anytime soon. But this is the only instance in Nomura’s games specifically that it has infuriated me.

Unfortunately in KH3 it didn’t just stop at Kairi. Aqua was nerfed, constantly needing to be saved after she stood her ground ferociously in BBS. Namine’s only voiced lines are in a missable cutscene. Xion exists with no explanation (albeit this one is hinted to be explained soon).

I wish she was better written, and that I actually could care for her. But canon has given me no reason for it. On this point I’m actually quite amazed by her fans–I can’t imagine going so far for a character this badly butchered. It would be nice if your thoughts could reach Nomura someday.

[lightmywaytodawn]

You thought KH3 Kairi was the worst? I disagree, she at least got shit done and managed to save everyone (even though she shouldn't have been kidnapped and then killed off).

I’m honestly not sure if you mean the worst version of her, or something else. You don’t have to agree with me but my opinion on her role in KH3 won’t change. These are just my personal thoughts.

It’s just that, it felt so pointless to have her say strong lines like “This time I’ll be the one to protect you” only to get kidnapped and killed. It’s a red herring in the worst sense.

[lightmywaytodawn]

So here’s a bunch of confirmed stuff from the Ultimania, for those who want to read through it all in a single place.

Keep reading

[lightmywaytodawn]

A sort of indulging thought...

Putting Riku and Sora scenes to Bonnie Pink’s Kane wo Narashite (Ring A Bell).

It’s the OP from a game called Tales of Vesperia, and both the Japanese and English version lyrics are quite fitting at points for them, I think, since the central theme is two sides: light and dark.

Listen to the Japanese version here, and the English version here.

Some excerpts from the lyrics.

Japanese version:

Hikari wa kage no, kage wa hikari no hate made tsuite iku no darou boku ga waratte ikite ita no nara kane wo narashite, kimi ni shirase yo

...

Sekai wa shiro ka kuro, heiwa ka arasoi Heads or tails, you and I, light and dark, ups and downs Sono mannaka de bokutachi wa itsuka deai te wo tsunagu darou ka

Translation:

Light is shadow, shadow is light They will follow the other to the end As long as I am laughing and living I will ring a bell to let you know

...

Is the world white or black, is it peaceful or full of conflict? Heads or tails, you and I, light and dark, ups and downs Will we one day meet and join hands amidst that?

English version:

Why were we there back to back? Why were we there face to face? I must be the light when you're in the dark If you lose me somewhere, and your tears are in the air I will ring a bell until you feel me by your side

...

What has been in the mix too long? There's the peace when you're at war Heads or tails, You and I Light and dark, Ups and downs What has been in the mere goal? What's there to divide us? If you're hurt, cry and say can't you see your might of the heart

It was a bit of a fun thought I had. I don’t actually have time to make AMVs, but I thought others might enjoy the image of it at least!

[lightmywaytodawn]

How can you complain about KH3 when 2 was worse in almost every single way?

I have a lot of issues with KH2′s story as well, and from a gameplay standpoint, KH3 certainly is fun! And Kh3 has some very sweet moments in its plot, like the R/A/X and T/A/V reunions. However, on the whole, I feel its story suffers significantly, and even with its faults, KH2 is the better realized story and handles its characters far more respectfully.This is going to be a bit wordy, so please bear with me.

One big issue I have with KH3′s story is the way it backloads its core plot progression to the very end. The vast majority of the Disney worlds feel even more like diversions than in previous games. While Toy Box and Monstropolis have a ton of creativity, charm, and heart put into them and bring new and engaging scenarios, worlds like Arendelle reek of executive meddling with the way Sora/Donald/Goofy repeatedly get torn away from the actual characters of Frozen, there’s the pointless Olaf minigame, and we see so little of the world. No troll village. No actual exploration of Arendelle. It feels like a significant step back when KH2 allowed people to explore large chunks of iconic Disney settings.KH3 still has very sharp dialogue and the dynamic between Sora/Donald/Goofy is great, but if you look at KH2, you’ll find that it handles its ensemble cast far better. In KH2, King Mickey is EXTREMELY powerful and hyped up throughout the game. If you die, he can come in and save you from challenging boss fights. When he finally appears in Hollow Bastion, he’s treated with dignity and looks like a total badass. That moment when he tore off the Organization cloak was extremely epic for what basically amounted to the cheery, cartoony face of the Walt Disney company.And it’s not just Mickey. Riku, who wasn’t even a Master yet, repeatedly helped in the background, and by the time he became a party member, he was cool. He was powerful. It was exciting to finally fight side by side with him! Not once did it feel like he had to take a step back to make Sora look better. In fact, he saved Sora during the final boss! It was great.But then we have KH3, where Riku and Mickey fail to save Aqua twice. They get their asses handed to them by the Demon Tower even though Mickey had already faced the Demon Tide alongside Aqua and thwarted it. Riku, who did NOT lose his abilities like Sora allegedly did, gets his ass handed to him when he’s faced much greater threats, and TWO Keyblade Masters are unable to rescue one and require Sora to dive in and save them.These characters who were hyped up in KH2 and treated with dignity suddenly job to Sora because he’s the main character. And like I said before, I think this is a disservice to Sora, too, because all these big savior moments don’t feel earned due to him just waffling around the Disney worlds through most of the game, half of which are just movie plot retreads (while the others are certainly fun- VANYEETAS is legendary).

Keep reading

[lightmywaytodawn]

KH3 and Kairi

This is a topic that’s been covered a lot, and while I don’t think I have any new insight on the matter, it’s something that’s still egging me on enough to write about.

I don’t dislike Kairi but I’m really neutral to her existence, mostly for the fact that she’s just... kind of there.

Kairi has always existed in a sort of vacuum--she exists only when the plot calls for it, and has otherwise been fairly irrelevant. She’s used to give Sora motivation, and never got a chance to grow into her own. Even for a Nomura heroine, she’s by far the most detached, and least developed as a person that he’s written.

Despite this though, her roles in KH1 and 2 were tolerable. In KH1 she was just the waiting girl, in KH2 she at least tried--albeit failed--to do something about her situation. At the very least I appreciate that small bit of character we got from her in KH2.

Then KH3 comes along and blows any chance of her getting a proper character arc into oblivion. She’s training to use a Keyblade, though very inexperienced. So while she wouldn’t be able to stand her ground against Xehanort, it could have been beneficial to at least have her help out now and then on the journey. We have her as an NPC in one battle only, and in the cutscenes during that battle, she lacks any kind of role, except for getting kidnapped. Again. She’s again sort of just there, like she has been the whole game. We get glimpses of her training scenes, and she’s there when everyone regroups at Yen Sid’s Tower--and that’s about it.

I can’t say I expected her to actually be well written at this point, especially with my experiences of other games Nomura has worked on. But the fact is that quite a lot of people did expect something greater for her. She was hyped up to finally amount to something--only to get fridged again. Only to be used as a cheap plot device to make Sora sad. Again.

And this is the thing that I have most contention with. While it was fairly obvious from KH1 that Sora and Kairi would eventually be endgame, it’s still on my list of top 5 worst written relationships I’ve ever seen. Nomura made no effort whatsoever to develop their relationship past that what we’re told. We know they’re childhood friends, that they care a lot about each other. We see it in some scenes--but what we never actually get to see is a solid foundation for their relationship, or get to see it naturally develop, because Kairi is off screen for 95% of the series. They don’t even talk to each at Yen Sid’s Tower. Their only interactions in all of KH3 was near end game, when the writers seemed to suddenly remember “right, they like each other.” After this many games and so little connection, it was hard to watch. The scenes themselves were actually fairly decent, and would have been touching had they actually had proper buildup and if their relationship had any context. Kairi had more natural chemistry with her few interactions with Axel/Lea than anything. I kind of wanted to root for this.

At one point I had hoped that Nomura might drop the romance subplot, and go for a purely friendship trio, a la Wayfinder Trio or Sea-Salt Trio. Based on what we were given, I can believe that everyone in those trios equally care for one another. But the Destiny Islands trio is bogged down by bad writing. Sora and Kairi care for each other, Sora and Riku care for each other, and while we’re told that Riku and Kairi care for one another, when do we ever get to see them interact? I’m honestly trying to remember if those two ever had a private conversation in the course of the series. While both Riku and Kairi are connected to Sora, I still cannot feel any connection between Riku and Kairi. 

Kairi has again and again been the weakest link in the series, and KH3 was the epitome of it. I have no reason to hope or believe at this point that Nomura will actually do anything substantial with her. I’m just disappointed at how long this act has gone on.

Nomura writing a heroine solely to be a love interest and with no real depth is nothing new, and it’s such a common trope in Japan that it’s not something that will change anytime soon. But this is the only instance in Nomura’s games specifically that it has infuriated me.

Unfortunately in KH3 it didn’t just stop at Kairi. Aqua was nerfed, constantly needing to be saved after she stood her ground ferociously in BBS. Namine’s only voiced lines are in a missable cutscene. Xion exists with no explanation (albeit this one is hinted to be explained soon).

I wish she was better written, and that I actually could care for her. But canon has given me no reason for it. On this point I’m actually quite amazed by her fans--I can’t imagine going so far for a character this badly butchered. It would be nice if your thoughts could reach Nomura someday.

[lightmywaytodawn]

Dengeki Online has published a new interview with Kingdom Hearts III director Tetsuya Nomura, who discusses the addition of “Critical Mode” and future downloadable content.

Here are the notable tidbits:

As far as I can see of the specific data, including the download version, sales numbers were good and far beyond my own expectations. We’re currently working on downloadable content, so I don’t quite have the feeling that we’ve finished yet, and I’ve been sleeping less post-release.

Before, Critical Mode was not in the original versions, but in the Final Mix versions [of the Kingdom Hearts games], so this time we’re going to release it as an update at a later date. It’s not about simply changing the numerical value to be stronger, we’re readjusting and debugging. Rather than just making it more difficult, we’re making adjustments to pinpoint a level of fun unique to Critical Mode.

There is all sorts of speculation in regards to the Secret Movie, but it isn’t so simple that it can be understood at this point in time.

While we’ve previously prepared “Final Mix” versions as separate packages, this time I want to add all additional elements through downloadable content. We will offer free downloadable content from what can be done through additional updates, but we’re also planning paid downloadable content to release several elements together as a batch. That being said, paid downloadable content will take a little while to produce, but I would like to finish within the year and have the team move on to its next work.

As for the future of the Kingdom Hearts series, while we’ve had various discussions, whether there will be anything, or whether we do something is still up in the air. I already have a full schedule for the rest of the year.

The following tidbits should be considered spoilers (translated by Cody Arnold, as I have not finished—well, started—Kingdom Hearts III yet):

Keep reading

[lightmywaytodawn]

So the new interview had a few interesting points... Namely on hints at Subject X’s identity, and the bit about DLC.

Subject X seems to be heavily hinted to be Ava. I already guessed that much before, now it really only needs confirmation. While Skuld is still a possibility, my gut leans to Ava based on what’s been said. I’m assuming the Nameless Star identity will be revealed in KHUX (though most people I think already have a fair guess at her identity).

I expected DLC but I’m not sure how I feel about it. I imagine the free ones will be gameplay related--the Critical Mode, maybe some more secret bosses--while the paid DLC will likely be story related. If the interview is anything to go by, one will focus on Xion. I wonder if this means we’ll actually get the chance to control other characters. While it would be nice if it helps to fill in some gaps, even in this DLC era I still can’t bring myself to be okay with the paid story DLC model.