An aspect of the Kingdom Hearts series that every fan looks forward to with each new release is the announcement of new Disney worlds to explore. Since the start of the series, Disney has become both more liberal with the usage of its properties in the series, incorporating worlds like Tron and Mickey, Donald, and Goofy: The Three Musketeers, as well as have acquired new properties that could potentially be explored, such as Pixar, Marvel, and LucasFilms.
Up until now several new and exciting worlds have been announced for Kingdom Hearts 3. This includes the worlds of Big Hero 6, Tangled, Hercules (an old fan favorite but with new areas to explore), and Mysterious Tower (Yen Sid’s tower). Here’s a list of more worlds we would like to see in Kingdom Hearts 3. We tried to pull from the entire vault of Disney properties, going back as early as we could and into the modern era as well.
Let us know your most wanted world in the comments and we will incorporate the top mentions in our reader’s choice write up!
Monsters Inc.
I’ll be getting a lot of flack for this, but Monster’s Inc. is easily my favorite Pixar movie (with Finding Nemo/Finding Dory a close number 2). What better world to incorporate into the Kingdom Hearts series from Pixar’s amazing backlog than one already filled with unique and creative monsters of all types. Mike and Sully’s budding relationship could be used to juxtapose with that of Sora and Riku, or other characters. It would also be incredibly fun to roam the halls of the Monster’s Inc. facility, as well as the city in which the monsters live. With flowmotion already confirmed for Kingdom Hearts 3, the chase sequence where Sully and Mike try to get Boo back home while Randall chases them through a fast moving factory assembly line would make for the perfect sequence. And this may be a little unconventional, but a Boo summon anyone?
Fantasia 2000
On a personal note, the Fantasia level, Symphony of Sorcery, in Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance HD was one of my favorites. This was primarily due to a host of factors. First, all the zany and diverse environments they were able to incorporate into a single world, as Fantasia is a movie that is a compilation of several mini segments, each taking place in a different environment. Second, the musical reality shifts which were among the more fun in the title, and the beautiful background music (a testament to the diverse range Yoko Shimomura has) throughout. I could really listen to that music all day!
All of these elements apply to Fantasia 2000, the spiritual successor to the original 1940’s Fantasia. In addition to a recreation of the iconic “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice”, featuring series favorite Mickey Mouse, Fantasia 2000 also includes a segment with the much beloved Donald Duck. The firebird, a Phoenix-like beast in a rendition of Igor Stravinsky’s Firebird Suite, could serve as an amazing boss fight for the world.
The Emperor’s New Groove
While not the biggest Disney commercial success, The Emperor’s New Groove was generally well received. The movie is filled with humor that as a world in Kingdom Hearts 3 would be very much appreciated to balance out some of the more action focused worlds. It’s story of focusing on what’s inside instead of on outwardly appearances is something that would resonate with all ages.
The setting and characters would greatly benefit Kingdom Hearts 3 as well. The malicious Yzma would make a good addition to the slate of Disney Villains, fitting right in with the likes of Maleficent, Pete, Hades, and others. South America is an environment not yet explored in the series. With The Emperor’s New Groove taking place in Peru, this would allow for another region of the world to be represented, and Peru would look gorgeous on current gen hardware (some of the Tangled environments we have already seen in trailers look stunning). The Emperor Kusco would make for a hilarious party member both in his human and llama form – and who knows, maybe we can have Sora and Co. transform into animals as well!
The Black Cauldron
You might be asking, what movie?! For those that do not know, The Black Cauldron is a Disney cult classic. It does not get a lot of exposure from Disney, and it’s popularity mainly originates from a group of highly dedicated and vocal fans. This movie follows the young Taran, a princess, bard, and a dog like creature named Gurgi as they fight an evil King hell bent on conquering the world.
The reason fans have been begging for The Black Cauldron since the release of the original Kingdom Hearts in the early 2000’s is simple – this movie is dark, really dark, not something one typically expects out of a Disney movie. It seems all the more possible now that with Disney taking bigger bets in Kingdom Hearts with inclusions of more violent movies like Pirates of the Caribbean, that The Black Cauldron actually has a chance. I am sure there are a subset of fans that are eagerly awaiting for any glimmer of hope on this one.
Stay tuned for part two and be sure to comment below to have your vote added to our reader’s choice edition!
Kingdom Hearts 3 is currently in development for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, with no specific release date announced at this time.
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