Kingdom Hearts III is still scheduled to arrive in 2018 — probably — and it’s shaping up to be the dream game for fans of both Final Fantasy and Disney. The action-role-playing game will play similarly to the previous entries in the series, but the special new “Classic Kingdom” will take players back to the era of LCD handheld games.

Square Enix is giving Kingdom Hearts 3 players a double dose of nostalgia inspired by classic Disney animated shorts and 1980s-era LCD games with the role-playing game’s Classic Kingdom.

Kingdom Hearts 3’s Classic Kingdom minigames are inspired by classic Mickey Mouse cartoons, including “Giantland,” “The Karnival Kid,” “Musical Farmer” and “The Barnyard Battle,” and look like Game & Watch-style games. Those same minigames will also be playable in Kingdom Hearts Union χ Cross, Square Enix’s mobile RPG spin-off that was originally released in 2015.

Kingdom Hearts protagonist Sora will apparently be able to enjoy those Classic Kingdom games on a handheld device, as seen in the trailer above.

As you can see, the mini-games feature an old-school aesthetic similar to classic Nintendo Game and Watch titles. There’s no word yet on how you unlock or access these mini-games, and if there will be more than just the four currently announced. They’ll also be playable in the mobile RPG spinoff, Kingdom Hearts Union X.

Square Enix also announced up to 300 players will be selected to have their Union X names appear in a secret location within Kingdom Hearts III. Visit this website for more information.

Kingdom Hearts III takes us back to its colourful, Disney-inspired worlds sometime in 2018 on PS4 and Xbox One, and the minigames will be playable in both Kingdom Hearts III itself and the mobile game Kingdom Hearts: Union Cross.

Shenmue 1 and 2 are both being released as a collection set to release on PS4, Xbox One, and PC later this year. Its release date and pricing details haven’t been revealed yet, but we do know that it’ll include features such as fully scalable resolutions, modern and classic control schemes, English and Japanese voiceovers, and more. It’ll be available both at retail and in digital stores.

The last PS4 update seemed to be a small one for stability and minor system improvements; however, it appears that EU users’ data is being collected. European PS4 owners were greeted with the message that Sony “may collect data about this PS4 and how it is used” upon booting up. It’s unclear if data was collected previously, though this agreement is new. We go more in-depth in today’s episode, including what type of data is being collected and more.

EA’s new chief design officer Patrick Soderlund has promised not to repeat Star Wars Battlefront 2’s loot box issues. He discussed how it had an effect on EA as a company and how changing the progression in the Star Wars shooter worked out for them.

If you were hoping to see more of Darksiders III or Biomutant at E3 this year, then I’ve got some bad news for you–maybe not bad news for publisher THQ Nordic, though. The company has announced that instead of attending the gaming convention in June, it’ll stay home, drink beer, and watch the World Cup. You’ll have to wait a few more months to see any more of either game or the rest of the publisher’s catalog, as it plans to bring its games to future conventions.

And last but definitely not least, we were treated to quite the picture over the weekend. Persona 5: Dancing Star Night’s release date is set for May 24 in Japan, and it’ll feature DLC for Yakuza-themed costumes. Yes, we’ve got the protagonist as Kazuma Kiryu, Ann as Construction Majima, and best boy Ryuji as… well, Ryuji Goda. Unfortunately, however, there’s still no planned release date for the West. You can check out the costumes in the video above, as we discuss our love for both series.

Kingdom Hearts 3 is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2018.

Comments

comments