‘Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMix’ Announced, All ‘Kingdom Hearts’ Games Coming To PS4
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMix is coming to the PlayStation 4 on March 28, 2017 in North America. The European release date is set a few days later on March 31. This marks the second release of the Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 and 2.5 remakes, as they were originally made available on the PlayStation 3 console. This updated HD compilation puts both remakes on one disc and boasts a gameplay frame rate of 60 fps (frames per second) as confirmed by Square Enix.
Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX will be released on one disc and the gameplay will be in 60fps. Please wait for further info. pic.twitter.com/lhoiE6CSzO
— KINGDOM HEARTS (@KINGDOMHEARTS) October 27, 2016
The new collection makes nearly every Kingdom Hearts game playable on PS4. Players get the “Final Mix” versions of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II. They also get Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories, which is a 3D remake of the Nintendo DS game that bridges the gap between the first and second games. Also included is the Final Mix remake of the first and only Kingdom Hearts PSP game, Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep.
The publisher has outlined the complete contents of the Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 disc as follows:
- Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
- Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories
- Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days (HD remastered cinematics)
- Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix
- Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix
- Kingdom Hearts Re:coded
Kingdom Hearts celebrates its 15th anniversary in 2017. The beloved series from Square Enix and Disney made its debut exclusively on the PlayStation 2 console in 2002. Kingdom Hearts II emerged three years later in 2005. Fans have been awaiting Kingdom Hearts III ever since. The first numbered entry in the series in over five years is coming to both PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, skipping the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 console generation altogether.
To set the stage for the highly-anticipated third game of the series, Final Fantasy 2.8 HD Final Chapter Prologue is set to make its debut in January 2017. It includes a brand-new adventure starring Aqua, titled Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep – A fragmentary passage –. Completing the 2.8 set is a movie that highlights the origins of the keyblade masters titled Kingdom Hearts ? [chi] Back Cover and the remastered version of Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance.
Replaying the Kingdom Hearts 1.5 and 2.5 remakes may help fans uncover some of the series’ mysteries. As recently revealed in an interview with series Director Tetsuya Nomura in Dengeki PlayStation, the cover art for the remakes have some hidden messages for fans to decipher.
“There are actually two secrets about the illustrations from [KH1.5] until [KH2.8]. Extremely attentive KH fans might have already discovered them, but one is that Sora’s movements change from sitting, to standing, to walking. One more is that when you line up the three illustrations, you’ll notice that they show the flow of time with changes in the sky. [KH1.5] is sunset becoming night, [KH2.5] is the middle of the night, and [KH2.8] is night breaking into dawn. Those three illustrations have a message regarding the final chapter, [KHIII].”
“We worried a long time about the package art for [KH2.5], and we worked on trying to connect the three productions in a continual manner. It seems like there were a lot of people who figured out Sora’s movements, but there were not very many people who noticed the connection between the skies. There are two meanings to “sora” (I.E. one being the protagonist’s name, and the other meaning “sky”).”
Those without a PS4 can still get some insight into Kingdom Hearts III by playing the new mobile game that came to North America earlier this year, Kingdom Hearts Unchained ? (pronounced “unchained key”). Nomura previously explained that the mobile game’s storyline serves as a bridge to Kingdom Hearts 2.8 and Kingdom Hearts III. A second season for Unchained ? is currently in development.
To see what Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMix looks like on PS4, see the announcement trailer below.
[Featured Image by Square Enix/Disney]
