News ► Dengeki Playstation interviews Nomura on Kingdom Hearts 3

[SuperSaiyanSora]

Maybe Nomura just needs a damn break for once, also to get a hold of himself about the whole XV-saltmine.

Depending on where the FF 7 remake stands development wise there might simply be not much room to squeeze in new KH stuff beyond the KH III DLC right away.

This is what I think is really going on. The man's schedule is so jam-packed, and KH3 released at the end of January, we're just about to hit March. It's also pretty clear that from here on, his focus is going to be on FF7's remake and whatever else that takes priority.

He's been working on Kingdom Hearts non-stop, so he's probably just burnt out. Add to the fact that both the remake and KH3 are titles with a huge amount of pressure that come with it, I could see why he'd say something like "if". To me, KH3 delivered on what I wanted, might not be a perfect masterpiece, but it didn't need to be. So, I'm okay with waiting for a bit now, I'm full-speed ahead for the FF7 Remake. The paid DLC should be enough to tide me over.

Also, I realize that this is a hot take, but I actually loved the XV/Versus stuff in KH3. I personally don't mind the salt, but I can see why many wouldn't like it. If he can reuse ideas from a game that never got to see the light of day (HIS version, at least), and make it work, I'm all for it. May as well not let it go to waste, if he feels this passionate about it.

 

[Twilight Lumiair]

Not entirely sure how to feel about this interview tbh.
Not particularly excited for the Xion explanation DLC since A) she barely did or said anything in the game anyway, and B) it should have already been made clear in the game's vanilla version.
Not the biggest fan of the flashy gameplay in general, but critical mode should at least help make it more fun and engaging (even if my first time experience is already kinda tainted due to it's absence).
Nomura's comments about the series' future don't exactly get me excited or intrigued (though honestly I had mixed feelings about what we've seen of the next saga's direction anyway), and part of me doubts that if and when it does continue, the writing issues with the series are gonna get much better.

 

[Neo_]

The interviewer asked good questions and Nomura hit him with most bland answers (except for the DLC stuff which I’m excited for). But when Nomura says things like it’s simple to understand, then give him the answer if it’s so simple. He wouldn’t be asking if it was Einstein. I swear he does it for three questions in row saying “you should understand” and “you can figure it out” well dude it’s clearly questionable if someone is asking lol.

This interview was so bad hahaha: "Figure it yourself" or "tbd", hahaha.

 

[metro96]

This is what I think is really going on. The man's schedule is so jam-packed, and KH3 released at the end of January, we're just about to hit March. It's also pretty clear that from here on, his focus is going to be on FF7's remake and whatever else that takes priority.

He's been working on Kingdom Hearts non-stop, so he's probably just burnt out. Add to the fact that both the remake and KH3 are titles with a huge amount of pressure that come with it, I could see why he'd say something like "if". To me, KH3 delivered on what I wanted, might not be a perfect masterpiece, but it didn't need to be. So, I'm okay with waiting for a bit now, I'm full-speed ahead for the FF7 Remake. The paid DLC should be enough to tide me over.

Also, I realize that this is a hot take, but I actually loved the XV/Versus stuff in KH3. I personally don't mind the salt, but I can see why many wouldn't like it. If he can reuse ideas from a game that never got to see the light of day (HIS version, at least), and make it work, I'm all for it. May as well not let it go to waste, if he feels this passionate about it.

Still though, why commit yourself to releasing the epilogue and secret movie if you’re unsure if you’re going to do another chapter of the story any time soon. Since this was the end to a saga that spanned almost two decades, you could’ve left with the bittersweet resolution that came with the ending, and then only release the Epilogue and Secret Ending once you’ve locked in that you’re doing another game. Instead, the Epilogue and Secret Movie will hang out there for who knows how long without anything to drive the story forward. I still think it’s a huge business mistake to not release some sort of console game in the next couple years; it was one thing to wait all that time to get the conclusion of the Dark Seeker Saga, but it’s another to wait 4+ years to start a new story. I worry that the Kingdom Hearts series will lose its momentum

 

[Saken]

Doesn’t it irk anyone else the fact that every “explanation” is just thrown onto the braindead cop-out reason that is replicas?

 

[Sign]

Dunno why people are so upset that Nomura didn't give detailed answers for everything. It's not like we don't have a 736-page guidebook releasing today that has way more in-depth interviews, no sir.

 

[kaseykockroach]

"WHERE DID ISA GET THAT SCAR"
"Probably got scratched by an angry cat? I don't know, dude, let me sleep"

 

[FudgemintGuardian]

"WHERE DID ISA GET THAT SCAR"
"Probably got scratched by an angry cat? I don't know, dude, let me sleep"

Apprentice Xeehanort decided to slice some bread for Isa, but accidentally fell and gave Isa an X-shaped scar on his face.

 

[Hirokey123]

Reading the posts in this topic strongly make me think I should dust off my old "Xion's return explained: Now with pictures" topic idea and post it over in the spoilers since it's clear a lot of people here didn't get how Xion returned and that Nomura is absolutely right when he says you can figure it out from just what the game gives alone.

 

[furusatoe]

Something as big as the reason for Xion's return simply shouldn't be sequestered into a side report players may or may not read. It should be part of the main narrative, regardless of whether you can piece the puzzle together by reading the reports.

 

[Hirokey123]

Something as big as the reason for Xion's return simply shouldn't be sequestered into a side report players may or may not read. It should be part of the main narrative, regardless of whether you can piece the puzzle together by reading the reports.

It literally is part of the main narrative, almost everything the organization does in this game and like half the scenes with the heroes are all building up and explaining it.

 

[Zul]

My old headcanon for Isa's scar was when Apprentice Xehanort stabbed Xigbar, he then did that to all the other apprentices, then went to Isa and Lea who were being kept in one of the cells near the chamber of repose. Isa jumped in front of Lea to protect him, and got slashed twice.

 

[FudgemintGuardian]

It literally is part of the main narrative, almost everything the organization does in this game and like half the scenes with the heroes are all building up and explaining it.

Except after all that build up...she's still appears there without explanation. Nomura pretty much admits this in his answer. We can figure out why she's there, but not how she's there. Something is missing between the build up and payoff.

Otherwise there wouldn't be DLC, something that had to have been decided on at some point during KH3's development, that will explain it.

 

[DarkosOverlord]

I'm amazed that people are out here defending Xion in KH III as something neatly explained by the game's narrative.
Three hearts in Sora that need to come out.
A HUGE deal gets made about Ventus, where every part of him is and the actual rescue.
A big deal gets made about Roxas, how to fetch the body necessary and him getting out, while still embrassingly quick and rushed, is still motivated by what should be a deeply emotional moment of crisis with multiple events occurring.

Xion should be in Sora, apparently isn't or at some point isn't anymore, is now in a Replica without any [U][B]noticeable[/B][/U] trigger, pretty uncerimoniously she now exists and no one takes notice of that meanwhile Vexen gets multiple cutscenes about his revival, is now a member of the Organization of literally the people she hates the most for no real reason and fights the people she should love the most for no real reason (again, don't give me any nonexistant Xehanort's will as an answer to that) but sure, let's say it was perfectly done and understandable.

To me all the build up is about Replicas and hearts in Sora in general, with no real context clues being given that could even start to explain Xion's full return.
Nomura basically showed me a guy with pickles stuck in the fridge with neither the tools to get them out and a jar to put them in, making that dude and several others repeat "there are pickles in the fridge" and "we need a jar to put the pickles in", and then it cuts to the guy holding a jar full of pickles.

I did not figure out how and why Xion was there at all and I don't think it was my fault for not noticing such an impossible happenstance.
I don't want to read any theory involving time travel, world lines, or "101 ways you didn't know Replicas could be used for!" to get it.
I shouldn't even need to "get it". It should just be as obvious and portrayed as any other rescue.
And less of all it should be described in an Ultimania or an interview. We'll see about the DLC.

This is like blaming people for not getting that Sora came back due to Kairi's Princess of Heart powers in KH1 or that he was only a heart for the time being and/or not wanting to read a written explanation about that.
Except those instances are essentially "lore" that does not alter the understanding of the main events, while Xion is one of the main characters in a game that boasted about being the resolution to every one of them and their storylines, and as far as me and many others are concerned, she just randomly appears influencing what's happening in that moment by a lot.
Even if I could get it by reading some detailed explanation or theory, which I probably could and it might even make sense... why should I? Why is that of all things requested of me? Like, imagine being a Xion fan but not understanding why that happened thus deeply affecting your emotional investment in the scene. Why should these people be forced to play Doctor Layton to get an answer out of that.

Advocating for less nuance in videogames isn't the most thrilling argument, I'm aware, but not everything should be a treasure hunt, despite how clearly this excites many people.

 

[Hirokey123]

Except after all that build up...she's still appears there without explanation. Nomura pretty much admits this in his answer. We can figure out why she's there, but not how she's there. Something is missing between the build up and payoff.

Otherwise there wouldn't be DLC, something that had to have been decided on at some point during KH3's development, that will explain it.

Nomura says right there he believes you can figure it out yourself, he's always been one to not include direct explanations in the games themselves because he has a bad habit overestimating people's ability to connect the pieces he lays out until it's too late or more accurately he doesn't get that people don't connect and think things like him. Riku being behind the DtD and not trying to cross through, Roxas appearing out of nowhere to attack Sora and then suddenly being perfectly cool with Sora after their fight, Vanitas's face and Aqua planning to give Sora the ceremony but doesn't because of Riku, etc... I could make a huge list of things that Nomura has done this for. It's just how he writes, it's again a very bad habit of his and not just for this game honestly but any story he writes. There is nothing actually missing that is needed to understand Xion's return, all that isn't present is a scene where the game connects the pieces for you and those scenes generally do actually come around at some point but never in the first go around. The Final Mixes, Re:'s, and later games are where those explanations come in.

Just to be clear I think Nomura needs to stop this, that while it robs the mystery and appeal sometimes you have to bite that bullet and just spell things out. The secret reports themselves feel like the biggest misstep to me because they embody this bad habit. So much critical information and explanation are relegated to this multi-report text dumps when you could have so easily and organically incorporated almost all of it into the stories and they'd be stronger for it. Secret reports, Interviews, additional scenes added later, and/or making players wait nearly a decade for simple explanations like Vanitas face is something he needs to stop.

Chi has been the worst culprit of this in its entirety.

 

[Sephiroth0812]

Except after all that build up...she's still appears there without explanation. Nomura pretty much admits this in his answer. We can figure out why she's there, but not how she's there. Something is missing between the build up and payoff.

That's something which goes for several parts of KH III doesn't it?
Having a big build up and then a largely contextual and unexplained pay off is the usual modus operandi for KH though so I'm neither hugely surprised nor upset that much.

It's annoying, yeah, no contest, but not worth losing sleep over.

 

[2 quid is good]

Doesn’t it irk anyone else the fact that every “explanation” is just thrown onto the braindead cop-out reason that is replicas?

It honestly feels like Nomura suddenly remembered CoMs existence while he was figuring out how to untangle his mess

 

[Alpha Baymax]

I think it's time for everyone to accept that intentional ambiguity is a marketing tactic from Nomura to keep Kingdom Hearts discussion going, which is basically free marketing.

 

[FudgemintGuardian]

Nomura says right there he believes you can figure it out yourself, he's always been one to not include direct explanations in the games themselves because he has a bad habit overestimating people's ability to connect the pieces he lays out until it's too late or more accurately he doesn't get that people don't connect and think things like him. Riku being behind the DtD and not trying to cross through, Roxas appearing out of nowhere to attack Sora and then suddenly being perfectly cool with Sora after their fight, Vanitas's face and Aqua planning to give Sora the ceremony but doesn't because of Riku, etc...

I'm not sure those are the best examples because those either have the explanation right there or it's easy to give a reason for. Being at Memory Skyscraper triggered Roxas but seeing Sora's friends on the stained glass made him realize the kind of person Sora is. We know at the end of BBS that Ven and Sora are connected so we can figure that Vanitas looks like Sora because of that connection. Aqua explicitly says why she doesn't do the Keyblade Ceremony with Sora.

I could make a huge list of things that Nomura has done this for. It's just how he writes, it's again a very bad habit of his and not just for this game honestly but any story he writes. There is nothing actually missing that is needed to understand Xion's return, all that isn't present is a scene where the game connects the pieces for you and those scenes generally do actually come around at some point but never in the first go around. The Final Mixes, Re:'s, and later games are where those explanations come in.

In other the scene that is needed for it to make sense. No one is expecting the story to hold our hands. We do just fine in connecting the pieces when they're there, and that's the issue. Not all the pieces are there. We have the border and the very middle but we're missing everything else.

That's something which goes for several parts of KH III doesn't it?
Having a big build up and then a largely contextual and unexplained pay off is the usual modus operandi for KH though so I'm neither hugely surprised nor upset that much.

It's annoying, yeah, no contest, but not worth losing sleep over.

Oh yes, but we were specifically talking about Xion. lol


Not build up, but the Disney world's based on the films also suffer pretty badly with having some things not explained at all.

For a small example: How did Rapunzel get the satchel back? We know from the movie how but because that scene is absent in the game it makes no sense how she got it. She doesn't have it, and all of a sudden she does. It doesn't matter whether you watched the movie because if it didn't happen then it didn't happen.

How did Flynn get rescued?

Frozen and PotC were hit even harder (and yet somehow PotC's story didn't suck as much,) but I'll be here all day if I went at them. XD

 

[saintfighteraqua]

Sometimes I feel like Nomura is the darkest heart of all. He seems to revel in filling us with doubt and keeping hope just out of sight so we chase it but never truly have it. XD