Summary
When you walk away, you won’t hear me say, just how manyKingdom Heartgames are there? It’s a complicated question given the number of remakes and, quite frankly, the strange and confusing names of a number of the games.
As one of the most beloved video game franchises, you might want to start from the beginning of the series or play through all the games to ensure you get the complete story. No matter what journey you’re looking to undertake, you’re going to want to know just how many games there are in the Kingdom Hearts universe.
There Are 13 Main Kingdom Hearts Games
Each One Of Them Ties Into One Plot
Since Kingdom Hearts was first released back in 2002, there have been 13 games that directly impact the canon that the series has established, each one connecting back to the story of Sora, Donald, and Goofy while they work to fight against those who want to use the Kingdom Hearts for evil.
Most of the games featured here are part of a greaterstory arc called the Dark Seeker Saga. This saga follows the aforementioned heroes as they team up with other Keyblade users, including Mickey Mouse, Axel, Riku, Kairi, and others, as they all fight against Xehanort and his generations-long machinations.
This series is preceded by three games that cover events that occur in the ‘age of fairy tales’, the ancient history of the Kingdom Hearts universe. This is called the χ series, pronounced ‘chi’, and introduces players to a young Xehanort while laying the foundation for his evil plans later in life.
2002
PlayStation 2
2004
2005
2009
2009 - 2010
2010
2012
Nintendo 3DS
2013 - 2016
2017
Kingdom Hearts 0.2 Birth by Sleep -A fragmentary passage-
2019
2020 - 2022
2020
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC
Generally speaking, you don’t need to play every single one of these games to enjoy the story. There are plenty of games that are standalone experiences or ones that have a brief recap of events that occurred in other games. If you’re unsure where to go from the main numbered games, the games 358/2 Days, Birth by Sleep, and Dream Drop Distance are fantastic gamesthat introduce great characterswhile providing the most relevant plot points to the main story.
There Are 8 Remakes
Now The Confusion Starts
Over the course of the series' expansive history, there have been a number of remakes, some with upgraded features, a few with upgraded HD graphics, and others with an expanded storyline. Some of the remakes are region exclusives as well.
Take Kingdom Hearts Final Mix. This was a Japan-exclusive remake that came out later in the same year as the initial game and included English voice acting, new difficulty settings, new items, weapons, accessories, and more. A further updated version of this game was released years later in 2013’s Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX for the first time outside of Japan.
2007
2008
2011
2016
There Are 6 Kingdom Hearts Collections
The Only Way To Experience The Full Story
Some of the almost legendary confusion around the games comes from the number of rereleases, which often include bonus features, cutscenes, and extra games that were exclusive to other regions for a time. These games received a graphical upgrade, and sometimes a full, ground-up remake, as well as an expanded story and improved gameplay experience, like the ability to skip cutscenes.
2013
PlayStation 3
2014
2018
PlayStation 4
There Are 7 Non-Canon Side Games
They’re Fun, But Not Necessary
Over the course of 21 years, there have been a few spinoff games that are not related to the established canon. Most of these games were either mobile-based or browser-based games and are no longer available to play. You’ll encounter beloved characters likeSora, Riku, Aqua and more, but won’t have to worry about the fact that most of them are unplayable at this point.
PlayStation VR
All these games bring Kingdom Hearts' total game count up to 34, but since most of them are collections, HD remakes, or non-cannon spinoffs, the actual count is 13 Kingdom Hearts games in the main series.
There Are Two Kingdom Hearts Games In Development
Coming Soon To A World Near You
Since the climatic and cliffhanger ending of Kingdom Hearts 3, fans were well aware that the Kingdom Hearts series wasn’t quite done yet. The secret ending of Kingdom Hearts 3 has Sora waking up in what appears to be a version of modern day Shibuya, a ward of Tokyo, complete with real-world skyscrapers and iconic buildings from the city. Both Riku and Sora are in this world, though they appear to be separated and might not be aware that they’re both there, though there might be more going on than what we can see.
With Riku is Yozora, a character from a fictional video game within the Toy Box world, based on the Toy Story films. Far off, the Master of Masters is there too, with his Gazing Eye Keyblade, who makes a heart shape with his hands and holds it up to the very real-looking moon, seemingly indicating that there is a Kingdom Hearts there too.
While this is not a ton of information to go on, it is currently our only look into what we can expect from Kingdom Hearts 4. The other game currently in development is Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link. Missing-Link takes place between Union X and Dark Road, and has the player exploring Scala ad Caelum, collecting characters and battling other players. There’s going to be a mix of AR elements, much like Pokemon Go, and more traditional RPG elements. There’s not a release date set for the mobile game quite yet, but there have been two beta test sessions so far, with an expected release date sometime this year.
2024
