One thing that might be tough for fans of the Kingdom Hearts series to really wrap their heads around is that the series releases new games at a frequent pace, even though the numbered titles are years apart. Now, with the upcoming release of every Kingdom Hearts title on PC, more fans are bound to be excited to see the next main entry in the series, though the wait may be longer than expected.
Following the way that the Kingdom Hearts series has approached releases before, players can definitely expect new titles releasing within the next few years, but Kingdom Hearts 4 will be further down the line. However, while it might be a while before players get the answers to the laundry list of questions the most recent titles have left hanging, that doesn't mean there won't be other related titles releasing in that time.
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There is a bit of a give and take when it comes to predicting the releases of Kingdom Hearts titles, thanks in no small part to the erratic way games have launched in the past. The relatively quick turnaround between the first and second games in the series, and the elongated wait between the second and third makes finding any kind of pattern difficult. Some evidence could be pointing at a whole new host of spin-offs on the way, or the next numbered title could actually be closer than some fans might be expecting.
A common criticism of the Kingdom Hearts series has been the way a huge amount of lore and ongoing narrative had previously released across a series of spin-off titles on handheld/mobile consoles. Even calling them spin-offs is a bit of a misnomer at this point, considering that each of these titles have had a huge impact on the overall story and the multiple plots that came together in Kingdom Hearts 3. However, some fans are holding out hope that, since the release of the most recent numbered title, the series might be finally changing direction back towards a more cohesive release schedule.
Of course, Melody of Memory didn't take long to disprove that theory, cementing in that the series will continue to rely on side content in order to dole out critical story beats. Fortunately this latest release did manage to succeed in a number of ways as both a new entry in the series, as well as a decently built rhythm action title. The problem being that, as good as Melody of Memory is, it's definitely a niche title that might not appeal to the broader Kingdom Hearts fanbase. However, it still contains a number of new plot developments that will be important down the line.
The result of these handheld/mobile titles, that a number of fans wrote off as unrelated spin-offs, is that the Kingdom Hearts series seemingly took a thirteen year long break between the second and third installments. As difficult as it might be for fans to hear, there is a good chance that it could be a similar wait for Kingdom Hearts 4 as there was for Kingdom Hearts 3. That doesn't necessarily mean that there won't be side content to come in the meantime, but it could mean a long wait before the new storylines are finally wrapped up.
To that same degree, creative director Tetsuya Nomura has mentioned that he would like to drastically change Kingdom Hearts in the future. This could mean shifting direction from all of these spin-off games that could really be labeled as main installments, to heading directly into numbered titles from here on out. However, there are a few hanging threads that might need to be tied up before the series can fully move forward, especially with how important certain characters and events are building up to be to the series.
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Easily the most contentious title among fans, Union X often lands low on Kingdom Hearts tier lists due to its nature as a card collecting gacha title that is loaded to the brim with filler. The ongoing Dark Road plotline is a bit of a different story, at least from a gameplay perspective, but even this side story within a side story has its own problems with unnecessary fluff. That being said, the ongoing narrative within the title is one of the more interesting in the series. A full depiction of the Keyblade War and the story of the new Union Leaders deserves the Back Cover treatment down the line.
The only real problem with the narrative as it has been doled out so far, is that the story of Kingdom Hearts Union X is ongoing, with short new chapters being released once a month. There are mysteries and revelations happening frequently within the title, and it appears that one character in particular, the Master of Masters, is going to have a major role in Kingdom Hearts 4. So, it's possible that fans might have to wait until Union X finishes before the next numbered title releases, possibly with some spin-offs to connect the two storylines.
On the other hand of the expected wait for Kingdom Hearts 4, the next title needs to really advance the story to be a numbered entry. As is explained in the ending of Kingdom Hearts 3 and Re:Mind, Sora has gone missing as a result of his overuse of the Power of Waking to save Kairi. Addressing that issue in another title with a name like Dream Drop Distance or 358/2 Days exclusively on a mobile platform would be a huge mistake on the side of Square Enix.
Players are already excitedly theorizing Yozora's role in Kingdom Hearts 4, or how the World of Fiction introduced in Melody of Memory might get resolved in the next game. There's been too much setup for the beginning of a whole new series, for Square Enix to bring Sora back in what many fans consider to be side content. Even with the previous history of the developer when it comes to releases in the Kingdom Hearts series, it's possible that the next thing players see will be a numbered entry.
Kingdom Hearts 3 is available now on PS4 and Xbox One, with a PC release set for March 30th, 2021.
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