Nomura confirms that Kingdom Hearts III DLC is being worked on for 2019, with Critical Mode and story expansion coming

[DChiuch 5,773]

Tetsuya Nomura, the director of the Kingdom Hearts series, has been interviewed by Dengeki PlayStation about Kingdom Hearts III. Here, Nomura confirmed that DLC for Kingdom Hearts III is currently in development. A critical mode difficulty level is being worked on, as well as some expansions to the story of the game. Specifically, Nomura was asked about the following plot point from Kingdom Hearts III, and the answer was that it will be explained with DLC.

Spoiler

Under what circumstances was Xion revived, and how did she join the true Organization XIII?

It is unknown exactly when this DLC will be released, but Nomura stated that free additions may come "sooner" and be released as soon as they are ready, while, the paid DLC will be grouped into one single package and is aimed to be released by the end of 2019.

Update: In Kingdom Hearts III Ultimania (the official companion book for Kingdom Hearts III) it was revealed that "critical mode" will be released as one of the free DLCs. Thanks go to @khunion for this tidbit.

Nomura also talked about whether there are plans for the future of the series (answering that there aren't specific plans for now, but discussions will take place), mentioned that Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] will soon be moving to a new world, and commenting on a couple of story points from Kingdom Hearts III.

We will update with a full interview translation as soon as possible.

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[no1animekhfan 7]

Its nice to know we wont have to wait too long...hopefully they expand more on the kh characters and on that ending... and hopefully an additional playable character

 

Just hearing confirmation from Nomura itself makes the wait more comforting....I wonder how much will be in this paid dlc...im sure the amount will effect the price.... i'd still get it regardless 

[matteso586 115]

Spoiler

Although I don't know what kind of DLC expansion it's going to be, it sounds like Xion is getting her own story.

 

22 minutes ago, no1animekhfan said:

Its nice to know we wont have to wait too long...hopefully they expand more on the kh characters and on that ending... and hopefully an additional playable character

 

Just hearing confirmation from Nomura itself makes the wait more comforting....I wonder how much will be in this paid dlc...im sure the amount will effect the price.... i'd still get it regardless 

I think they just confirmed an additional playable character. Look under the spoiler tag. Although that is up to interpretation until the time comes.

[Iamkingdomhearts1000 1,170]

Spoiler

It's almost definitely going to be about the remaining New Seven Hearts for sure. My money is on The Princess and the Frog, Brave and Moana. 

 

Edited February 27, 2019 by Iamkingdomhearts1000

[Xemnas19 0]

Sadly, as a consumer, i won't even look at the content these DLC will offer,i'll buy em all! Nomura wants 10€ for Cat Ears on Sora? Heck, i'll buy 3!

[VocaloidLover13 165]

I am as excited as I was before the release of the game!

[cyntix 53]

KH is a hype machine. No game is as good as the hype and we continue with it anyway, ahha.

[ocean's rage 772]

story expansion you say?

[Merilly 438]

I'd like to believe that the sheer amount of negative comments will also impact the additional content we'll get to see. It won't be able to fix my main issue with the pacing but I'm happy nonetheless that we'll get more for the original plot.

Maybe that will appease some of the overly negative fans as well, even when it can't change everything that was criticized (and shouldn't have to. Yes, there's a lot of understandable criticism but a lot of it is also extremely subjective in the manner that it's obvious where that person is coming from but KH3 still doesn't need to cater to every headcanon, no matter how nice it sounds).

I'm not getting too hyped though. KH3 has shown me that I found it much more enjoyable and agreeable in the end when I had a more diverse view on it rather than hyping it up too much.

For example, hearing about the spoiler-free rage toward the ending actually made me anxious only to find out it wasn't actually that bad in my opinion. Instant relief. It doesn't hide it's flaws but at least my expectations were reasonable so that might actually be something to be grateful for to the ones who were rather blunt in their hate for certain aspects.

Edited March 1, 2019 by Merilly

[littleTSUBAME 483]

I’m generally anti-DLC, but if they really keep it at 1 major DLC pack + free additions, then I’m suprisingly ok with this. Sounds a bit like Final Mix but in DLC format.

(just slightly annoyed at the thought that it’s entirely possible they cut some content only to release it later as a DLC... but SE is a business after all, and I’m overly cynical when it comes to things like these)

[no1animekhfan 7]

4 hours ago, matteso586 said:

  Hide contents

Although I don't know what kind of DLC expansion it's going to be, it sounds like Xion is getting her own story.

 

I think they just confirmed an additional playable character. Look under the spoiler tag. Although that is up to interpretation until the time comes.

I'm not sure if that confirms they will be playable... my initial thoughts were oh they will add another cutscene in for this person... I bet its not even a long explanation

[MAKOSOLDIER 0]

I feel that there are far more interesting stories to be told. I'd rather have a DLC on Kairi that builds on her as a character tbh. I sure hope that secret bosses, Collesseum fights, data battles, and more FM type things are coming too. 

[Awesome Sauce 634]

Spoiler

Are we getting a Xion side story?

 

[KeybladeMasterBalo 504]

I really hope this helps a lot with the game's pacing. While I thought it was OK, it sometimes felt a bit rushed or "simple" as how most characters actually returned suddenly. Only exceptions on this subject were Aqua, Terra and Ventus who had an emotional way for returning on their own, but Roxas and Xion just POPPED OUT OF NOWHERE. While I was happy, I was also confused... It's nice to know we might know more about this and expand on other matters for the game to feel way more complete. Excited about the DLC

[Hero of Light XIV 2,381]

Hey, more additional story elements, an actual challenging difficulty level, maybe even more post-game content (like maybe some playable character episodes and an "actual" secret boss)? SIGN ME THE HELL UP!!! I would gladly download all of this and STILL pay for the whole package by the end of the year anyway. Yes, that's a pretty stupid thing to do as a consumer. But you're talking to a guy who bought like 3-4 different copies of this game for all of those Keyblades, I'm beyond help now. The Darkness hype has consumed me... :'3

[Movies798 1,358]

This is the best interview I read! Especially the DLC package that can expand the story, Critical Mode, and expansion of my favorite character! Plus, I'm kind looking forward to the new updates Union x and it's new world. And I think it's best for me not to hype myself up, because I might get disappointed if the DLC doesn't turn up the way I wanted. So i mean time I will get my expectations of the DLC very very low until I download it and replay the game again. To me Kingdom Hearts 3 is definitely replayable.

Edited February 27, 2019 by Movies798

[The Transcendent Key 12,109]

Thank you for informing us about this wonderful news, DChiuch!

Yesss!!!!! As if Kingdom Hearts III wasn't already an amazing game in and of itself, now we're getting DLC!!! This is basically what will probably amount to a "Final Mix" of the game! I hope for new secret bosses, and as usual with the Final Mixes, we'll definitely get expansions on the story with extra cutscenes! AND CRITICAL MODE!!!! I need Critical Mode in my life, and was sad when it wasn't included in the base game! But hey, I'm excited to see what Nomura and his team have in store!

[Kaweebo 3,617]

It’s either going to be a story DLC ala KHIIFM where they add in cutscenes in the main story or it’ll be an entirely new package and called like Episode: Xion or something. 

[Karxrida 154]

Spoiler

Was not expecting Xion-focused DLC, though I'm not complaining in the slightest.

 

[Potato head harvey 70]

Am i misinterpreting things, or are they seriously putting critical mode behind a paywall?

I'm probably gonna pass on the dlc unless they fix drive forms and game balance, but then again i don't think that should be charged for either.

[AnotherXehanort13 22]

Wow this sounds great, Nomura really needs a breather though, still going with DLC while he's working on 7 Remake must be pretty gruelling

 

 

From a google translate of the article I got this:

 

Quote

Mr. Tetsuya Nomura: Originally the critical was not the original version but the mode we had put in with the additional elements of the final mix version, so this time we will be in the form of delivery later this time. Changing the numerical value to strengthen is not the end, but adjustment and debugging are repeated. We are making adjustments so that we can find the pleasures unique to critical rather than merely difficult modes.

 

So it sounds like "Critical Mode" is going to be more than just a numbers adjustment this time

[Dustin Lübbers 933]

18 hours ago, littleTSUBAME said:

I’m generally anti-DLC, but if they really keep it at 1 major DLC pack + free additions, then I’m suprisingly ok with this. Sounds a bit like Final Mix but in DLC format.

(just slightly annoyed at the thought that it’s entirely possible they cut some content only to release it later as a DLC... but SE is a business after all, and I’m overly cynical when it comes to things like these

Lool on the bright side atleast we wont have to wait until this final mix gets released in the rest if the world a year after it does in japan

[SweetYetSalty 330]

Critical Mode, Xion story, and more? I'm hyped. I certainly hope they add TAV, RAX, and Riku and Kairi as playable party members for optional stuff. Maybe hopefully take pictures with them. I'm still bummed I cannot take pictures with my favorite characters. But yeah, count me in on wanting to replay KH3 even more

[no1animekhfan 7]

32 minutes ago, SweetYetSalty said:

Critical Mode, Xion story, and more? I'm hyped. I certainly hope they add TAV, RAX, and Riku and Kairi as playable party members for optional stuff. Maybe hopefully take pictures with them. I'm still bummed I cannot take pictures with my favorite characters. But yeah, count me in on wanting to replay KH3 even more

Yeah you cant even talk to them out of battle like you could in kh2 ...i was left with trying to take a picture mid fight with them like "Quickly could you look at the camera? i'm about to get stabbed in the back? "? (gets whacked)

[Hero of Light XIV 2,381]

I just want to help temper expectations, the DLC Nomura is talking about might turn out to be just a cutscene or two added into the main campaign, I don't think it's going to be a full-on episode. I could be wrong, but let's not get our hopes up asking for the moon and only getting a rock in return just because we convinced ourselves into thinking we were gonna get a moon.