As you would know, Square Enix is releasing an official plush toy for the release of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. This plush toy will be of the Dream Eater Spirit, Wonder Meow. You can see the previously released images of this below. Square Enix have recently updated their Official Online Shop with the release date of the toy, March 31, 2012. This, of course, is 2 days after the release of Kingdom Hearts 3D.
Secondly, CDJapan have created a pre-order page for the toy. CDJapan is an online store that ships items internationally, so you will be able to buy the toy from here. It will be available for US$44.47 (with shipping upwards of $60... ouch), and confirms the release date of March 31, 2012.
Photos → Square Enix Online Shop → Wonder Nyan
Update: Play-Asia.com have created a page where you can pre-order the game. This is a good way to buy the Anniversary Box if you live outside of Japan. There is no price yet, however, it should be somewhere around $200, as the local price for Japan is ￥15,000 (approximately US$187.95).
Square Enix have updated their official Kingdom Hearts blog, Message from the KINGDOM, with the first pictures of the Kingdom Hearts 10th Anniversary 3D+Days+Re:coded Box. The 10th Anniversary 3D+Days+Re:coded Box is, of course, a special boxset releasing in Japan on the same day as Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. You can click hear to read about the contents of the box, or look below to see the first images of it. (Click for larger images.) It's certainly very pretty!
Update 7: Pavlovic Sarah from KH13 has even more of the article (we're certainly getting a lot of updates about this), mainly focusing on the Organization XIII and Radiant Garden parts! You can read this below.
A black coated person is attacking Sora!?
Yen Sid: From now on, you will probably face even more danger.
Yen Sid (picture with Riku and Sora): Also, you will have to obtain a new power and open the 7 Keyholes of Sleep.
Currently, some worlds have fallen asleep and they are trapped in an abnormal situation. It is Sora and Riku's mission to release the Keyholes of Sleep.
Yen Sid: This long journey will transform your appearance.
Radiant Garden
The members of the Org. XIII changed!
Are there more members of the Org. XIII than shown here?
Lea: Have the two recovered consciousness?
They are called by their former names and their appearance is not of the Nobodies, they are back to their human form.
Lea - Axel's human form
The black-coated Lea
Lea: It's always me who has to do the unpleasant business.
Ienzo - Zexion's human form
The white-coated Ienzo
Ienzo: The world called Traverse Town is formed. There, it will be recovered.
The former form of the Org. member No. 6 Zexion is researching something in the laboratory.
Aeleus - Lexaeus' human form
The uniformed Aeleus
Aeleus: Dilan and Even recovered consciousness but...
The former form of the Org. member Nr. 5 Lexaeus appeared!! With a serious face, he is concerned about the condition of his friends, but...
Kanmi Fukurou – researching the enemy's weak point
Opake Piero - prize-snatching
Hasami Kuugata – long distance attack
Goumori Batto – confusion and drain attack
Idaten Kirin – thunder attribute x high-speed movement
Denden Karugo – the shell as a perfect defense
Update 6: Oishii from KH13 has translated two sections:
Drop System
Play Riku’s Side > Character Switch > Sora’s Side Starts
On the bottom right part of the screen with Riku’s face icon is the drop gauge. When the drop reaches 0 you automatically drop!!
During the time that Riku is sleeping, in a separate place Sora’s adventure unfolds!!
**There is still more to this section but because of glare/page cuts off, I can't translate anymore -.-
Dream Eater Selection!
When you link with your Kuma Panda, you can gain HP up ability. Immediately you will see the link to Riku!!
Acquire Abilities!!
Use the “link points” you have saved during your adventure and redeem them for abilities and commands. The abilities you gain will be shared with both Sora and Riku!!
With the commands you gain, set the command to Sora or Riku’s command deck, and strengthen them both!!
Update 5: Pavlovic Sarah from KH13 has translated bits and pieces from the article, including the text from a lot of screenshots. You can read this below.
Riku
Sora's buddy. In Riku's event, you will see the independently acting Riku seperated from Sora.
As a first time production and limited special favor, an AR-Card
You will obtain a rare Dream Eater.
One of the Disney-related worlds that Sora and Riku are returning to is introduced!
While exploring the Realm of Sleep, different incidents will occur and have to be solved while you explore them.
The world inside the computer
Sora: This is the world Tron was inside, isn't it?
Clu: You own the thing that is called the Keyblade, able to open every door.
"The kid owns a strange weapon"
Clu and the other people from Tron: Legacy seems to be interested in the Keyblade.
Shining Keyblade
A Keyblade is not just a weapon!!
Sora: It is a tool to make everyone smile.
Do they want the Keyblade?
Kevin: Maker of the computer program "The Grid"
Quorra: A mysterious woman who helps Sam in the grid
Sam: A boy who is searching for his father Kevin
Is the keyblade inducing something?
Black Coated Boy: "You do not even understand where you are"
Does the Black coated boy know something?
Yen Sid's order!
Sora and Riku have to visit the magician Yen Sid to take a exam.
What is the order they are told with importance?
What is the "Keyhole of Sleep"?
Update 4: ArikaMiz from Twitter has uploaded her own scans of the V Jump article. These are in much clearer detail, and show some pages which we hadn't seen before. You can see these below.
Update 3: SQEX.INFO have translated part of the article, revealing information about the special Kingdom Hearts 3D-themed issue of V Jump, earlier announced to release on March 29. However, a March 21 release is now expected. You can read their translation below.
V-JUMP Books will be publishing an unofficial guide book with the release of Kingdom Hearts 3D Dream Drop Distance titled “Dream World Navigation”. It will have a simultaneous release with the title on March 21, 2012 and retail for ￥1150 (approximately US$14.83). The book will likely be an incomplete guide as the previous guides for Re:Coded etc. were, however it will also contain a special AR card, though what it features is still unknown.
Update 2: Oishii from KH13 has translated the names of the new Dream Eaters, and these can be read below.
- Kanmi Fukurou (translates to "Sweet Owl")
- Denden Karugo (translates to "Denden Snail")
- Idaten Kirin (translates to "Swift Giraffe")
Update 1: We now have some larger images of the article, focusing on various bits in detail, thanks to bKvEBVAvUq. We can see the returning Organization XIII members, as well as the new Dream Eaters, and a paragraph explaining the mechanics of Dream Eater creation. You can see this below.
As expected, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance has appeared with an article in the latest issue of V Jump magazine, the March 2012 issue releasing on February 21, 2012. This article shows screenshots of Lea, Aeleus and Ienzo, more screens of The Grid, the Tron: Legacy world, and another double page dedicated to new Dream Eaters. You can see scans of this article below, thanks to maggosh from KHInsider for the find, and exodaze from KH13 for the tip. Stay tuned for the next couple of days, because we're still waiting on the Famitsu Weekly article!
Update: Some translations of the new information featured in the article have appeared online. Thanks to andriasang.com, we know more about the method with which Dream Eaters are created. You can read this below.
The magazine also has details on a new gameplay component involving the Dream Eater creatures. You can create new Dream Eaters by gathering materials called "Dream Pieces" and combining these according to a recipe.
Scans of the February 20, 2012 issue of Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine have started to appear online. The magazine contains an article on Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, where the Tron: Legacy-based world, now known as The Grid, is featured. You can see scans of this article below, thanks to aibo_ac7. We should see more scans and information later in V Jump magazine tomorrow, and finally Famitsu Weekly magazine on the 23rd.
The next issue of V Jump magazine, which releases on February 21, 2012, will contain an article on Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance where the Tron: Legacy-based world is announced. Thanks to a post on a Japanese blog website, we now know that the Tron: Legacy world will be called The Grid. Also, the article will contain more information relating to Dream Eaters.
With the V Jump article releasing on Tuesday, and the Famitsu Weekly article releasing on Thursday, we should start to get more scans and information as early as Monday (as they are usually appear online one day before)! Please look forward to it. Thanks to bKvEBVAvUq for the tip.
Vincent Corazza, who has previously voiced Zexion in the Kingdom Hearts series, has confirmed that he will be returning to voice Zexion/Ienzo in the latest game, Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. In an email with KH13 member axel91, Corazza confirmed that he had completed his voice acting for the game, "shortly after two months ago". You can see this email below.
Update: Taochan from KHInsider emailed Vincent Corazza, asking about his role in KH3D. Corazza confirmed, adding that the recording session was two weeks ago. It's great to see that Square Enix are localizing the game so soon!
A Famitsu Weekly preview has been published which shows some contents of the next issue of Famitsu Weekly, releasing on February 23, 2012. Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance will be one of the featured articles in the issue, and will contain information about a "mysterious character", as well as explaining some parts of the system with which you interact with your companions. Let's look forward to it!
On another note, we're sorry about the recent downtime! Our host decided to do some upgrades to our server, regardless of the bad timing. So, on the bright site, the site should seem a bit faster! Nothing has been lost, but you may notice the site go down a bit over the next day as the website transfers to the new server. Make sure you check out our English-subbed version of the new KH3D trailer, if you haven't already.
Update 2: Both videos have been added to our trailer archive for Kingdom Hearts 3D. *fixed broken links* Update 1: The trailer below has been updated with an English subbed version. Enjoy, Happy Valentine's present, KH13!
Square Enix has updated their official website for Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. It contains an update to the Characters, System and Worlds sections, and also contains a new trailer in the Special section.
Special
English subtitles thanks to goldpanner, and video editing thanks to KH13. Please credit both if you use this video.
Some interesting details:
- The song Passion is used for the trailer's theme.
- There will be a world where Ursula appears as a boss battle, so we can assume it is based on The Little Mermaid.
- Sora talks to Braig in The World That Never Was.
- Axel is shown talking to Yen Sid.
- Riku is attacked by Ansem, Seeker of Darkness.
- King Mickey is talking to Master Xehanort.
Characters
Characters has been updated with two new Dream Eaters-- one Spirit and one Nightmare.
System
System has been updated with a new video showing off the Dual Link feature.
Worlds
Worlds has been updated with Symphony of Sorcery, the world based on Fantasia.
Guinness World Records 2012 Gamer's Edition, which is out now, has included a section on the "top 50 video game endings of all time". Not surprisingly, both Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II have made the list! Kingdom Hearts II was awarded 31st place, and Kingdom Hearts was awarded 22nd. You can see the complete list at our forum. Thanks to Nikolasvanitas from KH13 for the tip.
A Japanese bookstore has announced that a Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance focused issue of V Jump magazine will release on March 29, 2012. This is, of course, on the release date of Kingdom Hearts 3D. The book will be available at a price of ¥1150 (approximately US$14.83). Thanks to bKvEBVAvUq for the tip.
Update 2: Even more news relating to Corti's role as Neku, again thanks to KHInsider. Corti has updated his Twitter to say that he has finished recording his lines for the game. You can see this below. With so many voice actors announcing their involvement in the English version of the game, let's hope we get a localized trailer very soon!
Update 1: Thanks again to KHInsider for the find, we now know that Jesse David Corti actually Tweeted on February 8 to say that he had done some voice acting work for Neku on that day. This makes it pretty certain that he'll be voicing for Kingdom Hearts 3D!
Jesse David Corti, the voice actor for Neku Sakuraba in The World That Ends With You, has hinted at returning to voice the character in Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance. Via a comment on one of his videos on his YouTube channel, Corti suggests that "you may hear me..." in the game. Since other voice actors have already confirmed their involvement, which means voice recording for the English version has already commenced, we can probably assume that what Corti is saying is true. Thanks to believe-it-ornot from KHInsider for the find, you can see a screenshot of this hint below. (Jesse David Corti is YouTube user dreamories.)
Update 3: Not much of an update, but still interesting nonetheless. Square Enix have updated their page explaining the different editions of Kingdom Hearts 3D to include the game's boxart.
Update 2: The box cover artwork has been updated with an *even larger* version of the front cover, this time from Amazon.com and thanks to Nova_Crystallis for the tip. You can see this below. Please click to open a larger version.
Update 1: The box cover artwork has been updated with a higher quality version from Square Enix's e-STORE's Twitter. This is the same size, but slightly clearer and without the Nintendo 3DS box template.
The front cover of the Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance game box has been revealed. As usual, the front cover features artwork by Tetsuya Nomura, depicting characters from the game. It's very pretty, so we hope you like it as much as we do! Thanks to aibo_ac7 for the tip.
Every so often, we make a news post telling you what we've added to the KH13.com Gallery. This update will deal with everything we've added to the gallery since the last update, which was early October (and will only list things that weren't featured in the news). The gallery has over 10,000 Kingdom Hearts-related images, so it's a must see for any Kingdom Hearts fan! Anyway, this is what we've been adding behind the scenes:
New photos have been added to:
- Tokyo Game Show 2011
- Japan Expo 2011
- Tokyo Game Show 2008
- E3 2010
- Next Generation World Hobby 2009 Winter
- Ikspiari Tokyo Disney Resort
- DKΣ3713
Many past online articles added to:
- Famitsu.com
Magazine articles:
- Various issues of Game Informer
- Various issues of K-Zone magazine
- The November 2011 issue of Nintendo Power
- The October 2002 issue of Super GamePower
- Various issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly Brasil
- The December 31, 2011 issue of Comic Weekly
Square Enix have completely redesigned their Piano Collections Series portal website. This, of course, contains links to websites for both Piano Collections Kingdom Hearts and Piano Collections Kingdom Hearts Field & Battle. There's not much else to say, apart from that the website looks pretty, and that it's good to see Square Enix updating their portal websites. Enjoy.
Update 2: We've updated the bottom of the article with all screenshots and character boxes that appear in the game sub-sections of the portal. Enjoy.
Update 1: The translation below has been updated with a complete translation of the website's "about" section. This reveals that as of March 31, 2011, the Kingdom Hearts series had sold 17 million copies worldwide.
Square Enix's official portal website for the Kingdom Hearts series has been completely redesigned. The portal website links to all the Kingdom Hearts games' official Japanese websites, including Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, with each game having a new, pretty button to go along with it. You can see these below, in our gallery.
Two new pages have been added to the Kingdom Hearts portal website: An about page, and a chronology page. A characters page and a glossary page are said to be coming soon. Translations can be seen below, thanks to sqexgal and goldpanner.
A translation of the about page, as well as an alternate translation of the chronology page, is also below in text format, thanks to Oishii from KH13, goldpanner and the KH13 Translation Project.
About
Kingdom Hearts is series of role-playing games born from Disney and Square Enix’s dream of appearing in a work together. Since the first title ‘Kingdom Hearts’ (released on PlayStation 2) went on sale in March 2002, it has been a popular series, with six titles released so far, and a cumulative total of over 17 million copies shipped worldwide (current as of 31 March 2011).
It is the story of those who wield the legendary weapon known as the ‘Keyblade’, and their friends, as they adventure through various Disney worlds, experiencing new hellos and goodbyes, and growing along the way.
With the universal themes of darkness and light and the heart serving as the axis, a story with many hidden mysteries unfolds.
Countless numbers of charming and fascinating personalities appear, chiefly from a range of Disney works, and also including Final Fantasy and original Kingdom Hearts characters.
Also, the battle, enjoyed through simple button input, is innundatingly refreshing and exhilarating, and throughout the series has received a favourable reputation.
Chronology
Keyblade War Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep begins
- Terra, Ventus, and Aqua travel to other worlds to search for the cause of a strange phenomenon
- At battle’s end, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua disappear from the realm of light. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep finishes Kingdom Hearts begins
- Sora wakes up a Keyblade wielder. Sora, Riku, and Kairi are separated.
- Sora, Donald, and Goofy meet, and set off to search for Kairi, Riku, and the King.
- Sora and Kairi reunite, but Sora temporarily becomes a heartless. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days begins
- Roxas is born. He becomes No. 13 in Organization XIII.
- Together, Sora and his friends battle and win against Ansem.
- Sora, Donald and Goofy are finally reunited with Riku and the King. However, to close the door to darkness, the two stay in the realm of darkness.
- Sora, Donald, and Goofy once again set off to find Riku and the King. Kingdom Hearts finishes Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories begins
- Sora, Donald, and Goofy arrive at Castle Oblivion.
- Riku arrives at Castle Oblivion.
- Sora and Riku each fight the Organization XIII members in Castle Oblivion, and triumph.
- To regain the memories that they lost, Sora, Donald, and Goofy fall asleep inside pods. To fight against the darkness inside him, Riku sets off together with the king. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories finishes
- Roxas abandons Organization XIII, and is captured by DIZ. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days finishes Kingdom Hearts II begins
- After having a 7 day vacation, Roxas falls asleep.
- Sora, Donald, and Goofy wake up from their sleep, and once more venture off.
- Sora, Donald, and Goofy are once again reunited with Riku and the King.
- Sora and his friends face off with Organization XIII in one final battle, and win. Kingdom Hearts II finishes Kingdom Hearts coded begins
- The King, Donald, and Goofy perform and analysis on the strange occurence in Jimminy’s Journal.
- A letter arrives to Sora from the King. Kingdom Hearts coded finishes Kingdom Hearts 3D begins
- To be continued.
Lastly, the portal contains a sub-section for each game in the Kingdom Hearts series. These sections contain a brief summary of the game (basically what you'd find on the back of the game box), and also some neat screenshots and character boxes. You can see these below, in our gallery.
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Kingdom Hearts
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Kingdom Hearts Final Mix
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Chain of Memories
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Kingdom Hearts II
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → coded
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → 358/2 Days
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Birth by Sleep
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Re:coded
Screenshots → Kingdom Hearts series, Japanese website → Birth by Sleep Final Mix
