Kingdom Hearts 3 was arguably the highlight of Square Enix’s E3 press event, thanks in part to some new gameplay footage which showcased some of the new battle mechanics and levels. Speaking of the levels, director Tetsuya Nomura confirmed to Engadget that they would be much bigger compared to previous games in the series.
“While the world may not be comparable to massively open-world titles, it’s far bigger than previous Kingdom Hearts titles. In previous games, you’d run to the end of an area and it would go dark before transitioning to the next stage — now it’s become seamless.”
Some neat graphical touches have also been added. Nomura pointed out that, “The environments themselves, in KH3, things will be affected by real-time actions, a tornado spell will swirl the blades of grass surrounding it.”
There will also be some kind of online component to increase longevity but that’s currently a part of Nomura’s wish list. At this point, it doesn’t seem like ideas for online gameplay can be tested and Nomura doesn’t want the idea to be tacked on. Odds are it’s added after launch or skipped entirely.
Kingdom Hearts 3 is in development for PS4 and Xbox One.