A surprise trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV was unveiled on Sunday in celebration of the franchise’s 20th anniversary. What the unveiling gave us was a new more realistic look. It’s a little jarring at first seeing Sora in a city with actual people and not in a land that could double as a theme in Disney World. This fits the game’s themes since so much of it was about Sora, Donald Duck, and Goofy going around to different Disney worlds such as Tarzan, Aladdin, and Hercules.
While going to a more realistic look did sap some of the charms of the series’ original run, it does allow Kingdom Hearts to open itself up to some different crossovers from the Disney brand. In particular, the live-action movies that Disney has taken ownership of over the last 20 years such as Marvel and Star Wars, are now potential locations for Sora to explore. The trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV puts a heavy emphasis on this potential by showcasing multiple realistic settings including city streets and green forests.
Some eagle eyed viewers believe that the trailer did more than just showcase the potential realism of the upcoming game, though. One frame in particular has the internet abuzz that it’s actually a hidden teaser for a Star War level in Kingdom Hearts IV. If you look closely, when the trailer is going through the forest a mechanical object is seen on screen and it looks eerily familiar to an AT-ST foot from Star Wars.
— xenosaga (@xenosaga7) April 10, 2022
IT’S THE SAME AT-ST FOOT I MEAN COME ON??? pic.twitter.com/Pl1WDiCfao
— ☆オードリーAudrey☆ (@aitaikimochi) April 10, 2022
If Kingdom Hearts IV does have a Star Wars level it will create the possibility of giving fans something they’ve been begging for ever since Disney acquired the license: a lightsaber Keyblade for Sora. It makes sense why everyone has been asking for one because lightsabers are objectively extremely cool.
Whether these screenshots are a Star Wars level or just a coincidence, it does show that there’s potential for Kingdom Hearts to branch off into some new licenses and that’s exciting to think about.