Kingdom Hearts has long been defined by its blending of the various Disney properties with characters and concepts from Final Fantasy. Now that Disney owns a lot of fan-favorite franchises like Marvel and Star Wars, fans have been dreaming up what those properties could look like in Kingdom Hearts. Marvel in particular has characters, storylines, and worlds that could fit well into the RPG series. Imagining what a Marvel level could look like in Kingdom Hearts yields interesting possibilities.
Level design in Kingdom Hearts has long been one of its hallmarks. With few exceptions, the franchise has done a great job of adapting disparate elements present in the different Disney worlds to the unifying experience that is Kingdom Hearts' action-RPG gameplay. Shining examples are the Toy Story level in Kingdom Hearts 3 and The Nightmare Before Christmas stage in the first game. Creating interesting mechanics from concepts like the Underdrome from Kingdom Hearts 2 is something that could work well when crafting a Marvel level.
Bridging the Gap Between Marvel and Kingdom Hearts
Marvel itself obviously has an enormous history between various comics, cartoons, movies, and video games. The franchise as a whole has cemented its place in the gaming space with enormous adventure games like Spider-Man and iconic fighting games like Marvel vs. Capcom. So imagining an adaptation for Kingdom Hearts isn't exactly far-fetched. Disney has a large slate of recent projects that could be perfect for Kingdom Hearts, and the Marvel universe as a whole is easily one of the most exciting possibilities.
If Marvel comes to Kingdom Hearts, it's likely to follow the format from recent years that seeks to emulate the overall feel of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That formula could fit well into Kingdom Hearts if Square Enix wanted to explore a more mature version of its characters. While the general light-heartedness of the series is important to maintain, its core audience has been along for the ride for nearly two decades at this point. The balance between intense action and comedic timing which doesn't rely on over-the-top language or anything of that nature could translate well to Kingdom Hearts. Creating a location for the level is also a relatively easy assumption.
Typically, each Kingdom Hearts level takes place during the events of one of the various Disney movies. For instance, the Pirates of the Caribbean stage in Kingdom Hearts 2 mixed together the events of the first movie with the overall plot of the game. Then in KH3, the same level explored the movies sequel. Following that format, it's easy to imagine a level that's built completely around Marvel's version of New York. Kingdom Hearts is an action-packed RPG, and dropping Sora into a modified version of the original Avengers movie would feel natural quickly.
The interesting possibility about exploring Marvel's New York in Kingdom Hearts would be the different mechanics that could be adapted for the various characters. Flying around with Iron Man could feel a lot like doing the same with Baymax in KH3, but battling alongside the Hulk while maintaining some sort of rage meter to prevent him from targeting friendly characters could be fun and a fresh experience. The same is true for the unique kind of movement Spider-Man utilizes. Sora learning to web-swing while the two exchange quips is just one of the number of ways Marvel and Kingdom Hearts could mesh.
Seeing powerful Marvel characters battle against the Final Fantasy-style antagonists of KH could also be very interesting. Other than maybe Elsa from Frozen, many of the protagonists across the Disney worlds aren't necessarily that powerful. While Aladdin and Simba are certainly formidable in their own right, Kingdom Hearts is a series where the main hero can literally slice through a skyscraper with ease. Seeing much more powerful figures like the Hulk or Doctor Strange clash with whatever enemies rise up to replace Xehanort could be viscerally entertaining.
Kingdom Hearts itself seemed like an impossible combination of properties in the first place, so at this point nearly any crossover doesn't seem out of reach. With Marvel trusting Square Enix to publish Marvel games already, seeing the franchise cross into Kingdom Hearts seems particularly likely. Both have hugely dedicated fanbases, so imagining what a Marvel level would look like while fans settle in for the wait before KH4 releases is a good way to spend the time.
Kingdom Hearts 4 hasn't yet been confirmed to be in development.