*Spoiler Warning* To discuss the future of the series we’ll be talking about some major late-game plot points in Kingdom Hearts 3. It goes without saying that if you haven’t finished the game and are looking to avoid knowing the story, you should turn away now. We’ll also be discussing the Epilogue and Secret Ending of the game.
Theories About Where Kingdom Hearts Goes Next
Dream Drop Distance 2.0
The secret movie of Kingdom Hearts 3 provides the biggest mystery of the entire game, but it also might be the biggest hint about what the very next thing will be.
The strange scene shows Sora waking up in a version of none other than Tokyo, Japan. He walks into Shibuya Scramble with the iconic 109 building straight ahead, however, it’s important to note that the building says 104.
This means that this version of Tokyo is most likely the one we saw in The World Ends With You (TWEWY), Square Enix’s cult classic JRPG directed by Tetsuya Nomura, the man behind Kingdom Hearts.
We also see Riku waking up in a similar cityscape area, with Yozora, the main character of Verum Rex, watching over him.
Considering the movie focuses on Riku and Sora both waking up in a strange world, it seems strikingly similar to Dream Drop Distance. This connection is made even more convincing by the fact that TWEWY characters were in Dream Drop Distance.
At the end of Traverse Town Neku even tells Sora “See you in Shibuya,” which seems like it could actually be coming true now.
Of course, we don’t know the context of why Sora and Riku are there, but looking at the end of Kingdom Hearts 3, with Sora disappearing, it’s possible that Sora is trapped in Shibuya, and Riku journeys to try and save his friend.
Historically, the secret ending of Kingdom Hearts games have been conceptual teasers for what’s next, with the ending of Kingdom Hearts showing the battle between Roxas and Riku in KH2, and the ending of KH2 showing the final battle of Birth By Sleep.
Considering all of this together, it definitely seems likely that we’ll be seeing some kind of continuation or spiritual successor to Dream Drop Distance. Whether that’s a brand new title, or some form of DLC, we’ll have to wait and see.
Theories About Where Kingdom Hearts Goes Next
War With the Foretellers and the True Villain
While the Secret Ending seems like the more immediate possibility, the Epilogue certainly provides us with what the next long game of the story will be.
The scene drops a bombshell on plans, showing us that Xigbar has been masterminding everything with Xehanort the entire time, and his true identity is Luxu, the sixth apprentice of the Master of Masters.
After the defeat of Xehanort, Xigbar gets the Master’s No Name Keyblade back and summons the Foretellers back to life in the Keyblade Graveyard, along with the mysterious black box.
All the while, Maleficent and Pete overlook the whole scene, their search for the box finally at an end.
The Foretellers were manipulated by the Master into starting the first Keyblade War, and it’s possible that Luxu is continuing to manipulate them.
Alternatively, one of the big surprises in a future installment could be that our perspective slanted what we thought of the characters, and they’ll actually turn out to be villains.
Either way, the story and Epilogue of Kingdom Hearts 3 seems to suggest that the Master of Masters has influenced absolutely everything in the series, from Xehanort’s plan to revive Kingdom Hearts, to the Guardians of Light stopping him.
This, inevitably, is going to lead to a massive new conflict as the Master and Luxu enter their endgame, and use the Fortellers to complete their plans.
There are basically three factions we’ll be seeing; the Foretellers, Maleficent and her forces, and all of the heroes now alive.
At the end of Kingdom Hearts 3, pretty much every hero from the series is alive again, some with fresh new looks. Roxas, Xion, Axel, Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Saix, Riku, and Kairi are all alive. The only one missing, is Sora.
Referencing the previous theory, in the Secret Ending we also see a hooded figure standing atop a skyscraper then forming a heart with their hands on the moon.
This person is most likely either Luxu or the Master of Masters, watching over Sora and Riku and making sure they fulfill their role in the plan.
With Organization XIII nixed the series needs a new set of villains, and the Foretellers would work perfectly as that new group you have to fight.
Theories About Where Kingdom Hearts Goes Next
Marluxia and Larxene Still Have a Role to Play
If Kingdom Hearts 3’s narrative showed us anything it’s that the story of the mobile game Union X is incredibly important to the overall series.
One of the big revelations that Union X brought was the character links to Marluxia and Larxene, who are Lauriam and Elrena in the events of the mobile game.
After the Keyblade War and the end of the Foretellers, Lauriam becomes one of the five Union Leaders. Meanwhile, Elrena is the younger sibling of Strelitzia, who was supposed to be a Union Leader until she was murdered by an imposter, which we still don’t know the identity of.
After you defeat Marluxia in Kingdom Hearts 3, his death scene has him remembering who he really is, and “his purpose for existing.” Then after beating Larxene, she says she was simply along for the ride, suggesting she was simply there supporting Marluxia/Lauriam all along.
Marluxia and Larxene, at the moment, are the best links between the events of the past and present in Kingdom Hearts.
We still don’t know how they went from the past to being members of Organization XIII, but that revelation will surely come at some point.
Considering Marluxia constantly has his own plans and disregards the goal of the Organization, it’s safe to say that Lauriam has his own machinations as well. Considering the cryptic final lines of both characters in Kingdom Hearts 3, it just feels like we haven’t’ seen the last of them.
Theories About Where Kingdom Hearts Goes Next
Ventus Takes Center Stage, Saving Ava/Strelitzia
Like Marluxia and Larxene, Ventus is one of the few links we have between Union X and the rest of the series, as he’s another one of the five Union leaders. However, there are more obvious implications about his role in the franchise, considering he’s a main character that we’ve played as.
Just like the others, we have no idea how Ventus made it to the future, but considering he was an instrumental piece of Xehanort’s plan to forge the X-Blade, it’s likely that Ventus factored into the Master’s plan in some way.
In Kingdom Hearts 3 Sora meets a Chirithy in the Final World, which we then learn was Ventus’ Chirithy, as they reunite during the credits. At this point, that’s the only Chirithy we’ve seen outside of Union X. Again since the Master created the Chirithies this could also factor into the plan.
With the end of Kingdom Hearts 3 showing Sora disappearing, it’s not unreasonable to think we might once again step into the shoes of Ventus. After all, he and Sora have been linked to each other throughout the series, and Ventus may be the only one that can truly figure out where Sora has gone.
To add onto this, when Sora is in the Final World he can talk to a number of hearts lingering in the ethereal world. One of these hearts is a missable conversation that seems surprisingly important.
It’s the heart of a young girl waiting in the Final World for a man to find here, someone who’s “heart has been replaced with that of another.”
This heart could be one of two people, Strelitzia the murdered Union leader, or Ava the Foreteller that created the Dandelions. If it’s Strelitzia, she could be referring to Lauriam/ Marluxia, who was her brother in Union X.
His heart being replaced with that of another could refer to how Lauriam fell to darkness and turned into a Nobody, and was Norted at some point.
If it’s Ava, she could be referring to either Ephemer or Ventus. Ventus would make the most sense, as he lost his heart and sought refuge in Sora’s, which could explain her saying his heart was “replaced.”
Another piece of evidence for Ava is how Xigbar notes here absence in the Epilogue, and hows particular interest in showing where she is.
Considering Ventus’ presence in Union X, it’s likely he’s related to whichever girl is trapped in the Final World, and he definitely still has a role to play in the Kingdom Hearts series.
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