Kingdom Hearts fans are theorizing that we could get news on Missing-Link at D23
Is Nomura up to his old tricks again?
Kingdom Hearts fans are waiting with bated breath for this year’s D23 Expo after it was suggested that we could get news on Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link at the event.
Following a Kingdom Hearts Dark Road Q&A session with series director Tetsuya Nomura, fans have begun speculating that we could be getting some news about the upcoming mobile game Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link during the Disney fan convention D23. Like most things to do with Kingdom Hearts, this theory has many layers, so buckle in.
As shared by Twitter users and Kingdom Hearts fans @aitaikimochi and @xenosaga7, a Kingdom Hearts YouTuber in Japan - known as @toro_cocoron0te - has made a very interesting observation about Nomura’s recent Q&A session. As pointed out by the content creator, and translated by @xenosaga7, the Q&A has been transcribed and shared by Square Enix however some of the questions are laid out differently from others.
Explanation of the hidden message was decoded by @toro_cocoron0te and also explained here: https://t.co/4ghXaYYKdGKnowing Nomura and his galaxy brain ways of hidden messages, given both are Dark Road and/or Missing Link related, I think news is def on the horizon…thoughts?September 4, 2022
Eagle-eyed fans would have already spotted that each of the questions starts with the usual "Q1, Q2, Q3", etc. however, question 4 is instead been labeled as "O4" and the same can be said for question 10. Although this could be considered a potential typo, Kingdom Hearts fans have learned that nothing is accidental with the cryptic game designer and are now theorizing that the numbers four and ten are significant in some way.
One theory is that the Kingdom Hearts 20th-anniversary event - where Kingdom Hearts 4 was announced - took place on April 10, that's right 10/4. Many fans will also know the importance of the 104 building in Kingdom Hearts 3 and fellow Square Enix IP The World Ends With You, and, if we're being real conspiracy theorists here, the Q&A was held on August 26, 2022, meaning 14 (10 + 4) days before September 9 aka the very same date that D23 Expo's video game event is set to be held. It's also worth noting that technically Kingdom Hearts 4 will be the 14th game in the series if you don't include the final mix and re-released games.
Although this sounds coincidental and potentially far-fetched, fans are convinced it's not. It's not been confirmed whether we'll see Kingdom Hearts: Missing-Link - or any Kingdom Hearts content for that matter - at D23 Expo but the game is set to get a closed beta later this year, so the timing does add up.
Unfortunately, it's unlikely that we'll be getting any Kingdom Hearts 4 news during the event. Nomura has already said that fans shouldn't expect any more Kingdom Hearts 4 news until "way after E3 period." That isn't to say that we shouldn't be excited though as Nomura has also said that Missing-Link will have connections to Kingdom Hearts 4.
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After studying Film Studies and Creative Writing at university, I was lucky enough to land a job as an intern at Player Two PR where I helped to release a number of indie titles. I then got even luckier when I became a Trainee News Writer at GamesRadar+ before being promoted to a fully-fledged News Writer after a year and a half of training. My expertise lies in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, cozy indies, and The Last of Us, but especially in the Kingdom Hearts series. I'm also known to write about the odd Korean drama for the Entertainment team every now and then.
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