Samantha Lienhard

Kingdom Hearts Will Be Featured at D23

Video games No Responses » Tagged with: kingdom hearts

Jul 132026

D23, the Disney fan event, will be held this year from August 14-16, and they just announced the list of events.

The list includes a “deep dive into Kingdom Hearts.”

This event is described as commemorating 25 years of Kingdom Hearts and will feature “insights from the creative minds, character voices, and more behind the magic.”

Now, this isn’t actually the 25th anniversary of Kingdom Hearts. The first game came out in Japan in March 2022, so next year will be its 25th anniversary. But D23 isn’t actually held every year, so I guess that’s why they decided to celebrate it now.

Moving on to the announcement itself, on the surface it doesn’t seem like we should get too excited over it. It could well be a discussion of the series itself without any new announcements. However, D23 has been a source of Kingdom Hearts news in the past. Back in 2018, for example, a ton of Kingdom Hearts III information came out of D23.

So D23 would be a solid contender for Kingdom Hearts IV news even without the series having its own dedicated panel.

Since we finally got a new Kingdom Hearts IV trailer during last month’s Nintendo Direct, here’s hoping this means it’s time for the information floodgates to open. I’ll have my fingers crossed as we get closer to D23.

In the meantime, I just have one question… is it really a coincidence that this news came out on 7/13??

Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis is Shutting Down in October

Jul 102026

Ahh, Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis… remember when I thought it was a gacha I might actually play?

Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis came out in 2023 and was meant to cover the entire Final Fantasy VII Compilation.

At the time, I stopped because I wanted to play Crisis Core before experiencing the abridged version in Ever Crisis, but also because its gacha format just turned me away.

(Since I never mentioned it again, you probably already guessed that I never went back to it after playing Crisis Core.)

Well, Square Enix has now announced that Ever Crisis will be shut down on October 6. Shutting down after three years is nowhere near as bad as some, but it’s one of the many reasons why I don’t like that type of game.

Not only that, but it seems they never even got around to all the promised Compilation stories, so Before Crisis will be handled in three chapters across the next three months.

It seems like a lot of players are displeased with Ever Crisis in general, though. The biggest impression I got while reading reactions to the shutdown is that it never quite delivered on what it promised, a playable collection of the entire Compilation. Maybe it’s a good thing I never got into it after all.

What do you think about the end-of-service announcement for Ever Crisis?

New Shantae Game Set for 2027

Video games No Responses » Tagged with: shantae

Jul 082026

Last October, WayForward confirmed a new Shantae game was in development during a Limited Run Games showcase.

There was no information about the next game beyond a picture of Shantae and Risky, but now we have another teaser.

At Anime Expo, WayForward revealed new art of Shantae along with a 2027 release window.

The 2027 release window is great, but I find the art even more interesting because of its implications. Instead of her usual hairstyle, Shantae has three braids that end in spiky balls that look like the Pike Ball weapon. Since past games in the series have had Shantae’s hair be her primary weapon, that suggests gameplay might be a little different… especially since the initial teaser also showed Shantae with a different hairstyle.

My guess is that abilities this time around will be tied to different hairstyles and this will effect both combat and traversal. That would be an interesting twist on the standard gameplay.

Either way, I’m excited to learn more! (This also reminds me that I need to play Risky Revolution, since I didn’t at launch.)

What are your hopes for the new Shantae game coming out in 2027?

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