Kingdom Hearts games come to Nintendo Switch, but as Cloud versions

By Emily Morrow Published October 5, 2021

Near the end of today’s Super Smash Bros. “Mr. Sakurai Presents” video, Sakurai himself shared that the Kingdom Hearts franchise will be coming to Nintendo Switch. Kingdom Hearts – HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX, Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, and Kingdom Hearts III + Re Mind will come to the console as cloud versions, meaning that they require a persistent internet connection in order to be played, even if the console is in handheld mode.

No release date was announced, though Sakurai shared that more information would be available at a later date.

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The #KingdomHearts games are coming to #NintendoSwitch as cloud versions!

– KINGDOM HEARTS – HD 1.5 + 2.5 ReMIX – Cloud Version
– KINGDOM HEARTS HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue Cloud Version
– KINGDOM HEARTS III + Re Mind Cloud Version pic.twitter.com/ksKjd5jqhz

— Nintendo of Europe (@NintendoEurope) October 5, 2021

The collection of games includes all of the major entries in the Kingdom Hearts franchise alongside a couple of other remastered side entries. A remaster of the Nintendo 3DS game Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance is included in the 2.8 packages for instance.

Fans have been asking to experience Kingdom Hearts on Switch for a while, particularly since competing consoles like the PlayStation 4 have hosted the series for a while, but there’s some discontent that the games will be accessible only via Cloud versions. Some fans are disappointed that they won’t be able to play the series on the go or while they don’t have a persistent internet connection, which is required for cloud gaming.

The news comes alongside the announcement of Sora as the final Super Smash Bros. Ultimate fighter and Sakurai’s last presentation. Nintendo has been teasing the final Smash character for a long time, most recently in September’s Nintendo Direct. Prior to today’s video, there was significant speculation as to who the final character was going to be. Many claimed it would be Sora, as unreleased Kingdom Hearts music had been leaked prior to the presentation.

Emily Morrow is a games journalist and narrative designer who has written for a variety of online publications. If she’s…

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