In case you didn't know, Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue was announced yesterday at Sony's Pre-TGS conference in Japan. Exclusive to the Playstation 4, the collection contains playable versions of both Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance HD and KINGDOM HEARTS 0.2 Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage –, and a movie of KINGDOM HEARTS χ [chi] Back Cover.
Famitsu has released 4 pages in their recent magazine pertaining to this collection.
Update (9/19/2015): Thanks to Goldpanner, we have full translations of the scans available! Check them out below:
New Title Scoop
> Three works encompassing every single one of the new titles
The Kingdom Hearts (hereon KH) series, in which a deep story unfolds on a stage of Disney worlds, is seeing new activity!
[Sora: Yeah, it's a promise.]
[Sora - Cheerful and positive, he is the protagonist of the KH series. In KH Dream Drop Distance HD, included in KH2.8, he faces the Mark of Mastery Exam.]
> Stories you ought to know before the final chapter
KH HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue (hereon KH2.8) is a compilation title packed with three important episodes that will connect to the newest numbered title, KH3. The content looks extravagantly deluxe, as it includes a HD remake, a cinematic work and a completely new work.
[Mickey: What you did back then--your mistakes--changed the destinies of three of my friends!]
[Riku: I walk the road to dawn!]
[Riku - Sora's best friend. Despite being cool, he has unusually strong feelings for his friends. His heart was once swallowed by the darkness, but no longer. He is taking the Mark of Mastery exam along with Sora.]
> Chronological range of the compilation
A general timeline of the series is as on the right. KH2.8's KHX Back Cover is set during the same time as KHX and KH Unchained X. The time period portrayed in KH0.2 Birth by Sleep Fragmented Message is unclear, as are the connections. Is there a chance it links to KH3?
KHBBS → KH1 (nine to ten years after)
KH1 → KHDays (during/after endgame events)
KH1 → KHCoM (immediately following)
KHDays → KH2 (immediately following)
KHCoM → KH2 (about one year after)
KH2 → KHCoded (immediately following)
KHCoded → KH3D (immediately following)
KHX/UnX → KHBBS (over one hundred years after)
On this page are images of KH Dream Drop Distance HD. KH3D [Dream Drop Distance] (hereon KH3D), in even higher detail! We will introduce the other two titles on the next page.
> All events are connected
KH2.8 is composed of three works. Let's introduce them. KHHD 1.5 Remix and KHHD 2.5 Remix, which saw the series remade in HD, have already been released, and this title is the last piece of the puzzle needed to complete the story that leads to KH3. Let's play it all the way through and wait for the single conclusion to be depicted in KH3.
> The story of KH0.2 Birth by Sleep Fragmentary Passage
NEW TITLE
Ventus, Terra, Aqua. These three, who were training to become Keyblade Masters, met cruel fates. Ventus fell into a deep, unwaking sleep, as his heart had been broken. Terra had his body stolen through the schemes of Master Xehanort, and his heart vanished somewhere. And Aqua was trapped in the Realm of Darkness, where she fell protecting her friends. These are the things she saw and experienced there...
[Aqua - One of the protagonists of KH Birth by Sleep. A serious woman with the true strength needed to be a Keyblade Master. She fell into the Realm of Darkness protecting her friends.]
This is the sequel to KH Birth by Sleep, which had three Keyblade Wielders serving as the protagonists. We follow the events that one of them, Aqua, experiences as she wanders in the Realm of Darkness. There she had yet-unknown thoughts and meetings.
> The story of KHX Back Cover
CINEMATIC WORK
All the worlds were one, with no distance between them. An age that someday will be called a fairytale world. It began here, in Daybreak Town. He, the Master of Masters, possessed eyes that could see the future. Grieving over the future waiting ahead, he gave five of his six followers a tome of prophecy in which the future was written. Bestowed with copies of the tome of prophecy and having received a mission, the five followers each founded Unions based on His teachings. They gathered Keyblade Wielders like yourselves who were of the same mind, and began to collect the 'light' by defeating monsters of darkness, the Heartless.
> KHX and KH Unchained X
A title in which you can experience for yourself the story leading up to one of the keywords of the KH series, the 'Keyblade War'. KHX is currently open for service on PC browsers. KH Unchained X just began distribution as an iOS and Android app. These two titles are essentially the same in summary, but it seems there are some things in store for us. Let's check them both out!
> The story of KH Dream Drop Distance HD
HD REMAKE
Dreams are connected to other dreams… When you fall into a dream, through that dream you will be connected to the Sleeping Worlds. The worlds that were swallowed by the darkness on your first adventure were reborn. However, they were not reborn completely, and among them are worlds that still lie in sleep. There are no gates that open there, and not even the Heartless have been able to enter. Therefore, instead of the Heartless that come in large numbers from the Realm of Darkness, different beings of darkness inhabit the Sleeping Worlds. We must prepare in order to stand up to the coming calamity. For this reason, Sora and Riku will both take the Mark of Mastery Examination. By unlocking the Sleeping Keyholes, they can gain new powers and set free the Sleeping Worlds. Just as there are seven pure lights, there are seven Sleeping Keyholes - release them and return to this land once more, and they will be recognised as Keyblade Masters.
This is a HD remake of the Nintendo 3DS title KH3D, in which Sora and Riku travel the Sleeping Worlds. It seems as though the gameplay that made use of the 3DS lower screen will be reworked for a single screen without feeling off. We are interested to find out whether there will be new elements.
[C'mon, Musketeers. We've got a princess to rescue.]
Sora and Riku adventure along while a variety of creatures called 'Dream Eaters' lend them a hand. Dream Eaters are your important partners in this title, and you can raise them and play with them. We are happy that we will be able to enjoy their antics on a big screen.
[If this really is a dream, it's going to lie to you to try and make you think it's real.]
Update (9/16/2015): Thanks to Australian Riku we have a brief summary of the details in the scans:
KINGDOM HEARTS χ [chi] Back Cover
- The KHX Back Cover will be completely new and not just taken from the current games
- It specifically says that it will unravel the many mysteries that surround the origin of the series, so it seems like it will become an episode of great importance.
- The story synopsis is basically the Chi synopsis, about the Master of Masters, who could see the future and saw great sorrow so he bestowed with his foreseeing eye the Book of Prophecy among 5 of his 6 pupils. They came together to form Unions in order to fight the dark beings (Heartless) and protecting the "light".
- While it says it's unknown how much work has been put into 2.8 at this moment, it teases saying that since voices were attached to the KHX Back Cover section of the trailer, casting may be complete.
KINGDOM HEARTS 0.2 Birth by Sleep – A Fragmentary Passage –
- The most interesting thing is a very brief mention of BBS 0.2's story. It says it happens sometime along Aqua's loitering around in the Realm of Darkness, but it is specifically hiding where in the 10 year gap between BBS and KH1 this occurs.
- While wandering around the Realm of Darkness, Aqua pursues the events that unfold before her. Within this lies never before seen experiences and encounters.
KINGDOM HEARTS Dream Drop Distance HD
- KH3D seems to have no additions, based solely on what this article is presenting. (Had a read through what it was saying for KH3D again, and it seems there might be new content. They say that the existence of additional components (content) is something people should ponder about (they are sort of implying there might be)
Click to enlarge!
Are you excited for Kingdom Hearts HD II.8 Final Chapter Prologue? Read up on all the latest information here!
(they are sort of implying there might be)
