Fans of the Kingdom Hearts series have long been clamoring for an HD remastering of earlier games in the franchise. Last year, Square Enix did indeed announce the release of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX, which contained several entries in the series given the high-res PlayStation 3 treatment. The only problem was that Japan was the only country confirmed to be getting the compilation, with Square Enix representatives denying plans to bring it out in English-speaking countries when asked about it.
A glimmer of hope did appear several weeks ago when actor Jesse McCartney, the English voice of series regular Roxas, posted a mysterious tweet in a recording booth showing footage from one of the games on a monitor. And now, that hope has become reality, as Square Enix has finally confirmed their plan to bring ReMIX to North America and Europe later this fall.
Two full games will be included in the collection: The original PlayStation 2 Kingdom Hearts that started it all, and Re: Chain of Memories, a polygonal PS2 remake of the Game Boy Advance game that bridged the gap between the original game and Kingdom Hearts II. Finally, while the actual DS game Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days won’t be included, all of the in-game cutscenes will be accessible in full HD, allowing players who never had the opportunity to play the portable spinoff to get all the story info they missed out on the first time around.
Special additions will include full PS3 trophy support, as well as the inclusion of bonus content in the first game that was previously only found in the Japan-only rerelease, Kingdom Hearts Final Mix. American gamers who think they know the game in and out will be surprised to find new enemies, weapons, abilities, cutscenes, and other numerous new features.
We will keep you updated on future developments regarding the Kingdom Hearts series as they are announced.