It’s been awhile since any news has been posted, so I thought I should post this. GermanSeabass has recently done his second fantastic medley of Kingdom Hearts music improvised on piano. It also includes an interpretation of “Fate of the Unknown” using the arrangement on this site:

Reflet of the French fansite KingdomFantasy.com has uploaded 50 pages of the Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ Ultimania! No translations yet, but I think TheWertle is still working on them. You can view them all here or download KingdomFantasy’s RAR file of the large highest quality versions of them, if you can unRAR files.

Update: 13 more pages uploaded, including the pages of Axel and Demyx that were missing from before!

Update: 7 Scans Not In The File

KHI brought to my attention that there are two new Kingdom Hearts Novels by Tomoco Kanemaki and Shiro Amano coming out on August 1st, which are available for Pre-Order on Amazon.com in the US:

Also, the next of Shiro Amano’s Graphic Novels is coming out on October 1st:

The Boxed Set of the Chain of Memories Graphic Novels is coming out October 9th, presumably including just the two current volumes:

For those of you who missed the previous books:

Due to the lack of Kingdom Hearts news around at the moment, I decided to compile a list of the most important questions from various interviews from the past about confusions and the future of Kingdom Hearts. Most of these interviews are with Tetsuya Nomura. Please spend some time looking through them, as even though it’s a summary, there’s still quite a lot here.

What does the future hold for “Kingdom Hearts”? Would you like to see it become a long-running series like “Final Fantasy”, or do you have a finite vision for the series?

Nomura: In the “Final Fantasy” series each installment has had a new set of characters and a new story, which keeps it going. But in “Kingdom Hearts” Sora is the main character. So obviously, with us only playing as one main character in this series, keeping that character alive and interesting will be a challenge. For every character there must be an end, although I don’t know when or what the end of Sora’s journey will be. In the future, sometime, there might be an end, but for now I will continue to explore Sora and his story.

Right then, we’d like to ask you some questions about that improved story. First, was Kairi coming to Destiny Islands fate, or was it just coincidence?

Nomura: It was both. It’s not shown in this game, and it’s a delicate issue whether I can call this a living setting, but anyway Kairi was sent out from Hollow Bastion by Ansem’s hand. And the reason why Ansem sent her was to find the Keyblade. There was actually evidence of that in the jail at the End of the World. Ansem thought that girls who are princesses would be sure to make it to the place of the Keyblade. So Kairi coming to the place with Sora and Riku was both chance, and also fate.

Do you mean to say that there are other “Keyblade Heroes”?

Nomura: Well, undoubtedly there are other “Keyblade Heroes”, but it just so happened that this time, Kairi made it to the world where Riku and Sora were. That’s all.

About Riku being the rightful owner of the Keyblade - Why is it that Sora had the Keyblade first?

Nomura: That part is also a bit vague. In the Destiny Islands when Riku is swallowed by the Darkness, there’s a sparkle of light, and next comes the scene where Sora first gets the Keyblade, right? In my setting, the Darkness wrapping itself around those two is the Darkness of Riku’s heart. At the moment when Sora enters that Darkness, the light you can see is the Light of the heart. Sora, trying to help Riku, struggling in the Darkness, touches that light and temporarily the Keyblade goes to Sora.

Also, Kairi’s grandmother tells her a story about “the world once perishing and being recreated by the light of the children.” Is this “world recreated by the Light of the children” in fact referring to all the worlds in the game?

Nomura: Yes, that’s right. But that story wasn’t history, it was a fairy tale. It doesn’t mean that story equals the world’s history precisely. Although, there is a certain degree of overlapping.

When you look at the computer in the “World’s Prison”, there is a message with a very deep meaning. It says, “Two will seal the Door of Darkness.” Who specifically is it referring to?

Nomura: Well, judging by what happens (in the game), one of them is obviously Sora. As for the other one, you could take it as either; there’s both Riku and the King. And for the “two keys” after that, there are both the keys that Sora and the King have, but also there’s the presence of Sora and Riku.

At the end, it seems Kairi is left in the Destiny Islands. Doesn’t she return to Hollow Bastion?

Nomura: Right. I often get asked about this part, but it’s actually explained in the game. The Princesses tell Sora that everyone will be able to return to the place they were when their world was destroyed. Kairi disappeared in the Destiny Islands, so she returned there. Because she was physically sent from Hollow Bastion to the Destiny Islands, so she never actually “disappeared” from there.

In the ending, Riku and the King are on the other side of the door. Why is that?

Nomura: As far as the King is concerned, he was on the other side from the beginning. He disappeared because he went to the world on the other side in order to find one of the two keys. There, he has his own adventure in the same way as Sora. As for Riku, his body stolen by Ansem (Xehanort’s Heartless), his heart did not remain in this world. The other side of the door is, just as it appears, Darkness. So Riku’s heart went to the world on the other side, that is to say just as Ansem (Xehanort’s Heartless) was saying at the end, the world of Darkness. Thus, when Ansem (Xehanort’s Heartless) disappears and Riku returns to his original body, he is in the world of Darkness. (Riku returned to his original body, therefore leaving no Heartless or Nobody.)

Well then, when Riku has returned to his own body, why doesn’t he come back to the world on this side?

Nomura: That’s another thing I’ve been asked by lots of people, but the answer is actually written in the World’s Prison computer message. It is implied there that only Darkness can pass through that door. Riku and the King are not creatures of Darkness, so they can’t come out through that door.

Is Mickey the most powerful character in the Kingdom Hearts universe?

Nomura: I have yet to reveal the most powerful character. But I’m confident that you’ll be surprised by Mickey’s role.

With the first Kingdom Hearts, you took a wait-and-see approach before starting work on a sequel. Now that the series is a success, do you plan to turn Kingdom Hearts into an ongoing, Final Fantasy-sized franchise? What is the future of Kingdom Hearts?

Nomura: I believe that the Final Fantasy series is one that will continue forever. On the other hand, Kingdom Hearts will come to an end at some point. Whether that end comes in the next story or in several more installments, I do not know. What I do know is that I already see that “last scene” that will put an end to Kingdom Hearts.

The story is carrying on to Kingdom Hearts II, but is there a story that will continue Chain of Memories itself? Nomura: This game system is very fun to use so I want to use it again the future. However, Chain of Memories doesn’t really have a story in itself but, is just a piece of a much larger story. Right now, I feel that making a Chain of Memories 2 is a very difficult thing indeed.

After the ending, there’s a secret movie this time, too. What exactly is the movie trying to tell?

Nomura: I actually have a solid idea on what the movie’s setting will be in my head. In the previous game’s secret movie, I wasn’t even sure if I would be making a sequel or not, so some parts of it were quite vague. But this time I already have an idea my head where I think “This is it.”

Did that scene happen in the future or in the past?

Nomura: I would at least say it’s an episode in the past, but…. Hmm, how should I say this? It’s in the past but you can also think it’s in the future, something like that.

Who are the 3 armoured people?

Nomura: Those 3 are completely new people who haven’t shown up at all. In fact, I’ve already thought of their names. Back when I was making that movie, I only had their settings but now I’ve even drawn their faces to give myself a clearer image of them.

The King, Sora and Riku’s keyblades were there, too…

Nomura: It’s to show that those three armoured people aren’t them but that doesn’t mean they don’t have connections. The words “Keyblade War” that showed up in the middle were to implicate that there were fights between Keyblades. Most of the puzzles in the first Kingdom Hearts have been solved in Kingdom Hearts II but there are many things about the Keyblade that haven’t been revealed yet. A line from the previous game’s Ansem Report #8 appeared in the movie but that is to say “It means this but it’s not explained yet.”

Does that mean you already have a plot for KHIII?

Nomura: Hmm… I have an idea but it can’t be helped because my team are planning to work on our next different title. So we’re not working on KHIII now and we’re not planning to work on it for some time. I have a plot in my head but I’m not sure if it’ll be released to the world or just stay in there.

Scenario Mysteries

When was Organization XIII founded?

Nomura:The timing is when Philosopher Ansem’s 6 disciples turned into Heartless. Organization XIII is only called like that because it has recruited 13 members, but it doesn’t matter if it has “XIII” in its name or not. All 13 members were already gathered in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories but the members that were in Castle Oblivion still called it “The Organization.”

Besides Xehanort, did the other 5 disciples that turned into Heartless disappear?

Nomura: Not really disappear but more like they’re somewhere else as normal Heartless. Xehanort was about the only one who was able to keep a human form.

Did Naminé meet DiZ after Sora’s story in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories?

Nomura: Yes, they contacted each other between Sora and Riku’s stories. Naminé co-operated with DiZ not just because she’s against the Organization but also because she wanted to protect Sora. She promised to restore Sora’s memories so she needed to stay beside him. As stated in Secret Ansem Report #10, DiZ thought that it was dangerous to leave Sora in Castle Oblivion, and in order to protect Sora, Naminé needed DiZ.

Was the Mansion in Twilight Town a property of Organization XIII?

Nomura: No, they have nothing to do with it. It’s just a place DiZ used as his hideout. You saw a lot of pods like the one Sora was in but DiZ just transferred Sora and the others along with their pods from Castle Oblivion. In other words, DiZ just copied the pods that were created by the Organization and lined them up (in the Mansion). The reason there’s a room in the Mansion that looks exactly like Castle Oblivion’s is that it was just prepared for Naminé, not because that space is connected to Castle Oblivion.

Please tell us a bit more about the Twilight Town Roxas was in. From Secret Ansem Report #12, there’s the line “For the moment, I have converted all of Twilight Town into data, and formed a ‘copy of the world’ in Sora’s memories…”

Nomura: The Twilight Town Roxas was in is the data of the real Twilight Town, inside a computer. The pod Sora sleeps in is connected to a computer in which a data version of that world is, and Organization XIII hacked into the computer. It’s not that Axel went into Sora’s brain, it’s actually that the Nobodies invaded the world that’s in the computer that Sora’s brain was accessing.

We found out that Riku’s Keyblade’s name is “Way to the Dawn” when examining his item slots after he joined your party. Is that Keyblade a transfigured version of Soul Eater?

Nomura: I designed it with that image. Since Riku has always been using Soul Eater, he still calls it that even after it changed form. Keyblades aren’t something that you can obtain suddenly out of nowhere, so in Riku’s case, his Soul Eater was used as an intermediary for that Keyblade.

If we directly translate “Way to the Dawn”, “dawn” means “in-between night and daytime”, so does that mean that Keyblade is from the In-between World? In other words, this means that the Keyblades that Sora, King Mickey and Riku wield represent the Worlds of Light, Dark and In-between?

Nomura: Well, if I have to say where they belong, it’s just as you said. But the name of “Way to the Dawn” doesn’t have to mean that. This name came from the scene at the end of Riku’s story in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories that suggested which path he would walk on, where he said “The road to dawn.”

In Secret Ansem Report #13, DiZ had the unanswered question, “How did Xehanort open the door in Hollow Bastion’s underground?” but….

Nomura: I can’t talk about this yet. But, weeell, it’s something you can speculate over, I think.

Speaking of “opening the door”, I’m going to move the subject to the previous game. When Riku opened the Destiny Islands door, why did this accidentally call the Darkness? Are the powers of Keyblade wielders that are called “Heroes of Light” connected to Darkness?

Nomura: Currently Sora and the others are the only Keyblade wielders and they’re doing things that grant them the titles “Heroes of Light”. But, as stated in the first game’s Ansem Report #8 and the secret movie this time, the real Keyblade wielders “can bring chaos to the world, just as one can bring peace to it.”

In the World that Never Was, Xigbar said to Sora “Compared to the ones before this, you’re weaker”. Does that mean he’s comparing Sora to previous Keyblade wielders before him?

Nomura: Yes, he was. I was hinting “Xigbar has met other Keyblade wielders before.” As for something more than that… I’ll leave it to your imagination.

Anyway, let’s start with the news of this “new project” which appeared at the end of the latest trailer. Boy, were we surprised!

Nomura: Thanks to everyone Kingdom Hearts has gained phenomenal popularity worldwide. That is why next year the series will be taking a new step… although for the moment I can’t be any more concrete.

If only you could do something about that (laugh). Is it something Disney specializes in? Or is a game?

Nomura: It’s complicated. It is one thing but “project” doesn’t quite encompass it. Right now we’re in the midst of talks with Disney’s side and while there is something they have contributed there is also something we [Square-Enix] have contributed. At the moment we’re talking about how to realise it. Please be patient until we can be more precise.

Will there be a hint in Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix’s secret movie?

Nomura: Well… there will be… a little. But also something else…

Something else?!

Square-Enix’s PR Department: It’s probably something you have never would have imagined. (laugh)
Nomura: So a lot’s going on but please look forward to it.

Hi. I have to ask this on behalf of all the Kingdom Hearts fanboys in Europe. Can you PLEASE bring Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ to Europe?

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: *Laughs* We have big plans for the Kingdom Hearts series this year globally. It has become a big series for us.

But will Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ hit Europe?

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: I think it’s safe to say you will be pleasantly surprised around the end of the year. *grins*

What is the future of Kingdom Hearts like?

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: Well Kingdom Hearts III is going to be released on PS3 and we will see what we can do with that.

What about a Kingdom Hearts movie? Advent Children was sick!

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: Well you never know - We are good at CGI aren’t we? *grins*

Will we see another Kingdom Hearts game on a Nintendo platform?

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: Well like I said, there will be big Kingdom Hearts related announcements made this year. Please look forward to it.

Will Kingdom Hearts III be a new trilogy with new characters?

Square-Enix Marketing Manager: Can’t answer.

The secret movie is connected to what is coming in the future! Nomura says it would be a shame if you miss out on it.

A scheduled announcement of the next Kingdom Hearts Project will definitely take place after the summer! (Now known to be at the Tokyo Game Show 2007)

Nomura states that it is too much work to work on both at the same time. So they are concentrating on completing Final Fantasy Versus XIII first to acquire the necessary elements that they can incorporate into Kingdom Hearts III. This could include characters, locations, gameplay features, or something else.

Final Fantasy Versus XIII will be the last Final Fantasy Nomura will direct, as he wants to concentrate on Kingdom Hearts series instead. So there may be a very big future for Kingdom Hearts.

Gemaga: Are the characters who appear in the new CG “secret movie” added to Final Mix from the new title?

Nomura: They are people who have some relation to the new series. However, the next title won’t just be Kingdom Hearts III. If it were III, we wouldn’t call it a new series.

Gemaga: Will Sora and Riku make an appearance in the new game?

Nomura: *Laughs* I can’t say. It may have something to do with Xehanort though.

Dengeki PS: What can you tell us about the new title?

Nomura: First, it’s not Kingdom Hearts III. Of course, because we’re calling it a ‘new’ series, it won’t be Kingdom Hearts III. Also, it’s a series, so it probably won’t be just one title.

Concerning the keyphrase “Keyblade War”, could you be a little more specific about that? Could it be connected to the “Fairytale of Children and Light” that Kairi’s Grandmother told? (Footnote: In Kingdom Hearts, Sora experienced Kairi’s memories. It was a scene when Kairi’s Grandmother told her an old story when she was still young about when worlds were swallowed by Darkness. Children used the power of fragments of Light to rebuild worlds.)

Nomura: To tell the story about the Keyblade War we need the capacity of hi-spec hardware and we need to accumulate all of our knowledge on this hardware. And in telling this story, we will need to tell it in separate episodes, and how specifically to tell it has yet to be figured out.

Nomura: As for the fairytale that Kairi heard, for everyone to feel like such and old fairytale is real, I think we need a little more time. That is to say, to talk specifically about either this soon might perhaps be irrelevant.

Of the people that appear in the new secret movie, “Birth By Sleep”, that was added to Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix, several names and figures are recognizable and must be extremely meaningful. Giving specifics is likely impossible, but could you give us a hint? Furthermore, do the 3 armoured figures that appear there and the similar looking armoured figure in the Last Battle have some relation to Xemnas?

Nomura: For the recognizable figures and the recognizable faces, reaching the secret this time is extremely difficult, but I think the video is fairly spectacular and will stir your imaginations. The armoured figures have a connection to Xemnas but after all I can’t give any specifics at the present stage. But, the video this time has a foreboding opening and please think of the figures ahead as having reason and a hinting connection.

Lastly, has Sora’s journey come to an end this time? Before you told us “I have the end of Kingdom Hearts in my head”, but does this mean that Sora won’t be there? There seem to be new developments with the Kingdom Hearts Series, so can you please tell us within the present limits any hints?

Nomura: Without recalling too much about the mysteries and problems of the outline remaining for Kingdom Hearts series thus far, I don’t think that Sora’s journey is over. If you get to see the ending of Kingdom Hearts II I think you will be able to sense some new premonitions. Regarding what I said about the “end” of Kingdom Hearts, of course I won’t be able to say anything about that yet, but if the numbering of Kingdom Hearts were to go to “III”, I doubt that Sora would have no relation to it. Even if I wrap up Kingdom Hearts, I don’t think that Sora will be irrelevant.

Nomura: Also, there are many new developments. I think that the news will be able to satisfy the widely supportive Kingdom Hearts fans everywhere. As there is still more to say about this “new” thing, please dare to think with a different flow, rather than just going with what’s mainstream. I will give you a hint about the contents of one of the numerous developments. In the freshly added secret movie a phrase comes out, “Fate doesn’t happen by accident, there is necessity”. (Riku: In the translated version of the secret ending, this is the line “The fate of all occurs not by chance…”)

• Nomura has now stated that this project may be an interesting side-story focusing on characters other than Sora, although Sora still has a big role.
• He should be explaining “Birth By Sleep” a bit more, what Mickey did in the World of Darkness, and how Mickey got his Keyblade.
• He’ll want to work on developing Roxas the most. He thinks it’s interesting that his birth and disappearance have both been drawn within a year.
• He wants to make this “New Project” slightly different from the Kingdom Hearts series including slight changes in the system.
• The armoured figures in the “Birth By Sleep” video are connected to Xemnas/Xehanort. There may be elaboration on this.
• Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ was confirmed to be Nomura’s final PlayStation 2 game, and therefore any future Kingdom Hearts games will only be on PlayStation 3 or possibly other gaming systems.
• The “New Project” should be announced soon, although Nomura wants to keep the title a secret for awhile and tell us at just the right time.
• Multi-developing makes Nomura want to put the “New Project” on another system. If he does, he wants to decide whether to make it for PSP, Nintendo DS or mobile phones.

Aerith: I got a chance to meet Yoko Shimomura, composer of the Kingdom Hearts music and, even though she only speaks Japanese, she understood enough English for me to tell her I love Kingdom Hearts and ask her about if there will be a Kingdom Hearts 3. She replied “Maybe. There is very good chance.” Then I asked if she would be doing the music and she answered “I hope to be”.

Scenario Mysteries

We’d like to inquire about the new secret movie “Birth By Sleep”. In the new event “The Truth about the Chamber of Sleep”, Xigbar mentions a “group that wields Keyblades”. Is he talking about the 3 armoured people in the movie?

Nomura: Yes, Xigbar witnessed them when he was a disciple to Ansem the Wise.

The Lingering Sentiment (Enigmatic Soldier) is the same as the armoured youth in the movie, but when he fights Sora he mentions “Aqua” and “Ven”. Are those the names of the other 2?

Nomura: Yes. The blue-haired girl is Aqua.

What is the armoured youth’s name?

Nomura: His name appeared once in code in the 2006 Tokyo Game Show Promotional Video. Also, Ven is actually a nickname, but his real name is a little bit longer. (Riku: His name is thought to be Ventus.) Sora, Riku, and Kairi’s names can be seen as “Sky, Land, and Sea” respectively. The 3 armoured people’s names take the shape of different properties of the world, “Water, Wind, and Earth”.

Ven looks an awful lot like Roxas…

Nomura: I can’t give any specifics about that. He may just resemble him, and if there is a connection, Sora may be connected too. What I can say right now is that these mysteries are all connected to the story.

“Master Xehanort’s Avenger, his name is Terra.”

“Not yet awakened, he is connected to those two.”

In July this year, Square-Enix is releasing the Kingdom Hearts Complete Visual Art Book in Japan. It includes some of Tetsuya Nomura’s artwork from all of the Kingdom Hearts games.

This image is of the actual cover of the book. If you click it, you’ll see a version where I put the higher quality version of the artwork from the official website over it to make it easier to see enlarged. The actual book doesn’t include the words “Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+” on the cover.

JP¥1,800.00 (~US$15, ~GB£7.50, ~EU€11, ~AU$18.15, ~CA$16.50, ~NZ$20.40)

Hello! Some interesting news today, TheWertle has translated some of the pages out of the Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ Ultimania that concerns the Timeline of Chain of Memories. A great deal of thanks needs to definitely go out for him for all that he has done!

You’re probably saying to yourself “I have already played Chain of Memories. I know what happens!” Well, the Timeline does more than just outline the events of what Riku was doing while Sora was on his own adventure. It gives more detail and tells us extra information that we never knew before! Enjoy!

(Riku: Sorry this is up late, but many corrections in spelling, grammar, and layout had to be made. Click the images to enlarge them.)

Pages 1 & 2

• Red 1A: Sora comes to Castle Oblivion and a man in a black coat explains the rules of cards and the worlds of his memories.
• Grey 1: As Sora goes out, Riku heads towards the castle.
• White 1A: Sora and crew are guided from the opening. The one who is explaining things here is the one at the center of the plans, the leader Marluxia.
• Red 1B: Axel appears before Sora. He advises Sora that he is losing sight of the light within in the darkness and leaves.
• White 1B: At this point, Axel is opposed to Marluxia’s plans and is taking his own action.

Floor 2

• Red 2: Sora’s memories are altered due to Naminé.

Floor 3

• Red 3: Axel and Larxene discuss the secret of how, even though Sora was turned into a Heartless, his heart didn’t lose its will and determination.

Floor 4

• Red 4: Sora’s memories continue to be altered due to Naminé.

Floor 5

• Red 5: According to the plan, Axel and Larxene keep an eye on Sora as his memories begin to grow. Next, Larxene heads to where Sora is.
• White 2: “Sora is the key for us to take control of the Organization.” Larxene is easily deceived by Axel’s guidance. He answer’s back “I’ve kept the true goal to myself.” That is, Axel is getting sure proof of Larxene and the rest of the Organization’s betrayal.

Floor 6

• Red 6A: Larxene appears before Sora. The outer appearance of his charm (Oathkeeper) changes and she makes Sora remember the name “Naminé”. She encourages them to pursue it themselves.
• Red 6B: Mutual events from Floor 6 and Basement 7: Larxene returns to her companions in the basement where Vexen should be in charge. Using the results of her research she proposes that they test Sora’s abilities. Having heard this, Axel hands a certain card to Vexen.
• Grey 2: From Basement 8 to Floor 6 and Basement 7: Vexen takes Riku Replica to the upper levels.

Floor 7

• Grey 3: Riku Replica goes to intercept Sora.
• Red 7: Riku Replica fights Sora.

Floor 8

• Red 8: Riku Replica fights Sora again. Axel is able to continue to investigate further the betrayal with Naminé.

• Grey 1: As Sora goes out, Riku heads towards the castle.

Basement 12

• Purple 1: Lexaeus and Zexion sense Riku’s presence. They don’t know his identity yet, but they analyze that he has the same scent as their leader.

Basement 11

• Purple 2: Zexion and the rest guess that the identity of the scent belongs to Riku. Intrigued by Riku, Vexen talks about Marluxia’s suspicious movements and suggests that they oppose Marluxia by obtaining Riku.

Basement 10

• Purple 3: Vexen fights Riku, but in actuality the fight is to gain data.

Basement 9

• Purple 4: Vexen is able to continue the creation of Riku Replica. Sora’s memories continue to be altered by Marluxia and feeling a sense of crisis, Zexion opposes Vexen.
• White 1: In Sora’s side, the reason Vexen appears in the upper floors when he should be in charge of the basement is made clear here.

Basement 8

• Purple 5: Having returned from his fight with Riku, Vexen gives orders to Riku Replica to fight Sora.
• Grey 2: From Basement 8 to Floor 6 and Basement 7: Vexen takes Riku Replica to the upper levels.

Basement 7

• Purple 6: Basement 7-only events: Axel suggests that according to the results of the research, Riku Replica’s memories should be adapted to be the same as the real Riku’s. Riku Replica refuses, but his memories end up being changed anyway.
• White 2: The identity of the card Axel hands over, the results of Vexen’s research regarding Riku Replica, and the reason Riku Replica believes himself to be the real Riku and so forth all become clear here.

Basement 6

• Purple 7: Riku Replica is made to believe he’s the real Riku due to false memories being altered.
• White 3: On Sora’s side, the reason the appearance of his charm changed and the reason Riku Replica’s charm is the same shape is proved by Naminé and Larxene’s conversation. Naminé bundles the charm with a card using false memories and this way hides the true appearance.
• Grey 3: Riku Replica goes to intercept Sora.

Pages 3 & 4

• Red 1: In order for Riku Replica to take arbitrary action, he sees to it that Vexen’s strategy fails. As a condition for Marluxia to overlook Vexen’s blunder, he orders him to kill Sora.

Floor 10

• Red 2: After fighting Sora, Vexen hints at the existence of “other memories”. Having exceeded the expectations of his abilities, Marluxia labels Axel a “traitor that needs to be disposed of”.
• White 1: Marluxia calls Axel a “traitor”. Afterwards, Marluxia returns as a “traitor to the Organization” himself (see Floor 13 events below).

Floor 11

• Red 3A: Having fought Sora once again in Twilight Town, Vexen starts to tell him the truth, but Axel disposes of him.
• Red 3B: Marluxia and Larxene notice the disappearance of Vexen and Sora’s abilities, and acknowledge Axel as a companion. Riku Replica fights Sora for a 3rd time. He drops his charm and escapes. Meanwhile, Axel tempts Naminé and the betrayal continues.
• Grey 1: News of Vexen’s disappearance is spread to the basement.

Floor 12

• Red 4A: On Destiny Islands, believing his false memories, Naminé makes Sora remember Kairi.
• Red 4B: Riku Replica fights Sora for a 4th time and is dealt a finishing blow in an instant and his heart collapses. Impatient with the betrayal, Larxene reveals the truth to Sora and tries to dispose of him, but on the contrary ends up being disposed of herself. Naminé confesses everything to Sora and the others.
• White 2: Afterwards on the 13th floor, Marluxia learns of this, so Riku Replica’s memories are forcibly removed and his heart breaks. In this scene, Naminé was saved by Sora and Riku Replica’s memories were promptly erased by her.

Floor 13

• Red 5A: It becomes clear that Axel is actually a spy, and to get rid of “the traitor to the Organization”, Marluxia makes Sora Axel’s opponent and escapes. Axel fights Sora, and content, leaves.
• Grey 2: Having fought Sora, Axel heads to the basement.
• White 3: At this time, Axel leaves Sora with the words “You’ve saved me” as he disappears. “You’ve saved me” is directed at the betrayal of Naminé, but not knowing these circumstances, Sora just tilts his head.
• Red 5B: Sora faces up against Marluxia and Riku Replica, whose heart should be broken, also backs him up.
• Red 5C: Turning out to be a dummy, Sora defeats the real Marluxia and locks the 13th Floor Keyhole. Sora tries to hold back Riku Replica but he leaves the place.
• Grey 3: News of Marluxia’s disappearance spreads to the basement, and Axel brings Riku Replica to the basement.
• Red 5D: Sora promises to meet Naminé again and goes to sleep.
• Grey 4: Soon after Sora goes to sleep, Riku meets Naminé and sees Sora here.

• Purple 1: Vexen is defeated by Sora, and then disposed of by Axel. Zexion and Lexaeus learn of this. In order to compete against Marluxia, who almost has Sora in his grasp, they resolve to claim Riku again.

Basement 4

• Purple 2: After Lexaeus disappears, Zexion and Axel see to it that Marluxia and the others’ plans of rebellion will also fail. Zexion uses memories of Riku’s hometown to dispose of him, as he has now become unnecessary.
• White 1: Axel informs Zexion of Naminé’s betrayal and Larxene’s disappearance. This is all for Axel’s own means but Zexion doesn’t know this.

Basement 3

• Purple 3: Zexion informs Riku that Sora is in the castle. He informs him of Sora and Riku’s antagonizing fate, and making good use of the illusion, he hunts down Riku. But with Kairi’s advice (whose form is being borrowed by Naminé), he breaks the illusion using the power of Darkness.
• White 2: Here, as Zexion couldn’t help but betray the Organization, Axel has no choice but to force him to disappear, and the remaining number of “Black Coats” in the castle is narrowed down to Axel alone.

Basement 2

• Purple 4: Even though he is filled with Zexion’s power, Riku Replica challenges Riku to a fight so he can take the place of the real Riku, but disappears. In front of the eyes of a sleeping Sora, Riku meets Naminé and chooses a path to fight Darkness.
• Grey 4: Soon after Sora goes to sleep, Riku meets Naminé and sees Sora here.
• White 3: Having left Sora, Riku Replica’s fate becomes clear here.

Basement 1

• Purple 5: Riku defeats Ansem, who has been living in the Darkness within Riku’s heart.

First, I’ve done the non-branded translated version of the Secret Ending by itself here:

Also, Deathspank has now made most of the Re: Chain of Memories available for download with subtitles! Fourth and Seventh Floors coming soon.

There’re also new interviews from a magazine, found in the “Light In The Chaos Blog”. Found at KH-Vids:

- A part of the latest secret movie is related to the new series.

- You get the “Experience Zero” ability at the beginning of Critical Mode, which is for those who might find Critical Mode too easy. It a problem if you accidentally equip it though.

- At the top of Pride Lands, there use to be exactly 144 heartless there, but in Final Mix they have become one enemy. (No more free experience from there.)

- Making the Enigmatic Soldier an Optional Boss Fight was a staff member’s idea.

- The Organization XIII battles from before have changed a lot.

- At a new scene, when Zexion is walking, he suddenly stops as though he’s thinking of something. The players should be able to work out why Zexion stopped.

- The Organization XIII Mushroom Heartless were an idea from the staff ever since Kingdom Hearts II was developed. Back then it was too big to put into the game, so it was added as a sidequest for Final Mix.

- At first Nomura was going to put the Roxas fight in Kingdom Hearts II, but due to the time consumption, he took the fight out in the end. He also wanted to add an additional bit to that event, and a new form. He was thinking about the abilities that could reside around the first Kingdom Hearts game.

- The music after the battle against Roxas was meant to match the event completely. When Nomura did the battle against Roxas, he wanted to convince people about how emotional the battle was, and so created an event after the battle. The battle music he saw as “Different” for when he had Sora face up against Roxas.

- There are some changes in the game the staff made that even Nomura doesn’t know about!

- Re: Chain of Memories was made more from a less justifying view first. It seemed that Nomura wanted to make the camera like Kingdom Hearts, but it would be hard for the team to fully do this, so he changed it around. (Thank goodness they didn’t.)

- The team also put in a few changes for the Last Boss against Sora. Nomura took charge for this battle. It seemed to be *** of **** of Sora. (The *** were censored in the magazine.) All he can say is that it has to do with Marluxia, and it is a very very painful attack.

- The New Series is NOT Kingdom Hearts III. (Nomura wants to make sure you remember that.) (The fact that he says it’s a series is promising!)

- For Re: Chain of Memories, Shimomura and the team worked day in and day out, although this was only for the battle music. She wanted to have different feelings such as “Happy Battle” “Sad Battle” and “Terrible Music”. There is also something about a “Third Form” added to the Last boss.

- Yoko Shimomura put ALL her work and effort in the Roxas battle music. She was pushed to her limit. The battle is meant to be very very emotional. Nomura believed Shimomura already met the standards, but Shimomura wanted to push herself further.

There are two versions of the Organization XIII battles. The first ones are scattered throughout the Worlds, and Nomura stated no one should have any trouble with them at all. However, for the re-fights in the new area, players will have to be at least be level 99 if they want to stand a chance.

This is it, guys! - I’ve put the highest quality Kingdom Hearts II Secret Ending, and the highest quality Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix+ Secret Ending, together with the translations on!

As of tomorrow or Monday, I’ll make it possible to download a non-branded highest-quality version of it! (120MB AVI file to warn you in advance.) Enjoy!

Deathspank from KH-Vids.net has now put translations for every Re: Chain of Memories cutscene so far - Links in This News Post.

Darkhelmet543 from GameFAQs has managed to get the Extended Secret Ending already, and it looks awesome! Unfortunately, there’s no sound on it yet, but it’s still worth a watch!

Edit: I put the music from the final track of the Kingdom Hearts Official Soundtrack Complete to the High Quality version of the Secret Ending! Enjoy!

More Re: Chain of Memories Footage from KH-Vids’ Deathspank has appeared, which I’ve put in This News Post.