Pap the
Disney Gamer's Highlights: Pap's
Dream Worlds for Kingdom Hearts
III Part 2: The Live Action
Fantasies
Author's
Note: These are NOT in any
way, shape or form PREDICTIONS
of what worlds I think will be
in Kingdom Hearts III. As the
title says, these are my DREAM
worlds, ie the worlds I would
love to see in the final game.
The way Square Enix and Disney
selects the Disney worlds is a
complex one, and just because
they can use a property it
doesn't mean they will.
Before I
continue with my dream worlds
for Kingdom Hearts III, there is
something I want to elaborate
upon. I have mentioned that
Kingdom Hearts II broke new
ground in terms of what Disney
worlds could be included in the
game. Let me elaborate further
on that...
The first
Kingdom Hearts game almost set a
rule that people expected Square
Enix to follow in all the games:
to create worlds based on the
Disney Animated Classics and the
off-shoot animated efforts. In
that game, Halloween Town served
as the odd world as it was based
on a Disney film that wasn't
exactly released by Disney, and
at the time it was relatively
obscure in the eyes of the
mainstream audience. That movie
was The Nightmare Before
Christmas. Since then Disney has
fully embraced the film and has
become just as popular as the
other animated efforts.

Kingdom Hearts
II was then announced a few
years later, and one of the
first worlds to be announced was
Port Royal, based on Pirates of
the Caribbean: Curse of the
Black Pearl. The movie was a
surprise hit that re-awakened
interest in the Pirates of the
Caribbean attraction at all
Disney theme parks, made pirate
movies popular again, and gave
Disney a brand new franchise to
feature on all over their
assets. So it made more than
enough sense to create a world
based on the film in the latest
Kingdom Hearts game. Problem
was, the characters would be
presented as their live action
selves, while Sora, Donald and
Goofy would remain in their
animated form, creating a
contrast similar to Who
Framed Roger Rabbit?. Fans
were excited as this meant that
Square Enix almost had no limits
as to what worlds they could
create as long as they had
Disney's blessings. But at the
same time, they felt that the
animated characters clashed too
much with the live action
characters.
A few years
later, Square Enix announced
prior to the release of Kingdom
Hearts II the existence of a
world based on TRON, the 1982
movie that introduced a computer
generated world to the Disney
audience. That meant that the
sequel would have two worlds
based on live action films. Last
year's Kingdom Hearts: Dream
Drop Distance on the 3DS
introduced The Grid, the world
based on TRON: Legacy,
the sequel to the 1982 film that
continued the story as seen in
Kingdom Hearts II.
What I am
getting at is that with Kingdom
Hearts III now a reality, I
wouldn't be surprised if we get
at least one world based on a
live action film. I expect them
to continue the Port Royal
storyline as now they have three
new Pirates film to borrow
elements from. Many more live
action classics have been
released since, and while the
number is smaller to that of the
animated classics, Square Enix
could still work with these
films. Here are the worlds I am
hoping to see made based on
their live action films. Like I
stated in part 1, this is just
speculation and my own ideas,
not to be taken as any official
confirmation. It is all up to
Square Enix and Disney what
worlds they want to see in the
film.
The Land of Oz (Oz: The Great
and Powerful, 2013)
The Story:
Just as Sora and friends fly
into a new world, they are swept
up by a very powerful tornado.
They end up at a very colorful
world called Oz. In there they
meet Oscar, or Oz, a conman of a
magician that has been labeled
the savior of this land, even
though he is nothing especial.
As they join Oz in his journey,
they learn more about the war
between the witches of Oz, and
how just as this is going on,
the Heartless have also
descended upon the land. Could
they be related somehow?
Why I think it
should be a world in Kingdom
Hearts III: In the last few
years, Disney has seen mixed to
great success with epic fantasy
films and re-tellings of their
classic stories. So if Square
Enix were to include a live
action world, you can bet it
will be based on one of these
epics. A lot of people suggest
that they could make a world
based on the 2010 hit Alice
in Wonderland, suggesting
that Square Enix could introduce
the concept of alternate worlds
within the expansive Kingdom
Hearts universe. But there is
already a Wonderland, based on
the 1951 Disney version, that
Sora has already explored. So by
process of elimination, the Land
of Oz has a higher chance since
Square Enix has yet to explore
that land, and with the film
being so successful, Disney may
want to further capitalize on
it. In fact, there have been
rumors that Disney may finally
build a whole land based on Oz
at Disneyland! Not to mention
that even though MGM has made
their Oz film the most iconic
one, Disney has more than
tangled with the fantasy series
before. The fantastic vistas and
characters could lend themselves
well to the colorful aesthetic
the Kingdom Hearts series is
known for, and may be a great
chance for Disney to further
cement its relationship with Oz.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away (Star
Wars series)

The Story:
Just beyond all the planets Sora
and friends have discover there
is a whole galaxy undiscovered
by the motley crew. Their
adventures lead them towards a
whole new galaxy where light and
darkness completely rule its
fantastical denizens. They find
themselves crammed in the middle
of a whole battle where the
rebel alliance wants to take
down the galactic empire. Are
the heartless connected to this
galaxy in any way, shape or
form?
Why I think it
should be a world in Kingdom
Hearts III: The minute
Disney had announced that they
had acquired the Star Wars
license directly from Lucasfilm,
the very first thing many
Kingdom Hearts fans said was...
'STARS WARS IN KINGDOM HEARTS
III!' On the one hand, it seems
very possible that in order to
cross promote the upcoming
release of Star Wars VII, they
want to create a whole world
based on Star Wars to make its
presence well known in the
Disney universe. That being
said, it is too early for that
sort of cross synergy to happen
between the two companies. There
have been talks about how Disney
could use its ownership of Star
Wars beyond the new movies, and
there MAY be a small element
represented in future Kingdom
Hearts games, but it is nothing
but a wild dream many fans,
myself included, have.
City of Heroes (The
Avengers/Marvel Universe)

The Story:
Sora has swam under the sea with
Ariel, flown the Neverland skies
with Peter Pan, and even sailed
the seas with Captain Jack
Sparrow. What else does he have
left to do? Why be a super hero
alongside Earth's mightiest
heroes, of course! A childhood
dream made real, Sora stumbles
upon some of the greatest super
heroes of all time, including
Captain America, the
unforgettable Iron Man and even
the god of thunder Thor! As he
enters this universe, Sora
uncovers that the darkness is
raging war against another
world, this time under the
guidance of Loki, the god of
mischief and Thor's adopted
brother. Can pure nature heroism
be enough to stand up against
the hordes of Heartless invading
the city?
Why I think it
should be a world in Kingdom
Hearts III: Much like with
Star Wars, people began to wish
to see more Marvel properties in
the Kingdom Hearts. But much
like with Star Wars, it might
never become a fruition till
much later in the series' life,
or never at all. Even if Disney
owns these properties, it is a
very complex affair that
involves legal issues and
ownership rights. Still, I think
I would love to see a world
based on the Avengers. If Disney
could somehow make a Phineas and
Ferb crossover with the Marvel
heroes seem plausible and a
decent one at that, I am sure
Square Enix could create a world
based on Marvel. Even better,
the world doesn't have to be
specific to the Marvel film as
they could create the characters
as they see fit and even create
their own story that melds well
with the Kingdom Hearts
franchise.
And there you
have it, my DREAM worlds for
Kingdom Hearts III! Unlike the
animated worlds I dreamed for,
the live action worlds I picked
have even less of a chance of
appearing in the game for
ethical and legal reasons.
Still, I love to dream that one
of these days I can see Sora
changing Tony Stark's hand as
they finish off a boss battle,
or Sora witnesses Luke Skywalker
do battle with Darth Vader. As
the original tagline for the
game said, you never know who
you will run into. There may be
a hint of these licensed in the
game, but don't count on it.