Kingdom Hearts 4is set to begin a new era for the crossover series, and it’s still unknown how it will handle the changing relationship between Disney,Final Fantasy, and its original characters. With a more photorealistic art style causing speculation around the possible inclusion of live action franchises on an unprecedented scale, a cryptic plot thread fromKH3could already have outlined one of the most important new concepts moving forward. If Yozora ends up featured as a key character inKingdom Hearts 4, the presence of the game-within-a-game, Verum Rex, is practically inevitable.
It might have seemed to merely be a passing element of the Toy Story world inKingdom Hearts 3which provided context for Sora and friends to appear in Toy Box, but the fictional Square Enix-like Verum Rex was proven to have a far greater layer of significance due to the game’s secret boss. Theories about Unreality, Quadratum, andYozora’s role inKingdom Hearts 4are now tied to the ambiguous, meta idea of Verum Rex, but it could provide an innovative expansion toKHas a serious part of the IP.
Verum Rex’s Potential Ties to Unreality Are Set to Develop Yozora in Kingdom Hearts 4
How a Development Dilemma Led to the Odd References of KH3’s Toy Box
At aKingdom Hearts20th anniversary event, Tetsuya Nomura allegedly stated that he had to make the ultimate decision to focus on continuing Sora’s story inKingdom Hearts 4over developing Verum Rex as a brand-new title. Considering the seemingly random high fidelity of the pre-rendered trailer and its other promotional material in Toy Box, it would even make sense if parts of the projects were recycled into fourth-wall-breaking Easter eggs inKH3.
Yozora Appears to Be Crucial to the Lost Master Arc
Despite the apparent impromptu nature of its introduction, Verum Rex now carries the weight of being the initial origin of Yozora in a circumstance that goes beyond a mere reference. The character appeared inKingdom Hearts 4’s Quadratumbefore that title’s reveal, a hint that will make it unsurprising if he rises up into a main role post-Dark Seeker Saga. What are implied to be new abstract concepts around reality and Yozora’s ties to Sora seem perfectly set up to explore the implications of a “fictional game”.
Moving Kingdom Hearts Towards Verum Rex Could Capture Tetsuya Nomura’s Evolving Vision
The Culmination of a Continued Shift to Original KH Characters
Interest has gradually shifted towards new characters outside the corecrossover franchises ofKingdom Hearts, with the larger focus on Xehanort and his legacy totally overshadowingFinal Fantasyfor most of the last few entries. Verum Rex may have begun as an entirely fresh idea, but it’s also been shown to have been adapted around similar themes toKHin its fictional box art. If Yozora has emerged from the ashes of that title and taken up a major role, the unmade Verum Rex may instead be the blueprint forKH4’s new cast members.
It’s not out of the question that a wholenew world inKingdom Hearts 4could be based on Verum Rex, but the series has previously followed the pattern of using its own characters outside the typical crossover levels. Unless it finds itself incorporated into the climax of the main story, the enigmatic fictional IP of Verum Rex has a solid chance of being further split into a set of faces for a new generation. As the very foundation of reality will be challenged in a realistic environment, it may even be Sora who finds himself out of place as a guest in Yozora’s view this time around.
Kingdom Hearts 4
Kingdom Hearts 4 is an action RPG developed by Square Enix and represents the fifteenth installment in the franchise. Players once again are put in the shoes of Sora who is suddenly trapped in a more realistic world called Quadratum, with companions like Donald and Goofy attempting to rescue him. Kingdom Hearts 4 is a direct sequel to Kingdom Hearts 3 and Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory.
