Kingdom Hearts


 * For a more comprehensive take on the Kingdom Hearts game series, please visit the The Keyhole! Certain links present here automatically take you to the corresponding Keyhole page for that term. Multiple spoilers for the series are present here.

Kingdom Hearts is a video game series born as a collaboration between Square Enix (formerly Squaresoft) and. It is an action RPG that includes appearances of characters from the Final Fantasy series and Disney movies, as well as some characters original to the series.

The first titular game was released in 2002 to massive approval and widespread acclaim. Kingdom Hearts was followed by a sequel, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, released in 2004, which connected to Kingdom Hearts II, released a year later. Since the release of Kingdom Hearts II, three more games in the series have been released: Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days for the Nintendo DS, acting as a prequel to Kingdom Hearts II, Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep for the PlayStation Portable, acting as a prequel for the entire series, and Kingdom Hearts coded for mobile phones (and later the Nintendo DS), acting as a "bridge game" to the next game in the series Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance on the Nintendo 3DS system. It will lead into the still currently unannounced Kingdom Hearts III.

Much like the International versions of Final Fantasy games, the series also has updated versions of Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II known as Kingdom Hearts Final Mix and Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix. In Japan, Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+ was a 2-pack collection that consisted of Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix and a PS2 remake version of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories known as Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories; the latter was later released as a standalone title outside of Japan.

Gameplay
The series contains elements of both action and role-playing games. The games are driven by a linear progression to the next story event, usually told in the form of a cut scene, though there are numerous side quests available that provide bonus benefits to the characters. The player is primarily in control of the principal protagonist of the series, Sora. Sora is usually accompanied by Donald Duck and Goofy, who are non-playable characters that aid Sora in battle. Their behavior can be altered to fit the player's needs by preset commands that determine how they act in different situations. The games feature real-time combat that incorporate physical attacks, magic, and summonings. Kingdom Hearts II introduced the "Reaction Command" feature, wherein hitting the Triangle button in response to an on-screen prompt at the right time provokes a special reaction, usually a special cinematic attack unique to the enemy being fought.

Gummi Ships are another common theme in the series, though they are only featured in the first and third installment. The Gummi Ships serve as the main mode of transportation between worlds in the games. The gameplay for the Gummi Ships sections is more akin to a rail shooter, where players shoot enemies as they fly along a preset course, earning new Gummi parts as they defeat enemies and completing the course to unlock the next worlds. All three games also feature a journal which is accessible from the main menu. The journal keeps track of information regarding the story, characters, enemies, and locations. In the game the journal is kept by Jiminy Cricket, who was appointed by Queen Minnie as the royal chronicler.

The games are influenced by their parent franchise, Final Fantasy, and carry its gameplay elements over into their own action-based, hack-and-slash system. Like many traditional role-playing games, Kingdom Hearts features an experience point system which determines character development. As enemies are defeated, the player gains experience which culminate in a "level-up", where the characters grow stronger and gain access to new abilities. The amount of experience is shared with all party members and each character grows stronger as experience is gained.

Kingdom Hearts
The Kingdom Hearts series focuses on the adventures of Sora and his friends, Kairi and Riku. The first game shows how Sora is separated from his friends when their world is invaded by an army of corrupted hearts known as the Heartless. During the invasion, he obtains a special weapon known as a Keyblade, which can seal worlds off from Heartless invasions. Soon after, Sora meets Donald Duck, the Disney Castle court magician, and Goofy, the Disney Castle captain of the royal guard. Donald and Goofy are searching for the "key" per instructions from King Mickey.

The three band together and travel to different Disney-themed worlds, sealing the worlds and battling a group of Disney villains led by Maleficent, who controls the Heartless army. It is revealed that the original researcher of the Heartless, Ansem, is the true enemy, his goal is to open the door to the world of Kingdom Hearts to obtain absolute power. Sora, Donald, and Goofy defeat Ansem, and seal the door with the help of Riku and King Mickey on the other side of the door.

Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories
In Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, the three begin searching for Riku and King Mickey. They encounter a mysterious fortress called Castle Oblivion, and upon entering it lose their memories. As they journey through the castle to reclaim them, a group of dark hooded villains referred to as the Organization attempt to manipulate a girl named Namine to erase Sora's memories and replace them with new ones befitting their plans. After defeating the Organization members controlling the castle, Naminé puts Sora, Donald, and Goofy to sleep for a year to regain their memories.

While the three are ascending to the top floor of the castle, Riku and King Mickey arrive in the basement and began traveling to the top as well. Riku fights the darkness in his heart and learns to accept his dual nature between light and dark, departing to continue fighting the Heartless while Sora sleeps.

Kingdom Hearts II
A year later in Kingdom Hearts II, after Roxas has merged back into him, Sora awakens as he, Donald, and Goofy continue their search for Riku and King Mickey. They learn of the Nobodies that Organization XIII controls, and their desire to use the hearts of the Heartless Sora kills to empower Kingdom Hearts to bestow them with hearts of their own. When they meet King Mickey, he reveals the true nature of Ansem, the antagonist of Kingdom Hearts, as the Heartless of Xehanort, a student of Ansem the Wise - Xemnas, the leader of Organization XIII, is the Nobody of Xehanort.

The three arrive at the headquarters of Organization XIII, a castle in the realm of nothingness with Kingdom Hearts looming overhead. At the top of the castle, Sora and his friends defeat Xemnas, and return to their home on Destiny Islands, reunited at last. However, some time after, Sora and his friends receive a letter from Mickey.

Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days focuses upon the story of Roxas, the thirteenth member of Organization XIII and Sora's Nobody. 358/2 Days takes place during the year between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II while Sora is asleep. As Roxas completes missions for the Organization, he befriends Axel, as well as a girl named Xion, the "fourteenth" member of the Organization who can also use a Keyblade. As the Organization pursues Riku and Mickey, Xion and Roxas begin to question their identities, which Axel is reluctant to reveal out of fear of what his superiors would do to him.

Roxas later discovers that Xion is an imperfect copy of Sora, meant to absorb him to become a perfect replica of Sora, and the two battle. Roxas is victorious, and enraged, returns to the Organization's world to avenge Xion and destroy Xemnas. However, Riku intervenes and battles him, defeating Roxas and capturing him for DiZ, setting up the opening of Kingdom Hearts II where Roxas merges with Sora to allow him to awaken fully.

Kingdom Hearts coded
Kingdom Hearts coded takes place after Kingdom Hearts II. Jiminy discovers a message written in his journal that he didn't write; "We must return to free them from their torment". In order to discover the meaning of the message King Mickey digitizes the journal, awakening a virtual Sora on Destiny Islands. The digital Sora battles both digital enemies and real enemies who have crossed over, it is revealed that Sora must continue his adventures to free the spirits of those connected to his heart, including the three Keyblade apprentices in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, as well as Roxas, Xion, Namine, and Axel (who sacrificed himself to save Sora due to his friendship with Roxas).

This was originally a Japanese-only release for mobile phones, but was later released internationally on the Nintendo DS, under the name Kingdom Hearts Re:coded, which also revealed at the end that Xehanort has returned and tells Mickey to send a letter to Sora and Riku so they can undergo a Mark of Mastery Exam to properly counter him and his apparent followers.

Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep
Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep is a prequel set ten years before the original Kingdom Hearts. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep revolves around the disappearance of a Keyblade master, Master Xehanort, and his apprentice Vanitas. Three Keyblade apprentices, Terra, Ventus, and Aqua, are sent to retrieve him and battle enemies known as the Unversed, created by Vanitas from the negative emotions of others. Master Xehanort's plan is to use Vanitas, born from the dark half of Ventus's heart, to create the χ-blade to open the path to Kingdom Hearts. The blade is a success, but the χ-blade is destroyed when Ventus and Aqua defeat Vanitas, and Ventus's weakened heart drifts to Sora and sleeps within Sora's heart to regain its strength. Old and frail, Master Xehanort possesses the body of Terra to see his plan through, resulting with Terra's mind transferring into his armor as he transforms into a new incarnation of Xehanort.

Xehanort is later stripped of his memories in a battle with Aqua and sent to Radiant Garden. Xehanort is then taken in by Ansem the Wise as his apprentice, and Aqua ends up trapped in the realm of darkness, without any access to her Keyblade. Under Ansem, Xehanort studies the anatomy of light and darkness before he became "Ansem" and Xemnas, setting the stage for the discovery of the Heartless and the events leading up to the first Kingdom Hearts.

In the aftermath of Kingdom Hearts Coded, having read Mickey's letter, Sora and Riku head out to the Mysterious Tower to undergo the Mark of Mastery Exam.

Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance focuses on Sora and Riku's Mark of Mastery Exam under Yen Sid. Fearing the coming threat of the revived Master Xehanort, Yen Sid sends the two apprentices into the World of Sleep, where they are assigned to travel across several worlds which were submerged in sleep instead of being restored following "Ansem's" defeat.

However, the exam is interrupted by the arrival of a young man that reveals himself as a younger Master Xehanort who traveled through time, and seeks to bring about the birth of a "true" Organization XIII made up of Xehanort in various incarnations and bodies and lead by the original Master Xehanort. Riku passes the exam and brings Kairi to Yen Sid to train to help them in the fight while Sora fails and embarks on a journey to strengthen himself to prepare for when Master Xehanort's Organization XIII will make their move.

Kingdom Hearts III
Although still not announced, it has been confirmed that Kingdom Hearts III will pick up directly after the ending of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance and serve as the final chapter of the Xehanort Saga, presumably culminating in the final battle between Sora and Master Xehanort.

Main Characters

 * Sora - The main protagonist of the series, Sora is a young boy who dreams of seeing other worlds. He gets his wish after the Heartless destroy his home and circumstance causes him to team up with Donald and Goofy to search for his friends and the King. After learning more about the true nature of the Keyblade, he journeys to various worlds to defend them from the Heartless and Xehanort and unravel the mysteries surrounding the Keyblade. His name means "sky" in Japanese.
 * Riku - Sora's friend and rival who lives with him and Kairi on Destiny Islands. Initially stronger than Sora, he was intended to wield the Keyblade, but he gave in to the darkness in his heart, thus losing the Keyblade to Sora. After initially acting as Sora's enemy, he reformed and came to wield the powers of darkness in the name of good, acquiring his own Keyblade and returning to help Sora in his battles. His name means "land" or "shore" in Japanese.
 * Kairi - A young girl who arrived on Destiny Islands during a meteor shower several years prior to the beginning of the first game. Having vanished when the Islands were destroyed, she was found without her heart later in the first game, but was restored and returned to Destiny Islands. She was later captured by Organization XIII and freed by Riku, and accompanied him and Sora in the Organization's stronghold, acquiring her own Keyblade to help them fight. Her name is based on the Japanese and Hawaiian word for "ocean" ("kai").
 * Roxas - Sora's "Nobody", created when Sora took his own heart in the first game. Due to the unique circumstances of his birth, Roxas was initially unaware of his origins and had no memories of his past self. Roxas became a member of Organization XIII and befriended Axel and Xion, but left the Organization when he realized he was being manipulated and they had to intent to help him discover the truth of his existence. Roxas later merged with Sora when the latter awoke from stasis, but has continued to have a supporting role in the series due to his role in the nature of Sora's existence. As Sora's Nobody Roxas has the ability to wield the Keyblade, and as his signature weapons dual-wields the Oathkeeper and Oblivion Keyblades. His name is an anagram of Sora with an "X" added to it.
 * Naminé - Kairi's Nobody, born when Sora took his own heart and released Kairi's heart inside him. Due to her unique birth she is able to manipulate Sora's memories and the memories of those close to him, modifying them or even erasing them. The Organization uses her to manipulate Sora, but she escapes them and eventually helps Kairi escape the Organization as well, merging with her in the process. Like Roxas, her role in the series has continued beyond her initial existence. Her name is derived from the Japanese word nami, which means "wave".
 * King Mickey - The ruler of Disney Castle, Mickey is a Keyblade Master who assists Sora at various intervals with information and power-ups. He also took part in the fight against Master Xehanort in the past, and helped Riku learn to conquer his darkness and reform.
 * Donald Duck - The court magician in Disney Castle and a friend of Sora's. Tasked to assist Sora by Mickey, he is skilled with magic and uses a variety of abilities to enhance his spells.
 * Goofy - Captain of the royal guard at Disney Castle and a friend of Sora's. Traveling with Donald to help Sora, he is very defense-oriented and learns a variety of support abilities to help his allies.
 * Terra, Ventus and Aqua - The protagonists of Birth By Sleep, they are three Keyblade warriors training under Master Eraqus when the Unversed appear and they are sent to defend the worlds from them. Due to the machinations of Master Xehanort, the three are manipulated into allowing him to possess Terra's body to create a younger Xehanort, while Ventus has his heart damaged and merges it with Sora while his body falls comatose. Aqua hid Ven's body in Castle Oblivion, but fell into the Realm of Darkness and has remain trapped since when she fought Xehanort and failed to free Terra from him. Their names are the Latin words for "earth", "wind" and "water", connecting them thematically to the original trio.

Final Fantasy Characters
The majority of the Final Fantasy characters in the series act as "neutral" characters and appear in the worlds that are not based on Disney worlds, specifically Destiny Islands, Traverse Town, Twilight Town and Hollow Bastion/Radiant Garden. The exception is Olympus Coliseum, where a handful Final Fantasy characters pass through. So far, twenty-four characters from the Final Fantasy series have appeared in the Kingdom Hearts games.

The series implies that Radiant Garden is the "Final Fantasy world" within the series, as Leon, Aerith, and Yuffie claim it was their home until it was taken over, and in Kingdom Hearts II, Cid, Cloud, Tifa, and Sephiroth also appear there. In Kingdom Hearts, the cast of Final Fantasy characters was much smaller, with only nine of them playing a major role.

This count was increased dramatically in Kingdom Hearts II to over a dozen, and their importance to the storyline also increased. In both games, several of the characters appear in Olympus Coliseum as opponents.


 * Setzer from Final Fantasy VI - A top "Struggle" fighter and a flashy ladies man.
 * Yuffie from Final Fantasy VII - One of Leon's allies and a skilled ninja, she helps him fight off the Heartless.
 * Aerith from Final Fantasy VII - One of Leon's allies and a healer, she assisted in the restoration of Hollow Bastion.
 * Cloud from Final Fantasy VII - A swordsman with a dark past, he has been hunting Sephiroth across several worlds, seeking to end a mysterious grudge between them. Although he is focused on Sephiroth, he also helps Leon defend Hollow Bastion.
 * Cid from Final Fantasy VII - A merchant and Gummi ship engineer, he helped Sora build Gummi ships in the first game and oversaw the security systems for the defense of Hollow Bastion in Kingdom Hearts II.
 * Tifa from Final Fantasy VII - An ally of Leon who is searching for Cloud, she has followed his trail across several worlds and wishes to help him in his battle with Sephiroth. She also assists Leon in the restoration and defense of Hollow Bastion.
 * Sephiroth from Final Fantasy VII - An evil swordsman wielding strong dark powers, Sephiroth is the embodiment of the darkness in Cloud's heart. Their rivalry has led them to search for and battle each other across several worlds, with neither so far being the victor. Although Sora has fought and defeated Sephiroth twice, Sephiroth survived as apparently only Cloud can truly kill him. He is the only Final Fantasy villain to appear in the entire series.
 * Zack Fair from Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII- - A young boy training at Olympus Coliseum in Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, he hopes Phil will take him as a pupil and train him to be a hero.
 * Squall from Final Fantasy VIII - Going by the name "Leon", he is the leader of a resistance group against the Heartless. He assisted Sora against them with advice when possible, also taking up arms to defend his group's home from the Heartless when needed.
 * Seifer, Raijin, and Fujin from Final Fantasy VIII - The disciplinary committee for Twilight Town, they abuse their authority and take a quick dislike to Sora. Seifer is a top street brawler and "Struggle" competitor. In the game, Raijin and Fujin are known as Rai and Fuu respectively.
 * Selphie from Final Fantasy VIII - One of Sora's friends on their home island, she was left behind when Sora, Riku, and Kairi vanished. She plays a minor role in determining the difficulty of the first game during the introductory sequence.
 * Vivi from Final Fantasy IX - One of Seifer's fans, he is another "Struggle" fighter and admires Seifer's strength.
 * Tidus and Wakka from Final Fantasy X - Two more of Sora's friends, they were left behind at their home when Sora, Riku, and Kairi were lost. They played a minor role in determining the difficulty of the first game during the introductory sequence.
 * Auron from Final Fantasy X - A dead spirit revived by Hades to defeat Hercules, Auron initially betrayed him and worked with Sora, but was forced to fight Hercules after having his free will stolen. Sora later restored him and the three worked together to defeat Hades, after which Auron departed back to the afterlife.
 * Yuna, Rikku, and Paine from Final Fantasy X-2 - A trio of treasure-hunting pixies, they were initially allied with Maleficent but switched sides on the promise of treasure from Leon and helped him defend Hollow Bastion.
 * Moogles from various Final Fantasy games - They run the item and synthesis shops around the various worlds, selling and creating new items for Sora to purchase. They have appeared in every game in the series so far.

Secondary Roles

 * Wantz from Final Fantasy X and Jessie, Biggs, Wedge from Final Fantasy VII (members of AVALANCHE) appear as shop owners.

Other Characters

 * ''' from ' - A young boy who Sora encounters in Traverse Town in the World of Sleep. While Neku's role in the game has yet to be revealed fully, it is shown that he is stuck in the infamous Reaper's Game and will die if he fails to win before his time runs out.
 * Shiki Misaki -
 * Raimu "Rhyme" Bito -
 * Daisukenojo "Beat" Bito -
 * Yoshiya "Joshua" Kiryu -

Villains
Most of the villains in Kingdom Hearts are taken from the various Disney films that are featured in the game. The most notable Disney villains in the series are Maleficent (from Sleeping Beauty) and Pete; Maleficent appears at first to be the main villain of the first game. However, it is later revealed that an original character, Master Xehanort, is the main antagonist of the series, acting through various incarnations of himself to further his desire to cause a Keyblade War that would destroy the universe, allowing him to seize the power of Kingdom Hearts and recreate the universe as he sees fit.
 * Master Xehanort - An elderly Keyblade master, the original incarnation of Xehanort and the main antagonist of the series thus far. He manipulates Terra into using the powers of darkness to taint his heart, allowing Xehanort to take control of his body to create a younger, stronger Xehanort that can serve his plans better than his elder self. However, when Terra and Aqua almost expelled him from Terra's body, Master Xehanort was forced to seal his own memories to prevent Terra from taking over, and relied on the plans he set in place prior, the creation of Organization XIII, to guide himself to continuing his work.
 * Xehanort - Originally Terra, his body and heart were taken over by Master Xehanort to serve his plans better than his original body. However, when Terra and Aqua almost expelled him from the former's body, Master Xehanort is forced to seal his own memories to remain in his host. Found by "Ansem the Wise", Xehanort became his apprentice in Radiant Garden. However, when his previous incarnation's memories resurface, Xehanort betrayed his master and cast him into darkness, stealing his name and research into the darkness of the heart for his own purposes. He later was split into a Heartless and a Nobody.
 * Xehanort's Heartless - Initially known as "Ansem, Seeker of Darkness", Xehanort's Heartless believed that darkness was the true essence of a heart and wished to open the path to Kingdom Hearts, the heart of all worlds, and claim its power. He was defeated when he accessed Kingdom Hearts but found it a realm of light instead of darkness as he believed, which destroyed him. However, "Ansem" is revived as a member of the new Organization XIII.
 * Xemnas - Xehanort's Nobody and the leader of Organization XIII. Xemnas collects the essences of slain Heartless to form an artificial Kingdom Hearts that can grant him great power. As such, those who can use the Keyblade such as Sora and Roxas, are integral to his plan. After being confronted in his castle, he entered Kingdom Hearts and used its power to battle Sora and Riku, but was defeated by their combined power. However, Xemnas is revived as a member of the new Organization XIII.
 * Young Xehanort - A younger version of Xehanort who was contacted by his future self and given the power to travel through time to help his plans to reform Organization XIII.
 * Organization XIII - Originally, they were a group of thirteen powerful Nobodies, bodies that have lost their hearts, who conduct research and experiments on hearts as they pursue Kingdom Hearts to use it to bestow hearts on themselves and all Nobodies. However, as a new guard raises from the old, the true goal and purpose of the Organization is tied to Xehanort's agenda.
 * Xigbar- Number II of Organization XIII, Xigbar was an ally of Xehanort when he was a complete being named Braig. Though defeated by Sora, Xigbar endured and is revealed to house part of Master Xehanort's heart in him.
 * Marluxia- Number XI of Organization XIII and lord of Castle Oblivion, he is the main antagonist of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. He uses Namine to rewrite Sora's memories in an attempt to win Sora's allegiance and take over the organization, but after Axel's betrayal and Naminé's escape he tries to kill Sora and is defeated.
 * Vanitas - The arrogant apprentice of Master Xehanort, Vanitas is actually an entity created from the extracted darkness of Ven's heart. Though his purpose is the ensure the creation of the χ-blade, Vanitas desires nothing more but to merge with Ventus in order to end his own painful existence. Though succeeding in entering Ven's body, Vanitas finds their reintegration incomplete as Ventus risks destroying his heart to defeat Vanitas while Aqua and Mickey fight his possessed body.
 * Maleficent from "Sleeping Beauty" - The leader of the Disney villains and a mistress of dark magic. She wished to capture the seven Princesses of Heart to open the path to Kingdom Hearts, but was defeated by Sora. She was revived in Kingdom Hearts II and resumed her plans, though Xehanort and Organization XIII have overshadowed her as larger threats. She returned as a major antagonist in coded, where she attempted to use the simulated worlds as a route past the defenses of Disney Castle.
 * Pete - Maleficent's assistant. For attempting to attack Minnie after an award snub at a festival, he was sealed in the Realm of Darkness until Maleficent freed him to serve her. He acts as her messenger to other worlds and other Disney villains and sows Heartless to cause trouble wherever he goes.

Heartless
The Heartless are living beings, whose hearts were corrupted by darkness, and they play the roles of the "common enemies" Sora and party must defeat. They exist for no other purpose than to consume hearts, be it the hearts of other living beings or even that of entire worlds. The hearts that Heartless take from others become Heartless themselves. There are two types of Heartless, the shadowy Purebloods which are naturally created Heartless and the Emblem Heartless created by Xehanort and Ansem's apprentices.

Nobodies
When a Heartless is created, the empty shell may reform into a Nobody. By comparison, Nobodies are rarer than Heartless due to the shell having to have a strong heart to reform, but they are typically much stronger. They are also capable of speech and thought, and the members of Organization XIII are all exceptionally intelligent and powerful Nobodies.

As they have no hearts, they do not truly exist and cannot feel emotions, but a few that retain memories of when they had hearts can "fake it" and act as if they do, except for Roxas and Namine, who despite not having hearts possess real emotions, because their original selves, Sora and Kairi, are still intact and living (Sora was restored by Kairi after she figured out that he had become a Heartless to release her heart); this however robbed them of their memories of being their original selves.

Unversed
The main enemies of Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, they are embodiments of the negative emotions within Vanitas that were a side effect of his creation. As a result, the Unversed are extensions of Vanitas, who learned to create them at will and absorb their scattered remains, using them in Master Xehanort's plans for Ventus and Terra. The Unversed ceased to be when Vanitas merged back into Ventus's body.

Dream Eaters
The main enemies of Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, they are in a way the Heartless of the World of Sleep, produced from the darkness of that specific realm. As with the Heartless, Nobodies and Unversed, they come in a variety of shapes and sizes. They are also notable for also serving as allies for Sora and Riku once captured.

Connections to the Final Fantasy series
Besides the numerous characters from the Final Fantasy series that appear, several other aspects of the series directly influence the gameplay of Kingdom Hearts. The spells of the game are all named after Final Fantasy spells, such as Curaga, Firaga, and Reflect. There are Summon spells that can call allies into battle, using mechanics similar to the summon sequences of Final Fantasy X. Although the summons are all Disney characters (except for a Cloud summon in Chain Of Memories). A Bahamut summon was meant to be in the original game, but was later removed as the development team decided that all the summons in the game were to be of iconic Disney characters instead.

Several weapons are named after Final Fantasy weapons, including the Ultima Weapon, Fenrir, and Save the Queen. Items like the Hi-Potion, Tent, and Ether also appear with similar functions to the Final Fantasy series. The various Gummi ships used to travel between worlds are also named after Final Fantasy ships and concepts, and include Highwind, Falcon, and Invincible.

Ability Points are used to assign various special attacks and support powers to party members. In Kingdom Hearts there are special attacks that could be considered to be limits, and in Kingdom Hearts II, Limit Breaks appear as techniques that allow Sora and an ally to unleash a series of powerful attacks at the cost of all Sora's MP. Some of these Limit Breaks, like Bushido and Comet, take their name from Final Fantasy games.

Moogles, recurring creatures in the Final Fantasy Universe, also run various Synthesis shops that allow Sora to trade in certain materials to create powerful rare items. In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days and Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, status effects such as Poison, Silence, Regen and Auto-Life were introduced.

There are three victory poses that Sora displays at the end of each match in Olympus Coliseum, two of which are the victory poses of Final Fantasy protagonists Cloud and Squall from their respective games. Roxas's victory pose in 358/2 Days is also based on Squall's. Riku's battle stance is similar to Cecil's while he was a Dark Knight in Final Fantasy IV, and his weapon is called the Soul Eater, which is the typical ability of Dark Knights.

Riku begins by using the powers of darkness but comes to terms with his dark powers and learns to wield the powers of light as well, and to reflect this, his Soul Eater weapon later changes into a Keyblade that has both angel and demon wings on it, representing both light and darkness, which parallels Cecil's development in Final Fantasy IV as he becomes a holy Paladin and his weapon changing. The Organization XIII members each command a type of Nobody named after a Final Fantasy job, such as Dragoon or Berserker.

The Organization members themselves also roughly fit such profiles - for example, Zexion can mimic the attacks of enemies similar to a Blue Mage. Each member also controls one element, such as Water, Light, and Earth. Besides Nobodies, several Heartless are named for Final Fantasy enemies, such as the Behemoth and Darkside. Several enemies also masquerade as pots or jars until attacked, or hide in treasure chests and attack when they are opened, a reference to mimics and Monster-in-a-boxes.

Kingdom Hearts was the first game to feature Sephiroth with a single black wing behind his right shoulder, an element of his appearance that was later included in the Compilation of Final Fantasy VII. In Kingdom Hearts II when Auron turns towards the Underworld in the game's ending he fades into a cloud of Pyreflies, like he did when he was sent by Yuna in the ending of Final Fantasy X.

Elements of the battle systems of Kingdom Hearts are present in Dissidia Final Fantasy, where attacks can be linked together and chained depending on the timing of the player's button commands, and Quickmove indicators allow players to climb walls and leap long gaps by pressing the Triangle button when timed correctly. In addition, on-screen prompts for Chase Sequences and EX Bursts during EX Mode also function similarly to Reaction Commands.

Trivia

 * Kairi is featured in Dead Fantasy, where she fights alongside Rinoa Heartilly, Yuna, Rikku and Tifa Lockhart against characters from the Dead or Alive series, and which she is equipped with her "Destiny's Embrace" Keyblade.
 * Cloud and Zack are the only Final Fantasy characters to be featured as a summon in the Kingdom Hearts series. Cloud appeared as a summon in Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, and Zack as a D-Link in Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep.
 * Tifa's EX Mode weapons in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy the Premium Heart gloves, have the Kingdom Hearts logo on them.
 * Cloud, Sephiroth and Squall's Kingdom Hearts attire are downloadable content for Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy.
 * Dissidia Final Fantasy was originally planned to be a Kingdom Hearts game; however, it was decided that having Disney characters fight each other would not be appropriate, so it was made into a Final Fantasy game.
 * Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days's multiplayer mode, with Organization XIII as playable characters, was inspired by Dissidia.
 * Laguna Loire was originally meant to appear in Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep as the head of the Mirage Arena. However, he was removed in favor of him appearing in Dissidia 012 Final Fantasy, as developers felt he should only appear in one title or the other.