Kingdom Hearts IV will launch in 2027 and will not be delayed, according to director Tetsuya Nomura and co-director Tai Yasue, who offered a strong reassurance about the game’s development during a special 25th anniversary panel at D23.
Nomura made a surprise appearance at the panel alongside Yasue, where he addressed online speculation that Kingdom Hearts IV could slip beyond its previously announced late 2027 release window. According to comments shared by Genki JPN, Nomura said he had seen people suggesting the game would be delayed, but wanted to make clear that this will not happen.
Nomura added that he is returning to Tokyo and said development of the mastered version is progressing much faster than he had expected. He therefore does not expect the game to be delayed and asked fans to look forward to its release.
Yasue was even more direct about the schedule, saying, “I can confidently say and promise that it will launch in 2027. Schedule wise development is very smooth. It’s not like a 80% thing, 90%, its a 100% thing. So we will be there 100% for sure. So, I promise you that.”
An extended trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV was also shown during the event, providing a longer look at the upcoming adventure and its newly confirmed Coco world.
The trailer highlights the Land of the Dead from Disney and Pixar’s Coco, which will be one of the worlds featured in the game. Kingdom Hearts IV is set to explore a new adventure involving Sora and the mysterious reality of Quadratum.
The extended footage also revealed new gameplay features, including sequences where players can control Donald Duck and Goofy. Another segment follows King Mickey as he searches for clues concerning Sora’s disappearance.
Kingdom Hearts IV is currently available to wishlist on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox on PC, Nintendo Switch 2, Steam and the Epic Games Store.
