By Olivia Davis | May 15, 2026
It's been over seven years since Kingdom Hearts 3 was released, and the lack of any real updates is starting to get harder and harder for diehard fans to deal with.
Earnings Release – A Lost Opportunity
Announcements of financial results are often an opportunity for publishers to provide status updates on key upcoming releases, so it is a good time for Square to talk about one of its most eagerly awaited games. The fact that Kingdom Hearts 4 wasn't even mentioned has led many observers to conclude that the game may still be a considerable distance from completion.
There is no way to know exactly how far along development is at this moment, but the absence of any public chatter from the company about the title is widely viewed as a discouraging indicator for those hoping for a release in the near future.
A string of disappointments for fans
The wait for Kingdom Hearts 4 became even tougher last year, when Square Enix canceled Kingdom Hearts Missing-Link, a mobile game that endured delays and beta cancellations before being shelved for good. The cancellation wasn't a total shock given the game's troubled development history, but at least the game would have given fans something new to play around with while waiting for the mainline sequel.
Fans have had precious little to cling to since the announcement of Kingdom Hearts 4 in 2022, outside of the one trailer that was released. And that trailer remains the only substantial piece of content fans have been able to see in the past four years.
No Confirmed Worlds, No Gameplay Info
Other than that one trailer, there has been almost nothing officially confirmed about what Kingdom Hearts 4 will actually contain. No worlds have been announced, and fans are left to guess which Disney properties will be featured in the game. With the number of big Disney releases since Kingdom Hearts 3, the options are plentiful. Zootopia was relatively new when that game was released, but since then, it's become a global phenomenon and seems like a natural candidate.
Another alternative that has received a great deal of chatter from fans is a universe inspired by the Star Wars franchise, which is owned by Disney.
Will The Game Be At Upcoming Events?
Despite the latest silence, there are still a handful of upcoming opportunities for Square Enix to surprise fans with a Kingdom Hearts 4 announcement. One possibility is the Tokyo Game Show, which is in August, but Summer Game Fest and other big showcases in the months to come could also serve as a stage.
Tokyo Game Show hype was already starting to build after some fans read a teasing reference to the event earlier in the month, though that ultimately did not lead to an announcement. Until something concrete emerges, fans are advised to keep their hopes in check but remain vigilant.
2026 Release Now Seems Unlikely
Earlier, there were reports that Kingdom Hearts 4 could possibly launch in 2026, but that now looks very unlikely unless Square Enix has a major surprise up its sleeve that has been kept entirely under wraps from the public. Long gaps between announcement and release, therefore, are not unusual in the world of modern video game development, and fans of long-running franchises have, unfortunately, become accustomed to waiting a long time.
Kingdom Hearts has a history of long gaps between numbered entries, and while that context is somewhat comforting, it doesn't do much to quell the frustration of fans anxious for any indication of progress.
Hope that the Wait Will Be Worth It
What Kingdom Hearts fans are hoping for, in the end, is that the time being spent on development will yield a finished product that makes the years of anticipation worth it. The franchise has since gone on to build a rabidly passionate and worldwide fanbase since the release of the original game, and the stakes couldn't be higher for Kingdom Hearts 4.
Square Enix will be very conscious of that pressure, and no one will be pleased if they release a game that is not quite ready. For now, the fanbase can only sit back and wait for the day the company finally decides to lift the curtain on one of gaming's most anticipated sequels.
