In a promise that could fill ravenous Kingdom Hearts 4 fans with hope or simply age very poorly, the RPG's lead says the game will definitely not be delayed and will meet its late 2027 launch window.
Over the weekend, Kingdom Hearts 4 hopefuls were finally rewarded for their years of patience with a new trailer as well as the confirmation that the RPG is set to launch at the end of next year. Until recently, news on the game had been almost nonexistent since its reveal over four years ago, so you can understand why some folks think that the end now being in sight is a bit too good to be true.
However, series director Tetsuya Nomura and Kingdom Hearts 4 co-director Tai Yasue want to squash any of those worries right now. Speaking at D23, Nomura acknowledges the immediate speculation from fans that "the release date might still get pushed back" before launch, saying: "I want to set the record straight: That is not happening."
Nomura reiterates the plan to release Kingdom Hearts 4 in late 2027, adding that "a lot of the marketing for the game has only just started, and so I do hope that people also look forward to hearing more news as well." In other words, it seems, Square Enix isn't just going to go radio silent until launch, either, so we can get excited for more trailers and the like.
Yasue doubles down on Nomura's statement as he proclaims, "I can confidently say and promise that it will launch in 2027," adding: "Schedule-wise, the development is very smooth. It's not like an 80%, 90% – it's a 100% thing. We'll be there in 2027 for sure."
Obviously, no game developer is ever going to follow their big release window announcement with comments suggesting that things are looking a bit shaky behind the scenes, and the team might not actually make the deadline they just publicly announced, but to so boldly promise no delays like this certainly suggests a high level of confidence. With that said, we've seen similar things said before and fans have still been burned – just look at GTA 6, and Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick saying in early 2025 that "we feel really good" about it launching that year… before it was delayed. …Twice.
