Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory is releasing worldwide later this year

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The western release was confirmed in today's all-new Kingdom Hearts 2020 trailer

(Image credit: Square Enix)

Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory – the surprising new rhythm game set to release on Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One later this year – is also releasing outside of Japan, too.

"Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory is an all-new rhythm-action game coming in 2020", the official teaser says on YouTube (thanks, Kotaku). While it was unclear at first if the title would make it to western fans, a five-minute feature trailer detailing all that's coming for Kingdom Hearts fans this year confirms a "worldwide" release. 

JICYMI, the all-new venture will feature 140 songs and several fan-favourite characters from the franchise, including Sora, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Kairi, Hercules, Aladdin, amongst others. It also includes four modes, including online battles.

Alyssa also noticed that there was a familiar voice in the debut trailer last week, too – Kairi, who appears to be trapped on castle grounds teeming with Heartless, suggesting that Kairi will be a playable character in Melody of Memory. This sequence has also been included in the trailer released today, too.

The announcement certainly came as a surprise, as no one expected the first Kingdom Hearts title for Switch to be a rhythm game along the lines of big-hitters like Beat Saber or Guitar Hero. 

And while many fans had been hopeful this non-E3 would give them the Switch port they'd been dreaming about, the surprise game Melody of Memory is not something to complain about. As Alyssa quite rightly opines, the music accompanying the Kingdom Hearts franchise is "banger after banger".

Add it to the list. Here are the upcoming games of 2020 we just can't wait for.

Vikki Blake
Vikki Blake
Weekend Reporter, GamesRadar+

Vikki Blake is GamesRadar+'s Weekend Reporter. Vikki works tirelessly to ensure that you have something to read on the days of the week beginning with 'S', and can also be found contributing to outlets including the BBC, Eurogamer, and GameIndustry.biz. Vikki also runs a weekly games column at NME, and can be frequently found talking about Destiny 2 and Silent Hill on Twitter.