Square Enix has announced that cloud versions of the Kingdom Hearts games will launch on Nintendo Switch in February. The Switch games were originally revealed during Sora's Super Smash Bros. Ultimate event, following years of speculation regarding the mainline entries in the series coming to a Nintendo system.
There was a time when the Kingdom Hearts series kept its mainline entries on PlayStation systems, with Nintendo consoles only receiving handheld spin-offs. This trend is no longer true, as Square Enix remastered the older games in the series and made them available on modern platforms, including PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Despite this, the Kingdom Hearts series was notably absent on the Nintendo Switch, except for Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory. Series creator Tetsuya Nomura said that technological difficulties were keeping Kingdom Hearts games off Switch.
Square Enix has found a way to bypass the technological difficulties, as the Kingdom Hearts series is coming to Nintendo Switch through cloud versions of the games, meaning they can be streamed to the system. A new trailer on the Square Enix YouTube channel has announced that the cloud versions of Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5, Kingdom Hearts 2.8, and Kingdom Hearts 3 + Re+Mind will be released for the Nintendo Switch on February 10, 2022. All of the games will also be available in a bundle, known as Kingdom Hearts Integrum Masterpiece.
Watch the announcement on YouTube here.
Those who are concerned that their Internet connection won't be able to handle the cloud versions of the Kingdom Hearts games will have a chance to test it out beforehand, as demos of the games will be made available today, January 18. The Kingdom Hearts series is composed of fast-paced action RPGs, so a solid Internet connection will likely be a must-have for streaming these games successfully on the Nintendo console.
The Kingdom Hearts series has produced some of the most beloved video games of all time and it's surprising that it has taken this long for them to arrive on Nintendo Switch. The demand for Sora in the Super Smash Bros. series may have helped convince all parties that there was a demand for the big Disney/Final Fantasy crossover series on Nintendo systems. The Kingdom Hearts franchise celebrates its 20th anniversary in 2022 and the long-awaited arrival of the mainline games on a Nintendo console is a great way to kick off the celebrations.
Kingdom Hearts 1.5+2.5, 2.8, 3 + Re Mind, and the Kingdom Hearts Integrum Masterpiece collection will be released as cloud games for Nintendo Switch on February 10, 2022.
Source: Square Enix/YouTube