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==Franchise description== | ==Franchise description== | ||
The origins of ''Kingdom Hearts'' can be traced back to conversations between [[Square Enix|Squaresoft]] executive {{iw|wikipedia|Shinji Hashimoto}} and {{uv|Final Fantasy}} series creator {{iw|wikipedia|Hironobu Sakaguchi}} in the late 1990s. The developer was in a financially unstable position at the time and needed a blockbuster success to save them from going bankrupt. The two bemoaned about Square needing a game like ''[[Mario (universe)|Super Mario 64]]'', but realizing only a company like [[Disney]] has characters that could rival the popularity of [[Mario]]. ''Final Fantasy'' character designer {{iw|wikipedia|Tetsuya Nomura}} overheard these conversations and volunteered to create this project. By a stroke of luck, Square and Disney of Japan shared an office building at the time | The origins of ''Kingdom Hearts'' can be traced back to conversations between [[Square Enix|Squaresoft]] executive {{iw|wikipedia|Shinji Hashimoto}} and {{uv|Final Fantasy}} series creator {{iw|wikipedia|Hironobu Sakaguchi}} in the late 1990s. The developer was in a financially unstable position at the time and needed a blockbuster success to save them from going bankrupt. The two bemoaned about Square needing a game like ''[[Mario (universe)|Super Mario 64]]'', but realizing only a company like [[Disney]] has characters that could rival the popularity of [[Mario]]. ''Final Fantasy'' character designer {{iw|wikipedia|Tetsuya Nomura}} overheard these conversations and volunteered to create this project. By a stroke of luck, Square and Disney of Japan shared an office building at the time, and Hashimoto would have a chance encounter with a Disney executive in an elevator which allowed him to pitch the concept of using Disney properties in this game, which was eventually approved in 2000. | ||
It was eventually decided that the game would be a crossover title with Disney and ''Final Fantasy'' characters interacting with original characters, however contention arose when settling on the game's premise and direction. The lead protagonist was undecided between the two companies, with Disney wanting {{iw|wikipedia|Donald Duck}} and Square wanting {{iw|wikipedia|Mickey Mouse}}. Nomura decided to compromise by creating an original character, [[Sora]], to serve as the protagonist instead, combining Disney's character design aspects with his own. Disney approved the concept on the condition that all original characters, settings, and assets would be fully owned by them. The storyline and narrative would be helmed by Nomura, marking his debut as a director and lead writer, and it was originally planned to be a simple narrative meant to appeal to Disney's core audience. However, after a meeting with Sakaguchi, Nomura elevated the storyline to better appeal to ''Final Fantasy'' fans. The game eventually morphed into ''Kingdom Hearts'', which released for the PlayStation 2 on March 28, 2002. | It was eventually decided that the game would be a crossover title with Disney and ''Final Fantasy'' characters interacting with original characters, however contention arose when settling on the game's premise and direction. The lead protagonist was undecided between the two companies, with Disney wanting {{iw|wikipedia|Donald Duck}} and Square wanting {{iw|wikipedia|Mickey Mouse}}. Nomura decided to compromise by creating an original character, [[Sora]], to serve as the protagonist instead, combining Disney's character design aspects with his own. Disney approved the concept on the condition that all original characters, settings, and assets would be fully owned by them. The storyline and narrative would be helmed by Nomura, marking his debut as a director and lead writer, and it was originally planned to be a simple narrative meant to appeal to Disney's core audience. However, after a meeting with Sakaguchi, Nomura elevated the storyline to better appeal to ''Final Fantasy'' fans. The game eventually morphed into ''Kingdom Hearts'', which released for the PlayStation 2 on March 28, 2002. |