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Kingdom Hearts games in order, and where to start cover art

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Kingdom Hearts games in order, and where to start

More than a dozen games, three collections and one famously tangled timeline. Here's the order that makes sense, and what you can watch instead.

Square Enix released the Kingdom Hearts Collection [I~III] on October 8 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Switch 2, with the PC versions added to the Microsoft Store. It bundles the main games from the 2002 original to Kingdom Hearts III and its Re Mind expansion, running natively on current consoles, for $74.99 in the US. For a lot of people, it's the first easy way into a series that has always been hard to start.

The short answer: play the Kingdom Hearts games in release order, starting with Kingdom Hearts Final Mix inside HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX. Two of the handheld games are included only as cutscene movies, so you'll watch those rather than play them. Don't start with Kingdom Hearts III, which is the finale of a story that began 17 years earlier. And there's no rush: Kingdom Hearts IV is due in late 2027.

What's in the Kingdom Hearts Collection [I~III]?

The Collection is three existing bundles in one box. You can also buy each one separately, digitally.

BundlePlayable gamesIncluded as movies
HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIXKingdom Hearts Final Mix, Re:Chain of Memories, Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, Birth by Sleep Final Mix358/2 Days, Re:coded (HD cutscene compilations)
HD 2.8 Final Chapter PrologueDream Drop Distance HD, 0.2 A Fragmentary Passage (a short episode)χ Back Cover
III + Re MindKingdom Hearts III, with the Re Mind expansionNone

A few details worth knowing before you buy:

Kingdom Hearts Final Mix screenshot: Sora, Donald and Goofy in the Queen of Hearts' courtroom in Wonderland
Kingdom Hearts Final Mix screenshot: Sora, Donald and Goofy in the Queen of Hearts' courtroom in Wonderland

Kingdom Hearts games in release order

This is every Kingdom Hearts game with a story, in the order it came out, and where you can play it today. Years are the first release anywhere; a few games reached North America a year after Japan.

#GameReleasedOriginal platformWhere to play it now
1Kingdom Hearts2002PS2HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (as Final Mix)
2Chain of Memories2004Game Boy AdvanceHD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (as the 2007 remake, Re:Chain of Memories)
3Kingdom Hearts II2005 (2006 in North America)PS2HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (as Final Mix)
4358/2 Days2009Nintendo DSHD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (movie only)
5Birth by Sleep2010PSPHD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (as Final Mix)
6Re:coded2010 (2011 in North America)Nintendo DSHD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX (movie only)
7Dream Drop Distance20123DSHD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue
8Kingdom Hearts χ2013Browser, later mobilePulled from app stores in 2024
9χ Back Cover and 0.2 A Fragmentary Passage2017PS4HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue
10Kingdom Hearts III2019PS4, Xbox OneIII + Re Mind
11Re Mind (expansion)2020PS4, Xbox OneIII + Re Mind
12Dark Road2020MobilePulled from app stores in 2024
13Melody of Memory2020PS4, Xbox One, SwitchSame, plus PC on the Epic Games Store
14Kingdom Hearts IVLate 2027PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2, PCNot out yet

The three bundles are on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2 and PC. Re:coded began life as a Japan-only mobile game in 2008 before its DS remake.

Kingdom Hearts chronological order (story order)

The story order is quite different, because several games are prequels or happen alongside each other. Here's how the events line up, following Wikipedia's series timeline:

  1. Kingdom Hearts χ and χ Back Cover: set centuries before everything else.
  2. Dark Road: the origins of the series' main villain, Xehanort.
  3. Birth by Sleep: ten years before the first game, starring Terra, Aqua and Ventus.
  4. 0.2 A Fragmentary Passage: mostly Aqua's time in the Realm of Darkness. Its ending leads into III.
  5. Kingdom Hearts: Sora, Donald and Goofy's first adventure.
  6. Chain of Memories: the bridge between the first two numbered games.
  7. 358/2 Days: runs alongside the end of the first game and Chain of Memories, and leads straight into II.
  8. Kingdom Hearts II
  9. Re:coded: set after II.
  10. Dream Drop Distance: Sora and Riku's Mark of Mastery exam.
  11. Kingdom Hearts III and Re Mind
  12. Melody of Memory: set after Re Mind.
  13. Kingdom Hearts IV

Square Enix itself has published two recommended routes, one by story and one by release, so neither choice is wrong.

Should you play in release order or story order?

Release order, for a first time through. Birth by Sleep is a prequel, but it was written for people who had already played the first two games. Its biggest moments are reveals about characters you only recognise if you've met them. Played first, it's a strange, sad story about strangers. Played fifth, it reframes everything before it.

Release order also matches how the bundles are packaged, so you never have to jump between collections. And the combat tends to get smoother with each entry, so you aren't going back to an older game after a newer one.

Story order makes more sense on a replay, once you know who everyone is.

Birth by Sleep Final Mix screenshot: Aqua fighting Maleficent's dragon form
Birth by Sleep Final Mix screenshot: Aqua fighting Maleficent's dragon form

Where to start with Kingdom Hearts

Start with Kingdom Hearts Final Mix, the first game in HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX. It's the simplest story, it introduces the cast, and it's mostly Disney worlds and boss fights. If you're not sure you'll like the series, buy HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX on its own first; it holds four full games and two movies.

Don't start with Kingdom Hearts III. It's the finale of the story arc Square Enix calls the Dark Seeker Saga, and it assumes you know nearly every game before it. It's the best-looking game in the Collection and the worst place to begin.

Push through Chain of Memories, or watch it. It mixes action with a collectible card game, which makes it the odd one out. Its story matters, because Kingdom Hearts II picks up directly from it. If the card battles aren't for you, watching its cutscenes is a reasonable shortcut.

For another long series with the same "start from the beginning" problem, see our guide to where to start the Trails series.

Which Kingdom Hearts games can you skip or watch?

Don't skip the main six: Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts II, Birth by Sleep, Dream Drop Distance, 0.2 A Fragmentary Passage and Kingdom Hearts III.

Kingdom Hearts III screenshot: Sora with Woody and Buzz in the Toy Box world
Kingdom Hearts III screenshot: Sora with Woody and Buzz in the Toy Box world

Kingdom Hearts IV: what's confirmed as of October 2026

Here's what has been officially announced, and nothing more:

That leaves a little over a year to get through the Collection. It's a big series, so if you play other things too, starting now is about right. Our piece on whether video games are too long has some practical ways to get through big games without burning out.

Keep track of where you are

With movies mixed in with games and three separate bundles, it's easy to lose your place. In Perthro, you can make a list of the series in the order you want to play it, log each game with your hours and platform when you finish, and put Kingdom Hearts IV on your Interested list so it shows up in your release calendar. The backlog tracker keeps the rest of the Collection waiting where you can see it.

Sources

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