The Kingdom Hearts series may have a narrative strung across multiple games that some find difficult to keep up with, but at its core, it has strong characters who are heavily impacted by those same story beats. While the games are often presented to be just as happy-go-lucky as Sora is, amidst the Disney worlds and goofy scenes, there are some truly heartbreaking moments, too.
These moments aren’t reserved for the numbered titles, either. In fact, some of the most overlooked games, such as Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days and Union X Cross, contain the most heart-wrenching moments of the entire series.
10 The Player Sacrifices Themselves (Kingdom Hearts: Union X Cross)
The ending of Kingdom Hearts: Union X Cross is a bittersweet one. Desperate to stop the four darknesses from escaping the data world and entering the real world, Ephemer, Skuld and your character devise a plan to trick the darknesses. As part of this plan, your character is left behind and is exhausted after fighting, but makes sure to stop the darknesses from succeeding anyway.
In these final moments, your character and their Chirithy enter a white world among other Keyblade wielders. They hug one last time and turn into a Heart, before floating away into the nothingness. Their sacrifice helped save the worlds from falling to darkness, but they will never see Ephemer or Skuld ever again.
9 Thank Naminé (Kingdom Hearts: Chain Of Memories)
Throughout Kingdom Hearts: Chain Of Memories, Sora gradually loses his real memories and gains memories of Naminé instead. At the end of the game, Naminé gives him the choice to either keep his memories of her and forget his real memories forever, or forget her and get his real memories back. Of course, Sora chooses his real memories.
Though Naminé was the one to take Sora’s memories in the first place, she was manipulated by Xemnas, and meant no harm to Sora. Being alone in Castle Oblivion, it seems she truly valued Sora’s friendship, which makes sense, as she’s Kairi’s Nobody. To remember her even a little, Jiminy writes “Thank Naminé” in his journal, but this only serves as a reminder of the memories lost.
8 Kingdom Hearts 1 Ending
Sora spends most of the first Kingdom Hearts searching for Riku and Kairi after Destiny Islands is overrun by Heartless, separating the three of them. However, once he’s found them, Sora’s friends are snatched away again.
The ending cutscene is particularly heartbreaking, as Sora and Kairi reach out to each other, holding hands across the darkness, but are pulled apart as they drift in opposite directions. It’s not goodbye, though, as Sora promises, “I’ll come back to you,” but it’s agonizing to see the pair split apart once again.
7 Aqua Succumbs To The Darkness (Kingdom Hearts 3)
At the end of Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep, Aqua sacrifices herself to protect Terra, but finds herself trapped in the Realm of Darkness as a result. Here, she waits for over ten years for someone to find her. Unfortunately, Ansem, Xehanort’s Heartless, is the one to find her in Kingdom Hearts 3, and Aqua is defenceless without her Keyblade.
After being hit by a burst of Ansem’s darkness, Aqua falls into the dark waters and is transformed into Anti-Aqua, consumed by the darkness around her. It’s tragic for Aqua to have waited so long, only to be taken over by the darkness in the end. If only she had been found sooner, this needn’t have happened at all.
6 Roxas Leaves Organization XIII (Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days)
In one of the pivotal moments in Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days, Roxas decides to leave the Organization to find out who he truly is. On the way out, he’s seen by Axel, who begs him to reconsider and come back to the Organization. In reply, Roxas says, “Nobody would miss me.”
This in itself is heartbreaking — Roxas feels he doesn’t belong with the Organization, and that he’s better off alone. The moment is made even more gut-wrenching when Axel says, “That's not true. I would,” just after Roxas is out of earshot. It’s difficult to say whether Roxas heard him, but the despair in Axel’s voice makes it clear how much he cares for him and wants things to go back to the way they were.
5 Sora And Riku’s Reunion (Kingdom Hearts 2)
At the end of the first Kingdom Hearts game, Sora and Riku work together to close the Door to Darkness, but then the two best friends are separated until well into Kingdom Hearts 2. When they meet again, Sora doesn’t recognize Riku at first, as he’s taken on the appearance of Ansem.
But once he realizes who’s in front of him, Sora falls to his knees and looks up at Riku with tears falling down his cheeks, saying, “I looked everywhere for you.” While this is a sweet moment of reunion, it’s also tinged by the sadness in Sora’s reaction. Despite the brave front he puts on, he clearly felt lost without the presence of one of his best friends.
4 Roxas Cries Through Sora (Kingdom Hearts 2)
When Sora, Donald and Goofy are leaving Twilight Town in Kingdom Hearts 2, Hayner, Pence and Olette come to say goodbye. Hayner feels as though he knows Sora somehow, but Sora is “positive” they’ve never met before. A single tear falls down Sora’s cheek, but he isn’t sure why he’s crying.
As Roxas has returned to Sora at this point, it’s almost certainly Roxas becoming overwhelmed at the sight of his old friends — ones who don’t actually remember him. Roxas’ reaction to seeing his friends was so great, it overflowed through Sora. It’s made all the more heartbreaking when you think about the fact that Roxas will never have his old life back again, and this is him saying goodbye to that part of it.
3 Roxas Vs Sora Fight (Kingdom Hearts 2)
One of the toughest bosses in the Kingdom Hearts 2 remaster is also one of the most heartbreaking. Sora comes across a hooded figure wielding two Keyblades, and is transported to his Heart Station, where the hooded figure attacks him.
In the background, The Other Promise, Roxas’ theme, plays. Filled with anger and hurt, Roxas lashes out at Sora — this person who everyone wants him to be. Once beaten, you see memories of Roxas’ past, and he accepts himself as part of Sora. Roxas’ struggle to find his own identity culminates here, making you feel for everything he’s gone through so far, living in the shadow as Sora’s “other”.
2 Sora Loses Everyone (Kingdom Hearts 3)
Perhaps one of the most iconic quotes from the series is Sora saying, “My friends are my power!” at the end of the first Kingdom Hearts, so naturally, when this is flipped on its head, it’s bound to be heartbreaking.
In the Keyblade Graveyard, towards the end of Kingdom Hearts 3, everyone but Sora and Riku is lost to the swirling hordes of Heartless. Sora reaches out to Kairi, but he’s too late, and she’s snatched away too. Through tears, Sora tells Riku, “All my strength came from them.” Without his friends, Sora feels weak and alone. Though he’s the hero everyone relies on, Sora needs his friends just as much.
1 Xion’s Death (Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days)
Throughout Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days, Roxas and Xion go on missions together as members of Organization XIII and grow to be close friends alongside Axel, but soon learn that they’re both pawns in a bigger plan. Xion learns that she is the Organization’s puppet, designed to drain Sora’s memories through Roxas and become Sora.
Before she can become a weapon for the Organization, she asks Roxas to kill her, leading to the game’s final boss fight, where you return to all the places you travelled together for each phase. Once Xion is defeated, Roxas holds Xion in his arms in her final moments, though his remaining memories of her are fading. But still, the moments they shared together on top of the Clock Tower in Twilight Town remain strong, as he grabs her hand and asks her, “Who else will I have ice cream with?” before she disappears, leaving only a seashell behind.