Kingdom Hearts IV has finally revealed more gameplay in its latest extended trailer — and the biggest surprise for fans is that Donald Duck and Goofy are now playable for the first time in a mainline entry. Previously, the two mostly just accompanied Sora on his adventures, but now players can actually control them directly instead of watching them as AI companions.
Mickey Becomes Paper Mario!
Even more ridiculous is that King Mickey will have his own playable sections, and his gameplay will be completely different from Sora’s. In the trailer, Mickey enters a mysterious magical book and even transforms into a 2D papercraft form and large origami shapes to move around. Co-director Tai Yasue explained this section uses more puzzle-oriented gameplay, clearly distinct from Sora’s adventure. It looks a bit like Paper Mario — except this time paper Mario has been replaced by Mickey Mouse.
Sora Continues in Quadratum While Mickey Goes Off on His Own Adventure
The game will still focus primarily on Sora’s adventure in Quadratum, with Donald, Goofy, and Mickey’s sections offering different gameplay styles. Official confirmation has also stated that Kingdom Hearts IV is targeting a late 2027 release for PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch 2. After all these years, players are finally seeing actual gameplay — and this isn’t just swapping Keyblades around, but three Disney characters each getting their own distinct gameplay systems.