Kingdom Hearts Dark Road

Kingdom Hearts Dark Road is the twelfth game set in the  series. It was released on iOS, Android, and Amazon smartphone devices on June 22, 2020 globally, as part of Kingdom Hearts Union χ's second rebranding. Now titled Kingdom Hearts Union χ Dark Road, the app makes both games available for play. The fully completed offline version of the game was released on August 26, 2022.

The game explores why Xehanort became a seeker of darkness and his days of training to become a Keyblade Master.

Online service for the game has ended on June 17, 2021 for Japan, and June 30, 2021 for the global server. Following the 4.40 update, the game was rendered inaccessible.

The game was set to have its final story update in September 2021, with version 5.00; however, this update was delayed to an indeterminate date for the 2021-2022 winter season, and was delayed again until finally releasing on August 26, 2022. With this update, players can access most gameplay features of the online version in an offline capacity, including the ability to play through main quests and world battles, watch cutscenes in theater mode, and level up and acquire new cards through BP.

Development
The game was first hinted by series creator on January 22, 2020 in a Q&A to celebrate the release of Kingdom Hearts III Re Mind, and that it would be announced by the Kingdom Hearts Union χ team the following day. On January 22, 2020, the Kingdom Hearts Union χ twitter posted a sketch artwork depicting a young Xehanort and Eraqus, along with other, blurred-out characters.

Kingdom Hearts Dark Road was initially announced with the working title "Project Xehanort" along with a guess-the-name Twitter campaign on January 23, 2020. The official name was revealed on January 31, 2020.

On May 18, 2020, amid the, Square Enix announced the game development will be delayed.

On June 8, 2020, new characters were revealed to have trained with Xehanort and Eraqus in their youth.

On June 22, 2020, The Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] app was rebranded as Kingdom Hearts Union χ Dark Road that contains both Kingdom Hearts Union χ[Cross] and Kingdom Hearts Dark Road.

On May 30, 2021, the app shut down and was no longer playable, leaving the plot of Dark Road incomplete. However, Square Enix assured that the offline version of the game will be released with the finished storyline at a later date.

On October 8, 2021, the offline version of Dark Road was set to release in Winter 2021.

On February 27, 2022, the update was delayed to an unspecified date.

On April 10, 2022, the update was delayed once again to August 2022.

On August 8, 2022, the final release date of August 26, 2022 was announced.

On September 29, 2022, the app received the 5.0.1 update. Along with some minor bug fixes, this update slightly altered some cutscenes. Most notably, Xehanort is no longer referred to as the "great-great-grandson" of a Keyblade wielder in "Child of Destiny", all of 's appearances have been reworked to keep their appearance and gender ambiguous, and multiple instances of vague dialogue have been replaced with explicit references to a "child of destiny".

Story
Living quietly on Destiny Islands, Xehanort wakes from a recurring dream about Player, though he does not recognize anybody in it. He begins to contemplate the existence of other worlds outside his home, when he is greeted by a mysterious brown hooded figure. Unbeknownst to him, this figure is Ansem, his Heartless from the future, who tells him it is his destiny to travel to other worlds. He then opens a portal to Scala ad Caelum, a world where Keyblade wielders are trained, and instructs Xehanort to enter. He travels through the corridor of darkness, where the darkness begins to slowly infect his heart.

Two years after Xehanort's arrival in Scala ad Caelum, Xehanort, now a Keyblade wielder, and his classmates Eraqus, Urd, Bragi, Vor, and Hermod are told by their master Odin that seven upperclassmen - Heimdall, Helgi, Hoder, Sigrun, Vala, Vali, and Vidar - have gone missing while training for their Mark of Mastery exam. However, fellow underclassman Baldr has not been informed, as to not worry him over his older sister Hoder. While the underclassmen are far from ready, Odin tasks the youths with finding the missing seven by scouring the many worlds.

Before they leave, Xehanort and his classmates discuss the state of the worlds: even long after the events of the Keyblade War, many fragments of the world are still forming, and those that have already formed flow on different time frames — while one may be far in the future in terms of technology, another may be still in the beginnings of bearing life or basic technological advancements. With that in mind, and the order not to interfere in the affairs of other worlds, Xehanort and his friends begin their search. The group first travel to Agrabah, only to find the world uninhabited yet full of Heartless. Xehanort suspects the world is still growing and has not developed living beings yet.

They next go to Wonderland, where they find the world has some inhabitants, including the Queen of Hearts, who appears to have darkness in her heart. After experiencing the Queen's darkness, Xehanort and Eraqus begin to deduce their own theories about the nature of darkness, and suspect the upperclassmen were consumed by darkness themselves. Xehanort and Eraqus simultaneously recall a statement from Brain that darkness can hide within people, and they wonder if they could fight a being whose darkness was so deep-rooted that it was unaware of it.

Xehanort and Eraqus are curious about the Queen's darkness, and decide to continue investigating Wonderland while the rest of the group proceeds into other worlds. After observing the residents' fear of the Queen, Xehanort finds that the Queen's darkness is born of her anger, and that her darkness maintains the world's order. Due to the vow that Keyblade wielders should not disturb world orders, Xehanort reasons that the upperclassmen may have been defeated in a world ruled by darkness, unable to oppose it. Xehanort concludes that pursuing darkness will be necessary to finding the upperclassmen. The underclassmen regroup to share their findings, and recall a lecture from Odin, where they learned that darkness in ancient times would spread and infect people - but that as time went on, people began to spawn their own darkness through negative emotions. Eraqus recalls a conversation with Baldr a week prior, where he expressed concern over Hoder's well-being during her Mark of Mastery training.

Xehanort, Eraqus, and Vor continue their search by investigating the Dwarf Woodlands, though Vor gets separated from the group and encounters the Magic Mirror. After regrouping, the trio approach the Magic Mirror, and are told that the upperclassmen are each acting alone. Eraqus begins to ask about Vidar in particular, but he appears in-person before the question can be asked. Vidar voices his distrust of Xehanort, then offers for Vor to join the upperclassmen's mission. Vor agrees and leaves with him, as she was earlier told by the Mirror that staying with her friends would stagnate her growth as a Keyblade Master. Eraqus and Xehanort recall a meeting among the underclassmen where they discussed why they wanted to become Keyblade Masters: Eraqus initially treated it as a family obligation, but later resolved to defeat darkness; Bragi wished to do what is right; Urd wished to learn about and explore the worlds; Baldr wanted to protect what's important to him; Hermod wanted to uphold the greater order; Xehanort wanted to reunite with the friends in his dreams; Vor tries to think of a reason, but ultimately refuses to answer.

The underclassmen try to inform Odin of Vor's departure, but are unable to contact him. Eraqus and Xehanort get into an argument over whether to search for Vor, or to keep pursuing the upperclassmen - ultimately, Eraqus and Bragi leave to ask the Magic Mirror about Vor's location, while Xehanort, Urd, and Hermod decide to search for the upperclassmen in new worlds. However, Eraqus and Bragi are unable to approach the Mirror due to The Queen guarding it, and leave to pursue other methods.

Xehanort, Urd, and Hermod arrive at Beast's Castle, where they find that two upperclassmen have stolen the Beast's rose. The group is suddenly attacked by Heartless, one of which lures Urd away from the group, into an ambush in the ballroom. Just as Urd is about to be overwhelmed, Vala, who was watching from above, casts Faith to defeat all of the Heartless. Vala is impressed by Urd's determination, and offers for her to join the upperclassmen's mission, but Urd insists that her mission is to bring the upperclassmen home. Vala concedes and has Vali give the Beast's rose to Urd, stating that the object is essential to that world's order. Vala and Vali leave through a portal, though unbeknownst to them, Xehanort has overheard the conversation. Xehanort, Urd, and Hermod return the rose to the Beast, and promptly leave the world to continue their search.

At a windy balcony in Scala ad Caelum, Vidar approaches Odin and attempts to say goodbye - but Odin warns him that the thirteen ancient darknesses may be upon them soon. These darknesses are considered "true darkness", have no form, and are the source of most darkness in the world. Seven darknesses were imprisoned in the Lost Masters; four were trapped in the "Realm Between" of the data world; and two were supposedly destroyed with the collapse of the world, but there is no proof of that. Odin advises Vidar to recognize the differences between true darkness and other forms of darkness he might face.

1 Year Later
Xehanort, clad in his Keyblade Armor, walks alone in a corridor of darkness. He reflects on recent events: he and Eraqus are to be tested for the Mark of Mastery, but they first must travel to other worlds to broaden their horizons - normally, this would be a Keyblade wielder's first glimpse of these other worlds. Xehanort turns his thoughts toward his Keyblade armor, which he notes is protective against darkness, yet some of it still seeps through into his heart. Despite this, he wonders if his heart is strong enough to withstand the darkness on its own, and whether he is the "child of destiny". He dispels his armor, but immediately collapses to the darkness and is found by the Master of Masters, who describes him as "the singularity".

The Master takes Xehanort to the Keyblade Graveyard, where he introduces himself as a former Keyblade wielder. Xehanort is initially distrustful and summons his Keyblade, which the Master then summons out of Xehanort's hand and into his own, before returning it. He advises Xehanort to not go unprotected in corridors of darkness, and gifts him a black coat, which he remarks is less suited to combat than Keyblade Armor, but protects against much more darkness. He also requests that Xehanort look into people's hearts, to see how complex emotions or differences in power can harbor light or darkness.

4 Years Later
Xehanort, having just put fresh flowers on four gravestones, says his goodbyes to Eraqus and states he is going off on his own, to see what Odin has not shown them. While Eraqus is against the idea, he does not stop him, knowing that he will be back since they need to settle the score for their games. Xehanort then returns to Wonderland to find that the Queen of Hearts, who had forgotten him during his last visit, is still possessed by darkness as he awaits his trial.

6 Years Later
Xehanort and Eraqus become Keyblade Masters. Eraqus, considered the "true heir", is bequeathed the Master's Defender Keyblade, while Xehanort is bequeathed the No Name Keyblade, so that he might inherit the resolve of the Lost Masters.

7 Years Later
Xehanort and Eraqus get into a disagreement regarding Kingdom Hearts. Xehanort insists that summoning Kingdom Hearts is the only way to protect the world, but Eraqus opposes using such a drastic measure. The duo clash Keyblades as the scene fades.

54 Years Later
At the Land of Departure, Xehanort and Eraqus get into a heated argument about Xehanort's interest in the χ-blade and starting another Keyblade War. Eraqus is unable to sway Xehanort with words and attempts force, but Xehanort retaliates with darkness. Eraqus's face is scarred, and he is shocked that his old friend would be taken by darkness.

64 Years Later
Xehanort returns to the Magic Mirror and asks if the friends in his dreams truly existed at all. The Mirror states that some of them still live, and reveals the location of Ventus at the Keyblade Graveyard.

Gameplay
Unlike Union χ, Kingdom Hearts Dark Road does not feature world exploration as one of its gameplay elements. The game is ultimately divided into two categories: Navigating the main menu, and battles. Players can advance the main story by completing a series of required quest(s) - once the requirement is met, they will be able to view the next story cutscene. Some examples of quest requirements are "Defeat x500 enemies in Agrabah" or "Earn x2000 BP." This can be achieved by tapping the "World battle" icon on the lower center in the screen. This will immediately launch a series of unending battles, growing slightly stronger with each new encounter before looping back to the initial enemy level. World battle difficulty can be unlocked as players progress through the story.

During battle, players have control of only Xehanort's actions. In story quests and world battles, Eraqus is always present as a party member. The player can select either Bragi, Hermod, Vor, or Urd as the third party member, each one bringing a unique support style to aid in battles. Whereas battles in Union χ were turn-based with the use of medals, Dark Road instead uses a real-time combat system with cards. Players can build a deck of cards (up to 30). Subtypes include attack, magic, and support, with all three additionally divided into upright and reversed cards, and split into three colors: red, blue and green. When a battle begins, the player is given five random cards - displayed in a row on the bottom - to "flick" or "tap" three at a time. The first card determines what the action will be (i.e., a standard attack or a Cure spell) while the two subsequent cards determine the efficacy - tapping three cards of the same color doubles the damage or effectiveness of the card effect. As soon as the attack is executed, the player is immediately given three new cards.

Once the player runs out of cards, they must tap the row quickly to restore their card deck - similar to the Reload Card mechanic. As players defeat more enemies and deal more damage, the row begins to glow yellow from the bottom up, slowly filling in. Once completely full, the player enters "Bonus Time" where the glow will begin to deplete. During this time, all cards will be doubly effective regardless of color pairing. While this is all happening on the player's side, Heartless will freely attack the player using their own -esque timer, located to the right of their HP gauge.

It is possible for Heartless to interrupt player actions, thus making an observation of the Heartless' timer gauge and timing their own attacks a key factor in battles. Optionally, players can toggle "Auto" mode on, where the in-game AI will fully control Xehanort's actions and make the best card-decisions based on the situation. Whenever an enemy is defeated, they drop BP, which can be used to level up Xehanort in the Stats menu.

Outside of world battles and main quests, players can tackle special Missions - long-term objectives that reward the player for continued play or meeting certain accomplishments.

The in-game shop allows players to purchase new cards, using either Jewels, Shop Points, or Draw Tickets. The game does not allow duplicate cards in the inventory - instead, duplicate cards are automatically used to power up the same existing card in the player's inventory, up to 10 levels. After 10 levels, they are converted into BP or Shop Points. In addition to new cards, players can also purchase Charms and Quest Keys; the former allows players to continue battles unimpeded in case of a Game Over, while the latter allows players to undertake special Event Quests that reward large amounts of BP. Both Union χ and Dark Road share the same Jewel cache - spending Jewels in Dark Road will deduct that amount in Union χ and vice versa.

After version 5.00
With the 5.00 version update, the game no longer connects to the internet, and thus does not allow any form of in-game purchases. Due to this, several aspects of the gameplay have been tweaked.

Quests to progress the main story no longer have specific requirements to advance - instead, each quest is a shortened version of World Battle with a limited amount of waves. Once all of a quest's waves are cleared, the next quest becomes available to play. Quests cannot be replayed after being completed, but story scenes can be re-viewed in Theater Mode.

Special Missions and special Event Quests have been removed.

BP drops from enemies have been approximately tripled, and BP can now be spent to buy cards as well as level up Xehanort.

The shop has been completely reworked: Jewels, Shop Points, and the Draw system have all been removed, and all cards can be directly purchased in the shop for BP.

Data Transfer
Players who played the online version of the app had the option to locally backup their Dark Road save data on their device, prior to the online functionality being terminated. If they did so, kept Dark Road installed, and then opened the game after the 5.00 update, they would retain any earned cards, levels, BP, story progress, and certain items from their old save data. Items that were removed from the game, such as Jewels and Draw Tickets, would not be retained.