Stealing hearts: Creator of Kingdom Hearts reflects on 12 years of crossover hits

Few people can ignite such passionate discussion as Tetsuya Nomura. Mention his name in online gaming forums or comment sections, and you’ll typically get one of two reactions: People who love the impact he’s had at developer Square Enix, and those who hate it. And if you put him in front of hundreds of hardcore Kingdom Hearts fans, they’ll go nuts.

I was in the middle of one of those crowds on Dec. 1, when Square Enix held a special fan event for the release of Kingdom Hearts HD 2.5 Remix at the Walt Disney Studios lot in Burbank, Calif. Nomura’s presence was a tightly guarded secret: Square Enix told the few people who knew about him not to mention his name on social media for fear of spoiling the surprise. When he did show up, the audience rocked the theater with booming screams and cheers, and at least one person shouted “I love you!”.