Disney Says Kingdom Hearts Has Become a Billion-Dollar Franchise

Disney is now treating Kingdom Hearts as part of a much larger push to make games a core entertainment business, and the company says the series has also cleared a major financial milestone. In its latest update, Disney Games Group said the franchise has generated more than $1 billion in consumer revenue.

Sean Shoptaw, Disney's EVP of Global Games and Digital Entertainment, said the company now has nine games that have grossed more than $1 billion at retail. He also said Disney is treating games as a more central part of its business, with audiences increasingly discovering Disney's characters and worlds through interactive projects first.

Disney also said its games business has driven an estimated $3.5 billion in consumer spend annually for the past four years, and crossed $4 billion in the past fiscal year. That puts Kingdom Hearts in the company of a much larger portfolio rather than standing as a one-off hit.

The series began on PS2 in 2002. Disney says Square Enix is currently working on Kingdom Hearts 4, while native Nintendo Switch 2 versions of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX, Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue, and Kingdom Hearts 3 + Re Mind are due in October.

The new revenue milestone adds another sign that Kingdom Hearts remains one of Disney's most important gaming properties, even before the fourth mainline entry arrives.

Would you have expected Kingdom Hearts to pass $1 billion, or does Disney's games business surprise you more?