Kingdom Hearts almost led to Disney making its own version of Super Smash Bros, former dev says
Kingdom Hearts bashing together a bunch of Disney's best toys (and being quite successful in the process) led the Mouse House to briefly begin work on a crossover fighting game in the style of Super Smash Bros. Read more
Former Disney Interactive concept artist Ken Christiansen revealed that the success of Kingdom Hearts nearly prompted the Mouse House to create its own version of Super Smash Bros. Christiansen, who worked on the first Kingdom Hearts game, explained that the crossover potential of Kingdom Hearts piqued Disney's interest in a fighting game similar to Super Smash Bros.
The original Kingdom Hearts game faced challenges due to Disney's reluctance to allow characters from different franchises to collide, such as The Lion King and The Little Mermaid. This reluctance led to minor conflicts among developers, but the project was ultimately successful. Kingdom Hearts became one of the PlayStation 2's top-selling games, prompting Disney to become more open to crossover ideas.
The concept for Disney's Action Figure Face Off was proposed, envisioning a game where Disney characters from various franchises fought each other. Although the project never progressed beyond prototypes, it laid the groundwork for future Disney crossover titles like Disney Infinity, Disney Speedstorm, and Disney Dreamlight Valley.
Despite the canceled Disney Action Figure Face Off, Kingdom Hearts 4 is set to launch soon, and a Disney+ animated series is also in development.
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