Nomura’s 3D wake-up call
Tetsuya Nomura — the face behind Kingdom Hearts and a longtime Final Fantasy designer — recently admitted that the game that changed how he thought about 3D wasn’t from his studio at all, but from Nintendo: Super Mario 64. In a chat with Famitsu he explained how Mario’s open, camera-driven worlds shifted his design priorities.
What Mario did that his own work hadn’t
Back when Nomura was working on early 3D Final Fantasy projects, only character models were true 3D. Backgrounds were essentially flat images and the camera was fixed. Super Mario 64, on the other hand, let the camera follow a character through fully realized spaces, making movement feel free and alive. That contrast stuck with him.
Building Kingdom Hearts from that feeling
Nomura said he wanted that same sensation — running around and exploring without the world feeling like a staged diorama. That idea fed directly into the creation of Kingdom Hearts on PlayStation 2, which mixes platforming energy with RPG-style combat. The result was a quirky hybrid that didn’t quite fit any existing box, and that’s part of why fans still love it.
Why it still matters today
The leap Super Mario 64 made to full 3D movement didn’t just influence one developer; it changed expectations for whole genres. Decades later, designers are still debating movement, camera, and combat styles in RPGs — a conversation that traces back to moments like this.
Full circle: Kingdom Hearts and modern hardware
It’s a little poetic that the Kingdom Hearts series is now heading to modern platforms — including the Switch 2 — after taking its initial cue from a Nintendo classic. Whatever Nomura cooks up next, fans will be watching to see how he blends freedom of movement with the series’ trademark story-and-combat mashup.
