Roxas

Lore & Background

Roxas is a Nobody, born from series protagonist Sora after he briefly lost his heart during the events of the first game. Kingdom Hearts II reveals that Roxas is a member of Organization XIII, a group of Nobodies who recruit him for his ability to wield the Keyblade. As a member of Organization XIII, Roxas bears the title "Key of Destiny" (めぐりあう鍵, Meguriau Kagi; lit. "Serendipitous Key"). Director Tetsuya Nomura stated that Roxas was one of the first characters created for Organization XIII and was always intended to be its thirteenth member. The meaning of Roxas' name was meant to be revealed in a scene in Kingdom Hearts II that shows the letters in the word "Sora" rearranged with the "X" added to expand the connection between the characters, but this scene was omitted as Nomura found it difficult to implement time-wise. Physically, Roxas resembles Ventus due to his presence in Sora's heart during Roxas's birth. Due to his nature as a Nobody, he is an "empty shell" of Sora, created after he sacrifices his heart and becomes a Heartless during the events of Kingdom Hearts. As a result, despite his teenage appearance, Roxas is only about one year old when he rejoins Sora in Kingdom Hearts II—he was born on the day Sora became a Heartless, and rejoins him roughly one year later, though the exact timeline spans from late summer to early autumn of the following year. Unlike other Nobodies, Roxas retains some of Sora's memories (such as those of Kairi and Riku), which influence his personality and cause it to develop separately from Sora.

In Their Own Story

Roxas first appears in Another Side, Another Story, a bonus trailer found in Kingdom Hearts, and makes a cameo in the ending of Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories. In Kingdom Hearts II, Roxas is introduced as a boy living in a computer simulation of Twilight Town. Unaware of the virtual nature of the city, Roxas begins to dream about the adventures of Sora. He later encounters Axel, a member of Organization XIII under orders to extract him from the simulation, and Naminé, a Nobody, informs him that he is Sora's Nobody. Shortly after meeting DiZ, the creator of the virtual world, Roxas learns the true nature of Twilight Town, and that DiZ altered his memory and personality to mislead his pursuers from Organization XIII until he can merge with Sora. DiZ leads Roxas to an old mansion where he rejoins with a sleeping Sora, allowing him to awaken. Sora later learns that Roxas is his Nobody, born during the events of the first game after Sora briefly became a Heartless, and was inducted into Organization XIII for his ability to capture hearts with the Keyblade. However, Roxas later betrayed Organization XIII and encountered Riku, who captured him to restore Sora. Roxas makes two appearances near the end of the game, first in a mental battle with Sora in a cutscene, and second alongside Naminé, who has merged with Kairi. In the re-released version, Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, Roxas' fight against Sora is expanded, making him a boss character. Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, a prequel to Kingdom Hearts II, reveals Roxas' life with Organization XIII. Unlike the other Organization members, he lacks memories of his previous life. Roxas is placed under Axel's watch and the two become friends. After Axel is sent to Castle Oblivion, Roxas is partnered with Xion, Organization XIII's fourteenth member and another Keyblade wielder, whom he befriends. Roxas reacts to the restoration of Sora's memories and starts questioning why he uses the Keyblade, causing him to doubt Organization XIII's motives. Upon discovering that Xion is a replica created by Xemnas from Sora's memories, Roxas is compelled to defect from Organization XIII to find answers and meet Sora. He is confronted by Xion, who Xemnas repurposed to absorb him so that she can become a complete replica; after she sacrifices herself by allowing Roxas to kill her so that Sora can regain his memories, she entrusts Roxas with freeing the hearts the Organization has captured and then return to Sora's heart. While heading to confront Xemnas, Roxas is approached by Riku who knocks him unconscious to help DiZ and Naminé wake Sora.

Reader's Guide

Roxas is a playable character in Kingdom Hearts II and the protagonist of Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days. In Kingdom Hearts II, his story is a prologue set in a virtual Twilight Town, where he lives unaware of his true nature. Players control Roxas through his daily life, including missions and interactions with friends, before the narrative reveals his identity as Sora's Nobody. The game's director Tetsuya Nomura stated that Roxas' merging with Sora was one of the most memorable scenes in the series for him. In Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, Roxas is the main protagonist, and the game focuses on his time in Organization XIII. The staff thought that Roxas' role as a member of the group would be a suitable theme for the plot. Roxas was chosen as the game's protagonist since the staff felt that having a protagonist other than Sora would help to introduce gamers to the series' first Nintendo DS title. Co-director Tomohiro Hasegawa explained that Roxas was originally shorter, and the staff decided he should grow taller as the game continued to develop. Nomura wanted to portray Roxas' activities differently from Sora's, as Sora is on a journey around the world while Roxas always returns to Organization XIII after each mission. The staff constructed Roxas' interactions with the Disney characters differently from Sora's, as Organization XIII was meant to be secret in the game's story. Nomura told the writers that he wanted Roxas to learn something or have something to think about from each of his missions. Nomura later clarified that Roxas' personality was different from how he was portrayed in Kingdom Hearts II, as he does not actively attempt to come into contact with other characters. With 358/2 Days, Nomura wanted to reveal why Roxas left Organization XIII. Nomura felt that Roxas' last words in the game marked its most significant plot point, as he wanted them to connect to Kingdom Hearts II's first scene that is almost identical. As a civilian, Roxas wears a white jacket over a black jacket as well as white trousers. As a member of Organization XIII, he wears a hooded black coat that covers most of his body. His weapon is the Kingdom Key (キングダムチェーン, Kingudamu Chēn; Kingdom Chain), a Keyblade that resembles a skeleton key with a silver keychain extending from the hilt and a Mickey Mouse token on the end of it. In 358/2 Days, the player can modify Roxas' Keyblade using the game's panel system. Roxas gains the ability to dual wield Keyblades after leaving Organization XIII, and exclusively uses the weapon's Oathkeeper (約束のお守り, Yakusoku no Omamori; lit. "Promise's Charm") and Oblivion (過ぎ去りし思い出, Sugisarishi Omoide; lit. "Passing Memories") forms for each hand.

Did You Know?

• Roxas is only about one year old when he rejoins Sora in Kingdom Hearts II, despite his teenage appearance—he was born on the day Sora became a Heartless and rejoins him roughly one year later, though the exact timeline
• The meaning of Roxas' name was meant to be revealed in a scene showing the letters in 'Sora' rearranged with an 'X' added, but the scene was cut due to time constraints.
• Director Tetsuya Nomura considered Roxas' last words in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days to be the game's most significant plot point, designed to connect to Kingdom Hearts II's first scene.
• Roxas was originally shorter in development for 358/2 Days, but the staff decided he should grow taller as the game continued.
• Roxas was not originally meant to return in Kingdom Hearts III, but positive fan response led to his inclusion.