Kingdom Hearts characters: Sora, Riku, Kairi, Donald, Goofy and Ansem
The main characters of the original Kingdom Hearts: Sora, Riku, Kairi, Donald Duck, Goofy and the villains behind the Heartless.
Original 2002 PlayStation 2 release (North America and Europe). Kingdom Hearts Final Mix and the HD 1.5 ReMIX collection add content and are outside this guide; world screenshots that appear to come from the HD release are labelled.
Character reference
Sora
A boy from Destiny Islands chosen by the Keyblade. He travels the worlds to find Riku and Kairi and to stop the Heartless.
Sora in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
Riku
Riku leaves Destiny Islands through the darkness and is tempted by Maleficent, becoming Sora's rival for much of the story.
Riku in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
Kairi
Kairi disappears when Destiny Islands falls. Finding her drives Sora's journey.
Kairi in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
Donald Duck
King Mickey's court wizard travels with Sora, casting magic and healing in battle.
Donald Duck in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
Goofy
The captain of the royal knights protects Sora with his shield and searches for the king alongside Donald.
Goofy in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
Ansem, Seeker of Darkness
The figure behind the Heartless and the darkness spreading through the worlds.
Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, in official Kingdom Hearts artwork.
The Heartless
Creatures of darkness born from hearts lost to it. The Shadow is the most common early type.
A Shadow Heartless from Kingdom Hearts.
The Destiny Islands trio
Sora, Riku and Kairi plan to leave their island home by raft before the Heartless arrive and separate them.
King Mickey's envoys
Donald and Goofy were sent by King Mickey to find the 'key', which turns out to be Sora's Keyblade.
Disney and Final Fantasy guests
Each Disney world has its own cast, while Final Fantasy characters such as Leon, Yuffie, Aerith, Cid and Cloud appear in Traverse Town and the Coliseum.
Party guests from each world can replace Donald or Goofy there; some, like Tarzan and Aladdin, change how fights play out.
Picture details
Game artwork belongs to its respective rights holders.