is a fictional character and the central antagonist of the Kingdom Hearts game franchise by Square Enix. He is the main antagonist of the Dark Seeker Saga, the first phase in the Kingdom Hearts series. He was introduced as the original form of the sentient Heartless "Ansem, Seeker of Darkness" in the first game and the Nobody Xemnas in Kingdom Hearts II. Meanwhile, Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep reveals the human elder Xehanort who, like his alter-egos, wishes to create hearts labeled as Kingdom Hearts. While Kingdom Hearts III is the last major installment that focuses on Xehanort, the mobile phone game Dark Road explores the character's childhood and descent into villainy. Xehanort was created by Kingdom Hearts director and designer, Tetsuya Nomura, who decided to revise elements of him when Square Enix greenlighted Kingdom Hearts II. Critical response to Xehanort was originally mixed as a result of his multiple alter-egos with different names that might confuse the audience. His further exploration in Birth by Sleep and handling of boss battles were the subject of praise. Creation and development Xehanort was originally conceptualized as a one-game only villain by Tetsuya Nomura for the video game Kingdom Hearts. However, when Square Enix got the approval to make the sequel Kingdom Hearts II, Nomura put together and decided an outline. He was often told by the manga artist that they felt "the characters come alive however they want," and some parts did change from their original conceptualization. Nomura conceived Xehanort as a character that is studied by the players in each installment of the series. Ansem symbolizes the heart while Xemnas the body leading to the focus of the original Xehanort in the future titles. In retrospect, Nomura believes this was properly explored as each game builds up Xehanort's character until his full introduction. The biggest change to Xehanort's character in Kingdom Hearts II is how doppelganger, the Heartless Ansem Seeker of Darkness, was revised to feel more like an imposter of the real Ansem the Wise, with more villainous traits. Kingdom Hearts II features another Xehanort doppelganger, the Nobody Xemnas, leader of Organization XIII. The concept of Organization XIII began with Xemnas as the first member and Roxas, Sora's Nobody as the last. Each of the original members' name is an anagram of their original name prior to becoming a Nobody, with the addition of the letter "X" which is revealed