You’re running around Traverse Town, heartless are spawning every five seconds, and you just want to get to the next world. I get it. But if you're ignoring those green mailboxes, you're leaving some of the best early-game loot on the table. Postcards in Kingdom Hearts aren't just flavor text or world-building fluff; they are a specific scavenger hunt tied to the Item Workshop that can net you a Guard Earring or even a Megalixir before you've even seen a Moogle's pom-pom.
Honestly, most people find three or four by accident and then just give up. That’s a mistake.
Why Postcards in Kingdom Hearts are Worth Your Time
The mechanic is simple: find a postcard, take it to the mailbox in the First District (right near the accessory shop), and mail it. The game rewards you instantly. It’s one of the few ways to get a Power Up or Defense Up early on without grinding synthesis materials for hours.
The struggle is that Sora isn't exactly a parkour master in the first game. The controls are a bit floaty. You have to jump across shop awnings and shimmy across narrow ledges in the Second and Third Districts to find these things. If you’re playing the Final Mix version (which, let's be real, you probably are if you're on a modern console), the rewards are slightly tweaked, but the locations remain the frustration-inducing same.
The First Few Are Easy
The very first one is literally staring you in the face. In the First District, there’s a blue safe in the Accessory Shop. You just have to move a few items or jump on the counter to reach it. It’s the game’s way of saying "hey, look at things." Most players get this one.
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Then there’s the one hidden in the boots. Or rather, the shoemaker’s sign. In the Second District, you’ll see the large boots hanging above a door. If you jump onto the roof of the Accessory Shop and maneuver over, you can interact with them. It feels weirdly specific. That's Kingdom Hearts for you. It expects you to hit every wall and jump on every piece of geometry just in case.
Moving Into the Hard Stuff
Once you get deeper into the mechanics, the postcards start hiding in plain sight. Take the Third District, for example. There's a spot where you have to use Thunder on a broken electrical wire to jumpstart a gadget. It’s a small puzzle that a lot of people overlook because they’re too busy dodging Yellow Operas.
I remember spending twenty minutes trying to figure out why a certain wall in the Accessory Shop looked "off." Turns out, you just had to jump behind the counter and check the wall hangings. There’s no prompt until you’re practically touching it.
The rewards scale, too. You start with a Cottage—nice, but whatever—and eventually work your way up to a Smythril Shard and that sweet, sweet Megalixir. In a game where the final boss has about fourteen phases, you want every Megalixir you can carry. Trust me on that.
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Tracking Down the Tricky Ones
If you’re stuck at 7 or 8 postcards, you’re likely missing the rooftop ones.
- The Item Shop Fan: Go into the Accessory Shop and look at the ceiling fan. It sounds fake, but if you jump and "check" it, Sora pulls a postcard out of the blades. Don't ask how it got there.
- The Clock Tower: This is the one that ruins everyone’s completionist run. You have to hit the clocks in the Second District until they both show the same time. It’s a "secret" that isn't really hinted at anywhere in the dialogue.
- The Blue Trinity: You can't even get all the postcards until you've unlocked certain Trinity marks. This forces you to backtrack to Traverse Town after clearing worlds like Deep Jungle or Agrabah. It's a classic Metroidvania move tucked inside a Disney RPG.
Common Misconceptions
People think you can "miss" these forever. You can’t. Even after the heartless get stronger and the world state changes later in the game, the postcards remain. However, it is much easier to grab them when the enemies are just Shadows and Soldiers rather than Defenders and Wyverns.
Another weird thing? The mailbox doesn't tell you how many you've sent. You have to keep track yourself. I usually just count the rewards. If I haven't gotten the Megalixir yet, I know I'm still missing the final one.
The Mastery of Traverse Town
Traverse Town acts as your hub, but it’s also a giant puzzle box. Finding every postcard requires you to understand the verticality of the map. Sora’s jump height is fixed until you get High Jump later, so early on, you have to find "stairs" made of crates and awnings.
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It’s about observation. See a candle that isn't lit? Blast it with Fire. See a clock that isn't moving? Hit it. This game rewards curiosity, and the postcards are the primary currency for that curiosity.
Actionable Steps for Your Completionist Run
If you want to clear this side quest efficiently, follow this loose logic:
- Check every shop wall: Especially the ones behind the NPCs. Square Enix loved hiding interactable prompts in places where the camera angle makes them invisible.
- Wait for the Blue Trinity: Don't kill yourself trying to find the 10th postcard before you’ve visited at least three other worlds. You need the Trinity move to access the final areas of the Second District.
- Hit the clocks twice: Many people think hitting the clock once is enough. Check both faces of the tower. They need to be synced.
- Melt the ice: If you see something frozen or a weirdly placed heater, use your magic.
Once you’ve stuffed all ten into that mailbox, you’re done. No more worrying about the mail. You'll have a stronger Sora, better accessories, and the satisfaction of knowing you didn't leave a single stone unturned in the game's most iconic town. Focus on the Second District's roofs first—that's where 60% of the difficulty lies. Check the Gizmo Shop’s upper levels thoroughly, as the layout there is meant to confuse you while the Heartless swarm. Get those stamps moving.