Hoping to ride a bit of the financial wave created by Activision’s Skylanders franchise, Disney Interactive announced this week that they are developing Disney Infinity — a new video game platform that will leverage the company’s powerful brands into collectible toys that are used to play in the game’s virtual worlds.
Disney Infinity is currently expected to launch in June 2013 on the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Wii U, PC, 3DS, and mobile platforms. The console and PC versions of the game will be nearly identical, and use a reader base (PC version uses an online code system) that players set the toy figures in to unlock different characters and levels within the game. Strangely, the company currently has no plans for cross-play between the different systems — which is one of the major features of Activision’s Skylanders franchise.
These versions of Disney Infinity will also feature a Toy Box mode — inspired from the Toy Box mode in Avalanche Software’s 2010 Toy Story 3 game — which will let players “mash” together different characters and settings from Disney’s franchises.
The 3DS version of the game is said to be more of a strategy title that has players build a team of characters and play through their different mini-game levels. The mobile version is also a different beast, and somehow works into the economy system and character progression of the console and PC versions.
At launch Disney Infinity will have 17 available characters and 40 “interactive pieces” from a variety of Disney’s properties, including; The Incredibles, Monsters Inc., and Pirates of the Caribbean. While nothing was mentioned in the company’s press release, it would not be surprising to see the recently acquired Star Wars franchise also make an appearance in the game at some point.
The actual game and its accessories will carry the following price points when it releases this June:
- Starter Pack (3 figures, reader base, and game): $74.99
- Play Set Pack (basically a level hub and campaign, think DLC): $34.99
- Disney Infinity Figure: $12.99
- Figure 3-Pack: $29.99
- Power Disc Pack (blind purchases): $4.99
We will keep an eye out for any additional details about Disney Infinity and let you know as soon as anything is announced.
