Disney Infinity: Skylanders meets Little Big Planet

Today Disney Interactive announced Disney’s newest gaming intiative: Disney Infinity.

It’s an “interactive gaming platform” that brings together the best of Disney’s IP. According to John Pleasants, Co-President of Disney Interactive, “You’ll be able to go into the world of your favourite characters or bring them together in a world of your choosing to build, create and play in a way you’ve never imagined.”

At its most basic, this is Skylanders but trading on the immense goodwill of our childhood relationships with Disney characters. It’s more than that though – you can also create your own worlds and that alone makes this a much deeper offering.

Pleasants showed us models for Captain Jack Sparrow and Sully from Monsters Inc. Each “family” of Disney characters will be associated with a “Play Set”, a virtual world grounded in their lore. You’ll not be able to put Sully in Tortuga from Pirates of the Caribbean but you can bring everyone into a different world called the Toy Box and mash up elements from every world.

Disney Infinity will be available on “all platforms” – that’s all four of the current consoles, mobile platforms, and online. No word on next-gen, of course.

Here the video. It’s a bit good:

The game will launch in June with 20 characters. Three play sets have been confirmed – Monsters University, The Incredibles and Pirates of the Caribbean – with more available in June.

You buy a starter park that comes with figurines from 3 different sets and the reader platform. You also have to buy the software separately for your platform, which provides the Play Set environments and the Toy Box.

Each Play Set has its own distinct feeling:

The Incredibles – To capture the essence of The Incredibles, you need to be in circumstances that only a superhero can solve. You’ll up against Syndrome and other villains from the film. Each character has their abilities from the film so Dash can run and punch very fast. It’s combat orients, so Violet’s forcefields have been expanded and can used as offensive weapons.

Upgrades and vehicles can be bought from a catalogue – the presentation was unclear about whether this was with real money or in-game currency. I suspect that eventually, it will be a mix of both. You’ll unlock the Incredicar, a helicopter, amazing bases that can be customised and more. All these items can be taken into the Toy Box once unlocked and then used by other characters, but, I believe, only as long as your Incredibles character remains on the platform.

Monsters University – This Play Set ties into the prequel coming out this summer. Mike and Sully are up against a rival school and you’ll be pranking the students from Fear Tech and defending your own campus from being toilet papered, and other such college japes. MU is more about humour, customisation and scaring than about combat. There are night scares and day scares to use on the other students and you have mounts to ride, like a bicycle or Archie the scare pig (it will make sense when the film’s out, I’m sure)

Pirates of the Caribbean – This covers the first three films so as Jack Sparrow you’re up against Davy Jones and crew. Jack will be swordfighting and a flintlock to be used in puzzles. He can upgrade with grenades but as a pirate, the focus is really about upgrading your ship. You can change the sections of hull, the sails, your ship’s weaponry and swap out hair clothers and more on your crew members. Multiplayer can be either both people on the same boat, one sailing while the other switches cannons to suit the foe or both players on your own ships up against the enemy.

The Adventures section was the most impressive. This is part tutorial, part creation. Much like Little Big Planet 2’s create mode, you can build anything you want in a 3D space using your unlocked items and upload that world to a moderated online community for other people to play. We saw a giant world shaped like and electric car and a functional replica of Bowser’s Castle from Mario Kart. More than a game for kids, this is a tool that they can grow up with. The world-building alone justifies the Disney Infinity name and makes this a much less cynical offering than Activision’s Skylanders.

Disney Infinity will launch in June 2013.