goofyspaceranger
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2013
Top Vacation Destinations... For Infinity Toys
Part of the fun in staying at a Walt Disney World resort is that the theming is so great, you feel like you're escaping to another place before you even get to a park. If you visit the World multiple times, you can stay at different resorts for different experiences. In some respects, the same is true for video games. Once the general mechanics are determined, characters are chosen, obstacles, power-ups, and villains are decided, there's the matter of location. Location, location, location. This virtual real estate can create variety and bring all of the other elements of the game together.
With Infinity, these locations come in the form of Play Sets. They will be an important part of the Infinity deliverable because it's not only about creating mini-games, it's also about creating worlds. The more varied the terrain, the more imaginative the worlds can be. Disney's library provides lots of options, where kids have yet another way to relate back to their favorite movies, and possibly their favorite Walt Disney World resort. A Lilo & Stitch Play Set could include Polynesian buildings and a volcano. A Princess & the Frog Play Set could include references to the Port Orleans resorts, including Mardi Gras, a bayou, riverboat, and alligators. A Lion King Play Set could include buildings like those in the Animal Kingdom Lodge along with its African savannah, and trucks from Kilimanjaro Safaris. Disney Infinity has shown to already include the park symbols of Spaceship Earth (thankfully without the wand) and Cinderella's Castle, so maybe resort references could be in the works as well (Caribbean Beach is already covered). Imagine playing a video game at a WDW resort featuring Disney characters in a setting that matches the theming of that resort. The cross-referencing would add a little more magic.
Play Sets Providing Mechanics
Play Sets that provide different mechanics along with those famous Disney settings could really enhance the Toy Box as well. A Tarzan or Jungle Book Play Set could provide the variety of a jungle background while adding the option of those Infinity Toys swinging from vine to vine. A Play Set based on the upcoming Frozen movie could provide a snowy landscape and a very popular game mechanic: slippery ice. Throw in some snowmen, trolls, and reindeer mounts, and this could be a top candidate for 2014 (maybe it could even throw in a few references to Blizzard Beach).
Under The Sea
Underwater adventures are more difficult to program into 3D (then again, this is Disney, and the rowboat clip in the Infinity trailer looks amazing). If you had to choose, would you go with fish or mermaids? Nemo's probably more popular, but the Little Mermaid provides a princess, and the fact that she has hands makes it easier to include her in more mini-games. It does beg the question whether certain games' locations might restrict which characters can be used. Or maybe it's simply the matter of a trading-card-power-up. If you can catch a magic carpet ride to fly in Agrabah, you can get a scuba suit or magical air bubble to swim underwater. Mash-ups would be fun - build your castles, roads, etc. at the bottom of the ocean, and throw in a coral reef and some barnacles for scenery. And this mashes with the pirates as well (without the mermaids being carnivorous).
Part of the fun in staying at a Walt Disney World resort is that the theming is so great, you feel like you're escaping to another place before you even get to a park. If you visit the World multiple times, you can stay at different resorts for different experiences. In some respects, the same is true for video games. Once the general mechanics are determined, characters are chosen, obstacles, power-ups, and villains are decided, there's the matter of location. Location, location, location. This virtual real estate can create variety and bring all of the other elements of the game together.
With Infinity, these locations come in the form of Play Sets. They will be an important part of the Infinity deliverable because it's not only about creating mini-games, it's also about creating worlds. The more varied the terrain, the more imaginative the worlds can be. Disney's library provides lots of options, where kids have yet another way to relate back to their favorite movies, and possibly their favorite Walt Disney World resort. A Lilo & Stitch Play Set could include Polynesian buildings and a volcano. A Princess & the Frog Play Set could include references to the Port Orleans resorts, including Mardi Gras, a bayou, riverboat, and alligators. A Lion King Play Set could include buildings like those in the Animal Kingdom Lodge along with its African savannah, and trucks from Kilimanjaro Safaris. Disney Infinity has shown to already include the park symbols of Spaceship Earth (thankfully without the wand) and Cinderella's Castle, so maybe resort references could be in the works as well (Caribbean Beach is already covered). Imagine playing a video game at a WDW resort featuring Disney characters in a setting that matches the theming of that resort. The cross-referencing would add a little more magic.
Play Sets Providing Mechanics
Play Sets that provide different mechanics along with those famous Disney settings could really enhance the Toy Box as well. A Tarzan or Jungle Book Play Set could provide the variety of a jungle background while adding the option of those Infinity Toys swinging from vine to vine. A Play Set based on the upcoming Frozen movie could provide a snowy landscape and a very popular game mechanic: slippery ice. Throw in some snowmen, trolls, and reindeer mounts, and this could be a top candidate for 2014 (maybe it could even throw in a few references to Blizzard Beach).
Under The Sea
Underwater adventures are more difficult to program into 3D (then again, this is Disney, and the rowboat clip in the Infinity trailer looks amazing). If you had to choose, would you go with fish or mermaids? Nemo's probably more popular, but the Little Mermaid provides a princess, and the fact that she has hands makes it easier to include her in more mini-games. It does beg the question whether certain games' locations might restrict which characters can be used. Or maybe it's simply the matter of a trading-card-power-up. If you can catch a magic carpet ride to fly in Agrabah, you can get a scuba suit or magical air bubble to swim underwater. Mash-ups would be fun - build your castles, roads, etc. at the bottom of the ocean, and throw in a coral reef and some barnacles for scenery. And this mashes with the pirates as well (without the mermaids being carnivorous).