Disney Phantasm Island appears like the kind of sport that Disney hasn’t made in ages. It’s not solely the primary authentic Mickey Mouse platformer that we’ve seen in a couple of decade, however it’s combining a few of the greatest gameplay parts of a lot of its inspirations with attractive character animation, and a rhythm that’s particularly tuned for native multiplayer. Whereas maybe not searching for to innovate the style, Disney Phantasm Island feels prefer it’s constructed with unimaginable care and respect for its IP; whereas I’m certain followers of Mickey and pals will recognize this sport essentially the most, there’s so much to like right here for followers of platformers typically, and I feel its exploration and puzzle parts will resonate with many.
After Disney Interactive shuttered in 2016, the discharge frequency of latest, authentic Disney video games has slowed to a crawl – nicely, if you happen to’re not a cellular gamer, anyhow. Whereas the latest Disney Dreamlight Valley and Disney Speedstorm have been enjoyable takes on established genres, they’re additionally technically nonetheless in states of paid early entry, and are rife with methods that may ultimately be tuned for microtransactions, season passes, and every part else we count on from huge fashionable releases nowadays. Disney Phantasm Island avoids these trappings completely – here’s a sport that feels constructed by Disney followers for Disney followers, is launching at a price range value level, and is crafted with unimaginable creative path and an approachable construction. Most significantly, although, it’s enjoyable to play, particularly with others.
I performed Disney Phantasm Island twice throughout my latest journey to LA for Summer time Recreation Fest – as soon as on the present itself alongside lead designer Grant Allen (see our interview right here), and one other time in multiplayer with another media enjoying with me. My demo plopped me into the sport’s open map at some extent comparatively early within the sport, with solely a small portion of its world explorable. Phantasm Island might be referred to as a Metroidvania – the main target is on exploration and backtracking via an interconnected world, ultimately discovering new talents to let gamers unlock different parts of the map as they go.
My first rapid takeaway was that the platforming itself in Disney Phantasm Island feels intuitive and responsive, if additionally a bit easy at first look. It’s maybe closest to one thing like Rayman Origins by way of really feel – characters are gentle and nimble, however to not the extent the place they really feel floaty or unpredictable. Environments are sometimes considered from a large angle, letting gamers analyze the structure of the room to plot a path ahead. I solely had some fundamental strikes to play with firstly – a wall bounce, double bounce, and enhance bounce that’s kind of like a touch – however after all, ultimately others will probably be unlocked, like, swimming, swinging and ground-pounding. These are all movesets we’ve seen many instances earlier than, and it appears like a little bit of a missed alternative to not give these iconic characters some extra distinctive particular strikes or talents, however what’s right here is straightforward to choose up and bounce proper into.
The sport lacks fight completely, which shocked me, however I didn’t discover myself lacking its absence. Whereas there are nonetheless foes and hazards to keep away from, and even boss battles that appear to depend on nontraditional means to defeat them, the extent of my interplay with the world appeared to be discovering methods to get round it, and infrequently interacting with switches to maneuver partitions or platforms round. Progress is gated by, for instance, needing to seek out keys to open locked doorways, so count on to wish to tug off some bounce combos to entry hard-to-reach collectibles, too. Nothing groundbreaking, however the placement of those parts on this planet felt logical and decently participating.
The animation of characters is unimaginable, and I might inform that sooner or later within the course of there had been substantial pencil-to-paper work performed. Should you’ve ever loved the old-school Mickey Mouse cartoons, you’ll recognize how fluid every part is. I feel the environmental backgrounds depart one thing to be desired compared – their total theming is comparatively gentle, and so they didn’t really feel notably dynamic to discover – however as ranges to leap round in, they’re well-designed and simple to parse. It does all look considerably extra vigorous in movement than in screenshots, however I hope the number of all of it will enhance as gamers progress deeper into the sport.
For me, the large enchantment with a sport like this isn’t essentially the model or the characters, however the truth that that is native, sofa co-op sport that I can take pleasure in with my spouse. I didn’t get the prospect to play it solo as some extent of comparability, and I’m a bit uncertain if it’s going to really feel fairly as enjoyable with out the chaos that comes alongside enjoying with others. However the open construction of the sport’s map actually advantages from with the ability to chat with pals, to debate about which path to discover in or the place a key might probably be tucked away. You possibly can assist different gamers by dropping ropes to assist them climb as much as you or cross gaps, and if a good friend is low on well being, they will come over to you for a hug to assist restore it. If a teammate dies, they remodel right into a flying piece of mail – which I heard a developer hilariously discuss with as “enveloping” – and could be introduced again into the sport on the mailbox-themed checkpoints that litter the map. And from an accessibility standpoint, there are a large swath of choices to make the sport simpler for much less skilled gamers, like turning on infinite well being, letting characters stick with partitions, and extra.
Whereas there’s nonetheless much more of Disney Phantasm Island that I’ve but to see, it’s received many of the proper elements to make a satisfying 2D platformer. Though it might probably be a bit too simple for seasoned followers of the style, it’s additionally very doubtless that there’s extra layers of depth to its mechanics and world that I haven’t skilled but. We’ll discover out when Disney Phantasm Island launches solely for Swap on July 28, 2023.
