Disney Infinity Game: Does it merge Minecraft and Skylanders?

Credit: Disney Infinity (screenshot)

On January 15th, Disney announced its new Infinity game that will be available in June of 2013. Take a peek at the trailer:

Personally, I anticipate that it will be a big success. By including three of their popular franchises (Monsters University, The Incredibles, and Pirates of the Caribbean) from the start, Disney already has a built-in audience. Also, Infinity merges key aspects of two game franchises that are especially popular right now – Skylanders and Minecraft.

-Like Skylanders, Infinity has physical figurines, which you can collect and place on a pad to allow the characters to go into the game. The prices are also comparable to Skylanders. (A starter pack is $79.99 and individual figures cost $12.99.)

-With its “toy box” option, Infinity allows players to build their own customized virtual environments inhabited by a combination of their favorite characters. That creative ability to mix and match characters and settings reminds me of Minecraft. (For kids who prefer less creativity/more structure, you can purchase one of the playsets, because they offer traditional gaming storylines. Play sets are $34.99)

In any event, I can’t wait until this game comes out in June. I wouldn’t call it revolutionary, but it looks and sounds like it will be pretty amazing. Overall, I think that young kids and nostalgic adults (like me!) will definitely like it. I’ll have to wait and see how older kids respond to it. I also think that Disney will need to add some more girl-themed Disney characters to attract more young girls to the game. What do you think? Will your kids want this game?