Disney has a pretty hit-and-miss history when it comes to video games. On the one hand, games like Disney Dreamlight Valley and Kingdom Hearts have delighted and entertained fans for hours upon hours, but on the other, failures such as Epic Mickey 2 and any amount of shovelware you’d care to mention have tainted a lot of players’ view of what a Disney game can and should be.
That’s likely why any new Disney game announcement is often met with trepidation as well as hope, and such was the case for Disney Illusion Island, a new four-player co-op platformer created by English studio Dlala. Revealed in September last year, Disney Illusion Island takes on an aesthetic inspired by classic Disney cartoons and the relatively recent Mickey Mouse TV show. What kind of game are you in for if you pick this one up? Let’s take a look at Disney Illusion Island in more detail!
Disney Illusion Island release date – when is the game coming out?
Disney Illusion Island is currently scheduled for release on July 28th, so it’s not going to be too long until you get to play it. We’re not expecting the release date to be delayed, either, so it’s safe to pencil this one into your calendar if you’re excited to get your hands on Disney Illusion Island. Of course, there is a small chance the release date could be pushed back, but given that we’re only a couple of months away from release, it’s unlikely.
Disney Illusion Island trailers – what’s been released?
Two major Disney Illusion Island trailers have been released. The first one is the world premiere trailer, which was unveiled in September 2022. It introduces us to the four main characters we’ll be getting to play as: Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy. It’s a nice, classic Disney setup. The four find themselves in the world of Monoth, where they must recover three books on behalf of Monoth’s inhabitants, the little furry Hokun folk. We also get a glimpse of the game’s sense of humour, which is a little sharper than you might expect from a platformer geared towards younger players.
The second trailer shows off a little more of the platforming gameplay, which bears more than a passing resemblance to Rayman Origins. Each of the four players will be able to leap and run through a series of handcrafted levels, taking on enemies and finding hidden passageways full of secrets. This is also the trailer that reveals the game’s release date. It originally aired as part of a Nintendo Direct presentation.
Disney Illusion Island platforms – where can you play it?
At the moment, Disney Illusion Island appears to be exclusive to the Nintendo Switch. It hasn’t been announced for any other platforms as yet, and both of the trailers have appeared as part of Nintendo presentations. In addition, the description for the second trailer on release describes Disney Illusion Island as “exclusively” appearing on Nintendo Switch, so it’s not likely we’ll see it for other platforms initially.
Could a release for other platforms, i.e. PC, PlayStation, and Xbox, be on the cards? It’s not impossible, but for now, it looks like you’ll have to dig out your Switch if you want to try this one out. Hey, you’re probably playing Tears of the Kingdom right now anyway, right? Why not give your Switch a little more love for Disney Illusion Island? You know it makes sense.
Disney Illusion Island features – what kind of game is it?
As the trailers show, Disney Illusion Island is a 2D platformer seemingly quite heavily inspired by Rayman Origins and Rayman Legends, as well as New Super Mario Bros. Wii. It supports up to four players in co-op mode and will have you exploring a series of levels in order to collect things, gather power-ups, and defeat powerful bosses. Let’s take a look at some of the features Disney Illusion Island will offer.
- Four classic Disney characters. You’ll be able to choose between Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy, no matter whether you’re in single-player or co-op mode. It sounds like all four characters will play roughly the same, too, so you won’t need to worry about not getting the character whose abilities suit your playstyle best.
- Three different biomes. The world of Monoth has three biomes on offer, each of which has a variety of levels for you to play through. Each stage will have plenty of hidden secrets to uncover, as well as lots of enemies to defeat and collectibles to gather. If you are a fan of games like Rayman Origins, it looks like you’re going to love this one.
- Four-player co-op. It’s possible to enjoy Disney Illusion Island entirely on your own, but you can also grab up to three other players and play through the game in local co-op mode. Any configuration of players is fine, too, so if you want to play through with a friend, a partner, or two friends, you’ll be able to do just that.
- That Disney sheen. Since this is a Disney game, you can expect production values of the highest calibre. The voice acting, presentation, and animation all look top-notch, and the musical score is fully orchestrated as well, so you won’t be hearing any MIDI-style “blarp blarp” sounds in the background. All told, this looks like a classy, premium-level adventure, and not a microtransaction in sight (we hope)!
