Disney Infinity has been on a roll since its debut last year. The original brought various Disney franchises to life in the video game realm, including The Incredibles, Pirates of the Caribbean, Cars and Toy Story, among others. This year’s follow-up, Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes, expands the series even further, introducing the Avengers and Spider-Man into the fold, along with the well-timed debut of Guardians of the Galaxy.
At this point, where does the Disney Infinity series go from here? Obviously Marvel Super Heroes will see further expansion with new characters, like Falcon, Donald Duck and Loki, but we’re talking about the next level, Disney Infinity 3.0.
On that note, here are a few reasons why we feel the Star Wars universe would make a key addition to the Disney Infinity family in 2015.
For starters, 2015 is big for Star Wars
Ever since Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise from George Lucas for a whopping $4 billion, it’s worked hard to get the most from it. The timing of a Star Wars-oriented Disney Infinity package couldn’t be better, and there are a couple of reasons for that.
First, Star Wars is still a big franchise for young and old alike. Sure, there were complaints about the prequels, but the toys continue to sell, and Disney will keep up the momentum with plenty of new products, including the animated series Star Wars: Rebels (which debuts next month) and the in-production Star Wars Episode VII, which debuts Christmas 2015.
Second, the timing behind Disney Infinity 3.0: Star Wars is perfect. The game would come out in the midst of Episode VII’s pre-release hype, and for good measure, it could also provide an alternative for those too young to play EA’s forthcoming Star Wars: Battlefront, which is likely to release late next year as well.
A huge number of Star Wars figures to collect= big sales
With Infinity, Disney doesn’t need to limit itself to a certain era when it comes to the Star Wars franchise. The company could easily release characters from the older films, including Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia and Chewbacca, as well as new characters introduced in Star Wars Episode VII. For good measure, it can also diversify its character packs for the game, ranging from Ewoks fighting on the moon of Endor to Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi fending off against a droid army. The possibilities are endless.
Even secondary characters would get a chance to shine in Disney Infinity 3.0: Star Wars, and yes, that includes Jar Jar Binks. Hate him all you want, but there are some folks who think he’d be a fun character to play around with. Just look at what he did for Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga.
Plus, with Disney Infinity packs and figures selling as well as they are, Star Wars would be an absolute gold mine – and retailers could even set up exclusive characters, like a crystalized Han Solo (in carbonite) or a special Darth Vader-based Anakin figure.
The potential for vehicles would be limitless
We know the previous Disney Infinity games offered a number of vehicles, like cars and motorcycles, but with Star Wars, Avalanche Software could throw in a number of great rides, from Landspeeders to TIE Fighters and AT-ATs.
In addition, this could open up a whole new feature for the game, letting players engage in firefights with one another (in a playful manner, of course – this is Disney Infinity) or even allowing them to build a custom X-Wing or TIE Fighter to share with others. Time for a paint job.
It’d be easy to adapt the Star Wars style to Disney Infinity
If anything, both Disney Infinity and 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes proved that characters can easily adapt to an interactive world. Both games are enjoyable, and each of the characters bring something to the table, no matter how small. For example, Rocket Raccoon has the same oomph in firepower as his fellow Guardian, Star-Lord, and he’s about half his size!
With Star Wars, Luke Skywalker, Chewbacca and the rest of the gang could easily adapt to Avalanche Software’s design, and levels could be made to become both practical (to the Disney Infinity world) and nostalgic (to die-hard fans of the franchise).
On top of that, the potential for the Toy Box is incredible. Imagine players being able to put together their own Death Star, level by level, and then share their designs with others to see what they could improve. For that matter, multiplayer mini-games would be quite interesting, including lightsaber battles between Anakin and Luke Skywalker, or even good old-fashioned laser blaster fights between Han Solo and Greedo – you know, to finally settle who shot first. (Spoiler: it was Han.)
A galaxy hopefully not too far, far away
In the end, the idea of bringing Star Wars to Disney Infinity’s next entry is smart business. The timing of the game’s release behind the much-hyped Star Wars Episode VII would increase its selling power, and fans would pay good money to complete figurine collections.
Disney, make it happen. The Force is strong with this idea.
Published: Sep 26, 2014 04:10 pm