In what may come as a surprise to many fans, Disney Interactive has confirmed the end of line for the DISNEY INFINITY gaming platform.
The two final retail releases will feature three new characters from Alice Through the Looking Glass later this month and the Finding Dory Play Set launching in June.
In an official statement, Disney Infinity SVP & GM John Blackburn confirmed the news:
By now you may have heard the news that we have made the difficult decision to discontinue production of Disney Infinity. From the beginning, Disney Infinity was built for you—our fans—and I wanted to take a moment to thank you not just for your support over the years, but for creating a community that made Disney Infinity more than just a game.
Our goal for Disney Infinity was to bring the best of Disney storytelling to life in homes around the world, and with your support we accomplished that. We hope you had as much fun playing the game as we had making it.
So what’s next for Disney Infinity? We have two final retail releases coming, including three new characters from Alice Through the Looking Glasslater this month, and the Finding Dory Play Set launching in June.
And as we turn to the next chapter in our story, I want to thank everyone who helped bring Disney Infinity to life, particularly Disney’s Glendale-based production and publishing teams, our external development partners, and of course the incredible Avalanche team for their tireless dedication to this project.
But most of all, I want to again thank you for making Disney Infinity a part of your lives—and for adding to the Disney legacy by being a part of this community.
I think to discontinue a product like this after just having newly released content and a youtube media event, is bad business. You build hype and encourage new investment into a game that is now worthless. They should at least keep a minimal team to maintain the game servers and updates for its loyal players.
The game will remain playable in most instances and community play for as long as the servers are up, which should continue at least through the end of the year. That includes downloadable toyboxes. One item that will cease to function when the servers are finally closed will be the ability to add text to toybox play, because the software that allows for text goes through Disney software that prevents hidden violent or obscene messages to be incorporated for others to encounter. Other than that, all games will allow independent play. The other problem that will occur is that as we get closer to the end date, the new items (Alice and Dory) may be difficult to find at retailers who will not want to dedicate space to a dying game. Look to online retailers if you have trouble.
Personally, I think the whole abandonment is because Disney wants a more steady income flow, and not all playsets met the profitable sets like Star Wars Force Awakens. So instead, I expect they will soon license Toys to Life characters to the likes of Lego Dimensions. Lego already has Star Wars and Marvel products, so it isn’t that much of a stretch.