What parents need to know
In Disney Illusion Island, one to four players take on the role of the famous mouse Mickey Mouse and his friends Minnie, Goofy and Donald as they are invited to the mysterious island of Monoth. Once there, Chief Toku reveals that he needs their help to gather magical books and save the kingdom. Wishing to be heroes, Mickey and his friends embark on the adventure without hesitation (well, Donald growls a little, anyway).
Disney Illusion Island is a platform game without any combat; You can’t face enemies (except bosses), you just have to avoid them. The game is also structured like a metroidvania, i.e. a game in which you navigate through a huge map that opens up as you unlock new powers to access previously inaccessible areas.
There are small puzzles to solve as we progress, which will require us to find the right way to use our abilities to keep moving forward. These puzzles, however, are usually very simple.
The game can be played alone or in co-op, while each player embodies a different character. The choice of character is purely aesthetic, since they all control each other in the same way.
Details
Level of experience required
Age | 3+ | 7+ | 12+ | 16+ | 18+ |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Beginners | |||||
Intermediate | |||||
Experienced |
Evaluation
Disney Illusion Island is aimed at a large audience, and the most violent you’ll see is a whimsical monster receiving an object that falls on his head in a comical way.
None.
Some clues and instructions are presented in writing, but everything is quite clear even for an audience that does not yet know how to read.
Without wanting to reveal too much about the story, our protagonists make some mistakes along the way, but they learn from it and learn positive lessons.
It’s very easy at its core, and there’s a way to make the game even easier by activating invincibility.
No additional cost. The game also retails at a lower base price than most games of the same ilk.
Local game modes
There is only one mode in Disney Illusion Island, which invites you to complete the story of Mickey and Co. on the island of Monoth.
Online Game Modes
No online mode.
Expansions/Add-ons (DLC)
None at this time.
Our opinion
Let us say it at the outset; Disney Illusion Island is a game aimed at a young audience. From the start, we are asked to choose how many hearts we will begin our adventure with, and it is even possible to outright choose to be invincible.
Your appreciation of the game will therefore depend greatly on your age. Seeing the name Disney Illusion Island, some nostalgic gamers have hoped for a spiritual sequel to the Mickey Mouse Illusion series, which appeared on SNES and Sega Genesis in the 90s. They will be disappointed; we find neither the same mechanics nor the same level of difficulty in Disney Illusion Island.
The game is very easy, even deciding to start with few hearts, since the save points are generously distributed. And enemies, even if they cannot be eliminated, rarely represent a real danger.
It should also be noted that the game mechanics are little renewed, despite the fact that we unlock new powers over the course of our adventure. We quickly have an impression of repetition, especially because there is no fight, and very quickly the jumping sequences from platform to platform take an aftertaste of déjà vu.
That being said, the visual presentation is very pretty, with a distinctive cartoon style, and the controls are precise enough to satisfy players who are not necessarily looking for a challenge.
It’s a game we’d recommend to young children, or those who want to play with inexperienced adults for an hour or two without taking their head off.
But platform game enthusiasts had better look elsewhere.