Help! I'm losing interest!

True story:
When I was a kid, and the very first game consoles were just coming out, I asked my parents if we could get one for Christmas. My mom said that video games were a complete waste of time, and that we would never get one. By no means were we lacking in toys. We had everything from action figures and boardgames to Legos, Erector sets, and Tinker Toys. But my mom thought it was important for kids to use their imagination, and the ability to build things was part of that. She said that if I wanted to play a computer game I needed to make my own. So I did. My dad was a teacher and had received one of the first personal computers one summer so that he could start a computer class. This was before Windows, before the mouse, and before the hard drive existed. We had a magazine with a short text adventure game in it, written in Basic. I started with that and kept experimenting on different variants to make different kinds of games and tell different kinds of stories. I taught myself arrays, string parsing, finite state machines, etc. I was in middle school, and by the time I was in high school, I was able to help my dad teach a few of his community college courses in Basic programming. In college, I did not initially major in Computers. I had no idea how anyone would make a living doing that. I just took the Computer Science classes for fun. Eventually I switched, got a job at a big company, and over the past 20+ years, overall, have had a great time using my imagination, building things, and solving problems.

When my daughter was old enough to enjoy video games, my wife and I bought her a GameCube for Christmas, and some years after that a Wii. Video games looked a little different by then (but my mom still does not like them). The Nintendo characters are great. They're a creative collection, they're family-friendly, and they lend themselves to great video games from their stories and their fun game mechanics. Our family loves Disney, has been to Disney World many times, but until now we've had very little interest in Disney's video games. They just didn't seem to have their own spark. And our daughter rarely plays console games anymore. She's very good at them (much better than me), but now if she does any gaming it's mainly on her iPhone. She's taken a year of Java programming already, and once I showed her the Creativi-Toys, she immediately saw the connection. She enjoys Infinity. Admittedly, I got Disney Infinity largely for myself. I see it as a tremendous way to invite kids to use their imagination, to innovate. I want to volunteer at summer tech camps to teach game design with it. I want to see high schools, middle schools, maybe even elementary schools, form game design clubs around it. It's not going to teach you to be a Java programmer, but it can teach some fundamental programming concepts, and make it fun. I hope by now that the Disney Interactive team realizes that the combination of their IP, their artistry, these 3D building blocks, and these "Creativi-Toys" full of computing concepts, this gaming platform really has no age boundaries.

Hopefully the tone of this message translates well in print... but when you describe completing a bunch of these Play Sets, yet claim to have no time for the Toy Box, that makes no sense to me. When you claim to enjoy the Play Sets but wonder if this gaming platform is worth the cost, that makes no sense to me either. It's like paying $100 to go into a Disney theme park, trying out a bunch of interactive queues, skipping the main attractions, and claiming to be dissatisfied. The Play Sets are the pre-shows. The Toy Box is the show. Wherever your child is in their cognitive development, the Toy Box has such a variety of virtual toys for building things. It can be whatever you want it to be. It can be 3D art/sculpture. It can be your own virtual city. It can be your own custom-designed car race, horse race, obstacle course, hedge maze, or whatever else you can dream up to try.

Chatting with my mom over the phone the other day, I described Disney Infinity to her. In a 5 minute description, she likes this gaming platform. She hasn't seen a single trailer or as much as a single snapshot photo. But she understands that it enables kids to use their imagination, and to build things. Now I'm not claiming that Disney Infinity is perfect. Some of its Creativi-Toy interfaces are a little quirky, and its social media support is a little lacking so far. I can't definitively claim that it builds better than Minecraft or designs game levels better than LittleBigPlanet. But it brings those elements together with that Disney magic that no other company can, and I fully believe that this is just the starting point. It's going to get even better. Disney Interactive is effectively "all in". I do not work for Disney, and I'll add the usual disclaimer that this is just my personal opinion and not necessarily the opinion of my employer. But I think Disney Infinity is very cool (and so does my teenager, my wife, and even my mom). Hopefully that gives you a few reasons to continue going forward.

@Sleepy0429 If you're willing to reimburse me with the $150 I paid and cover shipping, I don't see why not.

@tangled&tron I didn't consider coming back when Infinity 2 comes out, if that interests me more, but that's a really good idea- I don't know how I missed it. Thanks for the suggestion. I think I might follow that.
What bothers me is the game has very serious potential and this is a franchise I want to follow, but I've played the game a lot, and well... Like you said, you're still quite limited. I do enjoy the play sets but there are much games from their genres that I'd much rather play, and the play sets also weren't that long. At the same time, I feel like the game is dragging on a bit, and levelling felt like a grind. I know this is the first game and the sequels will improve but I feel that Avalanche got so much right, while missing so much at the same time. I'm still disappointed with the lack of water, swimming, and much more I haven't found yet, and if the rumors end up true, the fact there are only 6 play sets. It just doesn't feel like I would be playing this into the next year. It's even MORE worse, if the last release is Mickey- in JANUARY! There won't be anything new that really interests me until next Aug(even with downloadable toy boxes).
I think I would like the game more if the figure intergration was more important, but right now- I hate this analogy, but it's ringing true- I feel like the toys are just functioning as keys because nothing in the game is "advancing" what's on them, they have levels, but not really any other customisation. The power discs hammered this feeling in a bit more.

@packetloss Glad I can help, hopefully you can decide eventually instead of toiling over it. XD

This is a very interesting thread, particularly coming from someone with as many posts here as you.

I have to say that I've felt a lot of what you have expressed, with one special twist, which I'll elaborate on in a second. But first let me say that I also am so far out of everyone else's age group here that I've tried not to say anything for fear I might just be WAY in the minority (and I may still be). I'm also a bit different than you in that I truly am a Disneyholic -- we basically moved 2000 miles across the country after I retired to be close to Disney, if that tells you anything <g>.

So for me the figures, the ability to BE so many of my favorites is certainly a huge plus (although I have to admit that this is mostly a Pixar-centric game at the moment. Getting Mickey would be a huge step in the right direction so come January I will certainly do that, no matter where else I am at with this game. I think DI made a huge mistake in not releasing at least one canon character right away, to keep folks like myself at least interested).

But for me the biggest draw to DI (in fact, really the only draw) was the Toy Box. I was intrigued and interested in being able to create my own gaming world, because I *am* an animator (we have our own series that came *this* close to being on the Fox network) and I actually only spend what little free time I have in video games to keep up with animation trends and such. So sitting down with my iPad and creating my own stuff to play later while watching television or waiting at the doctor's office (kids, you'll be doing a lot of the latter at my age) was very enticing.

But there are SO many problems with the Toy Box mode it isn't even funny. It's half-baked and at times I think it would have been far better to leave out the c-toys which basically just point out how incomplete it really is, rather than allow you to actually make any useful game. The biggest example of all of this is the Toy Boxes that Disney themselves (or Avalanche) provide to download -- they are boring and repetitive at best, illustrating only the very few things you can do.

All of this came to a sharp head for me just a day or two ago, when someone here mentioned Project Spark and I took the time to research it. Holy wibble! It was everything I wanted from the Toy Box and about a thousand times more! And all free. The only downside is it's still in alpha, but the free beta comes out next month and I am so all in on this I can't see straight (I may spend $1K to get a Surface Pro 2 just to have this on a portable iPad like platform -- we'll wait and see just how it all shakes out, but I can see myself that committed to this, which will make the money I've spent on DI a drop in the bucket). The one and only downside I see to it is no Disney characters -- but that's a small price to pay for an unlimited custom gaming environment.

So where I am at is this -- I will dabble with DI as a stopgap measure for a month or two until I can get full onboard with PS. After that... well, I have the Toy Story, Woody and Jack already pre-ordered and have no compelling reason to cancel ("in for a penny, in for a pound"). Mickey in January may well be the last thing I ever buy for this game. I will wait for DI2 to see if things get better, but they'd have to get SO much better I don't think it will do it for me (and by that time I may be so entrenched in PS I won't even notice it). The biggest difference between the two of us is I don't feel an overwhelming need to sell what I currently have, because I DO love Disney, and the figures are nice looking in and of themselves (and when the grandkids come visit they will get a kick out of playing -- ultimately that's really who DI is intended for, and I suspect the audience of 20 somethings and older that are currently DI fanatics will all end up feeling like yourself and slowly drift away).

I'm starting to feel the same way, and I posted about it here. I know Infinity wasn't going to be a perfect game, but it's just a great one, not fantastic, and I feel like the effort I'm putting into it hasn't been rewarded enough.

I just feel like whenever I have an idea I'd like to make in Infinity, it can't handle it, or just won't do it right. One of the things I was most looking forward to was having Disney/Pixar characters walking around the toy box with me, but unfortunately that isn't an option. They didn't need to do anything specific, just mindlessly wander around as NPCs. When that was confirmed as not being in, it really upset me. I know you need to cut corners and compromise and use the tools you're given the best you can, but Infinity has so many limitations, and it's just ruining the immersion for me. There's a point where there are so many things you don't like that justifying your time spent on it becomes an issue itself.

This is meant to be a virtual toy box, but I feel like I would just have more fun bringing out my old Pokémon figure collection again. That's really infinite. I know that Infinity, well, is more "functional" because you can literally lay all the backgrounds and tiles out, but I find it's more challenging to come up with scenarios that my Pokémon would battle and explore in and locations for them to go. And I could put them in the stupidest situation, that made utterly no sense, since I'm allowed to because there are absolutely, literally no rules. It feels like you're going on a quest, and it's just so gratifying, when you can stretch your imagination and think of things you've never imagined before. Heck, I do this with every game I play, whenever there isn't really an explanation, I really enjoy fleshing things out and making headcanons, imagining the discussions that characters are having that we don't see. I like to imagine the lore behind that ancient-looking writing, I like developing the species of that enemy, I like sewing up the little threads people leave hanging. I do this with a lot of stuff- there are many ways you can expand your imagination.

Honestly, with Infinity, I just feel frustrated when I run into so many limitations. I know that everyone at Avalanche worked really hard on the game- and I really admire all the work that went into this game, because it's pretty darn great and it clearly has a ton in it- and my original expectations may have been too high, and nothing can be as strong as pure imagination, but there are many standard sandbox features that aren't here, or many things that "just feel wrong", with my other issues with the game. Doubly bad since the toy intergration just doesn't feel very magical. I feel like I'd just rather watch the films play sets are based on. I haven't played the game in a 15min+ session for about two weeks now, but I'm still not itching to come back to it(which is what happens with most games if I haven't played them in a while).

@Kelleytoons You really hit the nail on the head on how I feel about this game. My thoughts haven't been too clear since I've been getting worse sleep lately, but you pretty much perfectly summed up what I thought about the game.
I know Toy Box is the selling feature, but like you said, it has so many problems. And it's just worse, since the limitations in what you can get for it (bluntly) are defined by how many figures you have. Ironically, I'm actually enjoying play sets more than the Toy Box, because those at least felt more coherent. Toy Box just feels... Disjointed. It's missing way too much. Avalanche would need to fulfil an unrealistic amount of stuff into the next game for it to be a must-buy to me.

I tend to be happy to find a game that is "only" great..!

I'm hopeless at the Toybox aspect - it's one of the main things holding me back from asking someone to help with the Dragon Gate, because I'm a little embarrassed that I can't build worlds and racetracks and use relays and whatnot.. - but it's still thoroughly enjoyable, absorbing and time-consuming. Not time-consuming in a negative way, but time-consuming in an immersive, enjoyable, 'where did the time go?' way.

I'm a little disappointed that the only full-size not-me characters are enemies, and that the main 'friendly' ones are tiny, but... what would I do, aside from be amused that they were wandering past? I can be amused and interested when mini-Snow White and mini-Animal and mini-Winnie wander past. Tia Dalma is fullsize, but since I can't talk to her OR pick her up (...physically...), I see no probable benefit to fullsize characters generally.

Unless a future update completely overhauls everything and gives all characters minor phrases and conversation-trees. Which would be VERY complicated, and for a blank world that's meant to be built in, not terribly necessary. I would like to load up 'my' characters and have them be placeable or wander free, but... it's no kind of deal-breaker for me, because the benefits seem slim.


Certainly I've found limits to what I can do, in addition to what I am allowed to do, but what I CAN do outweighs both. I can't build complex and great-looking worlds because a) I'm not that good, or b) I've not had enough practice (nor, really, is it likely that I'll ever have the time..!) but I can build crazy worlds and impossible scenarios with no problem at all. Surrealist or dreamlike or just odd - functional or interesting, etc., etc.

And I'm talking about little things: I wanted to be able to drive a car into Scrooge's Moneybin, so I built a ramp; I couldn't climb to the highest point of the castle, so I put in some moving platforms. Again - I'm not technically competent enough to do much more than that, but I can enjoy and explore Disney's worlds, place and stack random elements in my own and generally have an enjoyable time despite my/it's limitations. It's FUN! It's a little frustrating to imagine things I want to build and not be able to, but I've yet to think of something I couldn't do if only I had the time/skill...

The name and the hype certainly implied this would be more than it is, but only to those who really presumed that "limitless" would be strictly accurate.

Think about it metaphorically: infinite is by definition "outside the box"; building within a specific space - and one called 'ToyBox' no less - is by definition "within a box"...

...but it's a HUGE box. It's a complex box. It's a functional, fun, almost-limitless box. It's a box that will remain open, and can be added to later.

And all that is before considering the specific games and sets - which the original post singles out for praise!

Early adopters are (almost) always going to get the short end of the stick: they/we are jumping into something that is still evolving, that - however much R&D and testing takes place - has glitches and misses that can only be seen or thought about when hundreds or thousands of people begin to play and critique.

The real test is always in what the company does with the feedback it receives or notices. If nothing improves or changes, then it will be disappointing (to those who find it lacking, and I am not one). But to expect a perfect experience a month after release is both baffling, insulting and quite frankly indicative of a peculiarly modern sense of entitlement. (And that's not necessarily meant as a personal slight or insult, merely an attempt at a general observation.)

Anyone who has complaints or suggestions or hopes should send them to Disney. What's the worst they could say - "No"?


I have two closing thoughts:

1. I am really, really confused - and quite sad - that several people seem to be saying they are losing interest after A MONTH. After really very little has come out. View DI as a console, and imagine how odd it would sound to give up on a whole system after no time at all, and not even thinking about waiting to see what else will be out for it. But, although I view it as a comment on the people (sorry), it may well be that it's a comment on the game/system itself and therefore very valid. However...

2. I think the common trend is that the people who are tiring already are the people who expect more or want more, or are highly compentent at building things. I don't think it's really aimed at the advanced game-maker. It's a TOY box, not a design system. And it's a DISNEY game, not a disney GAME.*




*Which, I agree, makes it odd and a little sad that it's Pixar properties (as well as far more peripheral properties) that are leading the charge rather than "core" Disney characters and properties.

^ Though, about the great thing, that's not the issue. Thing is, I spent a lot of hours on Infinity. I put in a lot of effort to building some toy box worlds and some small projects, and overall I think the sum of it was "great". But it also has a lot of bad points that just frustrated me, that I couldn't ignore- and for a game I paid hundreds for, and spent many hours on, that I feel doesn't do a lot I can't get from other games, I can't enjoy as much as I feel I should at that point. There are many games I have that I could have played in that time and probably would enjoy more(why play then? I'm a completionist, sue me ). Different strokes for different folks, a restriction that might just bug you a bit could annoy the hazelnuts out of me.

Okay, let me give you an example. The lack of water really, really really frustrates me. I want to be able to dive underwater into a sub volcanic lair, dangit. I know I can use the Finding Nemo sky, but that isn't a substitute for free diving off a waterfall landing into a pool, swimming around frantically to find a hidden key to unlock the chest in the dragon statue's stomach on the top of the floating castle. Minecraft (okay, I know I keep bringing this game up, but it's the only sandbox I've played enough of) does have water, you can do this, and for good measure, make sure you have floating lava waterfall island parkour on the way and have to climb through the castle, killing hordes of walking explosive green sticks, and that there's an army of archer skeletons in the statue, as well. I know (unmodded) Minecraft can't replicate everything Infinity can, like laser-based soccer or having Disney characters, and does have restrictions such as gravity on certain items and plain ol' computer specifications, but personally, I find Minecraft's ups more enjoyable than Infinity's and its downs more acceptable. You might not, you might dislike how Minecraft is so crazily open and requires more hand-by-hand building and enjoy just being able to set up a quick set of floating islands with castles on them, but that's cool.

Basically, I feel like the effort is heavily, heavily, heavily outweighing my own enjoyment of the game, and that the toy figure feels really tacked on, and the toys themselves take up space and cost money. I just feel like there are things which could better give me the feel I want from Infinity, without as much frustration. It's supposed to be like a virtual toy box, but I think real toys bring me a far, far, far more fun experience, wether I make a little project or a massive set. Right now the second thing (after the community) keeping me interested at all are the figures(because they look fantastic), but I'm only anticipating Ralph and Vanellope any more. Disney Infinity figures aren't the only ones in the world, if I wanted more toys, either. I'd go grab some articulated action figures or merchandise from franchises I prefer over them, because I just enjoy those more for various reasons, no matter how good Infinity toys look. Plus, I'm already collecting Skylanders too, which means I'm not really starved for "toys to life" content. I just feel like the game isn't able to offer me, personally, enough to convince me to keep it with everything else I have.

In my fairly sized games library, is Disney Infinity, which is taking a lot of effort and space, serving a special and unique service? It's not just about the faults with the game, but what you'll need to go through to get what you want. Is it worth it?
I think a review I read about Infinity sums up my thoughts best: even after spending a lot of time playing with it, I love what Disney Infinity could be with some more additions and tweaks rather than what it is, and for a game I spent so much time on, that just makes it feel like it isn't worth adding to my collection.

[Sandman77]

Im thinking DI is fun with kids, to introduce them to gaming in a known cartoon world. Toybox is just a way to expand the fantasy and its very much aimed at kids. Playsets are fun and im sure DI2 will learn from the past.

In short a fun game with tons more to come but not aimed at hardcore gamers...