Disney Illusion Island is a Metroidvania with a twist: it has no combat. That's not exactly news, as developer Dlala Studios has said as much before. But playing through several areas during Summer Game Fest 2023 made it clear that while that combination is perhaps unusual, it's maybe one that more video games should consider.
As the name partially implies, Disney Illusion Island features the classic characters Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy on a multiplayer adventure to secure several magical books on the mysterious island of Monoth. Functionally, up to four players navigate a seamless world with various abilities to find in order to unlock further exploration. While my time with the game was brief, Dlala Studios CEO and creative director AJ Grand-Scrutton helped guide me through the island of illusions with aplomb with his Minnie and my Goofy.
Mickeyvania
To reiterate, given how integral it is to the game, there is absolutely no combat at all in Disney Illusion Island. There are plenty of enemies and hazards, however, which means jumping around and generally navigating any given environment – which are all colorful, animation-inspired biomes – while avoiding anything that might hurt your cartoon friend.
This obviously makes the game that much more of a family-friendly affair, but according to Grand-Scrutton, that's not the only reason that Disney Illusion Island lacks combat. When concepting the earliest parts of the game's design, "Combat" remained a significant note on the wall until the developers finally decided that, actually, maybe it wasn't necessary.
It was ultimately decided that combat, as a concept, didn't actually add anything to the spirit of the game. But that's not at the behest of Disney and the Mickey Mouse brand in general, it would seem. According to Grand-Scrutton, Disney was pretty positive through the whole process.
While one might think that Disney might be precious about its brand, Grand-Scrutton suggested that the company – or at least the people Dlala Studios dealt with – were supportive of what the developer wanted to do with Disney Illusion Island. The designer seemed to think that this stemmed in large part from the fact that many people at the developer (himself included) were really already into Mickey and friends in such a way that any design decisions that the team made felt authentic to the characters from the jump.
And the game certainly does feel authentic. The animations, illustrations and art direction in general feel strongly reminiscent of the recent Mickey animated shorts, though that's largely unintentional and thanks to both teams having the same inspiration in classic Mickey cartoons. Different skills seem to be unlocked through some method, though how exactly wasn't covered during my demo, and there are lots of different things to find in terms of hidden collectibles and keys to unlock paths forward.
Notably, there's no death in Disney Illusion Island either, but characters get "stamped out" and essentially fold into envelopes that get returned to mailboxes that serve as checkpoints. Additionally, if characters are separated too far apart, they also become envelopes that get mailed to the other. And there are multiple, multiplayer-friendly skills such as dropping a rope that your mate can climb or hugging each other to add another bit of health that make it that much more approachable.
Even after playing Disney Illusion Island, it's still a bit strange to think that Dlala Studios, the folks that did the latest Battletoads, have been working on a Disney Metroidvania with no combat. What isn't strange, however, is that it seems to be a compelling, complex platformer with plenty to offer to both young and old alike.
Disney Illusion Island is set to release for the Nintendo Switch on July 28, 2023. It is developed by Dlala Studios and published by Walt Disney Games. For more upcoming titles, you can check out our list of all of the new games for 2023 and beyond.
