Day 1864 - Disney Infinity 2.0

What games do you like to play as a family?

Image source

There comes a point when the age gap between your kids means they no longer have the same interests.  I guess the whole boy/girl thing also comes into play.  With a fifteen year old daughter and a ten year old son there's not a lot they want to do together anymore.  In the old days a game of cards or a good old fashioned board game might have done the trick. While board games are fun, they just don't seem to be a natural game of choice anymore.

Of course we have family fun days (eg a trip to the pool or a paintball session) but the natural act of wanting to "play" together is fading.

Enter the XBox.

The XBox seems to unite youth and adolescents binding them with a language (and a skill base) that many Deep Fried parents of the world don't quite understand.  Or perhaps just don't have the hand coordination for.

I enjoy watching them hang out together even if it is sitting on their bums in front of the TV battling it out in zombie war zone.

But while the kids have found something that unites them, it doesn't necessarily translate to a whole of family activity.  I get that kids want to shoot aliens and fight rogue machine men but it's not necessarily something Mummy wants to participate in.  And if a little person comes to visit then it's definitely not age appropriate either.

That's where I loved the Wii.  It gave us Wii sports, Mario Kart and Guitar Hero that we could do together as a family ... and with controllers that I actually know how to use!  But it seems that in our house the Wii is sooooo 5 years ago ...

So I've been at a loss as to what we can do on the XBox as a family.

Then the Disney peeps approached me with an idea.  An XBox game for the whole family to enjoy.

Enter Disney Infinity 2.0.

A box full of excitement and adventure from Disney Australia - thank you!

Let's face it.  Disney surpasses age.  Whether you're 4 or 64, Disney hits the spot.  There's something for everyone.

Now that Disney has bought Marvel, it means there are even MORE somethings for everyone.

We are a Marvel family.  Whether it be Iron Man, Captain America, Spiderman or Hulk, we're all on the edges of our seats when it comes to super heroes.

Darby testing it out for the first time

Disney Infinity 2.0 has bought out their Marvel pack which means that we all get to put our capes on (well, in our case it's helmets) and get in tune with our inner super hero.

Marvel Super Heroes for Disney Infinity

Disney Infinity allows us to explore, take adventures and create our own worlds with our favourite characters.

My character of choice is the Black Widow.  Together she and I race off to fight evil with our trusty sidekick Iron Man who is usually right around the corner.  Hulk is also not too far away, nor is Spidey or Captain America.

I love that you have to physically have your character with you in order to play, They are little figurines that you connect to the XBox (or Wii).  So it's not just a virtual world but you've got in-real-life characters to play with on the outside too!

I'm still a gumby at the XBox controller (I should have chose the Wii version) but I am managing to work my way around the joint.

Yes, that's me being an XBox gumby

Just like Disney generally, Disney Infinity is a game that surpasses age.  It's something that really can bring us together.

I have to be honest.  We didn't find it easy to work out how to play it.  Whereas a shoot-em-up game-of-war against aliens may just be as simple as firing a gun and hoping its' the baddies you are shooting, the Disney Infinity stuff isn't quite so straight forward.  It really is less about "killing" and more exploring.  Yeah, you get rid of the evil along the way ... but you build, explore, create and take adventures more than anything.

Would I recommend it?  

Absolutely.  It's a really nice alternative to the other "video games" on offer. It's fun.  It's entertaining.  It's manageable.  It's appropriate for all ages. It's got your favourite characters.  You can continually update it (just by buying more characters) to unlock other worlds.  There is endless adventures to be had.

Games like this not only bring families together but they also help us become less Deep Fried. It works the brain and it works the hand/eye/brain connection.

It's good for all ages, but I would especially recommend it for 5-12 year olds. While my teen does play it when it's family time, she wouldn't necessarily choose to play it like she might with other age surpassing games like Mario Kart and Minecraft.  

It's important to note that it is only for two players at a time. So while I was hoping it would bring the WHOLE family together we are only able to play it in pairs.  That's OK. Tahlia and Darby like playing it together ...  and I'll step up and grab the controller from time to time.


Where to buy it 

Disney Infinity 2.0 is available for consoles PS3, PS4, XBox One, XBox 360, Wii, and in digital format for Windows, PC and Ipad.

You can buy it anywhere gaming is sold and at any time you can buy more characters to add to your family.  We have Marvel (the Avengers set) but you can also get it with good old fashioned Disney characters like Toy Story and Tinkerbell.  There are heaps.

Check it out

Head on over to the official Disney Infinity website for more information.

If you had Disney Infinity then it's important to note that there are many many improvements on the game in the Disney Infinity 2.0 version.

I suggest you Google it to find more in depth gaming reviews by people who actually know a little something about gaming (ie people who aren't gumbies like me).

What games do you like to play as a family?