Features:
- 3D Mode
- Local Play
- StreetPass
- SpotPass
When my mom brought home Disney Magical World, I looked at her funny. Disney? Really Mom? Disney games usually don’t interest me. Not because I don’t like Disney movies, I really do like them, it’s just the Disney games I’ve played in the past were a little, well, they seemed a bit too babyish for me. I like games like Pokemon, Zelda, and Animal Crossing, games that have a bit of a challenge, and a good story, and I guess I assumed that this game wouldn’t have that. But after looking at the game box, and noticing some of the features of the game, I gave it chance; and I’m glad I did! I realized I was completely wrong about the game being too childish for me.
Disney Magical World is a game filled with adventure, questing, and beautiful graphics. When I first started playing I immediately noticed that it looked great when playing it in 3D. I remember there were some fireworks at the beginning of the game and I thought to myself “Wow!”. It looked really cool when I had the 3D slider on. And that says something; I don’t usually like playing in 3D because it bothers my eyes sometimes, but in this game I liked to keep it on because it looked so pretty!
When you first start the game you can create a character or use your 3DS’s Mii character. There isn’t too much customization when it comes to the facial features, but later on you can buy clothing from Daisy and change your hair by buying wigs. Once your character is created, you find yourself in a place called Castleton where all the residents of the town are super happy to meet you! You’ll also meet many famous Disney characters. Here you’ll find out that your main goal in the game is to collect stickers. The more stickers you earn, the more skills you have, and the more areas that are available to explore. To get these stickers you have goals and favours (quests) to complete given to you by the Castleton residents, like beating an enemy, catching a certain amount of fish, or wearing a certain amount of “Ace” ensembles (complete outfits).
This part of the game really reminded me of Animal Crossing, because the residents are always bothering you to do stuff, but they are all overly kind. You’ll eventually get to own a cafe. Your cafe turns out to be like your house and you can decorate with furniture you buy Scrooge McDuck or that which you make with the help of Chip and Dale. Apparently there are over 1,000 different items that you can make! The more stickers you have, the more things that are available to make. In your cafe you can have parties once you have the party meter full enough. The party meter is filled as you make food in the café. By completing special cafe goals during these parties a special Disney character might just stop by to visit if you meet the right requirements.
I found myself in many familiar places that I know from Disney movies and shows. In each land there are little mini episodes to complete. You can collect items and do things like help the Mad Hatter with his tea party, help Aladdin stop thieves in a desert temple, or help the Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh plant his garden. There really isn’t a story to complete, no main quest, and I while I personally like a game that you can complete chapters in sequence I thought this open world was fun too. In Disney Magical World you can pretty much do whatever you want in pretty much whatever order you want. Some of the episodes reminded me of dungeons in Zelda and they were kinda tough sometimes, but then there were really easy episodes, like Winnie The Pooh where all you had to do is plant seeds.
I was pretty happy with the number of different characters that appeared in Disney Magical World. Many of my favourites like Alice from Alice in Wonderland, Stitch from Lilo and Stitch, and Pluto can be found in game. There wasn’t a lot of voice acting in the game, but some of the characters did talk just a little and it sounded pretty good when they did. And all the characters and worlds looked very pretty and colourful too! Another neat feature was that you can take pictures of your Mii with Disney characters.
I should note that in order to play Disney Magical World you’ll need to know how to read and understand what you are reading. So those little gamers out there who that are just starting to learn to read may need to play it with someone who knows how. Although if they really wanted to they could just walk around Castleton and enjoy all the characters, but I think it is important to point out that reading is indeed required.
Overall this game is pretty cool. It is a way to escape from reality into a world of magical fun. Some sections might be a little to easy but that is just my level gaming. Someone who does not have a whole lot of knowledge on games might find this to be a perfect game to start. Disney Magical World is a bit of a challenge for really young children but it will still be fun for them. The game isn’t limited to just goals and stickers, that is why it is quite unique. It is a perfect game for someone who likes to just do their own thing. Although I do recommend it for children on the younger side, as that seems to be it’s audience, it can still be fun for some of the older kids too as long as they have an open mind, and of course love Disney. I definitely recommend it.
Kid Score: AWESOME
About the Kid Author:
Growing up in a gaming household with her mom, and COG writer, Jen Dingle, Hannah has been playing video games since before she knew how to talk. One of the biggest Legend of Zelda fans out there, she aspires to be a Pokemon Master, and can be found glued to her Nintendo 3DS at all times. She loves internet memes, Harry Potter and trolling her mom, and can be found tweeting about her favourite games and space cats on her twitter account, @NyanHannah