Disney Illusion Island Review: A Fun And Lighthearted Adventure

Disney Illusion Island is a fun and light-hearted platformer that embraces a sense of exploration -- even if it's never really all that challenging.

Disney Animation has a deep history of platform gaming, with classic titles like Aladdin, The Lion King, and DuckTales filling plenty of sweet (and occasionally frustrating) memories. It's a creative DNA that can be clearly found in Dlala Studios and Disney/Pixar Games' collaboration, Disney Illusion Island, which brings some of the studio's most iconic characters to the forefront of an expansive platforming experience. The game embraces that legacy of colorful platforming very well, all while trying to adjust things away from those games' infamous difficulty. The result is an easy-to-pick-up multiplayer experience with a graphic style that fits into the Disney gaming legacy. While it may present little true challenge to experienced gamers, it's a delightful introduction to the genre for younger players -- and the game's charming presentation, tight controls, and enjoyable sense of exploration make it entertaining for the more seasoned audience.

Disney Illusion Island sees classic Disney characters Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy all lured to the realm of Monoth with the promise of a picnic. In reality, though, they've been summoned by Toku, the leader of a tribe tasked with protecting Monoth's Tomes of Knowledge. But after they're stolen by a mysterious group, the locals require the assistance of the heroes -- who must embark across the land if they want any hope of saving the day. One to four players can embark throughout the game's various Biomes at a time, each of which comes with distinct challenges, colorful sense of style, and fun upgrades that allow for expanded potential.

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Disney Illusion Island is a colorful adventure that leans heavily into the light tenor and tone that's long been a key component of Disney Animation productions. The game's world is a vivid and colorful one, with a very cartoonish aesthetic that largely benefits the experience. There's a light sense of self-aware humor -- particularly with (the surprisingly adaptable) Donald Duck's palpable frustrations with having to be a hero -- that helps ground some of the experience with a silly sense of distinct character. The graphics are cute, and the character models are familiar to old fans but distinct enough to stand out. Presentation-wise, Illusion Island is very sweet and only becomes more ambitious as the game progresses.

The platforming game leans into a Metroidvania-style of exploration and adventure, with a truly massive world that hides plenty of secret paths and steadily opens up as players gain new abilities and master different skills. It all fits well into the game's overall look and vibe, keeping a sweet sense of style even as the stakes quietly ratchet up. For any game like this to work, that sense of adventure needs to feel natural and effortlessly fun, and that's something Illusion Island accomplishes with gusto. The actual act of making one's way through Monoth has a natural sense of movement and rhyme that's quick to pick up and works intuitively. It's just fun to play, a key piece of the puzzle that works whether you're playing alone or with friends -- although the game works better with at least one partner on hand to lend temporary health or last-second assistance.

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Illusion Island's focus on exploration distinctly forgoes combat, with gameplay instead focusing on jumping and moving mechanics. Even boss fights are more focused on dodging attacks and hitting specific targets rather than bringing down a major foe, which fits into the Disney game's sweet-natured appeal. The controls are tight enough to give the player confidence in their actions, and suffering damage feels like a consequence, not random. Coupled with the game's various liberally placed checkpoints, Illusion Island invites gamers to take risks and explore the setting at hand.

The sense of exploration flows naturally with the game's other big tweak on the platforming genre, as the game gives players complete control over the inherent difficulty. Each player can alternate how much health they have on hand for their adventures -- some can choose to be functionally immortal, inviting a larger sense of trial and error. Others can -- at the same time -- be operating with a single hit-point, lending each leap a sense of danger. An express intention behind the game's design was to create something that experienced gamers and fresh-faced rookies could enjoy together, and it largely succeeds. Disney Illusion Island is never necessarily the most challenging experience, but instead is far more rooted in giving players a world to explore and the tools to do so. New upgrades to expand the player's took-kit flow into gameplay naturally, and every new discovery further opens up the world.

Overall, the result is a largely successful endeavor. Illusion Island is an easy game to dive into, with a light sense of style that makes for an overall entertaining experience. Disney Illusion Island's tight controls mean players will quickly find a flow that allows for natural exploration. It benefits the game's overall design, which in turn is bolstered by its visuals and audio design. It's a game that wants players to explore its cartoonish settings and makes it effortlessly fun to do so. A successful take on the genre that leans young but is well-constructed enough to appeal to more experienced players, Disney Illusion Island is a blast.

Brandon Zachary is a Senior Writer with Comic Book Resources and has written for CBR since 2018. He covers breakouts on comics, film, television, video games, and anime. He also conducts industry interviews, is a Rotten Tomatoes certified film critic, and knows a LOT about the X-Men. For requests, comments, or to hear one of his many pitches for What If...?, you can reach him at [email protected]