'Star Wars,' 'Inside Out' add to expanding 'Disney Infinity' universe

The family-friendly world of Disney Infinity is a haven for everyone, even those new to a galaxy far, far away.

Disney Interactive executive producer John Vignocchi found out at Disney’s recent D23 Expo that the growing community for the popular toys-to-life video-game platform included Star Wars: The Force Awakens star John Boyega.

And beginning Sunday with the launch of Disney Infinity 3.0, Boyega and other fans will be able to let Jedi knights, Rebel smugglers who look like Harrison Ford and Sith lords share screen time with classic Disney icons, Marvel Comics superheroes and the colorful Emotions from Pixar’s hit Inside Out.

“Not only do you get to play with the most popular characters in the world, but you also get to bring them together and share those stories with your friends online,” says Vignocchi.

Infinity has some competition in its marketplace, with Skylanders, Nintendo’s Amiibo and the upcoming LEGO Dimensions debuting in September. However with A-list pop-culture properties, the interactivity and creativity of user-built Infinity Toy Box environments, and a lower price point ($64.99 for a starter bundle), Vignocchi feels “we will be the de facto toys to life video game experience this fall.”

The first Infinity incarnation in 2013 focused on the familiar Disney and Pixar personalities including those from Toy Story, The Incredibles and Frozen — plus Mickey Mouse, of course — and last year’s Infinity 2.0 brought Marvel's Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy into the mix.

With The Force Awakens coming to theaters Dec. 18, Star Wars was the natural focal point in 2015, and Infinity 3.0 pulls from all eras of the saga that first hit the big screen in 1977.

The starter set comes with the "Twilight of the Republic" play set (pulling from the time of the prequel trilogy) and playable characters/figures Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano. Next month brings a "Rise Against the Empire" set (out Sept. 29, priced at $34.99) focuses on the time of the original trilogy with Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia — and lots of X-wings, TIE Fighters and AT-ATs around for cinematic effect — while later in the year brings a play set connected to The Force Awakens, with Boyega and co-star Daisy Ridley voicing their characters Finn and Rey in the game.

“Most of the modern-day actors who are coming into Hollywood grew up playing video games, and they know a lot of the ways their new fans will experience them as an actor or actress for the first time is going to be through a piece of interactive entertainment," Vignocchi explains. "As a result, they care a whole heck of a lot about voicing their characters and lending that authenticity to build their fan base."

Single characters (priced at $13.99) such as those from the animated series Star Wars Rebels are playable across the various galactic sets. Among the highlights: Yoda, the pint-sized Jedi master who is in fine lightsaber-wielding form in Disney Infinity, Vignocchi says. “To see how he deals with some of the characters and enemies you’ll find inside of The Force Awakens is a blast.”

The original Infinity game had an unlockable lightsaber with a simple three-hit combo. But that wouldn’t fly in a world filled with Obi-Wan Kenobi, the Skywalkers, plus Darths Maul and Vader. Disney reached out to Ninja Theory, the game studio behind titles such as Devil May Cry, to design their action-packed, lightsaber-filled gameplay.

"So a guy like Yoda has some serious moves," says Jeff Bunker, studio art director at Avalanche/Disney Interactive. “If he’s completely surrounded, he can jump from each one of the characters as an aerial move, and he has Force powers where he’s pulling characters up to and away from you.”

Players can also put galactic mainstays in new situations. Want big, bad and broody Darth Vader riding a cute Tauntaun on the icy landscape of Hoth? That might not work in a movie, Vignocchi says, “but is OK for him inside Infinity.”

The launch of Infinity 3.0 also introduces the snowman Olaf, Sam Flynn and Quorra from Tron: Legacy, Avengers: Age of Ultron characters Hulkbuster and Ultron, and Joy, Anger, Sadness, Fear and Disgust from Inside Out.

Because the open-world combat of Infinity didn’t quite fit with the imaginative adventures of the Pixar movie, the Inside Out play set instead features a puzzle platformer that acts as a “spiritual successor” to the film, says Vignocchi: The little girl Riley falls asleep watching a scary movie while on a babysitting job, and the Emotions in her mind to band together to thwart broccoli monsters and other creatures unleashed in her subconscious.

The beauty of Disney Infinity at its core, though, is being able to create epic twosomes from its lineup, according to Vignocchi. Yoda said in Empire Strikes Back that “fear leads to anger” on the path to the Dark Side of the Force, but gamers can make their own tale where the lovable little Jedi makes a dynamic duo with either Fear or Anger.

“A lot of kids are playing video games at a younger and younger age,” Vignocchi says, “and to be able to have these physical toys that then appear inside of the game and be able to tell your stories is something that hasn’t been done before and it’s something very unique to Infinity.”