It has been announced today via an official statement that Disney is shutting down Disney Infinity, developer Avalanche Studios, and is ceasing internal development of its own video games.
An official statement can be found through Disney Interactive’s official web site. The Disney Infinity game was similar to Activision’s Skylanders franchise. Customers would buy physical toys interact with the game. The toys were released as sets and included all the characters from Disney’s most popular franchises. According to the statement, the company is still going forward with its final two releases. The first release consists of three new characters from the Alice and the Looking Glass film, coming later this month. A Finding Dory play set will be coming in June.
Disney Infinity figures ran the gamut from popular Disney characters to Marvel Comics and Star Wars sets. On the surface, it looked to be doing well with its releases. However, according to Disney’s quarterly report, the gaming and toy division is down 2 percent. At the same time its operating income dipped 8 percent.
The official statement closes out by thanking it’s fans: “I want to again thank you for making Disney Infinity a part of your lives—and for adding to the Disney legacy by being a part of this community.”
Currently, we are living in an age of digital media. Physical media is less prevalent. Downloading a game digitally, rather than traveling to a retail outlet has become more popular and convenient. Disney Infinity is a game that relies on a physical media to be played and expanded. Even though Skylanders is still successful, the age of physical media might be coming to an end. In future gaming endeavors, Disney will be focused on licensing rather than publishing. With that said, the company has a strong mobile gaming presence. The mobile gaming sector is proving to be successful for big companies who want to get in on the gaming action.
