Disney Dreamlight Valley: A Disney Reskin of Animal Crossing

As the world shut down in March of 2020, Nintendo released Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the latest entry in the Animal Crossing franchise. This game really set the world on fire, due partially to the fact that there was not a ton that could be done and the idea of having a tropical island that the player had basically complete control over was appealing leading to an approximately 40 percent attachment rate. Disney Dreamlight Valley is attempting to capitalize on that success, however if someone has already played Animal Crossing: New Horizons or other games like Stardew Valley, they will likely not find anything new in this experience.

The game allows you to create a character and places you on an island covered in Sleeping Beauty-style vines that are causing the inhabitants of the island like Merlin from The Sword and the Stone or Mickey Mouse to lose their memories. Equipped with magic to clear the vines, a pickaxe, a shovel, a fishing pole, and a camera, your character has to restore the island to its former glory.

The game does not do anything new or unique compared to other similar games. There is the appearance of various Disney characters, however the voice acting is to a minimum. The missions get repetitive and there is a substantial amount of level and currency grinding to unlock things. Pretty early on there is a mission that requires the player to reach friend level five with three members on the island and this mission can be time consuming. At the same time there is another mission that requires an item being collected that is dropped randomly from clearing thorns and only a few spawn each day.

What the game does have going for it is a very deep catalog of both old and new Disney characters and related furniture for the player’s house. For newcomers who are younger and haven’t played other games, this would provide a playing incentive for them to play. That said, some of the gameplay systems like the crafting and cooking systems are a bit complex for players who would get the maximum enjoyment out of the game so the ultimate question still remains: who exactly is this game for? Younger players will have a hard time with some of the systems, however they are also not complex enough to warrant playing this game over other similar games that a player who is interested probably already owns.

The best thing about the game so far is the fact that it appears that for the foreseeable future the game will be supported with sizable free content updates, starting with one featuring characters and environments from Toy Story. The game is fine, however in the grand scheme of games available that are available that allow for customization, exploration, and crafting, it does not do anything uniquely different enough to move this game into a category where it is worth playing as a new experience. It is best designed for a parent or older sibling to play along with a child in an effort to teach broader game mechanics that come with life simulating games in the same way that Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee is best used to teach the basic mechanics of a creature collecting roleplaying game.

Final Rating: 7/10