Credit: Disney/NintendoMickey Mouse has had a streak of starring Disney roles in the past few years, from the brand new series of Mickey Mouse Shorts to his first ever theme park attraction, Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway, which just opened in Disneyland. And now, for the first time in quite a few years, Mickey & Friends are going digital.
Disney Illusion Island is coming this summer to Nintendo Switch. While the game was previously announced at the Disney and Marvel Games Showcase at D23 Expo last fall, the trailer premiered at Nintendo Direct on February 8. Watch the announcement from Nintendo of America below.
Join Mickey & Friends in a brand-new co-op 2D platformer adventure for 1-4 players and explore a mysterious island when Disney Illusion Island releases exclusively for #NintendoSwitch on July 28! #NintendoDirect
Pre-order today: https://t.co/iC8IMNrfqU pic.twitter.com/4bx391quCl
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) February 8, 2023
The game, set to be released on July 28, is a co-op 2D platformer where players have the option of playing as Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, or Goofy as they set out to uncover the secrets of the mysterious Monoth Island. Disney Parks Blog reports that “Players can fly solo or team up with up to three friends as the Fab Four in local co-op and travel to the beautiful yet mysterious Island of Monoth to retrieve three missing magical books that protect the island.”
Disney Illusion Island promises hand-drawn animation in the spirit of classic Mickey Mouse cartoons, brand-new environments, a talented voice cast, and special abilities. Each character has unlockable skills, abilities, and items, such as Goofy’s Giant Mustard Bottle, Minnie’s Rainbow Umbrella, Mickey’s Cyclecopter, or Donald’s Two Feathers to Glide.
The game is currently available for pre-order on the Nintendo Store. The title of Illusion Island hints that it will follow the continuity of Disney’s Illusion series. This Sega series had its last original entry in 1998, with a remake of Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse released in 2013.
The game comes off the tail of Disney’s previous successful game release, Disney Dreamlight Valley, a cozy life simulation game that was recently nominated for Family Game of the Year at this year’s DICE Awards. While Illusion Island seems to be a more simplified game, appealing to fans of classic platformers like Super Mario Bros and fans of the Fab Four, it looks as if Disney is tentatively exploring non-Marvel video games for the first time in quite a few years. Disney is no stranger to major Marvel video game releases, with EA recently announcing a three-game deal with Marvel.
However, the release of Illusion Island will mark one of Mickey Mouse’s more notable video game appearances since titles like Epic Mickey and the Kingdom Hearts series, which got its last entry in 2020.
Will you be playing Disney Illusion Island? Let us know in the comments!