"This is definitely, far and away, the biggest and best version of Disney Infinity we've ever made."
So said Disney Interactive's John Vignocchi in this exclusive Q&A with Tech Times. Fans of the game know and love Vignocchi already; he's known as "Johnny V" to the Disney Infinity faithful, where he's regularly seen at events and on "Toy Box TV," the game's weekly web series. Part developer, part brand spokesperson, his official title is Vice President of Production, but he's known for his irrepressable enthusiasm for all things Disney and his thoughtful relationship with Infinity's fans.
With Disney Infinity 3.0 nearly here, Vignocchi took a few minutes out of his wildly busy schedule to address some things I've been dying to know about the new game. I assumed it would be fruitless to ask about future plans, yet I was treated to a bit more information (and confirmation) than has been publicly revealed before.
The biggest questions I was wondering about are the same ones plaguing fans' minds: How many more figures are yet to be announced, and will there be more Playsets than the five that we know about?
More Figures
34 figures have been announced for 3.0 so far. So how many more are to come?
Vignocchi mentioned a large display case that was seen at San Diego Comic-Con, which had slots in it for every Disney Infinity character that exists. (You can see a nice high-res image of it on this page.) Several slots were empty, belonging to characters that hadn't been announced yet. If my calculations are correct, and there will indeed be characters filling every slot before 4.0 is ever announced, and taking into account figures that have been revealed since Comic-Con... There could be as many as 23 more characters yet to come.
That includes the Peter Pan figure that was announced as the character decided on by Toy Box Summit master builders a few weeks ago. Although it was insinuated at D23 that Peter Pan would be part of Disney Infinity 4.0, Vignocchi told me that the plan is for the figure to be available probably around Q2 2016, toward the end of 3.0's life cycle.
So which franchises will the remaining characters come from?
"There are more figures coming for Marvel, for Star Wars, and for classic Disney — all three," Vignocchi told me. "This is our biggest character lineup yet!"
That matches up with the Comic-Con display case, which has (again, accounting for new information revealed after Comic-Con) empty slots for seven more Star Wars figures, twelve more Disney classic figures, and four more Marvel figures.
More Playsets
Next I asked about Playsets, which Vignocchi and others at Disney Interactive have been coy about in the past. But not today.
"More Playsets are coming!" Vignocchi said in no uncertain terms. How many more, he wouldn't say. But "Playsets" was plural when he said it, so take that as you will.
This news is noteworthy for more reasons than one: a poorly-kept secret is that for the first and second games, all of the content — every character, every Playset, every disc ability or vehicle or decoration — was all contained on the game disc that came with the Starter Pack. You simply used the sold-separately characters and sets and whatnot to unlock that content from the disc. This meant that every last bit of game content had to be set in stone before the game ever launched, even though some of that content wouldn't be accessible for many months.
From what Vignocchi told me, it sounds like Disney Infinity 3.0 is changing all that. Vignocchi said that with 3.0, new content can be added after the Starter Pack game disc ships. He didn't explain exactly what techno-wizardry Disney Interactive is using to accomplish this, but my guess is a combination of DLC and the computer chips embedded in figures, Playset pieces and discs.
In theory, this drastically alters the game's development process. Now, Disney Interactive and its various studios can keep developing for 3.0 after the Starter Pack ships. If an opportunity arises later this year or early next year to add a new Playset or character to 3.0 that wasn't previously considered... Well, now they can.
Light FX
Also at D23, a unique variant was announced to the 3.0 characters that wield Jedi lightsabers: "Light FX" figures. These special editions will look and function in-game exactly like the regular versions, but when placed on the Disney Infinity base, the figurines' lightsabers will light up. What wasn't mentioned at D23 was how much more the Light FX series figures would cost.
"Internally, we've been looking at a dollar, maybe two dollars more than the regular figures," Vignocchi revealed. Rather than mark-up these special edition figurines, the company is "just looking to cover the cost" on the figures with the light-up sabers.
Nice move, Disney.
(Note: Since this interview took place, Vignocchi has confirmed that Light FX figures will cost just $1 more than their counterparts.)
Marvel Battlegrounds
Lastly, I asked if Mr. Vignocchi could tell me anything more about Marvel Battlegrounds, the sole 3.0 Marvel Playset announced thus far. Its name was revealed at D23, along with the fact that it will be the first Playset to support four-player co-op. But what's the story about? Might it have anything to do with Avengers: Age of Ultron, particularly since Ultron and Hulkbuster are the only Marvel figures announced so far?
Vignocchi couldn't say just yet, but he did tell me when fans can expect to find out.
"We're saving that announcement for an event this fall," he said. Adopting a conspiratorial tone, he added, "It's an event that makes perfect sense for Marvel content to be announced at."
That event can only be New York Comic-Con, which is set for October 8-11.
Disney Infinity 3.0 will be in stores beginning Sunday, August 30, 2015. It will be available for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Wii U and Windows PC.
Related: Everything You Need To Know About Disney Infinity 3.0
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