When I was a kid, I remember the first time I paid a visit to Disneyland in California. It was after I sat in a car with members of my family for hours at a time, driving through Nevada, Utah and other states before eventually reaching California and paying the Magic Kingdom a visit. It was like nothing I had seen before, and still remains a highlight from my youth. Granted, I’m probably not the only one who feels this way, as millions of young kids can’t wait to step inside Mickey Mouse’s dream world. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford it these days, but Microsoft has come up with an affordable solution that’s as close as you can get to being there without booking the deluxe vacation package. Kinect Disneyland Adventures, first introduced earlier this year at E3, has you visiting a digital replica of the popular theme park, making all sorts of stops, taking pictures and meeting familiar characters while also completing a number of activities that try to really draw you in to the Disney universe.
While it’s not a completely affecting package, it’s definitely a lot more enjoyable than we thought it was going to be, relying more on the sheer fun of the park rather than the touristy gimmickry we were afraid it was going to be drowned in. We’re happy with the route it took. The game has you playing a young kid, making a visit to the park and teaming up with what appears to be a magical talking ticket. He guides you around the park, highlighting paths using glowing dust so you can always figure out where you’re going to head next. Sometimes you’ll head to a certain spot on a map; other times, you’ll visit with familiar characters, including Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy. A lot of Disneyland’s most popular characters are thrown in here, including Snow White (always adored by the little girls) and new favorites like Buzz Lightyear (“To infinity and beyond!”).
To wander around the park, you need to hold your hand up to move around and guide your character. It’s a bit annoying at first, similar to the way you walked your character around in the vastly different Rise of Nightmares. However, you get used to it over time, and it does offer a bit of precision when it comes to getting where you need to go. Plus, the crowd never gets pushy on you, proving that this is, in fact, a fantasy title. (You try dealing with a real-life tourist in front of the Matterhorn and see if he pays you any respect as he screams at his kids.) Character interaction is a nice part of the game, as you’ll talk with Mickey, Donald and others, even offering side gestures such as a hug (awwww) or taking part in a little dance. The Kinect interaction could’ve been slightly better here, as there were times that they thought we were leaving a character rather than offering a hug, even though we followed the PRECISE movements shown on the screen.
This feature review concludes on the next page, please click Page 2 below to read our final thoughts on Kinect: Disneyland Adventures.
