Earlier this week, a new Disney RPG dropped. No, it wasn't the next Kingdom Hearts, but a free mobile game. Disney Pixel RPG is exactly what its title implies: a turn-based RPG with 8-bit/16-bit-inspired art starring many iconic Disney characters.. It's free to play, and while it does fall into all of the trappings you'd expect from a gacha-focused mobile RPG, you can get through quite a bit of it without feeling like you need to spend much money to have a good time.
GungHo Online Entertainment and Disney are actually launching this game at a good time. Recently, Square Enix announced that it will shut down the mobile RPG Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius at the end of this month. For players looking for a similar game to move over to, Disney Pixel RPG is already shaping up to be a worthy alternative with a lot of room to grow.
"Disney Pixel RPG" Official PV
In Disney Pixel RPG, several fictional Disney video game worlds are infected with "bug pixels" and creatures called Mimics. Players are summoned by friendly characters called the Repixies for help in saving the gaming worlds. To do so, players have to summon and fight with Disney characters from all of these impacted game worlds and get to the bottom of the bug pixel mystery.
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Currently, Disney Pixel RPG does not seem to have the rights to any actual Disney games from the 1980s and '90s, which is a bit disappointing. Hopefully, GungHo can find a way to collaborate with companies like Capcom to cross over with actual Disney video games. For now, we'll have to settle for fictional ideas, like a Zootopia stealth action game or a carnival game starring Mickey & Friends.
It's a simple conceit that doesn't get bogged down in lore like Kingdom Hearts, but still adequately explains why Stitch, Baymax, Maleficent, and Mickey can all fight alongside each other on the same team. Gacha mobile games like this live and die depending on how interesting the characters that players can use are, and there's no denying that Disney has a wealth of IP to pull from. For those unfamiliar, gacha games are ones where players have to spend currency to "pull" characters they can then use in games. MiHoYo's recent works, like Genshin Impact and Zenless Zone Zero, are some of the most prominent examples of gacha games.
Through gameplay or by spending real money, players earn crystals that can then be used to pull characters in Disney Pixel RPG's gacha menu. Each character features a special skill that they can use in battle and that can be leveled up in several different ways. As a player, I had to construct teams of these characters and then make my way through a series of RPG battles in different game worlds. Players command their party of five to attack, defend, or use a skill each turn, and the main goal is to make sure that your team doesn't get completely wiped out before you defeat all of the waves of enemies in a certain stage.
I found all of this to be very approachable, with the depth mainly coming from finding the right times to use individual characters' skills. I highly recommend pulling a healer as soon as possible, as that counters party health attrition in some of Disney Pixel RPG's tougher levels. Outside of that, it's possible to interact with Disney characters in the main hub and send unused ones on idle expeditions to obtain more items. None of these features are groundbreaking for a mobile RPG, but Disney Pixel RPG executes everything quite well with iconic characters and a pleasant pixel art look.
If you aren't a fan of this style of game, then I'm doubtful that the Disney branding will be enough to win you over. On the other hand, if you're a Disney, RPG, and mobile gaming fan, GungHo's latest finds a happy medium between all of those elements. Don't spend money unless you really want to, but I think Disney Pixel RPG is at least worth downloading for curious Disney fans and those looking for something to replace Final Fantasy Brave Exvius.
Disney Pixel RPG is available now for iOS and Android.