Disney Dreamlight Valley – Review

In Disney Dreamlight Valley, Donald Duck is having another nervous breakdown. It’s gotten to the point where it’s embarrassing to watch them flail around on the grass, kicking and screaming with their flippers and feathers almost a blur. The blame, however, lies partially with me. Donald D just wants a place to call home, but his houseboat got flooded and I can’t seem to find the rope to help him fix it. In fact, seaweed is more rare than gold, making it the Valley’s most precious commodity.

Prior to the September 6 release of Disney Dreamlight Valley’s Early Access, I spent some time with the game, and I can say that a recurring theme was a lack of available resources. Even though it is absolutely necessary for making twine and rope, which are central to completing many of the earliest missions in Disney Dreamlight Valley, the seaweed that is supposed to be plentiful in several regions of the Valley is missing in action. Thus, nearly a week (and nearly 40 hours) later, Moana’s boat remains broken, Wall-garden E’s is still in ruins, and Donald is still without a place to call home.

We can only hope that these sporadic failures are merely a side effect of Disney Dreamlight Valley being in Early Access and that they will be addressed in a patch in the coming weeks as developer Gameloft continues to smooth out the game’s kinks. Not a particularly endearing trait just yet, especially considering the game doesn’t do much to help you out when you get stuck. If you enjoy life simulations like Stardew Valley and Animal Crossing: New Horizons, you’ll feel right at home with the game’s focus on busywork to pass the time.

Earning Dreamlight through activities like fishing, farming, cooking, and chatting with friends can be used to purchase keys that can be used to open up new areas of the Valley (the expanding area which houses your villagers) and new Realms (more on those later). Short-term objectives, like maintaining a specific number of close friendships, can be complemented by daily tasks that constantly replenish. It’s nice that you can earn more Dreamlight the more of the game you play and the more areas and characters you unlock.

Disney’s Dreamlight Valley is essentially Animal Crossing, but with a lot more story and a lot less waiting. Fewer chores are required thanks to the Valley’s excellent quality of life enhancements, such as a never-empty watering can, indestructible tools, and the ability to replenish energy with a handful of berries. There is a day and night cycle that corresponds to your own, but unlike in Animal Crossing, progress rarely has to be delayed until the next actual day. You can also earn money by selling the things you find or grow, and you can earn experience points (XP) by completing missions given to you by the Disney and Pixar characters you befriend.

The Forgetting must be overcome if the Valley is to be populated by the heroes and villains of your imagination. Terrible thorns prevent people from getting to their homes and surrounding areas, and they also cause some of the locals to suffer from severe memory loss. Thankfully, Merlin has his act together enough to realise that the Valley needs assistance in clearing away the vines and in bringing back all of its residents, and he also realises that you are the only one who can do it, you magical thing that you are.

Your new life in Disney Dreamlight Valley will consist of reaching out to those who left the Valley and helping the residents who have remained, like Scrooge McDuck with his general store and Mickey Mouse with his community garden. The key to doing this is to use Dreamlight to enter Realms with specific themes. The Dream Castle may be jam-packed with portals to the many Disney and Pixar worlds, but at present, only Moana, Ratatouille, Frozen, and Wall-E have active Realms. At the very least one character from each of the Realms can be recruited back to the Valley, and they each have their own unique story and set of quests that are based on the movies from which they were spawned. It’s exciting to see where each Realm will take you, whether you’re cooking with Remy or adventuring with Moana.

The Realms are smaller than I expected them to be, especially Wall- E’s, but you’ll find yourself going back to them over and over as you progress through the story and strengthen your bonds with the various characters. This is crucial in Disney Dreamlight Valley, as doing small things for your new friends every day, like hanging out, exchanging gifts, and checking in, can help take your friendships to the next level. This will unlock not only fun quests to complete, but also specialised gear and clothing for each playable character. Intriguingly, completing certain quests can grant access to a better version of a tool that can be used to overcome a barrier or reach a new location. The lack of clarity in this regard is regrettable, but it is always exciting to discover something new about a person as you spend more time with them.

Some truly brilliant dialogue and narrative flourishes bring the whole “living alongside my favourite Disney characters” fantasy to life. Disney Dreamlight Valley isn’t afraid to poke fun at these recognisable characters, or even make jokes about them, while also giving excellent winks and nudges to viewers who are familiar with the source films. This level of polish is what really makes Disney Dreamlight Valley feel like a sim for Disney fans of all ages. A worthy alternative to games like Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley while still being approachable for children and having enough depth to satisfy adult Disney fans.

The only thing missing from the Early Access version (aside from seaweed) is the Star Path feature, which is essentially Disney Dreamlight Valley’s version of a Battle Pass. Paying with premium currency (also known as real money) grants access to region-specific cosmetics. The first one is a month long and features Incredibles merchandise and Up pins among other Pixar-related items. Once this feature is fully unlocked, it will be interesting to see how it functions and what the pricing is like for the Star Path options.

Disney’s Dreamlight Valley is an excellent example of the growing diversity of live service video game options. Aside from being entertaining, it also provides a wealth of material and was clearly planned out. Planning the layout of your Valley is also highly addictive, and it makes me wonder if the game will inspire the same level of community involvement in the Valley as Animal Crossing: New Horizons did. After all, designing an island is no joke, but now there’s a touch of Disney magic to the process. There are still a few kinks and bugs to work out, but that’s what the Early Access period is for (the full game launches as a free-to-play title in 2023). Looking forward to where this goes from here.