Well, at least two of them are worth owning
The first thing that came to mind when Disney Infinity was announced was a Wreck-It Ralph-themed campaign. With multiple settings that weren’t fully explored in the film, the franchise is a goldmine of locations, and I would have loved to have seen them in some form.
But that dream was not meant to be, as Avalanche Studios currently has no Play Set planned for Ralph and his best friend Vanellope. Even if that day never comes however, the characters are still pretty enjoyable in their own right.
Disney Infinity (3DS, PC, PS3, Wii, Wii U, Xbox 360 [tested])
Developer: Avalanche Software
Publisher: Disney Interactive
Released: November 22 (Rapunzel), November 24 (Ralph & Vanellope)
MSRP: $12.99 (each character, no Play Set)
Rapunzel (sold separately as her own toy), simply put, is one of the weakest characters so far in the Disney Infinity stable. Not only is she a clone of the Frozen Toy Box Set‘s Anna, but she also has no real unique features in the slightest. All she does is swing her frying pan as her base attack, and…throw more frying pans for her secondary ability.
It’s a missed opportunity to have Rapunzel’s lizard Pascal as a companion attack or anything other than something frying pan related, for that matter. In fact, I wouldn’t recommend Rapunzel at all unless you have a child who loves her. Instead of releasing this character on her own, Avalanche should have at least crafted a Toy Box Set with Flynn Rider and the appropriate theme discs.
Wreck-It Ralph on the other hand, is just as good as you’d imagine him to be. Since his fictional realm takes place in a freaking videogame, he fits right in with the rest of the cast in multiple ways. The model itself looks great, as does the toy, which comes with plastic covers over his giant hands for protection. His attacks are interesting and effective, and he has the ability to (of course) wreck things with his fists, and throw cherry bombs that exhibit 8-bit visual effects. I found myself cycling him in my usual repertoire of Toy Box characters almost immediately.
Vanellope von Schweetz is Ralph’s counterpart, and she’s almost as impressive. As one of the shortest models in the entire game (which sets her apart right off the bat), she has the ability to “glitch” dash and throw her own version of Ralph’s cherry bombs, which have a distinct candy-flavored explosion. Her glitch functions as both an attack and a dodge, which isn’t a typical attack type — so she’s also effective from a pure gameplay perspective. I don’t plan on cycling her in as often as Ralph, but I love the idea of playing co-op Toy Boxes with both of them, as they compliment each other perfectly.
It’s a shame that both Wreck-It Ralph characters don’t have a full story Play Set to run through, but you can run a background and theme filter so long as you have the appropriate Wreck-It Power Discs. I hope that Ralph gets a real tribute one day, but until then, you can enjoy a fun co-op experience with Vanellope.
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