Disney Dreamlight Valley looks like Animal Crossing with a Kingdom Hearts twist

theverge.com:

Make way for Disney Dreamlight Valley, a new Disney-inspired life-sim that feels as if Disney adults got their hands on the Animal Crossing source code. In combination with yesterday’s formal announcement, I had the opportunity to participate in a hands-off demo to see a bit of the vision the developers at Gameloft have for the game. It’ll be difficult to resist the allure of talking about a brand new Disney game entirely in Disney song lyrics, but I’ll do my best to rein in that impulse.

In addition to being a life-sim game, Disney Dreamlight Valley is a Disney adult’s ultimate isekai fantasy. In it, your character is pulled into a world fractured by an event called The Forgetting. It’s up to you to team up with your favorite Disney characters, repair the world with your special powers, and create a place where everyone can once again live in comfort and harmony.

At first glance, DDV reminded me of Kingdom Hearts. It’s hard not to draw the comparison since, in the first moments of the demo, game manager Manea Castet showed me a dark world overrun with nasty-looking vines that only the main character could dispel with her magic. But rather than a Kingdom Hearts analogy, Castet said DDV took its inspiration from the adventure games of yore like Monkey Island or Day of the Tentacle. Instead of fighting to complete your goals, you’ll be charged with non-combat tasks like fishing or crafting.

There’s also a strong social element to the game. Each Disney character you encounter has their own story that you can only progress if you improve your friendship with them. In the demo, Castet’s character befriended Goofy by fishing with him. The more you fish with Goofy, the more your friendship increases, the more rewards you