Captain America: Civil War is only a few short months away and tomorrow, Disney Infinity 3.0 launches one of the largest add-ons to the platform with Marvel: Battlegrounds. In a melee fighter style game akin to Super Smash Bros., Marvel characters brawl to see who is the ultimate superhero. Up to 4 characters can play at a time with fully destructible environments, making Battlegrounds unique to Disney Infinity 3.0! It also is one of the largest launches of additional figures with The Vision, Ant-Man, Black Panther, Capt. America, Black-suit Spider-Man, Boba Fett, and Baloo! Looks like we can finally see who is the better team, Team Cap or Team Iron Man! We'll be playing Battlegrounds tomorrow so look for more in-depth information. But for now, enjoy the trailer!
The fine folks at Funko have done it again! This time for their vehicle line of POP! vinyls. I can't wait to add this one to my Ant-Man collection!
Everyone's favorite flying ant is here for your Ant-Man vinyls. He's a loyal friend and soldier. Entertainment Earth has this piece labeled for pre-order to be released in December 2015. Just in time for Christmas! Let's hope Disney Infinity releases Ant-Man soon, too!
Captain America - The First Avenger comes to Disney Infinity!
Disney announced today that Captain America - The First Avenger will be released in March 2016 for Disney Infinity. The figure is quite impressive - new detailed costume, new pose, and new powers!
It's likely that this figure is intended to tie-in Captain America: Civil War. Both the figure and the movie will be released in March 2016.
They also announced Marvel Battleground Playset details, and here they are:
Today, Disney Interactive revealed
details for Marvel Battlegrounds, the upcoming Play Set for Disney
Infinity 3.0 Edition, featuring a new four-player, arcade brawler style
of gameplay, and an original Marvel storyline. Developed by United Front
Games, in partnership with Avalanche Software, Marvel Battlegrounds is
the first Disney Infinity Play Set to feature four-player gameplay. With
full compatibility for all Disney Infinity Marvel characters, Marvel
Battlegrounds features the widest selection of playable characters of
any previous Play Set.
“With Disney Infinity 3.0, we’ve
aimed to provide a wider variety of gameplay than ever before, and the
Marvel Battlegrounds Play Set represents our commitment to developing
something entirely new for our players,” said John Blackburn, SVP &
GM of Disney Infinity. “The four-player arena style combat gameplay is a
perfect way for friends and families to come together and play in
head-to-head battles with some of their favorite Marvel characters.”
Launching in March 2016, Marvel Battlegrounds will feature
Hulkbuster, Ultron and Captain America – The First Avenger, a new
version of Captain America with a new pose, costume and enhanced
abilities. Additional Marvel Battlegrounds figures will be announced in
the coming months. All Disney Infinity (2.0 Edition) Marvel figures
will be playable in the Play Set and will feature adapted abilities and
skills to complement the new style of gameplay of Marvel Battlegrounds.
“We worked closely with the Disney
Infinity development team to come up with new gameplay and storyline for
Marvel Battlegrounds that is unique to the platform,” said Jay Ong, VP
of Games, Marvel Entertainment. “We’ve created an authentic Marvel story
that will give players the freedom to choose any Marvel figure in
Disney Infinity and have them face off against each other in an arena
style combat.”
In the original storyline, Ultron
teams up with Loki in an effort to steal Asgard’s immensely powerful
Infinity Stone. To accomplish this, Ultron and Loki create robotic
replicas of the famed Marvel Super Heroes and turn them against each
other in an effort to distract them while they commit their crime. The
Marvel Super Heroes duplicates battle each other in iconic environments
such as a wrecked Brooklyn train yard, Wakanda and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Lunar
Base, culminating in a universe-shaking battle against Ultron.
Fans can get a more in-depth look at the Play Set during the Disney Infinity 3.0 Edition: Facing Off in Marvel’s Battlegroundspanel
at New York Comic-Con, featuring participants from Disney Interactive,
Avalanche Software, United Front Games and Marvel Games. New York
Comic-Con attendees can attend the panel on Saturday, October 10 from
4:00 – 4:45 p.m. at Empire Stage 1-E and will receive an exclusive
pre-release figure giveaway. Fans at home can watch a live stream of the
panel here:http://www.newyorkcomiccon.com/NYCCLIV
Disney Infinity 3.0 launched on Sunday and we couldn't be more excited! We couldn't wait to add Star Wars characters, themes, and vehicles to the ever expanding universe that is the Toy Box. After D23, we had some more ideas of what the came would contain, as well as a sneak peek at some fun items that would be joining the game.
These are just some first impressions of the game, as we've only scratched the surface. At this point, it's worth mentioning that one of our favorite aspects of the game is the inclusion of nostalgia inducing toys. So, without further ado, here's some of our first impressions!
The Introduction made us smile wider than a kowakian monkey lizard! It was a perfect blend of the new and the classic. Seeing the classic trilogy Star Wars characters come together felt like Christmas . . . and now they can be played with our favorite Marvel and Disney characters. Yoda and Stitch team-up is a go!
So many new toys! Big Thunder Mountain Railroad (which comes with a goat) is not a static set piece. It has falling dust that helps make for a more dynamic world-creating and playing experience. Gravity Falls has a lot more toys, too! Can't wait to add a Gobble Wonker to a world!
The expansion of town sets. Halloweentown can now become an actual town. Including pieces like Finkelstein's Lab, Jack's House, some gates, and other exciting buildings. Sugar Rush ca also be expanded to fill up your Toy Box with sweet treats.
Characters are amazing. Besides having beautiful sculpts, the few we played play well and fit perfectly into the universe. We're so happy to see Yoda be a nice mesh between classic Yoda and Clone wars Yoda. Let him sit for moment, you'll see.
Vehicles - this is one of the best improvements. Many of the vehicle power discs have music upgrades. This is a small detail, but an important one. Some of the music was just bland and did not fit thematically with the piece. Now when you play Darkwing Duck's Ratcatchter, you get to hear the Darkwing Duck theme song! The Electric Mayhem bus has it's music back, which for some reason was lost in DI2.0. We highly encourage you to try all of your vehicles, as the music changes make for a more fun gaming experience.
The Boom Box now includes an amazing set list. We get most of the music from DI2.0 plus some fantastic new ones. I'm very happy to see that The Electric Mayhem Bus music can now be selected (so glad the Muppets are still being included in some small way!). You can now add a bunch of new classic John Williams scores to your Star Wars Toy Boxes. I can't wait to make a Dagobah themed toy box with Yoda's Theme.
Star Wars themes and new Disney themes for the Toy Box. The inclusion of such classic art from Sleeping Beauty is wonderful. We love playing with the sky and terrain themes!
Packs and Tools has some new items, too. Our favorite by far is the Ewok Glider! We've never been a fan of the glider pack, but now I think it's safe to say that this pack will always be on our characters! It's one of those fun fan items that make the care and love that is put into every game shine and take the limelight. It reminds us why we're fans and why we love the game!
Those are just a few of the things that we love about the game so far! Check back as we put up more impressions of the game, like Toy Box Takeover, Twilight of the Republic playset, characters, and more!
The Secret Wars Collectors Corp box was quite a surprise. Having no idea what was in the box and with no hints from Marvel, this one really was a very pleasant surprise. Not only do you get the standard patch, pin, and comic, but you got a pretty cool looking POP! themed t-shirt and the biggest surprise was Thor AND Miles Morales from Secret Wars! Behold the beauty below!
So far each box has delivered some pretty awesome items. We can't wait to see what Octobers box will be!
D23 was a huge day for Disney Interactive. Disney Interactive announced Kingdom Hearts III adding Big Hero 6 as a world, where the Heartless have taken the original Baymax left in the portal and takes place after the film. Note, this is where Baymax came onto the stage to applause! There will also be a world based on Tangled. There are even more surprises planned!
Disney Magic Kingdoms, a new way to experience Disney Parks. The short clip showed the iconic Cinderella Castle with Mickey Mouse and Maleficent. You can build your own Disney Park with the famous attractions while a unique story unfolds with the Disney Villains.
Disney Playmation combines imaginative play with technology. Repulsor Gear and Gamma Gear are the two major packs right now, with Iron Man and Captain America in the starter pack and Hulk and Loki in the expansion. The toys interact with the player and with each other. The power activator brings Ultron enemies into battle and bring smart figures to life. Support single and multi-player action any where, any time. Playmation can also connect to an App as mission control to extend the game.
Bandai Namco has created a Star Wars arcade-style experience - Star Wars BattlePod. A 180 degree dome screen that immerses you into Star Wars vehicles. Hydraulic seat activators. Pilot the Millenium Falcon in the second Death Star Battle, amongst others. A premium edition will be the ultimate collector's item.
Star Wars Battlefront is one of the most highly anticipated games in the history of the Walt Disney Company. Electronic Arts has partnered with Disney Interactive with unprecedented access to behind the scenes items and source material. It took home more awards than any other game this year. The game is based on the vision of living your Star Wars fantasies with photo-realistic experiences. Access to Lucasarts Archives allowed artists to bring characters, vehicles, and environments. The Battle of Jakku from the Force Awakenings will be free on December 8th, if you pre-order you will get it first on Dec 1st. The game experience is centered on one thing - fun. Epic multi-player mode for 40 players. Personal experiences for two players. Become an iconic hero or villain from the films. Fighter Squadron will feature up to 20 players in space battle.
Darth Vader PS4 announced! Coming this holiday for Battlefront and Disney Infinity. Will also include four classic games - Super Star Wars, Bounty Hunter
Disney Infinity -
Raises the bar for content and quality.
5 Playsets - Inside Out, Twilight of the Republic, Rise Against the Empire, The Force Awakens, Marvel Battlegrounds (original story, four-player simultaneous play with all marvel characters)
El Capitan Theatre and Flynn's Arcade - Competitive Online Play with 3 other players
Toy Dispenser - unlocks toys
Over 5000 virtual toys
Parks and Resorts - Magic Band unlocks Walt Disney Statue
Churro plants, Mickey Ice Cream bar trees
Cruise Lines - will have game kiosks and interactive experiences, Castaway Cay ToyBox environment, the Disney Dream
Toy Box Summit - adding Peter Pan
November - Hulkbuster and Ultron
Spot from The Good Dinosaur and 4 new power discs from the Good Dinosaur
Zootopia characters
Light-up lightsabers for Star Wars characters this fall
Ultimate Unlock - Keyblade
D23 exclusive is a costume change from Kingdom Hearts for Mickey as King Mickey
Force Awakens Characters were revealed and the actors voiced their characters and were onsite in-person
Can inflict a painful sting that causes throbbing, burning pain that can last up to 24 hours. Many describe the pain like being shot by a bullet, hence the common name, Bullet Ant.
Nest may have several hundred individuals.
Nylandia fulva
Crazy Ant
.125 inches long
Called the crazy ant because of its erratic movements.
Can protect itself from fire ant's venom by coating its body with formic acid.
Tend aphids for honeydew.
Unclear why they are attracted to electrical equipment. They can chew through insulation, which may cause short circuits.
Camponotus spp.
Carpenter Ant
0.3-1.0 inches long
Camponotus includes over 1,000 species.
Build galleries in dead, damp wood. They do not eat the wood, however.
Have a main nest and build satellite nests around it.
Some look for food at night, searching for dead insects.
Solenopsis spp
Fire Ant
.08-.24 inches long
There are over 200 species of Solenopsis. Many of which are stinging ants.
Can be very aggressive and their sting feels like being burned by a fire.
Can survive extreme conditions.
If you are interested in learning more about these fascinating animals, be sure to visit alexanderwild.com for spectacular images of ants and other insects.
Ant-Man is creeping ever closer to its release date! Now, to some, ants are creepy. They get into everything, especially sweets, chew through the wood, leave unsightly hills in lawns, and can just get in the way. But there are lots of things to celebrate about ants. Here are few things that make ants great!
1. Ants belong to the Order Hymenoptera, which inlcudes bees, wasps, sawflies, and ants.
2. Ants can be extremely efficient foragers. The European red ants (Formica polyctena) can harvest an estimated 1 kg of arthropod food a day!
3. Honeypot ants feed exclusively on on insect-produced honeydew. They can be so full of honey they literally look like honey pots.
4. Some ant species have "gatekeepers," or major workers that have heads that can plug an opening.
5. Bullet ants have an extremely painful sting, hence their name.
6. Leaf-cutter any workers can strip a tree of leaves in one day.
7. Trap Jaw ants use their jaws to literally fling themselves away from danger. Their jaws can open at 140 mph.
8. There are over 12,000 known species of ants and they inhabit almost every landmass on the planet.
Disney Infinty 3.0 made an appearance at SDCC and proudly showed off their lighted display of EVERY character we had seen and are yet to come. However, there are 29 blank spaces! That's a lot of new characters. The majority of those characters are Disney Originals, followed by Star Wars, and then Marvel. Marvel and Stars basically balance each other out, but Disney is the name of the game and Disney characters are double the amount of the other two categories.
Let's speculate, shall we:
The Vision
Scarlet Witch
Ant-Man
Yellowjacket
More than likely, these will be characters from The Force Awakens and sprinkled in classic characters from the original trilogy and the Clone Wars.
Kylo Ren
Captain Phasma
Finn
Rey
Poe Dameron
R2-D2
General Grievous
Padme Amidala
Shaak Ti
Kit Fisto
Wild speculation and amazing things can happen in the Disney category. With so many open spots and new things on the way, we are excited to see what surprises are in story!
Zootopia: Nick Wilde and Judy Hopps
The Muppets: Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Gonzo, Fozzie Bear, and Animal
The Good Dinosaur: Arlo and Spot
Finding Dory: Dory, Marlin, and Nemo
Goofy
Hercules and Hades
Alice in Wonderland
Tarzan
Belle, Beast, and Gaston
Jafar
Jim Hawkins and Long John Silver
We assume the massive amount of characters are to replace the blind power disc packs. Hopefully characters will be released throughout the year lifespan of Disney Infinity 3.0 so something new is always coming out. Keeping the game fresh is key if we are going to be investing in almost 30 new characters. We can't wait until DI3 releases on August 30th!
San Diego Comic Con has official arrived and we couldn't be more excited! We've already seen Ant-Man as a prescreening and now we can finally see the figures from the film. Take a look below at the amazing 1/6 scale Hot Toys figures, cosbabys, and artist mix below. We can't wait to get our hands on these miniature Ant-Men!
Ant-Man is one of Marvel’s finest films. Filled with humor,
heart, and a heist, Ant-Man delivers on all fronts and brings plenty of
surprises along for the ride.
Ant-Man is one of the forgotten properties of Marvel. Making
his first appearance in the 60’s, Ant-Man was one of the founding members of
the Avengers. With the ability to shrink to the size of an ant and communicate with
his name sake, Ant-Man was kind of a strange hero to sell. A morally grounded
scientist with absurd powers. However, we are talking about a group of heroes
with an egotistical billionaire in a suit, a Norse God, an assassin, an expert
archer, a super soldier, and a scientist who has anger issues, Ant-Man really
doesn’t seem all that strange when put into perspective.
Where the movie succeeds is not over explaining Ant-Man’s
powers. Hank Pym, the creator of Pym particles and Pym Technologies, discovered
a way to shrink the distance between atoms, decreasing the objects size. The
technology was going to fall into the wrong hands so he hid it for years. Until
someone else discovers it and now he must stop them from selling the technology
to the highest bidder. That’s the generally plot of the movie. Nothing terrible
original but the way it is presented is unique and unexpected. However, the
movie is not bogged down in the science, but in the story of Hank Pym and Scott
Lange, two of the Ant-Men.
Hank and Pym are both tragic characters, trying to do good
in a world that just won’t let them succeed. Both have families they are trying
to save, both for themselves and from themselves. Rather than the big spectacle
like Iron Man or Captain America, Ant-Man hits closest to home, with family and
redemption being the central theme. Everyone deserves a second chance. While
Hank Pym’s story is more heart-breaking than Langs, we feel for both characters
and want them to return to the family they used to know.
The ants are a highlight of the movie. Each species gets a
great introduction in a montage while Ant-Man trains to fight and control the
suit. They are as much as a character in the movie as Pym and Lang. They are
presented as cute but formidable and make the most enduring chirping noises. They are believable and the special effects
are phenomenal. It may turn some people
off from the movie but the ants literally save the day!
There are plenty of surprises along the way, which I won’t
spoil here. The humor was spot on, breaking tension and diffusing emotional scenes.
It is one of the strongest aspects of the movie and sets it on par with
Guardians of the Galaxy. It was refreshing after the heavy hitter that was
Ultron, and yes, we don’t forget about those events in this movie.
Stay for themed credits scene.
Stay for the post credits scene.
Overall, Ant-Man is a triumph. It is easily one of my favorite
Marvel movies and I cannot wait for Scott Lang to make an appearance in Civil
War. Bigger is not always better and Ant-Man proves that a good hero with a
good hear and ant friends can save the day, whether it be for the whole world
or a single family. Go see Ant-Man on July 17th!
In just a few short weeks, Ant-Man will be hitting movie theatres and we are super excited. As we wait for that day, he's a little peek at the LEGO set from the film.
Notice who the characters are?
Seems like the other Ant-Man products are calling Hank Pym "Blackout" Ant-Man. Is this the first major spoiler about the final battle from the film?
Here are all the pieces. The ant measure 9" long. That's a big ant!
Yellowjacket
Scott Lang as Ant-Man
There are three figures that come with the set, including Yellowjacket, Hank Pym as Ant-Man, and Scott Lang as Ant-Man.
It looks like a great set and retails for $19.99. The set will be released on July 5.
