Disney Infinity has become home to a collection of diverse developers all working and creating inside the Disney universe. There are many franchises and characters available to everyone to play with and create for, but none were so desired as the original Star Wars trilogy. When it was announced that Disney had acquired the Star Wars franchise, everyone involved in Disney Infinity was excited about the chance to create a game for their favorite Star Wars characters and timeline.
Gobo, whose history with Disney Infinity includes work on the Pirates of the Caribbean and Guardians of the Galaxy Playsets, is crafting the Star Wars universe that older gamers hold in high regard and is planning on pulling in as many elements of the original trilogy as possible.
Both Death Stars will need to be blown up during trench runs, Star Destroyers will be battled in space, and you will ride a Bantha from the bars of Mos Eisley to the dance floor of Jabba’s palace. You will also explore the ice world of Hoth and battle the four-legged AT-ATs in what ended up being our favorite showcase of available activities in Disney Infinity’s take on Star Wars.
Battling AT-ATs on Hoth
We’ve battled two and four-legged vehicles on the snowy world of Hoth on many occasions, but for the first time, AT-ATs can turn. It may sound like an insignificant bullet point, but there’s a large system in place that allows the robotic creatures to move realistically, and not just in a straight line. Technical director Jim Callen explained the surprisingly in-depth process to us saying, “Broadly speaking, you actually physically model a character, making joints which have weight and a constraint around them on how far they can move. Then you work out how much force you would need to apply down a particular leg to make the body stand up.” This means AT-ATs and AT-STs can correct themselves and turn when walking over any terrain. If an AT-ST or AT-AT gets rocked and almost falls over, for example, it can adjust its balance and recover.
The team has weekly play tests where they bring in young players to try out the latest build of the game and offer feedback. “There have been a couple of times – particularly when testing the physical stuff – where it’s been hilarious just hearing these 10 year olds.” Callen shouts impersonating the typical conversation that 10 year olds have when trying to take down a giant robot capable of awkwardly stumbling, “‘Shoot it in the bum!’ These kids’ eyes are streaming with laughter, and they have these big, big belly laughs with all the fun they’re having taking these big things down.”
Technical prowess is fantastic, but battling the AT-AT goes deeper than just marveling at its physics. While showing us how to defeat an AT-AT, game and art director Mike Thompson demonstrated a few different ways to take down the lumbering vehicles. You can tie them up with a tow rope in a Snowspeeder, take them out piece by piece by climbing their legs in a battle inspired by Shadow of the Colossus, or, take control of them yourself. Thompson landed a Snowspeeder on top of the AT-AT and broke apart its back to reveal a giant controller with buttons to stand on to direct its movement and fire its weapons. After pointing the AT-AT in a few different directions, Thompson surprised us by removing the controller from the AT-AT’s back and carrying it far enough away where he had full view of the walking tank. He dropped the controls on the ground and started controlling the AT-AT remotely by standing on the buttons, just as he had before.
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