I have to admit, I was not aware that Toy Box Takeover was a thing until August 30th when Disney Infinity 3.0 was released and I saw it on disneystore.com. As a Disney Infinity fan, I was intrigued by the concept of a game that could be played with nearly any figure (just not the Cars characters). Toy Box Takeover is part of a new concept for Disney Infinity 3.0 called “Toy Box Expansion Games.” This is one of two scheduled for release so far, the next one is Toy Box Speedway, a racing game.
The story within Toy Box Takeover is that Syndrome from The Incredibles has stolen Merlin’s magic wand and has teamed up with other villains to create a “hero destroyer.” You must journey through Toy Box worlds to defeat each villain leading up to the final battle with Syndrome. Along the way, there are opportunities to unlock more toys in your Toy Box by completing missions and collecting coins.
The worlds that you play through are based on Pirates of the Caribbean, Marvel’s The Avengers, The Lone Ranger,Star Wars, and The Incredibles. Sidekicks are an important part of the game and there are plenty of opportunities to unlock more of them as you play each level. There is also a section of the main Toy Box in the game that allows you to play battle games to earn more of them. These are pretty much the same thing over-and-over, just with different worlds. It gets a little tedious, but if you aim to collect them all, it’s a must-do.
One of the more frustrating aspects of the game is a ball of red and black smoke called “the void” that Syndrome keeps sending after you in each Toy Box. It follows you and is hard to evade. There’s no way to defeat it, you just have to run and the second it touches your figure, you die. When your character is destroyed in this game, like the other 3.0 Play Sets, your character is out of commission for a while and you have to play as a different one. It makes it extra difficult to collect all of the coins to unlock new toys in your Toy Box. This game also limits your camera functionality, which is always overhead rather than at ground level. Flying characters can’t fly higher than their initial jump allows, so to fly high you have to climb first.
Overall I had a ton of fun in Toy Box Takeover. It’s a pretty quick game if you’re not going for the special items, but can quickly turn into a 10+ hour event if you aim to unlock every item in your Toy Box. At $19.99, the price is right. Packaging is a little bulky for what amounts to a small version of a Play Set piece and a card, but it’s probably designed with anti-theft in mind. If you’re a Disney Infinity fan, you can’t go wrong with Toy Box Takeover.
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