Marvel Studios scored big this year, launching a lucrative new franchise with Guardians of the Galaxy. It may now seem like everybody and their mother was onboard for the outer space adventures of Chris Pratt and a CGI talking Raccoon and tree, but really, Guardians was far from a sure bet – even with the Marvel stamp on it. However, the success of the film bodes well for the next big Marvel gamble: Ant-Man.
Walt Disney thinks the force is strong with this one. The company unveiled a new strategy game Thursday called Star Wars Commander. The title, which Disney worked on for about 18 months in collaboration with Lucasfilm, mimics the popular Supercell game Clash of Clans, which encourages players to build up armies and towns in an effort to battle one another.
Disney Interactive is giving Disney Infinity (1.0 Edition) Wii gamers the chance to upgrade their play experience to Wii U free of charge, exclusively through the Nintendo eShop. Starting today, fans who own the Disney Infinity Starter Pack on Wii can download the Wii U version of the game from the Nintendo eShop, complete with multiplayer. The Disney Infinity base and figures are required to play on Wii U once downloaded.
The Wii U version of Disney Infinity utilizes the Wii U GamePad to create worlds in the Toy Box and share them online. Activate missions and unlock toys in Play Sets to discover Monsters University, Pirates of the Caribbean and The Incredibles in high definition. Play as Sulley in his early student days in the world of Monsters University, plunge into adventure as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean, and activate the powers of Mr. Incredible on a quest to save the world from Syndrome and his super villains in The Incredibles Play Set.
“Disney Infinity launched one year ago, and in that time the number of Wii U players has significantly expanded,” said John Blackburn, Vice President and General Manager of Avalanche Software. “Given our commitment to compatibility for our players, we wanted existing Wii owners to be able to experience the Wii U version of the first game for free. With the upcoming launch of the 2.0 Edition of Disney Infinity we want all Nintendo players to experience the game’s Wii U functionality.”
Disney Infinity is rated E10+ by the ESRB. For more information on the game, visit disney.com/Infinity.
There’s no doubt about it- a Disney vacation can be tiring. Sore feet, a heavy backpack, the hot Florida sun beating down… these are just a few of the factors that trouble the average Disney parkgoer. Sometimes, you might even feel like you need a vacation from your vacation! Like Pooh Bear, I have a few favorite “thotful spots” in the parks that are perfect if you need to rest your legs, people watch, and just relax.
1. Rapunzel’s Village- Magic Kingdom: This restroom/seating area combination in Fantasyland is a wonderful place to take a break. The spot also features a charging station, so if your phone or camera is running low on battery power you can charge it. Make sure you bring your own charger, though! If you have little ones that get restless easily, you can send them on a special mission to find 10 of Pascal’s sneaky friends hidden in the scenery.
2. Tomorrowland Transit Authority PeopleMover- Magic Kingdom: Although I thought this attraction was boring when I was little, during the last few years it has become one of my Magic Kingdom must-dos! There’s nothing better than sitting back on the TTA, feeling a cool breeze on your face, and enjoying the view above Tomorrowland. The 10-minute tour also runs inside Space Mountain, above Buzz Lightyear’s Space Ranger Spin, and past a model of Walt’s original E.P.C.O.T. design.
3. American Adventure Pavilion- Epcot: The America pavilion in World Showcase has a large, air-conditioned building with padded benches inside. Sounds great, right? The cool air and comfy seating isn’t the only great thing about this pavilion, though- at select times throughout the day, an a capella group called Voices of Liberty performs a 15-minute show featuring some of America’s best loved music. These are easily the most talented singers I’ve ever heard, and it is an honor to be able to listen to their beautiful performance.
4. The Land Pavilion- Epcot: The first floor of The Land has a quick-service restaurant called Sunshine Seasons, so there’s always plenty of tables and space there to enjoy a snack or just veg out. If you have an upcoming Fastpass for Soarin’ or Living with the Land you can also use the area to wait until the specified FP time.
5. Park benches- Everywhere!: If you’re in need of a break and you simply can’t take another step, there’s most likely going to be a park bench around somewhere. Benches are the best place to people watch. You would be amazed at the things people do or say when they think nobody is watching them! My mom and I have definitely made use of the park benches on our last couple trips- a few times, we accidently zoned out and ended up sitting for 45 minutes!
Disney Club Penguin is bringing the magic of “Disney’s Frozen” to Club Penguin Island from August 21 – September 3. During the Frozen Party, members will be able to dress up like their favorite characters from the film, including Olaf, Sven, Anna, Elsa and Kristoff.
Players will start the party by searching for Elsa’s magic snowflakes that are hidden around the island. Once members complete the snowflake quest, they will earn the ability to transform into Olaf or Marshmallow and freeze objects around the island. While players are searching for the snowflakes, Elsa will be constructing her Ice Palace on Club Penguin Island for players to explore. Once the Ice Palace is complete, players will be able to hear a special performance of “Let It Go” when they visit.
During the Frozen Party, Club Penguin and “Disney’s Frozen” fans can:
The Frozen Party will be the first party available on the Club Penguin app since it launched, a key milestone in expanding the online experience available via the app.
I’ve been a fan of Disney since I was really little. I took my first trip to Walt Disney World when I was 3 years old and I haven’t looked back since; but my love of Disney was limited really to visit Disney World and seeing the movies in the theaters. As I’ve gotten older (and the company has grown) I’ve learned that Disney has so much more to offer than just theme parks and movies! Next year I’m preparing to experience the magic in a brand new way- MARATHONS! That’s right guys this girl has gotten bitten by the runDisney bug! Disney parks offers 9 marathon events (so far) at Disneyland and Walt Disney World, and even this year Disneyland Paris announced its first event next year!
You might be thinking if you’re not a runner these events aren’t for you, but I’m newbie to running and I’m going for it! I’ve heard so many amazing stories from fellow marathon runners that have participated in the events that I just HAD to give it a go! But let me tell you these events take some planning and some research just like trips to a normal trip the parks- and I learned this lesson the hard way. When I decided I wanted to run the Disney Princess Marathon, I started saving up right away. I wasn’t actually sure how much registration was going to be, but boy howdy am I glad I started saving early! The race was about $200 but that wasn’t even the crazy part! I was lucky that I happened to be off of work the day of registration because the registration process was INSANE! I had no idea that registering for a race would be the equivalent to the hunger games. I was one of the lucky ones that got through! The race sold out completely about 40 minutes after I registered!
With that experience I decided to actually prepare for Tinkerbell Half marathon registration. I was off of work, I had the site pulled up my hands on the mouse, my card in hand, I was in beast mode! I was done with registration about 5 minutes after it opened, but thankfully it wasn’t hunger games style warfare and there even still spots open! So with two marathons set to go I know have the mighty task of….training for them. I’m terrified but I’m so excited to be one of those people walking around with those super snazzy marathon medals in the parks after…I can walk again haha. And even better I’ll be planning my very first trip to Disneyland!
So to my friends that are interested in runDisney I have just a couple tips for you:
1- Do your research
2- On registration day make sure you’re at your computer ready to go right when it opens
3- And most importantly…GET READY TO HAVE AS MUCH FUN AS POSSIBLE!
Happy running lovelies I’ll see you across the finish line
Kermit the Frog participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge to raise awareness for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Kermit accepted the challenge from WWE CEO Vince McMahon and named three Muppets Most Wanted co-stars—Tina Fey, Ty Burrell, and Ricky Gervais—to take the challenge.
Disney Channel’s expanded “Replay” block last week was such a hit, the network is going to do it again. And again.
Festival of the Masters, the long-running open-air art show at Downtown Disney, will not be held this year, a Disney spokesman said Wednesday.
Learn more about Black Widow’s secrets in this new deleted scene from Marvel’s “Captain America: The Winter Soldier”! See this scene and more when you buy the film on HD Digital Download August 19 and on Blu-ray September 9!
