May 10, 2016Disney Infinity has grown a following inside the Disney community. It has allowed parents and children to play side by side in a way that only Disney could achieve.
Infinity was something that took people by surprise in 2013. What just looked like a quick cash grab turned out to spawn a loyal following. After all the hard work that Disney and the Disney Interactive team have put into Infinity, it has come to an end.
It’s sad to see something so successful come to and end. It seemed like Marvel and Star Wars were just what it needed to keep getting bigger.
“After a thorough evaluation, we have modified our approach to console gaming and will transition exclusively to a licensing model. This shift in strategy means we will cease production of Disney Infinity, where the lack of growth in the toys-to-life market, coupled with high development costs, has created a challenging business model. This means that we will be shutting down Avalanche, our internal studio that developed the game. This was a difficult decision that we did not take lightly given the quality of Disney Infinity and its many passionate fans.”
Along with ending the Disney Infinity line, Disney has also ceased being a video game publisher. Disney has also closed their Avalanche studios and taken a $147 million hit to their bottom line. The $147 million is mostly in unsold Disney Infinity merchandise. Around 300 jobs at Disney Interactive will be lost as a result of these decisions.
Below you can read the text from the Disney Infinity blog about ending the franchise.
By now you may have heard the news that we have made the difficult decision to discontinue production of Disney Infinity. From the beginning, Disney Infinity was built for you—our fans—and I wanted to take a moment to thank you not just for your support over the years, but for creating a community that made Disney Infinity more than just a game.
Our goal for Disney Infinity was to bring the best of Disney storytelling to life in homes around the world, and with your support we accomplished that. We hope you had as much fun playing the game as we had making it.
So what’s next for Disney Infinity? We have two final retail releases coming, including three new characters from Alice Through the Looking Glass later this month, and the Finding Dory Play Set launching in June.
And as we turn to the next chapter in our story, I want to thank everyone who helped bring Disney Infinity to life, particularly Disney’s Glendale-based production and publishing teams, our external development partners, and of course the incredible Avalanche team for their tireless dedication to this project.
But most of all, I want to again thank you for making Disney Infinity a part of your lives—and for adding to the Disney legacy by being a part of this community.
—JOHN BLACKBURN, SVP & GM, DISNEY INFINITY
SOURCES: Disney Interactive Blog, Wall Street Journal