Disney Interactive has just announced that it’s pulling the plug on the Infinity line and is exiting the self-publishing console games business altogether. Doing so has resulted in a $147 million charge in the Walt Disney Company’s Q2 2016 earnings. Back in March, Disney signaled it would slow development of the “toys-to-life” game which first launched in 2013, but gave no indication it planned to walk away from the series entirely.
Senior VP John Blackburn stated on Disney Interactive’s website:
“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.”
Disney Infinity has seen major new releases each year, introducing popular characters from Disney / Pixar films, the Marvel universe, and most recently integrating Star Wars characters in Disney Infinity 3.0. Only a month ago, Disney had pledged to make the3.0 title its “biggest game ever” through upcoming downloadable content — a way to make up for the lack of a completely new version 4.0. Well, it seems that’s no longer the plan.
Disney News Today 