Snapshots and Impressions of Disney Infinity

NOTE: All the pictures in today's post were snapped with an iPhone pointed at my (very cheap) little television screen. This game looks much, much better in person.

Barbosa finds the Hatter's tea party...and doesn't know quite what to make of it.

Disney Infinity is a huge, sprawling game, so full of possibilities and options that no two people will play it in quite the same way. We'll have a complete review later this week, but here are our impressions after several hours inside Infinity's strange, astonishing world.

Mr. Incredible borrows Mulan's horse. And yes, that's an Autopia Car

The game is brilliant, beautifully animated, and an absolute blast to play with. And that's the key to Infinity: you don't simply play through it like a normal video game. You play with it, tweaking it, experimenting and changing it around as you go.

Davy Jones takes a spin in the above-mentioned Autopia car.

Infinity's not perfect; It's a bit glitchy in spots. But, just as a couple of broken animatronics won't ruin a visit to a Disney park, the minor flaws in Infinity are far outweighed by the sheer amount of amazing fun to be had in this virtual Disney universe.

Mike Wazowski is thrilled to be in the Wild West.

Speaking of Disney Parks, if you buy the Infinity starter set, an expansion pack and a handful of extra action figures, it'll cost you just about the same as one day at a park for one adult (including meals).

Infinity Lone Ranger -- Fun, uncynical and 100% free of torture and cannibalism!

Spoiler paragraph! Although the initial round of playable characters focuses on popular current franchises, the game is packed with hundreds of references to classic Disney films and park attractions. Scrooge McDuck and his Money Bin are in the game. So are the Matterhorn, the Haunted Mansion and Spaceship Earth. When you board an Autopia Car, you hear Jack Wagner's original safety spiel for the ride. You can build a racetrack through Monstro's mouth. On my initial exploration of the Castle Hub World, Jack Sparrow got ambushed by the Palace guards from Aladdin and the Rhino guards from Robin Hood. The Muppets appear in this game. So does ESPN.

Davy Jones--Angry in Wonderland

At this point, my family and I have had an amazing amount of fun with this game...and we've just scratched the surface. If you love Disney's brand of fantasy and aren't offended by the many, many ways this game will try to convince you to purchase as much Infinity stuff as possible (which--let's face it--is about as modern-day "Disney" as you can get), the odds are good that you'll find it worth the money.

I was sold the moment my Davy Jones-driven Autopia car performed tire-screeching doughnuts in Cinderella's courtyard. Full review coming soon.