Welcome Avengers Recruit! Playmation Review

This past summer, I had the opportunity to get some hands on time with the upcoming Playmation gaming system at the Disney Holiday Showcase. This new interactive gaming system, powered by Disney, is manufactured by Hasbro, so that means quality is high. Now, while I enjoyed my limited time with the product, I was hoping to get a better look at the system prior to its’ release this coming Sunday, October 4th, here in the US. This past week, the team over at Disney Consumer Products sent over a complimentary gift copy of the Playmation Starter Pack for me to check out and review for you all. Without further ado, let’s check it out.

First off, just the beginning part of the packaging is really inviting for a new recruit to The Avengers. A note from Tony Stark himself explains what the Starter Pack includes: an Iron Man Repulsor Gear, (2) Power Activators, and (2) Smart Figures: Captain America (Hero) and Iron Skull (Villain).

Once you load batteries into the Repulsor Gear and power it on, J.A.R.V.I.S. greets you and begins the training process. Once the basic training process is complete, you are guided to the Avengers Tower and New York City to help Iron Man, Hulk, and the rest of the Avengers keep it safe from the enemy.

 

By linking the Repulsor Gear up to the Power Activator, enemies are spawned to battle. Between that, a series of dialogue and sound effects, and the power of imagination, while in New York City I traveled through the sewers with Iron Man battling Ultron Bots, saved Central Park with Hulk, and protected Avengers Tower from more of Ultron’s forces. Taking the action of “Play” (associated with physical activity) and added “Imagination”… and you get Playmation.

 

Now, I mentioned the physical activity part… because physical activity is what you get. This is not a game system where one can remain inactive. In order to advance in the missions, one needs to walk, run, jump, dodge, etc. as the Avengers command. While fighting enemies via the Power Activators, one needs to be fast moving, able to run and hide or evade attacks from the enemy, all using infrared technology.

Throughout my demoing this week, I completed the missions in New York City, and moved on to The Raft, where I am currently fighting Hydra and helping Black Widow explore the prison and make sure certain villains have not escaped. Out of the four we are checking on, Iron Skull has already skipped town… and I have a feeling the other three have done the same.

In addition to the missions loaded into the base program of the Repulsor Gear, the addition of Smart Figures to the game play adds additional locations, missions, and upgrades to your adventure. Hero Smart Figures, like Captain America, “has two attacks to help you level-up to earn a unique attack” according to the promotional material. I personally only skirmished with Captain America a bit to try out, so I did not achieve anything with a unique attack. I am looking forward to eventually bringing him into a battle to help me defeat the enemies.

Villain Smart Figures, like Iron Skull, unlock a new attack and unlock a new location once defeated in battle, which also brings new missions. Iron Skull, when defeated, unlocks the Iron Submarine location. I’m looking forward to see what battles Iron Skull has for me when I visit that location.

In addition to Captain America and Iron Skull, who come with the Starter Pack, at launch on Sunday additional Hero and Villain Smart Figures will be available:  Hero- Iron Man, Hulk, Hulkbuster, Black Widow, and Falcon / Villain- Ultron Bot and M.O.D.O.K. More will be available at a later date. MSRP: $14.99

 

A couple of items I did not get to demo this week are also coming out. First up is an interactive Prowler Bot, which MSRP’s at $39.99, and also comes out this Sunday. In addition to unlocking exclusive missions and locations, when activated it hunts and attacks the Repulsor Gear with different personas and powers.

 

Next up is a War Machine themed version of the Repulsor Gear, which is coming out in November around Thanksgiving, according to the Disney Store website. MSRP: $69.99.

Now, in addition to all of the gadgetry and figures involved with Playmation, a big part of the interactive game is the AvengersNet App, which currently will be available on most iOS devices, with Android device support coming soon. The app is a free download, with subsequent in-app purchases. By linking your gear to the app, you can get important updates and expanded game play by discovering new characters, storylines, and adventures. Unfortunately, though the DCP team was kind enough to send me a code to download the app early, neither my old iPhone 4 nor my iPad 2 are new enough to support the app. I am looking in to upgrading one of them these days. However, until that day, I will be regulated to what the gear came with to support my game play.

Overall, this summer I was still on the fence about this gaming system until this past week. Given time to experience the game on my own, at my own pace… I really am liking it. I am up on my feet, getting some exercise in, and using my imagination. Being an adult, that doesn’t happen as much as I would like to. With Playmation and my Repulsor Gear, I am looking forward to the next time I can strap it on my arm and fight with The Avengers.

If there is a dowside (aside from my iOS devices being antiques) to Playmation, is that it takes some space to play. My small apartment is not conducive to game play. I ended up finding a spot at work where I could play during lunch hours and after I clock out for the day that fit better the parameters of the game. If you plan on getting the game for you or your kids, make sure you have the space.

I would like to thank DCP for giving me the chance to review the Starter Pack. I will probably be picking up a few of the figures to unlock new locations and missions once the run out of the 25 that are included with the Starter Pack, and maybe even snag one of those Prowler Bots.

Have you pre-ordered Playmation yet? The Disney Store has a great deal going on until Sunday when the game is released: $20 off a future purchase and a free Smart Figure with purchase of the Starter Pack. You can shop this great deal here. In addition to the Disney Store, Playmation will be available at numerous retailers here in the US, including Amazon, Target, GameStop, Walmart, Toys “R”Us, and Best Buy.

For more details and information on Playmation, you can visit the official Playmation website.

Will you be getting Playmation? If you do, let us know what you and/or your children think of the game.