‘Disney Infinity’ Shutdown Timeline Revealed, Online Turned Off In March 2017

Disney Infinity was officially cancelled by Disney Interactive earlier in May, but the game is still playable for now. The studio officially announced the shutdown schedule for the game Friday, which culminates in all online services for the game being turned off at the start of March 2017.

“Since announcing that we will discontinue the production of Disney Infinity, we’ve been exploring timelines for the closure of the game’s online versions and community features,” the developer wrote in an email sent to all followers, which is also posted on the game’s official website. Our goal has been to offer extended access to these services, while also providing clear communication about what you can expect.”

The first hit comes today, July 29, as the ability make in-game purchases has been turned off for Disney Infinity 2.0 for the Steam PC version, iOS, Android, and Apple TV versions of the older release. Owners of Disney Infinity 3.0 can still make in-game purchases for now.

The next step takes place on September 30, as Disney Interactive begins turning off online services. Non-Steam PC, IOS, and Android owners will no longer log into play any version of Disney Infinity. Meanwhile, Apple TV owners will not be able to find the game on the Apple AppStore at all as it will be removed.

Owners of the game will still be able to explore the Play Sets and Toy Boxes, they just won’t have access to any of the online features such as stats and leaderboards.

Additionally, September 30 will mark the end of any new Toy Box submissions by the community. The Disney Infinity Community Team will no longer be reviewing or approving any new Toy Boxes. However, existing Toy Boxes will still be available to download from the Community Content section through March 3, 2017.

Windows 8/10 users will lose the ability to make in-game purchases starting on January 3, but the big date is March 3, 2017. That is when Windows PC and Apple TV versions of the game will no longer be playable at all. Disney Infinity 3.0 and 2.0 will only be playable on consoles and Steam PC at this point. However, there will be no access to any of the online services or community features.

Console and PC owners of Disney Infinity will still have their existing progress saved, per a FAQ post from the Disney Infinity support team. The game will also still be available to download from the PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, and Nintendo’s online store.

Disney announced the shutdown of Disney Interactive and Disney Infinity in May as part of its financial earnings report for the quarter ending April 2, 2016. The mega-corporation took a $147 million charge against its balance sheet and also announced the closure of the developer, Avalanche Studios. Up to 300 people at the Utah-based developer will lose their jobs.

“After a thorough evaluation, we have modified our approach to console gaming and will transition exclusively to a licensing model,” Disney announced at the time. “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.”

The competition in the toys-to-life market became intense in 2015. Activision’s Skylanders, Warner Bros. LEGO Dimensions, and Nintendo’s Amiibo figures all competed for much the same audience. Sales of both Skylanders and Disney Infinity suffered as a result. Disney was not willing to weather out the difficulties and costs associated with publishing Infinity despite it being tied to hot properties like Star Wars and Marvel.

Disney has several licensing deals for its properties already. The deal with Electronic Arts for its Star Wars franchise is one of the most notable and has already generated Star Wars: Battlefront with a sequel incoming plus other titles based on the universe.

What do you think of the Disney Infinity shutdown schedule? Sound off in the comments below.

[Image via Disney Infinity]