A new gameplay trailer for Disney's Illusion Island shown during today's Nintendo Direct confirmed that it's coming exclusively to Nintendo Switch on July 28.
It's been a couple of months since we last saw Disney's Illusion Island, but it made a surprise appearance during today's Nintendo Direct. Not only did we get the most extensive trailer for it yet, but that trailer revealed that we won't have long to wait for the game, as it's now got an official release date of July 28.
The new trailer for the game opened by revealing that the gang is after three magical books across Illusion Island. We then get an extended look at gameplay, which shows that platforming is made up of running, jumping, and swinging from grappling hooks. The trailer also shows off that the player can unlock special abilities for the characters (that appear to be the same for all four, just with some different animations), including wall-jumping, ground-pounding, and even gliding.
The trailer also makes it clear that, although players can adventure on their own, local co-op is a big focus of Illusion Island. Just like in Kirby, players can hug their friends to share health, although Illusion Island goes one step further by letting players leap-frog off of one another and drop ropes to help others climb to higher platforms. How that'll be balanced for single players isn't clear yet, but we imagine the special moves will ensure everyone can get to the same places.
Following Illusion Island's announcement at D23, it was revealed in interviews that the game was actually the second attempt at a deal between Dlala Studios and Disney back in 2016. That game was cancelled before it ever got revealed and isn't the same as the Illusion Island that we see today, but at least we get to see some form of the concept release.
Although Dlala stresses that this Illusion Island isn't the same as the one from 2016, the original concept did contain the same characters and was likely quite similar in many ways. Concept art for that version of the game also leaked out a few months before the announcement of the revival at D23.