Today, Disney Cruise Line announced an app-based adventure aboard the Disney Wish by taking classic storytelling into an all-new realm of immersive family fun aboard the Disney Wish with the debut of Disney Uncharted Adventure, a first-of-its-kind interactive experience that will lead guests on a journey from bow to stern and beyond the stars.
Combining imagination, technology and the magic of a wishing star, Disney Uncharted Adventure will take guests on a multidimensional voyage into the worlds of iconic Disney and Pixar characters. Designed for families to play together, this fantastical journey will be a brand-new way to explore and experience the enchantment of a Disney cruise ship.
“With the Disney Wish, we have an incredible opportunity to immerse our guests in the worlds of their favorite stories in surprising, interactive and completely unique new ways,” said Davey Feder, software product manager, Walt Disney Imagineering. “With Disney Uncharted Adventure, we’re literally putting the power in our guests’ hands to become the heroes of a grand adventure that can only be done on a Disney cruise.”
Using the Play Disney Parks app — and with some help from their guides, Captain Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse — guests sailing on the Disney Wish will transform their mobile devices into an enchanted spyglass, a tool that allows them to magically set sail for the worlds of Moana, Tiana, Peter Pan, Nemo and more. The spyglass will be their key to unlocking adventures, solving puzzles, conquering quests and ultimately saving the day.
“While guests will need a mobile device to play, this isn’t a traditional mobile gaming experience,” Feder said. “This is a heads-up, active experience that can be played with family and friends. The magic will happen all around the ship. The spyglass is not where the adventure takes place — it’s just the tool that brings the ship to life, opening portals into new worlds and allowing guests to interact with them.”
The adventure will begin before guests even set sail. Leading up to a cruise on the Disney Wish, the app will reveal a special greeting from Captain Minnie Mouse and Mickey Mouse, who will help guests prepare for the journey ahead by highlighting the important role of the night sky in seafaring — particularly the ever-shining wishing star that lights the way.
Once on board, guests will use their spyglasses to reveal never-before-seen views of the stars above, where enchanted constellations take shape as recognizable icons from Disney and Pixar stories. When the wishing star suddenly bursts and shatters, families will watch as its pieces are scattered across the sky, each landing in a far-off realm. Captain Minnie will need guests to help navigate the ship to these uncharted worlds to find the missing pieces of the wishing star.
Guests will choose where to go next, charting a course toward adventurous locales such as Motunui, New Orleans, Never Land, Sydney and more. Each quest will take them on an expansive journey throughout the Disney Wish as they are prompted to seek artwork, signs and props that magically transform to bring the characters and settings of these story worlds to life all around them.
“We are infusing the Disney Wish with innovative technology, like augmented reality and physical effects, to create a hidden layer of magic that can only be unlocked with Disney Uncharted Adventure,” Feder said. “Guests might admire a beautiful painting today without realizing that, hiding right beneath the surface, there’s a hoard of mischievous Kakamora from the world of Moana just waiting to escape and wreak havoc on the ship. A digital menu board might showcase what’s for lunch in the afternoon, but later it will host a cooking lesson in Tiana’s own kitchen.”
Along the way, guests will join the heroic characters who inhabit each destination on a mission to find the star fragment that landed there. Highlights include:
- teaming up with Moana to navigate their canoes beyond the reef
- helping Tiana cook up the perfect pot of her father’s favorite gumbo
- summoning Tinker Bell to give the Disney Wish an extra dash of pixie dust; and
- making an epic dive into the East Australian Current (EAC) with Nemo and friends.
The adventure culminates in a grand finale hosted in one of the ship’s premier entertainment venues. During this live interactive experience, guests will gather with other players to battle an infamous Disney villain (who’s been pulling the strings all along) and finally restore the wishing star to its rightful place in the sky.
Disney Uncharted Adventure is being developed with flexibility, replayability and customization in mind. Guests will be in charge of their own adventure, choosing when and how to play. Some guests may not complete every quest but can still enjoy the finale event; others may choose to play again and again, only to discover new surprises and rewards each time. Families can play together on up to six devices at once, or team up on only one or two devices at a time.
More details about Disney Uncharted Adventure will be announced at a later date.
A little bonus from the video is a look at an evaluator lobby and a view from inside Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure.
I am interested in hearing your thoughts on what can be looked at as an app based replacement for Midship Detective Agency.
My only complaint is there won’t be enough time to do all the special activities on the Wish. Please change to 7 day cruise!
LOL! That’s why we did a back to back booking. 3 days is just enough time to see the ship from stem to stern, need 4 more to enjoy it all!
I was so excited when the Wish was announced, but as more comes out, I’m less and less excited. VR crap rather than Midship Detective? GROSS!
I worry at the cost of development and the prices increases or cost cuttings else where (a la new Palo) to recover the several millions of dollars for something just a minority of guests will use for a handfull of minutes…
Not to mention another thing that require to keep your mobile with you so that TWDC can plunder your data
The Midship detective was good when we tried it out. This on the other hand, is a whole new level but I guess that comes with advancements in technology. Not to mention that just about every one has a mobile device. I have to agree that this needs to be on longer cruises.
Once the next wish debuts in 2023(?) DCL will place the WISH on a 7 day cruise. I recall speaking with Capt (now Commodore) Tom on our first cruise in 2008 regarding the new ships, DREAM & FANTASY, he said that not only does he have the privilege of being the Sailing Master on new ships, the newest ship is always scheduled for the short hops so guests who book a cruise/Disneyworld combo vacation get the new ships. Its anybody’s guess as to where all 7 ships will be home ported then.
Thinking more about this – are we entertaining ourselves instead of watching live entertainment? Maybe DisneyWorld will do things like this since they fired sooooo many of the live performers. Ok, Guess I’m getting too negative now.
My child said, “Oh they got that from Pokemon”. Am I seeing this right? Do you go around looking at your phone screen?