Disney Dreamlight Valley characters are chosen with one thing in mind

As we continue to see new Disney Dreamlight Valley characters pour into Gameloft’s ever-growing Lifetime game, the developer has revealed that there’s one criteria fresh faces must meet to call Disney Dreamlight Valley their new home.

What would a life game be without a cast of adorable, loveable characters? Nintendo’s Animal Crossing was full of wonderful woodland creatures that made you smile day after day, and Disney Dreamlight Valley wants to follow in its footsteps.

So far we’ve seen fan-favorites like Lilo and Stitch’s titular blue villains arrive in the Valley, as well as more traditional characters like Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse himself. Disney Dreamlight Valley’s next update cycle is set to add Encanto’s Mirabel Madrigal and The Lion King’s Simba, and in the wake of the announcement, the team at Comicbook Gameloft asked how they choose which characters to add to the cozy game’s fairytale universe.

Dreamlight Valley lead producer Manea Castet explains that “the biggest rule is is [the character] add something to our story?

“After that, we also ask ourselves, ‘Is that a well-known character or not?’ But we really don’t just want to concentrate on top performance or [best] known characters. We also have characters who are just perfect [a specific] Role. So we want to fix that, then we also have a lot of discussions with Disney, talking about their upcoming plans and what’s happening. Also, it’s a dialogue with them to make sure we have a variety of characters for the game.”

Given that Disney now owns both Star Wars and Marvel, Comicbook asked if we’d see Darth Vader or Black Panther make it to the Valley.

“We don’t close doors,” Castet explains, but emphasizes that the team’s focus is on “Disney Animation and Pixar” characters. Given that Disney has a fairly extensive catalog of cartoon icons, it looks like we won’t be seeing any of the company’s relative newcomers in the game any time soon.

I totally agree – while I’d love to be friends with Deadpool, I think Marvel should be kept within Disney rather than its own universe; runs alongside traditional Disney and Star Wars, but doesn’t mix with them. After all, there’s always a talkative mercenary to befriend in Marvel’s Midnight Suns, as seen in our Deadpool DLC preview.

Instead, I’m looking forward to stocking my character’s kitchen with some new Disney Dreamlight Valley recipes inspired by Encanto and The Lion King; After all, what better way to welcome someone into their new home than by cooking them a delicious meal? However, if you’ve already made friends with all of the current Valley residents, we also have a list of the best Disney games to cheer you on until the next update.