The Disney Frontier Blog

From Disney’s PR Group:

Highly Anticipated Free-to-Play Massively Multiplayer Online Game Launches for PC and Mac Platforms

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – October 31, 2007 – Disney Online today announced that Pirates of the Caribbean Online (www.PiratesOnline.com), an immersive massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) and virtual world inspired by the popular film franchise, has launched for the PC and Mac platforms. Pirates of the Caribbean Online allows thousands of players to fully experience the adventures made famous in the films and explore beyond these boundaries in a quest to become the most legendary pirate on the high seas.

“The launch of Pirates of the Caribbean Online opens up an entirely new world of pirate adventures to thousands of fans who can now play alongside their favorite characters in a fully-immersive environment that builds on and goes beyond the epic stories created in the films,” said Paul Yanover, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Disney Online. “We believe the game’s focus on action and adventure, combined with many customization options will appeal to a broad audience of both gamers and fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as they set out on their own course to live the legend.”

In Pirates of the Caribbean Online, players create and customize their own pirate, captain their own ship, and assemble a crew of their fellow rogues in an effort to become the Caribbean’s most legendary Pirate. Along the way, players will interact with characters made popular by the films, like Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, and will also encounter a host of new characters and enemies unique to the game. To become the most notorious pirate, players must forge alliances, hunt for buried treasure, battle evil undead forces, and use cunning and strategy to outwit their foes.

Game features include:

• Create your own Pirate character – Players choose from over a million combinations to fully customize their own Pirate (body type, face, hair, clothing, names, etc.).
• Set sail on your own Pirate ship – Captain your own ship then recruit a crew of fellow players to set sail for the adventure of a lifetime.
• Quest for adventure and treasure – Embark on ship and land-based missions to locate buried treasure. Explore lush jungles, volcanic caves, and vast tropical islands but beware of traps, ambushes, and double-crosses which are an every day occurrence when keeping company with Pirates.
• Use advanced weaponry – Players engage in epic battles using a variety of weapons such as cutlasses, grenades, pistols and cannons and can unlock more powerful weapons as they improve their reputation as a fighter to be reckoned with.
• Become a legend – Master a variety of skills, including sword fighting, card playing, and treasure hunting to become the most notorious pirate in the world.
• Work your Voodoo Magic – Voodoo magic is used to heal, travel and cast curses on enemies.
• Get some Booty – Earn extra loot by competing in parlor games such as poker and blackjack.
• Build a notorious crew or guild – Players band together with others for expanded adventures and added power, forming a crew for quick battles or joining a guild for longer-term strategy.
• Grow your wealth with money and rare items – Hunt for buried treasure including gold, precious gems and mysterious artifacts.

The successful Pirates of the Caribbean film franchise, including Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006) and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007), has grossed close to $2.7 billion at the worldwide box office.

Pirates of the Caribbean Online, developed and published by Disney Online, is rated E10+ and features lower PC and Mac system requirements than most other games in this genre, allowing for easier access to a broader audience of players.

Players can download the game directly and access additional information at the game’s Web site, www.PiratesOnline.com. A portion of the game is available for free and players can get unlimited access for a monthly subscription fee. At launch, Disney Online is offering new players subscriptions to Unlimited Access for a first-month fee of $4.95 and continuing with a $9.95 fee for following months

I had previously blogged about this almost a year ago. I hope they got it right considering how long it took them.

Popularity: 19% [?]

Today at MIX07 (a large web development conference), Disney rolled out a strategy of putting a Window’s Vista widget on computers shipping to China. The goal of the widget is to get the Chinese familiar with the Disney brand and drive visits to the Hong Kong resort. Since China hasn’t had the 50+ plus years of the Disneyland mystic combined with movies and television shows, their Disney brand affinity is far less than other parts of the world.

You can read ReadWriteWeb’s take on the widget here. Sounds like it will have some pretty neat features including RSS feeds, itinerary planning tools, and long-video.

You can also jump over to the VisitMix blog to see a video of the keynote by Edward Kummer, Senior Vice President and General Manager for Walt Disney Parks and Resort Operations. If you watch the keynote, it’s very cool to see what can truly be done with these desktop widgets. By interacting, you can see park maps and view ride videos right on the desktop. The content is constantly being updated on the computer, meaning it doesn’t require a broadband connection to load the content each time it’s interacted with. It happens in the background.

BTW, you can hunt for eight pins in the gadget. After you find all eight, you can print out a coupon for a free pin in the actual Hong Kong park…very cool!

I hope they release a version for the US and one for the Mac.

Popularity: 1% [?]

From Chef Mayhem:

Tomorrow (Tuesday, Sept. 19) is the officially designated International “Talk Like a Pirate” Day, so what better way to celebrate than with a contest at your favorite Pirates of the Caribbean website, TellNoTales.com

Think you know your pirate lore? Well sail on over tomorrow to join in our “X Marks the Spot – Cursed Treasure Hunt” trivia contest! Starting at 9 am (eastern), TellNoTales.com will be hosting hourly trivia questions, and the first correct response to each question will win some spectacular booty!

You do need to be a TNT board member to enter, but joining is quick and painless (and free!), and we don’t spam. Just sign up at http://p104.ezboard.com/btellnotales and be a part of the fun!

Yo ho!

Popularity: 8% [?]

Here is a video courtesy of the Inside the Magic Video Podcast. This is a promotional video put out by Disney showcasing the attraction Pooh’s Hunny Hunt in Tokyo Disney. One interesting fact about this ride is that the cars don’t run on tracks. They are free roaming. If anyone knows more about how they do this, please post a comment.

Technorati : Disneyland, Pooh, Tokyo Disney
Flickr : Disneyland, Pooh, Tokyo Disney

Popularity: 21% [?]

I took the family to Cars on Saturday and it will be is another hit for Pixar. The movie is 1 hour and 57 minutes. The actual storyline is fairly common: a self absorbed star gets shown the virtues of caring about others and reforms by the end of the movie – timeless and consistently good. But add that storyline to the Pixar magic – especially Pixar magic directed by John Lasseter himself – and you have a block buster.

All the characters were great with the exception of Bonnie Hunt – the voice of Sally the Porche. She did a fabulous job there and I have no complaints with her voice acting. Its basically the simple fact that I knew who was doing the voice and I couldn’t picture her as a young sexy actresses to play opposite of Owen Wilson. The last role I knew her from is the mom from cheaper by the dozen.

I can’t wait to see it again. I can’t remember a Pixar movie that I saw in the theater that didn’t have me jazzed when I was leaving. This is no exception. Its too bad we will have to wait so long before it is out on DVD.

Technorati : Cars, Disney, Pixar

Popularity: 7% [?]