In my Marvel Universe, The Incredible Hulk and Rocket Raccoon are a crime fighting duo, Mr. Incredible is a member of the Avengers and Starlord and Elsa from Frozen may or many not have a thing going on. Similar to it's predecessor, Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Superheroes perfectly recreates the feeling of taking a box of toys, dumping them on the floor and letting your imagination run wild, it just falters in the other areas, like a lackluster story and world setting. Regardless, kids will love it and it might just reconnect parents with a part of their childhood they haven't embraced in a while; as long as they have the money to buy into the expansive universe.

Disney Infinity 2.0 plays nearly identical to last year's original version; you put collectible figures on the included base and they suddenly come to life in the game. It's a system that should be familiar to anyone who has played any of the Skylanders games but it still feels surprisingly fresh here. The major draw of course here is the inclusion of the newly acquired Marvel characters, and their figures are extremely cool. Last year's Disney-only figures looked alright, if not a bit messy, but the Marvel figures (and the few new Disney ones introduced) are incredibly cool. Taking an almost Saturday morning cartoon style, characters like Captain America, Groot and Venom would be cool collectibles even if they weren't part of the game. I mean, come on - there's a Nova figure. How awesome is that? I'm not ashamed to admit to admit that while I may not spend much time with the game after long, a good portion of the figures have a permanent home on my desk.

"...have to be able to feed the beast, and it's going to cost you."

That's a dangerous idea though. Much like the original Disney Infinity game, 2.0 is a scary mix of collectible, addicting and expensive. If you truly want the full Disney Infinity experience, you're going to have to be able to feed the beast, and it's going to cost you. The starter pack comes with the Avengers playset and figures for Iron Man, Thor and Black Widow, it's interesting to note that last year's game came with three different figures from three different playlets, which allowed you to try out different worlds but wouldn't allow you to play cooperatively outside of the toy box mode without an additional purchase. Those additionally purchases are going to cost you too, there's a whopping 28 new characters in 2.0, each costing you between $12 and $20 depending on where you get them. There are also three new playsets and nearly one hundred blind pack power discs. If you think you're going to be able to play through the game without buying anything of these additional items you may be in for a bit of a surpass; the game constantly reminds you what fun you could be having with the not included characters.

Gameplay wise, you'll be spending the vast majority of your time in the toy box mode, which brings out the best of the Disney Infinity formula. Much like last year's game, you start with a blank world and are allowed to create pretty much anything you want (as long as you have the characters and assets purchased). It's really cool to be able to mix characters, environments and items from different Disney and Marvel properties and it recreates playing with a box of toys near perfectly. There are a ton of cool items here, like Agent Coulson's car Lola, the Infinity Gauntlet and a few others that are too cool to spoil. What's perhaps most cool is that the game has the potential to grow well ahead of where it is today with additional content and characters.

"Most missions boil down to a simple formula.."

Story mode wise, Disney Infinity 2.0 is more focused than it's predecessor, if not better thought out. The vast majority of the missions play out similar to how they would in the previous game, but it feels much more well developed thanks to the direction and writing of comics-scribe Brian Michael Bendis. Bendis knows these characters and it shows via the great characterization and dialogue each character displays. It's a lot of fun to zoom past buildings as Iron Man or decimate waves of enemies as Captain America. You can't help but feel like the game missed a great opportunity to tell some cool (if not kid friendly) stories since everything seems so expected. Most missions boil down to a simple formula - run around a virtual (and lifeless) Manhattan, beat up wave after wave of identical enemies, perform a task and repeat. Characters can now be upgraded to allow for new attacks and abilities but they do little to change up the monotonous gameplay that plagues Disney Infinity 2.0.

It's important to remember who Disney Infinity 2.0's target audience really is, and your kids are going to love the combination of playing as their favorite Marvel and Disney characters while also flexing their imaginations and creating their own new experiences. Your wallet may not love it as much since the game almost requires extensive additional purchases to enjoy but hey - at least the figures are really cool and Disney Interactive has done a great job making a game that both adults and kids can play together without much challenge. .