Disney SpellStruck is a word video game featuring Disney and Pixar characters. It was released as an Apple Arcade exclusive on May 4, 2023.
App Store Description[]
Journey to the Isle of Tiles with beloved Disney and Pixar characters and take on challenging crossword-style games in Disney SpellStruck! Flex your skills with Mickey Mouse, Tiana, Stitch, and others in a crossword-style adventure. Play with friends in an online versus mode, complete daily challenges, and test your power as you claim the top spot on the leaderboards!
Gameplay[]
Presented in a style of a word game similar to Scrabble or other similar titles, the player must place letters on the board to form valid words using the given letters on the rack below the board to score points against their opponents with a limited number of moves. To do this, the player's first word must be placed on the center square (represented by a yellow Mickey icon). In order to play words, the word must be connected to any adjacent letters that form one in a straight and horizontal line. In accordance with the game's word placement mechanic being strict, any words spelled must be proper words found in the dictionary and the words spelled must be at least age-appropriate in order for them to be registered as valid.
The player's score is the sum of the letter value in each word and words placed on tiles with multipliers add extra points to the score (placing words on 2L and 3L tiles multiplies the letter value while placing words on 2W and 3W tiles multiplies the word value). After spelling a word, the letter tiles received on the board are random, so the player can never tell which letter they will receive on the rack. The longer a valid word is spelled, the more the player earns more points to defeat their opponents (namely enemies known as Letter Lackeys sent by the main villain Blank) to make it easier for the player to win a game before the round ends; otherwise, the player loses if their opponent has a higher score value than their score. The board layout may vary depending on gameplay, so the player must choose their strategy or character carefully with the number of letters they spell. Chances of winning may or may not be guaranteed, depending how long or well the opponents spell or the letters given to the player, regardless of difficulty. Aside from spelling valid words by placing letters, there are three actions the player can do pressing the "Pause" icon. The first action players are also able to do consists of swapping for a different set of tiles during their turn, which is the case if the player cannot find any letter to spell a valid word on the board, albeit ending their turn causing their opponent to receive a free turn. The second involves skipping a turn, giving their opponent a free turn depending on how many turns they have left. The third involves resigning the game, which concedes the match and automatically makes their opponent win.
In addition to plain white tiles and multiplier tiles, the board also features power squares, represented by transparent blue glows. When played on, it activates the character's unique power into helping the player win rounds (in other cases, Letter Lackeys can also play on power tiles to get a chance of winning against the player). However, if the player spells on a word on a power tile on their last turn, they will receive extra ten points instead. Power-ups such as Word Vision and Swap Shot are also available which the player earns along the way, but has a limited number of them. Word Vision shows the player the available blank spots to spell valid words on their turn while Swap Shot allows them to swap some letter tiles to replace with an easier one to spell a valid word to complete a level faster.
Game Modes[]
The game includes several modes:
Adventure Mode[]
Adventure Mode is the player's default mode which they can play to restore worlds and their respective champions. Throughout gameplay, the player assumes the role of the character they have unlocked which is automatically chosen to them. On the map, the player encounters Letter Lackeys whom the player must defeat and transform them into tiles to spell letters on the map representing specific landmarks from Disney franchises (such as Steamboat Willie, the Ice Palace, the Nautilus, Skull Rock, Rapunzel's Tower, some Light Cycles, the Grotto, the Ralph Building, and many others). As soon as the player progresses, the Letter Lackeys' difficulty levels increase, so the player must spell wisely to earn higher values to defeat tougher Lackeys. Once the player defeats the last remaining Lackeys on their way to the end of each world to restore a corrupted character (represented as a silhouette) back in their normal state, they will engage in a confrontation against them in a higher difficulty level, showing that every end of each world ends in a boss fight. Defeating the corrupted character whom the player does not have in their character roster results them to be restored to their normal form, rendering them unlocked and playable for other modes.
The following worlds the player progresses through are in order:
- Beginner's Bayou
- Fairytale Forest
- Dusty Dunes
- Stormy Seas
- Frosty Fjords
- Cyberspace Station
Once the player completes all the worlds, they can revisit any world they have previously completed. Unlike the first time, the player can play as any character they have already unlocked of their choice to earn more rewards along the way. Completing each world by playing as any character will garner the player a special reward for their character.
Daily Puzzle[]
The Daily Puzzle is a challenge mode where the player can earn rewards competing against Letter Lackeys which almost functions like Adventure Mode. The player can choose any character which they have unlocked of their choice. The mode also includes a daily streak where the player can play for a consecutive seven days to unlock a special reward. Rewards can range from stickers that can be earned to complete sticker sets, power-ups to earn along the way, or letter tiles required to unlock characters that are normally not unlocked in Adventure Mode. However, if the player loses in a Daily Puzzle, the game is not replayable, but their streak will still be saved. Should the player miss a day, they will be forced to start their streak all over again; additionally, if the player does not complete a Daily Puzzle challenge after their progress is saved, the level will automatically restart. The board during Daily Puzzle Mode can vary and some may include power tiles and some may not include them, so the player must study the board carefully before choosing to challenge. While victories help earn the player extra prizes to fill the streak, losses can also add progress to the player's streak. Filling the streak will award the player with a grand prize consisting of additional prizes, causing the daily streak to reset.
The Daily Puzzle also randomly highlights a character who would earn extra fifty points if unlocked upon selection, helping beat a Daily Puzzle challenge quicker. By selecting the highlighted character, fifty points are automatically added to the player's score. Normal wins give the player at least two prizes while earning a higher number of points give the player four prizes.
Blank's Blitz Challenge[]
Once the player earns a Blitz Ticket upon finishing a world in Adventure Mode, they are able to compete in a special mode called Blank's Blitz where Blank himself serves as the host. The game functions almost like Adventure Mode where the player can compete against opponents to earn rewards. However, unlike in Adventure Mode, opponents are not only Letter Lackeys but also random characters that the player has unlocked every three milestones, meaning the player cannot choose the character chosen as their opponent, forcing them to choose a different character from the roster in order to win against them (the character will be automatically sent back to the roster upon successfully winning against them, though). Every Milestone 1, 2, 4, and 5 begin with a Letter Lackey in an easy difficulty while every Milestone 3 and 6 begin with a randomly-selected character in a medium and hard difficulty respectively. Once the player defeats all opponents, they will receive a reward. Afterwards, Blank's Blitz cannot be played again until the player has received another Blitz Ticket.
Completing Adventure Mode at least once will reward the player with a Golden Blitz Ticket, where the player can play Blank's Blitz for an unlimited number of times to earn more rewards.
Online Versus Mode[]
Online Versus Mode is another mode which the player can compete against other players who play Disney SpellStruck. However, unlike other modes, Versus Mode requires the player to enable Multiplayer Mode on their device in order to play as well as online connection. Versus Mode is only available online when the player has a strong Internet connection; however, if the player's Internet connection is weak, the mode will not load properly, rendering it unavailable until the player restarts the app. In Versus Mode, the player is able to compete against another player; however, unlike in Adventure Mode, the player has to wait for their opponent to perform a move after spelling a word, so no extra words can be spelled until their opponent spells a word.
When the player participates in a Versus match for the first time, they will automatically unlock Donald Duck, instantly adding him to the player's character roster.
Limited Time Events[]
Limited time events would occasionally be assigned to the player in an update that would include one, where the player can unlock a new character within a limited amount of time. Most of these events would feature a new character added to the game or in other cases, a re-release of a past event featuring a previously-released character which the player has not unlocked yet. The player must collect a number of currencies to find letters that spell out the showcased character's name, which can be earned during gameplay in Adventure Mode, the Daily Puzzle, and Blank's Blitz. In order to collect a currency, the player has to fill the meter. As soon as they progress in one of these modes to collect currencies, they will receive a letter tile spelling out the character's name. Once the player collected enough currencies to spell out the character's name, the event will be completed. If the player does not collect enough letters during these events and then runs out of time, they can still be able to unlock characters through other methods like Daily Puzzle challenges - especially when it comes to finding letters they have are still missing to unlock characters showcased in the expired events.
Tasks[]
Tasks are a mechanic that occur during gameplay where completing a specific objective would award the player a prize. Prizes obtained would include letters required to spell characters' names, power-ups, or stickers. They are usually timed, giving the player a limited amount of time to complete.
Twinkles's To-Dos[]
Twinkles's To-Dos is a weekly task assigned to the player given by Twinkles, an anthropomorphic star in a wizard hat. The task given is a timed seven-day deadline depending on the day the player opens up Disney SpellStruck, where completing a certain amount of tasks would fill the bar to earn prizes along the way - usually three tasks. In order to unlock the second and third tasks, the player has to complete the first task that is assigned to them to complete them and as soon as they are completed, the bar fills with the tasks becoming a bit challenging. Tasks can be completed in either mode while some have to be completed in a specific mode such as Blank's Blitz Mode. Once the player completes three given tasks, no more tasks will be given and the player must wait for another day to receive another task lost. As soon as the player fills the prize bar to obtain the grand prize, the "To-Do" list will automatically be marked as complete, prompting the player to wait for the next day, causing the meter to automatically start from the beginning - regardless if the bar is filled before the deadline expires or when finished during the last minute. If the player does not fill the bar within the given deadline, the prize bar will automatically reset as well.
Versus Mode Tasks[]
The game features two Versus Mode task mechanics: one which is called "Sunday Showdown" and another which is called "Midweek Madness". They almost function like Twinkles's To-Dos, except they have to be played on Versus Mode fighting against other players. Unlike Twinkles's To-Dos, these task lists are one-day events which occur on a specific day of the week, Sunday Showdown typically occurring on Sundays and Midweek Madness typically occurring on Wednesdays. Once the bar to earn prizes is filled, these task lists are automatically marked as complete.
Champions[]
Mickey Mouse & Friends[]
The Princess and the Frog[]
Peter Pan[]
Toy Story[]
The Little Mermaid[]
Frozen[]
Wreck-It Ralph[]
Turning Red[]
Encanto[]
Moana[]
Lilo & Stitch[]
The Incredibles[]
Maleficent[]
The Nightmare Before Christmas[]
Raya and the Last Dragon[]
Monsters, Inc.[]
WALL-E[]
The Lion King[]
Hercules[]
Aladdin[]
Robin Hood[]
Sticker Sets[]
Sticker Sets are a mechanic where players can collect stickers during gameplay. Stickers can be earned by defeating opponents, completing quests part of Twinkles's To-Dos weekly task list within a time limit to fill the prize bar, winning Daily Puzzle streaks and then earning the grand prize, winning the grand prize during Blank's Blitz challenges, participating in Versus Mode to complete one-day Versus Mode tasks to fill in the prize bar (such as Sunday Showdown or Midweek Madness), or occasionally defeating a Letter Lackey in Adventure Mode. Collecting a certain amount of stickers awards the player a special type of reward such as power-ups or letters required to spell out character names not normally unlocked in Adventure Mode. Sticker collections are timed, so the player has to collect all the stickers within a time limit; otherwise the incomplete album will be automatically archived and they cannot collect anymore stickers for the album they have not completed yet. Stickers can consist of regular stickers with images of (characters, landmarks, or letter tiles) , stickers with specific colors and themes (fire, topaz, bronze, silver, ruby, etc.), or variants of normal stickers albeit with the same poses and different placements (such as chat bubbles, snowglobes, stamps, mirrors, pixels, etc.). Completing all sticker sets will award the player earn a bigger reward with more prizes to collect. However, the player may even receive duplicates of stickers they have already collected as prizes they may possibly earn along the way, even when they have already completed their sticker albums.
Trivia[]
- The way Wreck-It Ralph eats a cherry when his power is activated is a reference to how he takes a half bite of a cherry from PAC-MAN on his way to Fix-It Felix Jr. in the 2012 film.
- In Blank's Blitz Mode when Blank himself announces Buzz Lightyear as a randomly-selected opponent, he mistakenly calls him "Lunar Larry". This is a reference to Lunar Larry being one of Buzz's original names.
- In that same mode when Blank himself announces Simba as a randomly-selected opponent, he indirectly mentions the song "I Just Can't Wait to Be King".