14 Million Seller 'Disney Tsum Tsum' Game Launched Worldwide

  Andy Robertson 

LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum combines the saccharine addictive qualities of Candy Crush with the cross franchise collectable characters of Disney Infinity. Already a success in Japan, today it launches in other territories.

LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum has been downloaded more than 14 million times in Japan. The game, that translates to Disney Stack Stack, challenges players to connect and pop as many of the Disney Tsum characters as they can in one minute.

It’s fast and frantic action not a million miles away from King’s Candy Crush. A quick look soon shows why LINE: Disney Tsum Tsum has been so successful. Not only does it include some addictive tapping game-play but also a collectable line of Disney and Pixar Tsums characters (Mickey, Minnie, Stitch and Buzz Lightyear to name a few). Each collectable character can be leveled up over time and has a special ability that provides in-game help.

The game-play is relatively straight forward, with a few twists around the character you are currently using. Players need to connect three or more of the same Tsums to eliminate them. The more Tsums you connect, the higher the rewards. This enables you to trigger a Fever Mode with additional bonuses.

 Jimmy Pitaro, president of Disney Interactive spoke about the new game. “Disney Japan has created some of our most successful and popular digital products and Disney Interactive is proud to be working closely with the team to extend their success globally. This is one of the first times that Disney has introduced a distinctly Japanese product to a global audience, and Disney Tsum Tsum offers our guests a unique combination of quality characters, compelling game play and an engaging social experience.”

The app is free to download on iOS or Android. It can be played without further purchases but to accelerate progress there are a range of incentives to spend a little money. It’s here that we find the greatest tension for families, as younger players will be keen to get rewards faster which is possible with the In App Purchases.

There is even a physical cross-over toy with soft plushie versions of the Tsum characters available at select stores and Disney theme parks. While these are for fun rather than unlocking content in the app like Angry Birds Telepods, it seems likely that the game will go in this direction.

Line: Disney Tsum Tsum

The game is also ripe for other Disney franchises to be included. Although currently limited to Disney Originals and Pixar characters it would seem likely that Marvel and Star Wars Tsums would arrive at some point as well.