If you have put any amount of time into Toy Story 3: The Video Game when it was released on the PS3 back in 2010, then the figurative meat and potatoes of Toy Story 3: Complete Edition will likely come as little surprise. That is to say that aside from a fresh lick of contemporary paint and all of the DLC released to date, this is the exact same game that we saw sixteen years ago, for better or worse. Given that we already have a review for Toy Story 3: The Video Game, I’m not going to dive deeply into those already well-swam waters, but I’ll certain re-underscore much of the sentiment here, which is to say that Toy Story 3: Complete Edition manages a pleasing dual-feat whereupon it’s not only a sterling (if somewhat loose) take on the movie of the same name, but so too does it also serve as a more than appropriate on-ramp for younger gamers looking to get into open-world games as well.
Toy Story 3: Complete Edition PS5 Review
For the uninitiated, Toy Story 3: Complete Edition essentially splits itself into two different games – with one portion of its offering revolving around a linear story driven adventure where players can switch between Woody, Buzz Lightyear and Jessie in order to seek out one more play session with their beloved owner, Andy. In these sections of the game, players have to switch between each of the main characters in order to proceed from one level to the next as each has unique abilities which can compliment one another.
The other portion of Toy Story 3: Complete Edition’s gameplay offering is a much more open-world style affair called the “toy box”, where players can build up a toy town to attract new toys and gain access to new areas on the map. Stuffed with all manner of secrets to uncover and missions to tackle, the toy box actually offers a heap of additional replay value too as it not only provides a decent chunk of content for players to take on, but a raft of trophies to unlock too.
Enhancing the whole affair further, is the fact that Toy Story 3: Complete Edition also boasts co-operative play (either locally or online) across both the story mode and the toy box mode, making it a perfect game to pop on when you’ve got a fellow Disney fan in the room with you, or indeed many miles removed.
Clearly geared towards younger gamers, Toy Story 3: Complete Edition arguably lacks any real challenge and is generously forgiving, and yet none of that really counted against it for me. It’s ultimately something of a straightforward, charming and breezily simple 3D platformer that serves a great on-ramp to open world games for younger folk and newer gamers, and is so relentlessly cheerful that it represents a good time to chill out with – not least because there is hefty number of secrets to discover and goodies to collect.
Toy Story 3: Complete Edition in its current generation guise also benefits from a massive uptick in screen resolution and frame rate, though it’s a touch disappointing that the cutscenes are locked to their PS3 era technical limits and as such, feel a little more jarring than they otherwise would. That said, Toy Story 3: Complete Edition remains visually quite attractive in its own way and manages to evoke the aesthetic of the superb 2010 movie well enough with colourful, vibrant environments and detailed character models which satisfyingly evoke their big screen counterparts.
Toy Story 3: Complete Edition, in honour of its ‘complete edition’ moniker, includes all of the DLC, promotional content and characters that were issued in scattershot fashion after the game’s original release. Which is, y’know, nice. Really though, Toy Story 3 Complete Edition imbibes and exudes enough the feeling of the movie that it can’t help but be inherently charming and twee in ways that make my brain feel fuzzy, but it’s also worth remembering that this is not a title that is built for gaming veterans, owing to its relatively low difficulty and deliberately rudimentary game design.
Much like the toys around which its tale revolves, Toy Story 3: Complete Edition isn’t going to show you any new tricks and is ostensibly a product of its time. A fairly unambitious remaster, Toy Story 3: Complete Edition nonetheless manages to earn its keep thanks to its charming presentation, breezy gameplay and oodles of Disney-Pixar charm. So long, partner.
Review code kindly provided by PR.
Toy Story 3: Complete Edition is out now on PS5.