Review: Pixar Comes to "Disney Lorcana" with "Wilds Unknown" as Ravensburger Debuts Prerelease Boxes
Two-and-a-half years into the Disney Lorcana saga, and it finally happened. With the release of Wilds Unknown, Pixar properties are finally joining the party. But that's not the only way that the team at Ravensburger is mixing things up as they're debuting a new Prerelease Box for this new chapter — and they were nice enough to send one to me to check out.
For those unfamiliar, with each new wave of Lorcana, there are really two release dates: a prerelease for local game stores, followed by a mass retailer release. As part of the Wilds Unknown prerelease on May 8th, a new Prerelease Box will be available. Pro tip: to find rerelease stores, check out Ravensburger Play Hub.
So what is the Prerelease Box? Basically, you can think of it as a mini Illumineer's Trove. The Wilds Unknown box retails for $39.99 comes with six booster packs, four dice, a postcard (one of three designs), a special promo card (one of six options), and a cardboard deck box. For comparison, the Illumineer's Troves are $50 and include eight boosters, six dice, card dividers, a Lore counter, and a larger, sturdier box.
Opening my Prerelease Box, I was excited to see that I got the Wilderknot postcard and a Pocahontas - Steadfast Traveler promo card. These promo cards are foils and are stamped with the Wilds Unknown logo. As mentioned, there are six different randomly-issued cards as part of these boxes — one of each ink color.
For as much as I love the promo card and postcard, my favorite bonus in this box is the set of damage counter dice. These particular dice feature a mix of oranges (from light to dark) for the base and a viney green for the numbers. They almost look as though they might glow in the dark, but I haven't confirmed that yet. What I can confirm is that on these dice, the Lorcana logo is used in place of the 6. By the way, these are the same dice featured in the Wilds Unknown llumineer's Troves.
Then, of course, we have our booster packs. Obviously, the contents of these packs will vary greatly with each box. Nevertheless, as someone who's mostly in the Lorcana collecting hobby for the art, I wanted to share a few of my favorite pulls:
- Ranger Team Up (Art by Hedvig H-S)
- Wind-Up Frog - Sid's Toy (Art by Javi Salas)
- Jack-Jack Parr - Incredible Potential (Art by Lisanne Koeteeuw)
- Andy's Room (Art by Jiahui Eva Gao)
- Gadget Hackwrench - Finder of Lost Parts (Art by Maria Dresden/Ellie Horie)
- Incrediboy - Buddy Pine (Art by Eri Welli)
- Pterodactyl Janie Doll - Sid's Toy (Art by Isaiah Mesq)
- Merida - Formidable Archer (Art by Max Ulichney)
- Super Suit (Art by Javi Salas)
- Like a Bird in the Sky (Art by LadySharlirin)
Looking at my list, it's clear that I'm a fan of Sid's Toys. I love the idea that, in addition to the major Pixar characters we all know and love, some lesser-known players from that universe can have an impact on the game as well.
Overall, I'm so happy to see that Pixar is now a part of Disney Lorcana. What's funny is that, looking through the cards, it feels like they've been there the whole time since they integrate so perfectly (by the way, there's much more ahead with Monsters Inc., Coco, and Onward confirmed for future sets).
Meanwhile, I also really love this Prerelease Pack. Personally, I think it's a nice change of pace from the Illumineer's Troves — which will also be available — as they include what I love most about those boxes (e.g. the dice and boosters) while removing the features that start to get redundant when you get one every three months. Plus, the postcard and promo cards add an extra level of collectability to these boxes.
With that, if you're a Disney Lorcana fan, I'd definitely recommend checking out the Ravensburger Play Hub so that you can score one of these Wilds Unknown Prerelease Boxes starting May 8th. If that's not in the cards for you, though, keep an eye out for the main release on May 15th and add some Pixar to your Lorcana collection.