Like any other Disney fan, I've been loving Disney Dreamlight Valley. Between having a huge array of beloved characters to meet and befriend, creating an avatar in the iconic Disney style, and the rich storylines to follow, I really could not ask for more from it. The game recently received a second round of DLC content, which I, alongside many others, immediately ed. These DLCs are definitely worthwhile for those who are fans of Disney Dreamlight Valley, introducing new content and characters that players may have missed in the base game, alongside several more gameplay features.

The game was released in December 2023 along with its first expansion . Almost a year later, the second Expansion - The Storybook Vale - arrived, introducing lots of new content and areas to explore. However, this land lies in turmoil after Maleficent and Hades have wreaked havoc on it, tearing it apart - the new story in this DLC surrounds this narrative, including many fan favorites from various Disney titles. With this new story comes a character known as The Lorekeeper, and a feature that I've found myself completely obsessed with - Snippets.

What's New In DDV After Storybook Vale Update

New Biomes, More Characters, And More Critters

The Storybook Vale DLC introduces new areas to explore, bringing three expansive biomes - The Bind, Everafter, and Mythopia. Luckily, I was able to buy the DLC before November 30, so I was also pleasantly surprised with a new costume for purchasing it early - as a more artistic person, I'm very appreciative of the new clothing, decorations and other collectibles. Character customization is usually my favorite part of most of the games I play - though it doesn't affect gameplay much, it's always great when I feel like I can put my own personal flair into something.

I've been particularly fascinated by the new storyline surrounding the Lorekeeper, as I always like the addition of new characters, especially one this unique - the concept of the character aiding the player being a sentient book is so perfectly "Disney" to me, and reminds me of the old, classic Disney movies like Snow White and Cinderella that all started off with the iconic motif of an opening storybook. Speaking of new characters, three more familiar faces have ed the game: Merida from Brave, Flynn Rider from Tangled, and Hades from Hercules. These characters unlock new friendship quests and exclusive items.

Disney Dreamlight Valley: A Rift In Time players who have befriended Rapunzel will have access to some additional quest content which involves reuniting the two. After Hades has been unlocked, he is another unexpected addition to the villagers, granted he's able to overcome his otherworldly temper.

Other features include new animal companions with many unique variations, a refreshed inventory of goods in Scrooge McDuck’s Store, and visual updates for Scrooge’s store and Chez Remy. Though I could rant about the inaccuracies of the Hercules movie forevermore, I can't complain about the adorable addition of the Pegasus - with most of the animals in Disney Dreamlight Valley not being pulled from mythology, I think it is currently the coolest animal friend in the game. The expansion also adds new decorations, clothing, collectibles, crafting recipes, and cooking recipes, offering players more ways to customize their Dreamlight Valley experience.

Snippets Are A Lot Of Fun In Disney Dreamlight Valley

Snippets Are Entertaining To Chase And Unlock Puzzles

Snippets are the result of Maleficent and Hades interfering with the Lorekeeper, manifesting as whimsical origami-like creatures imbued with magic and set adrift across the Vale. Resembling book pages, they are quite literally "snippets" of certain stories, and are used to put them back together. These magical creatures come in a range of patterns, and gathering them will unlock brand-new puzzles tied to the history of the Vale and illustrations inspired by classic Disney and Pixar films. These puzzles deepen the surrounding narrative and offer more context on the Vale, and I would highly recommend checking them out for yourself.

Equipping the new Royal Net unlocks a new pose in Photo Mode.

To restore the Lorekeeper’s stories, players will need to capture these elusive creatures using a new Royal Tool: the Royal Net. Players may not be able to unlock the Royal Net immediately, as they need to be able to get past the Petrified Wood in the same room as the Lorekeeper. I've been having tons of fun just by running around the map and catching them, but players can create traps to lure them in. There are nine types of trap, three for each of the new biomes, and it's important to use the correct trap for each area.

Merida's first quest after recruitin her revolves around catching these Snippets. All of these snippet-related traps can be upgraded and start at a "basic" level. The functions of the traps are pretty self-explanatory, though the repellent is probably the one which adds the most to quality of life, since players can keep Snippets out of areas they've already exhausted, though personally I've been using them to keep Snippets out of Dreamsnaps backgrounds. I've found that in the later biomes, critters will become immensely more difficult to catch with just the Royal Net, so creating slow traps should be a massive priority.

Why DDV's New Puzzle Minigame Is So Much Fun

A Way To Relax While Still Training Your Brain

The Lorekeeper offers the player a variety of puzzles to complete - each completed puzzle reveals fragments of the Vale’s lore and beautifully illustrated comic-style scenes inspired by iconic Disney and Pixar stories. To unlock these stories, players need to collect certain amounts of different types of the aforementioned origami Snippets. They're rated on difficulty on a scale of one to five stars, and completed puzzles come with different rewards, such as new decorative options for players to customize their in-game spaces. The puzzle pieces often correspond with their source - for example, Moana's puzzle has pieces that resemble waves.

The main thing which has me completely obsessed with completing these puzzles is how surprisingly easy they are - they're definitely higher in my ranking compared to Scramblecoin. Catching Snippets has also been a blast, so I've had no major discouragement when it comes to unlocking them in the first place. They're a fun and relaxing activity, and aren't all that different from physical puzzles other than the fact that the pieces come in a fun variety of shapes. None of them have proven particularly difficult as long as I'm sticking to traditional puzzle tips, like placing the edges first.

Where I haven't been able to gather enough Snippets, puzzles that have already been unlocked and completed can be replayed at any time. They're easy enough as to not be frustrating, but enough of a challenge to give my brain a bit of a workout. It feels great to be rewarded for having fun and completing simple tasks. I'm looking forward to completing all the puzzles in Disney Dreamlight Valley: Storybook Vale, and I love how the game pays homage to a wide array of stories, not just the more well-known titles.

Source: Disney Dreamlight Valley/YouTube