While I’ve finished all the story stuff, that doesn’t mean there hasn’t been a lot of other things I hoped to check off my list (or in some cases, continue to hope). One of the things I’ve been working really hard on is decorating some of the other houses I have set up around the Valley since realizing they COULD be decorated and didn’t all just… turn into your house.

I started off with Eric’s Ship.

I also ended up adding a few more things to the Captain’s Room, though, I think the Boat could really use the Grand Doors. I haven’t had much luck in getting new doors :/

With his ship all set, I worked on the house in Frosted Heights next:

At this point, I took a break to work on various other things like adding certain new stuff outside.

I’ve also been continuing with the DreamSnaps stuff, but honestly, it’s been kind of getting frustrating due to a combination of lack of inspiration, but just being pinged about “Tool of Magic” stuff when it’s like… in a lower biome or behind a cliff and not in view at all and having to take a picture from an angle that genuinely isn’t as nice.

That’s why that last photo, despite being outfit oriented, ended up just being a smaller picture instead. I did really like the outfit though.

Besides the Christmas Train shown above (which was also bigger than I expected), I have been getting some Premium Shop stuff occasionally. The wings are a bit too translucent, but I really like the Deer.

I’ve also been continuing to add new stuff as I unlock and find more things. I’m unfortunately still one Fragment item short which is frustrating– I have no idea how they show up or work exactly (it seems different per player), but I have yet to see the Lute Parts or whatever it is, and I’m frustrated as I would’ve liked to have finished it before the end of the year. Here’s hoping they show up soon.

I also finally got one of the Shower Stalls in a nicer color, but still really hoping I eventually get the pink one.

While I didn’t manage my fragment goal, I at least did get all the new Critters.

I’m still completely undecided what I may move to Eternity Isle or not. Maybe I’ll figure it out eventually.

Moving on, there was also presents under the Christmas Tree in the Castle again which was nice. The new item this year was this mask– it’s not really my thing, but it is pretty:

And I ended up getting one more house decorated– the Haunted Mansion in Forgotten Lands. I kind of want to add more goofy Halloween-y and Autumn stuff in the left room, but it’s just kind of lacking a bit right now. I also realized I forgot the Purple Trick or Treat bucket so I’ll have to add that later. I had wanted to use the Old Fireplace here, but apparently they made it so you can’t buy more for some reason so that kind of stinks.

Thinking about it, there’s a few other items I may want to try and add… I need to get more stuff from Scrooge though.

I still have no ideas at all for the two more garden-y houses I have in the Glade of Trust which I guess fits as I have no inspiration at all for the Glade of Trust. Maybe I’ll get some eventually or could do some plant focused rooms for one of them?? It’d feel boring to do that kind of thing for both. Hopefully I can come up with some ideas eventually.

While the Expansion has been getting the most discussion, it’s not the only thing in this update. We have Jack Skellington, possibly some new regular quest stuff, and even Multiplayer is finally here with the game’s full release. Hopefully this means we’ll see some of the Community items we’re still missing soon as well.

If you just want my general review on the Expansion/DLC, you can click here for my thoughts and on if I feel it’s worth it passed all the gamebloggy stuff. Otherwise, continue to read below!

As per usual, some quick things before we get to the update stuff. For one, I finally managed to get one of the Lifeguard chairs which was nice:

I also have gotten more inspiration on decorating those other houses, but I do want to see more of what gets unlocked in this update first before doing anything so with that said… Let’s get to it! This post was written over the course of about a week.

I think the hard part is deciding what to do first. Seeing what’s new outside the Expansion or rushing right over to the Expansion stuff. As per usual, I have literally no plan and will just be trying to do everything even if the order is a complete mess.

In the end though, Steam made my choice for me– the update was out, but the DLC was not. I know it was available on Switch and some other systems, but as I primarily play on Steam, that’s where I decided to start.

Of course, right as I got to starting, the Expansion did show up and I ended up having it start as I booted up the game regardless. I decided to still focus on the non-Expansion stuff first as planned which honestly turned out for the best because wow is the Expansion overwhelming, but we’ll get more into that in a bit.

While talking to Merlin due to the Expansion cutscene starting, I noticed something suspicious behind him near the bench.

Turns out, it’s a Matryoshka and is used to unlock Jack. You need to find all four sizes– a tiny, a small, a medium, and a big.

Before going Matryoshka hunting though, I wanted to stop by the mailbox first where there were quite a bit of rewards waiting.

With that done, while doing my Matryoshka search, I ended up setting up the thing for multiplayer. I’m not sure when I’ll check out multiplayer, but at least it’s all set up now.

Anyway, as you gave the Matryoshka to the tree, the tree would become more decorated until it opened up.

Jack then moved in and I ended up placing his house near the tree. The inside was nice.

I then got to work on Jack’s friendship quests. Getting this throne photo to tick was a pain and this photo isn’t even particularly good.

Also, obligatory new pets pictures and yes, I did immediately get the new Star Path pet because of course I did.

I also placed my favorite item from Jack’s friendship quest and one of the new items from the Premium Shop.

As for a more temporary thing, I like the banner, but I don’t think I’ll permanently keep things set up like this… I’m not sure where else to put the banner just yet though.

Also, these were genuinely adorable and I was really sad we had to destroy them over picking them up and keeping them…

Before finally going to the Expansion, I placed the other item that came with the cute Polar Bear over in Frosted Heights (as despite being called miniature, it’s still pretty big):

With everything new done besides Star Path stuff, it was time to continue forward to the Expansion area. And looking at the whole doorway area, clearly a lot more is planned…

It was then time to sail forward and we finally made it to Eternity Isle.

I genuinely love it so much. It’s so pretty, there’s so many waterfalls, I really like the crystals… Really, the only place that isn’t super my thing is the Desert area which considering my love of water fixtures, that’s not surprising.

There is a sandfall at least.

I decided to focus on the story before Friendship Quests as I figured they would require getting more areas unlocked. We ended up meeting EVE first and after some trial and error, we finally unlocked the new tool.

Next up, I ran into Rapunzel, but I also just want to show more pictures from around the area as it really is super pretty.

Eternity Isle is honestly huge– nearly as big as the Valley and feels like it has as much to do as the game did at the start and we know there will be at least two more updates coming for it.

While helping out Rapunzel, I also met Gaston. I did end up finishing Rapunzel’s part of the story first though.

And I was fairly excited about this new crafting item… But it was also bigger than I expected.

Anyway, with Rapunzel’s side done, it was time to continue working on Gaston’s and well…

With the Cave of Wonders revealed, it was time to go in. I LOVED the puzzle aspects of this so much but was upset I didn’t manage to get the tools upgraded again before doing it. I wish I realized chests would be trapped behind them. Obviously, I went back to get them later after I did, but I’ll explain more about this in the next section.

With that done, it was time to finally meet Jafar. I didn’t expect him to actually note that I didn’t need any hints for the puzzle and that’s kind of why I wish I got the upgrades before doing this.

I don’t know if it would have mattered, but each chest was a Pile of Gold of various sizes and Gaston had asked for gold and you say you didn’t find any, but I wonder if I was able to get those chests ahead of time if there would’ve been different dialogue like how Jafar has different dialogue about how you did on the puzzles and I just feel bad about it. I wish I could’ve had something to give it after…

Anyway, Jafar tried to take the tool from us, but failed and poofed away. There is an odd bug where you’ll occasionally see his sprite on the map, but he isn’t actually around. I’m guessing we won’t actually be able to have him as a character until one of the next updates for the expansion. Regardless, this is where the Expansion story ends for the moment.

With that done, it was time for working on friendship quests so I started with Rapunzel’s first because I adore her. I also crafted more water fixture-esque items. Honestly though, this bracelet is super pretty and I kind of wish it was an actual item we could have.

Rapunzel’s quests were really sweet and I relate to her a lot (I would say in general, my personality is a cross between her and Belle).

I still don’t think her or EVE should’ve been tied to an Expansion considering, but I’m happy she’s finally here. In general though, I wish they’d stop introducing just part of a duo or group.

Gaston without Lefou is pretty depressing, especially after playing through his quests. Rapunzel clearly misses Flynn/Eugene and I really hoped we’d at least have Pascal here, but no… Vanellope without Ralph, Kristoff still doesn’t have Sven, Stitch is missing Lilo, etc. They keep bringing them up and it just makes me really sad.

Anyway, Rapunzel’s questline ended with her hosting a painting class. I didn’t expect for us to also get to make our own painting. It reminded me of how I used to make these crazy pictures on KidPix deluxe when I was in Elementary school where I’d use hundreds of Stamps to make these giant pictures.

Rapunzel’s dress ended up being the final reward and I do love it a lot.

Also just more pictures from around the sights:

At this point, I remembered I hadn’t done my Dreamsnap entry yet so I finally took care of that. Blue isn’t usually my color, but I think it came out nice.

Of course, one of the last Star Path quests I got was to enter the Dreamsnaps competition which is… frustrating. Obviously, I’ll enter in two days as I don’t want to submit over my current entry, but I’m just kind of frustrated. I don’t like being walled, I don’t like how much longer and more involved some of the tasks are now, and there is even less of a reason for it to even be here now that the game’s free to play is currently not in the cards anytime soon.

In general, I hate only being able to see 6 (or 3 if you don’t upgrade) tasks at a time. Similarly, I still hate how the Premium Shop updates and again, with the changes, I dislike the FOMO Rotation set-up all the more.

With quests mostly done (I was stuck waiting until tomorrow to continue EVE’s and Gaston’s friendship quests), I decided to do some decorating and new rooms. First, I added some piles of gold to the Discovery Room on the 3rd Floor and switched out the Fireplace in my bedroom on the first.

I then decided to start some work on decorating the 4th floor. First, I have a bit of a Cozy Display Room where I wanted to put the Scramblecoin and other neat things. I then also made a fancy dining room to display more of the various food items in the game.

Meanwhile, back in the Valley, I made some room to place the new crafting table, added the neat Water arch thing, and also set up the Hot Tub near the pool though I may still adjust that last one…

Finally, I was able to continue with Friendship quests so I started with EVE’s first and this moment is really sweet, but again, really feels like it shouldn’t be behind a paywall.

EVE’s quest ended with Fireworks.

And even Gaston’s ending was pretty interesting where you had to decide for Stitch or Olaf to be his new “sidekick” which… I can’t believe they had us choose. I ended up picking Olaf because I think the positivity would do him some good and I also find it funny that Olaf’s voice actor is the same person who played LeFou in the Live Action show.

It was then time for the organization process. As an aside, the Glimmer item is super pretty when placed down.

I ended up switching out stuff in my character’s bedroom to try and just display some of my favorites.

I then ended up adding more to the dining room and moving most of the stuff I took out, along with various other things, to a new room on the 4th floor to essentially work like a ‘Museum’.

While I ended up using Floor 19 for most of the new items (and I guess I’ll turn it essentially into an Expansion Storage), I was able to fit the new flowers in the Flower Room on the 20th floor.

Going to the Star Path, I picked up the new dress and just… really wish there were other color versions (though, maybe also a bit of a higher collar). In general, I want a light pink version of a ballgown dress– we’ve only really had two dresses so far with the hands folded pose and I really want more in different colors– both of the current ones are grey-ish.

I also ended up getting Belle’s and Ariel’s Winter Outfits which I really loved. I don’t think I’ll ever end up changing these unless Belle gets a hood down version.

I also got the ice skating rink which was the final Star Path reward I really wanted. It’s disappointing it can’t actually be interacted with beyond sitting on the bench, but I’m not surprised.

Something that will be mentioned often in this entry is I constantly kept making additions and adjustments to the new rooms in the house. There’s just so many things and the gifts honestly look pretty nice.

What I didn’t expect was the Robot you could craft was actually a Critter you can wear! They’re so cute.

And, of course, with at least one of each new pet unlocked: the new poses. I honestly find the Capybara one kind of disappointing though. I think the pointing is just kind of silly, but the petting cute at least.

As mentioned, I did a lot of various re-arranging of things as I went and unlocked more:

I also made the Sandfall after FINALLY managing to get Scales (you fish outside of the bubble spots). It’s… a lot bigger than I expected and doesn’t really work in the more lush areas, but I’m leaving it there for now.

I’ve been super indecisive on what I want to move to the new biomes and what I want to keep in the Valley. I REALLY love all the Waterfalls and stuff and it kind of makes me want to set up a bunch of stuff and do a huge makeover in the Eternity Isles, but I also spent so much time setting things up in the Valley.

If you place someone in one area, they are removed from the other though so I’d have to re-adjust certain things if I do. Maybe I’ll just move over my most favorite characters, but it’s just… really hard to make up my mind. I’d have to move a lot of stuff too and some stuff can’t be adjusted at all in Eternity Isle. Despite that, I did know one house I had to move to the Valley– EVE’s so she and WALL-E could finally be reunited. I ended up using the space I had the Alien Party area that I didn’t really care for.

I did end up using some of the stuff to make a nice picnic area near WALL-E’s garden and the Waterfall though.

Finally, I ended up placing the new houses I got plus some stuff I newly crafted over by Vanellope’s.

Of course, I think the one thing a lot of people are wondering is what I think of the Expansion overall and if I find it worth it. The short version is, yes, I do think it’s worth it. You get pretty much as much content as the base game had (just less characters, but considering more updates are confirmed for the expansion, it could still end up pretty close). The biomes are honestly really huge, each kind of divided into sub-sections, there’s over 100+ new recipes, and it definitely feels like $30 worth of content, especially considering it’s not even ALL the content this expansion is supposed to have yet.

On the downsides, we still have various premium microtransaction features despite the game no longer planned for Free to Play anytime soon, if ever. I’ve had certain bugs I would run into occasionally prior to these release MUCH more often and in some situations, worse. I haven’t had this much soft-locking in ages and I had to reset the game 3-4 times just doing the main quest.

And there’s still the fact that some things in here were advertised prior. Obviously, these things have nothing to do with the content itself and I do think the game content is really interesting and the new biomes are beautiful.

I can’t comment on multiplayer because I still haven’t had the chance to personally experience it, but I will say I am disappointed to hear how many items can’t actually be given to friends along with the lack of any way to purchase through their catalog which would’ve been a really nice feature :/

Finally, the new tool, the Royal Hourglass. It’s… fine. Most things you turn back time on are solely through the story quest thus far, so it isn’t really used for any kind of treasure finding that way.

Besides removing certain obstacles, the big feature is that it works kind of like a metal detector and can find treasure by indicating which way to search by a glowing arch that points in the direction the treasure is in. It’s blue if you’re not close, gold if close, and a dark reddish-orange when very close. Essentially a hot and cold radar.

I would say the biggest disappoints for me with it are:

• I was actually really excited for the treasure finding feature thinking it would lead you to one-time secret treasures like finding chests in certain Realms, but instead it’s just another grind with items respawning for you to find every so often in every single biome (and sub-biome in the case of Eternity Isle) and some items even only showing up on specific days.
• An issue with both the Orbs you can trigger and the treasure hunting itself, it does not really take into account your surroundings at all. Multiple times I have had an issue where it’s pointed to somewhere I literally can’t get. This is a huge issue with the Orb Barrier stuff as that’s timed.
• Finally, to get the treasure, you have to spam the interact button which is not only painful for me after a while (my entire hand and arm were killing me after playing so long doing that over and over), but frequently led to me accidentally picking up or harvesting things when I didn’t necessarily want to. Also the usual issue of sometimes talking to a Character you’re hanging out with when just trying to grab stuff.
• Honestly, I’m already tired of the Orbs spawning even if I need stuff because I just am very particular about my organization things.
• Actually hanging out with a Companion to get more stuff has a catch-22 attached because certain items (the gift ones) are actually weighted towards who you’re hanging out with. For example, if you’re hanging out with someone from Mickey’s and Friends, you’re mostly going to find Pink Bows.
• Similarly, if you wanted to switch any Villagers to the new skill for the new tool, the book requires A LOT of the new ingredients as well.

In general, most of the new crafting stuff gets very expensive and unlike Dreamlight which you likely have a ton of at this point even with the addition of potions and things, some crafting recipes require a lot more Mist in addition to it being used for unlocking the various areas of each biome.

It just makes things a lot more grindy and the main way to earn mist is through the whole treasure seeking and removing rocks. I would say that’s really my only complaint. Well, that and whoever decided that Linguine with Pesto should be made with Oregano instead of Basil.

To finish this off, final Critter unlock moments that I haven’t already shown! I officially just have the Rare colors left.

Anyway, let me know if you think I should move a bunch of stuff over to Eternity Isles or stick to the Valley! Because I am… entirely indecisive.

In the meantime, I’m going to wonder just what mysteries this could hold…

It’s crazy to think the expansion is releasing in a handful of days. It feels like November went by so quickly and I can barely wrap my head around it being December now. I still have a lot of mixed feelings for reasons I’ve stated previously and I’m sure I’ll talk about more as I play through the Expansion with my next post. As much fun as it would be to stream, I’m still getting over being really sick recently and just do not have the energy to, so I hope the videos will still be fun to watch (with the gifting cut down because I just don’t think watching me gift hundreds of flowers is fun).

Anyway, let’s talk about what I’ve been up to since. Like the last few times though, it’s mainly been working on Dreamsnaps and checking the shops.

That isn’t to say I didn’t have any ideas of things to do, but some things I’m just… still waiting on or could still use some more inspiration (such as everything in the Glade of Trust).

Anyway, as for Dreamsnaps, things have been going okay! I’m making a decent amount so a big thank you to everyone who has voted for my entries! It makes me happy you like them.

I also managed to level up again so yay. Just two levels to go.

The other thing I ended up doing was finally pick up the Dreamlight Valley Cozy Edition— it was on sale for quite a bit and it’s been taunting me solely for the new Companions (and the Cottage is also one of the items I figured could look nice in the forest). I probably should’ve grabbed the items off Steam and not Switch which has now put some Moonstones only on that device, but I was worried the mail wouldn’t show up on Steam and it needed to be claimed on Switch and yeah…

Of course, more Critters also meant I had to place more of the cute little Pet Houses… I really wish each house fit at least 5 over 4. I felt bad that I couldn’t put all the Raccoons together. I ended up putting three in one and two in the other. It’s also just an odd choice when most Critters have at least 5 color variants to begin with…

I am running out of places though at this point for these and I’m not really sure where else to put them. It feels weird to split them up, but I also need to find room for Rapunzel’s Tower in the meadow as well… I figure I may move the Carousel to the Valley like the Spinning Teacups. Either way, placing the rest of the houses will need to wait on that.

I also ended up placing the Cottage in the Forest like I envisioned, and I grabbed Eric’s Boat and also the Tower of Terror from the Premium Shop. I have no plans for the Tower of Terror currently, I just liked the colors. No clue if I’ll ever put it somewhere or not…

I had been wanting to try and decorate each of the houses I’ve spread around at this point, but I just feel really uninspired. At best, I feel inspired with one room (the main/entrance) and then uninspired for the other three rooms they automatically have… I’m not entirely sure when I’ll actually manage to get to them.

At the very least, I finally went and worked on some of the other 3rd Floor Rooms after having to set up one room for the Forgotten in my own house:

It kills me a bit that I can’t seamlessly put the Water Walls next to one another like the one room in the Avatar Design Tool. :(

Anyway, the patch notes have been revealed, so let’s talk about that. Obviously, this may contain some spoilers for the upcoming update.

Discover new recipes with Remy to keep you energized, build a Stall for Goofy so you can cultivate exotic new fruit, and even set up shop for Scrooge McDuck. What, you thought he wouldn’t find a way to capitalize on your adventure?

While I obviously expected new recipes, I didn’t know if Goofy would have new stalls in the new areas and I’m super surprised about Scrooge getting another store as well, but it’s pretty exciting. I have no ideas yet for how I want to decorate the new areas from the Expansion, but I mean, I’ve barely figured out all the areas in the Valley as it is.

Speaking of crafting, you’ll also find a new way to create items on the Isle: the Time Bending Station! Combining the magic of your Royal Hourglass with this station will allow you to create Quest items, Ancient Machines, and other exciting objects to help you on your journey, and of course, decorate your Valley. You’ll also be able to upgrade your Royal Hourglass here, so don’t forget to visit from time to time!

But wait—what’s an Ancient Machine, you say? Using technology from the Isle’s mysterious past, you’ll be able to increase your efficiency around the Valley. These Machines will not only help you cook faster but also automate gardening and other tasks so that you can maximize the “pumpkin to pumpkin puff” pipeline.

As everyone probably knows by now, I’m not really a fan of crafting, but automatic stuff will be really nice and I’m curious what new items we’ll discover with all of this.

While Act 1 of Disney Dreamlight Valley: A Rift in Time will bring 3 new Villagers to players’ Valleys, you can expect additional Characters to be added as the expansion story continues. There will be two additional acts released in 2024, bringing new Villagers, stories, and surprises!

At this point, I’m not surprised more characters will be tied to future Expansion parts (though, I don’t really like the Expansion being split up in the first place), but I’m still disappointed about Rapunzel and EVE being tied to the Expansion/as paid characters. Similarly, I don’t think Jafar should’ve been teased at the end of the main story if it was going to be a paid expansion.

I hope Skull Rock that has been being teased for so long will still be part of the main game and not the expansion, but with the note of crafting Quest Items and the whole “turn back time” element, part of me does wonder if both Skull Rock and all the Atlantis hints could end up requiring the Expansion.

I’m not much of a boardgame person, so I don’t have much to say about Scramblecoin. I know myself well enough that I’ll likely want to try and collect all the game pieces regardless, but I kind of hope I don’t necessarily have to play it if I don’t want to.

Bonus Rewards for Early Adopters

We’re so excited to see everyone’s enthusiasm for the Disney Dreamlight Valley: A Rift in Time expansion pass and intend to celebrate the first players to land on Eternity Isle’s shores! All expansion pass owners who check their in-game mailbox from December 5 to December 12 will be able to claim two exclusive bonuses—a Jester Monkey and a royal costume.

Additionally, ALL players who check their in-game mailbox between December 5 and December 19 will be able to claim two more exclusives—a Dreamlight Gaming Chair and a Dreamlight Valley’s Savior Jacket.

I shouldn’t have necessarily been surprised considering the original first week bonus (which I still think should be brought back even if people need to spend Moonstones for the items or whatever), but somehow I still am. Especially with a second one that for some reason ends a week before Christmas??

I think what really gets me is to have both of these end before Christmas. I get the “one week bonus” for the first which I’m still against, but fine, I understand the timing, but the second one still baffles me about not making it longer. It still feels like a bad choice either way :/

Despite my apprehensions, I am really interested in the expansion, and I can’t wait to get Rapunzel, but I still find some decisions rather baffling and it’s going to be a very crazy week.

Edit: The patch notes for the non-expansion part of the update have gone up as well so I wanted to talk about that too!:

We’re also excited to bring a touch of frosty fun to your Valley with our new Royal Winter Star Path, featuring iconic wintery Dream Styles for Belle and Ariel and more exciting cozy additions.

Honestly, I don’t know why we even still have a Star Path if the game is no longer going to end up being Free to Play. We already have the Dreamlight Duties/Achievement stuff. I don’t feel it’s needed.

Regardless, these are the first character costumes I’m genuinely excited for. I’m really curious how Ariel’s will look, but I can’t wait for Belle’s. I do wish her hood was down instead of up though considering the Valley doesn’t really get that snowy outside of one area.

Most of the details are things we already were aware of– Jack Skellington is coming and seems to require finding things around the village (“keep an eye out for signs of him around your village”) in order to meet him, the Holiday event is making a comeback, Dreamsnaps and the Premium shop are still doing their things, Multiplayer is coming, etc.

I would say the big new things that caught my eye in the patch notes are:

Knee length versions of basic skirts added to provide you with more outfit options!

Pretty excited for this as someone who prefers longer skirts, even if I still have yet to get anything I like more than my custom dress.

Have more control over your Valley with the ability to add and remove Villagers using the map menu. Please note that villagers will always appear in your village if required for a quest.

This is a pretty interesting choice. I think it’s good for people who really dislike certain characters though. I don’t know if I’ll personally use it, but could be useful in the future.

An all-new multiplayer mode comes to the game with Valley Visits. Hang out, share items, and collect new Pixel Shards to craft powerful cooking and crafting buffs!

I’m going to wait to see how Pixel Shards work and how you earn them before fully deciding my stance on them, but I generally just don’t think more currencies are good. I hadn’t planned to use multiplayer much outside of helping friends with materials for quests so I’m curious how it’ll all work.