Disney Dreamlight Valley The Winter Ball Update: Everything you need to know

Disney Dreamlight Valley is gearing up for its next update, The Winter Ball, which is scheduled to arrive in December. As the final update of the year, this release is bringing one of the most anticipated characters to the game, so it is bound to be a point of excitement for many players. There's a lot of information about what to expect from the update which we can dissect from the brief trailers shown during the 2025 showcase.

However, as is the way with all Disney Dreamlight Valley updates, we don't know the ins and outs of what quests we'll be asked to complete—only which characters we'll be able to invite to the valley. Here's what you need to know about The Winter Ball update so you can start getting your valley ready ahead of time.

What is the release date for The Winter Ball update in Disney Dreamlight Valley?

The Winter Ball update for Disney Dreamlight Valley will roll out on December 10, 2025. We're never given an exact time the update will be released, but usually it falls around 10 am EST (2 pm GMT) across all platforms. More often than not, an announcement is made in the official Discord server and across Disney Dreamlight Valley's social media pages when the update is ready to download too.

What's included in The Winter Ball update in Disney Dreamlight Valley?

The main attraction of The Winter Ball update is the addition of Cinderella, a character who players have been waiting for since the game was released. Although we don't know the ins and outs of how we'll be able to invite her to live in the valley, the recent 2025 showcase suggested that the Fairy Godmother would have a lot to do with the story. So, be sure to keep working on your friendship level with her in the meantime so you'll be as prepared as possible for Cinderella's arrival.

You'll also need access to the Dark Castle, as suggested through the same trailer, which means you'll have to complete the main story of Disney Dreamlight Valley and establish a strong friendship with The Forgotten. If you're a new player, this might be quite a bit of work to complete ahead of the update, but at least it gives you something to aim toward if you're particularly keen to invite Cinderella to stay.

Cinderella isn't the only new addition as part of The Winter Ball update either. Dream Teams are rolling out, too, which give you and your friends the opportunity to club together to exchange materials and items, or complete quests and crafting tasks. You don't need to visit each other in person, as all of this will be managed via the Dream Teams tab. But, it will save you the stress of running around your valley trying to gather one specific item that hasn't spawned, since you can just ask your friends instead.

From the small clips we saw of Dream Teams in action via the 2025 showcase, you'll also be able to give your team a logo and a name, alongside joining multiple Dream Teams at once rather than being limited to one. Hopefully this makes any crafting-related quests we're thrown as part of Cinderella's unlock a bit easier, especially as we know Dreamlight Valley can be pretty unforgiving when it comes to crafting quests involving items that only have limited spawns.