Mice and linguistic ruin

[Green Gibbon!]

http://www.the-magicbox.com/1203/game120327b.shtml

I didn't play the original Epic Mickey, I doubt I'll play the sequel, and now that the word "epic" has been thoroughly debased by the lingo of the 4chan generation, I refuse to use it ever again even in its original context.

HOWEVER.

This DS version is apparently also a sequel to Castle of Illusion, which I'm pretty sure is still the best Mickey Mouse game ever made, and obscure enough that I'm blown away anyone with the Mickey license would choose to revive it. I'm sure such a thing would never have happened if it weren't piggybacking on the Epic Mickey branding, but y'know, whatever works.

I also don't know how much it's actually meant to have in common with the 16-bit original, but the jump animation looks exactly the same! I see the developers have only put out one game before called Monster Tale, which looks pretty trite, but was it any good?

[Crowbar]

Actually it was World of Warcraft that turned epic into what it is now (I have this from a friend who played it for years and years).

Sorry, I have nothing else to contribute. :[

[Dr. BUGMAN]

Monster Tale was a disappointment. I was under the impression that the sudden announcment of the 3DS, and the fact it wasn't an established IP, caused DreamRift to rush it. They seemed to have just thrown in "metroidvania" tropes rather haphazardly.

Maybe they'll work better under a media juggernaut like they did under EA. Then again, MT lacked one of Hatsworth's head staff members, Kyle Gray.

[G.Silver]

We kind of talked about Monster Tale in this thread, if reminders are needed!

The only other thing I have to contribute at the moment is that Capcom's SNES Mickey (I can't remember the subtitle), where he had all the different suits he could wear, is kind of a tie for me with Castle of Illusion in terms of best Mickey game. I haven't played either in forever, though.

[Tsuyoshi-kun]

I love Castle of Illusion and still own the Genesis cart of that game to this very day. I also own the original Magical Quest on SNES (but not the sequels). Love them both, and this game looks like a mashup of both (the jumping mechanics and style of Mickey, and the little helmet enemies kind of remind me of the enemies from Magical Quest).

The screenshots look a little rough, but I really dig the art style! I always preferred the 1930's Mickey with big, black eyes over his later incarnations. If it plays as good as it looks, I'm in.

[Esrever]

I still don't really get the love of Castle of Illusion over World of Illusion. Maybe the problem was that I played them in reverse order?

I guess I'm not sure what the break-out element of Castle is supposed to be? The mechanics are pretty generic and the level design (at least for the first couple of worlds, which is all I've played) just seemed like bog-standard linear platforming to me. What am I missing?

[Neo]

The mechanics are pretty generic and the level design (at least for the first couple of worlds, which is all I've played) just seemed like bog-standard linear platforming to me. What am I missing?

Butt-bouncing off things is fun.

Castle and World are very similar in terms of general design, World borrows most of Castle's stage designs directly or otherwise reuses their exact concepts on a different canvas (like the spiderweb/cloudtop stage), but are very distinct in terms of gameplay. Castle is much more action oriented and plays more like Mario or Sonic, while World is much slower and simpler and more about enjoying the ride. Speaking of which, Castle looks ghastly when compared to World.

Anyway, given that they're such different experiences, I think it's quite impossible to state which is best -- people generally react positively to Castle because that's what they'd like to see more of, but if you look at the game as a whole, it's pretty underwhelming. At least in my perspective.

Also fuck that last boss in World of Illusion scared me as a child.

[Green Gibbon!]

I only ever rented World back in the day and I've never played past the first couple of stages, but the level design isn't nearly as interesting as Castle. Seems like I remember the controls being a bit clunkier, too.

Castle, along with Sonic 1 and 2, was one of the first three games I had for the Genny so of course there's some nostalgia going on in there, but by 1990 standards, it was a good platformer and I still think it's pretty solid even now. If there's one thing I hope they change for this new one, it's having to press down on the D-pad to butt-bounce. Double pressing the jump button would be smoother.

[Popcorn]

Mickey Mania was cool because of the Steamboat Willie level.

[j-man]

You are all crazy! Land of Illusion is clearly the superior title (IN MY OPINION LOL), although I did play my fair share of Castle as a kid - the Master System version, with the candy stage replacing the ancient ruins-type stage (but retaining that badass music). I had fond memories of World's co-op, but playing it again recently with a mate was an exercise in frustration. God damn, that game is linear! It makes Vib Ribbon look like, fucking, Minecraft. Every time I had to lower a rope for my friend, it chipped another fragment off my soul.

[(No Imagination)]

When I was twelve or so, I'd rent and play World of Illusion with my older brother, and true to customs randomly mess up at crucial parts. The game I remember as typical 16-bit Genesis straightforward and frustrating fare, at least in co-op, though that library / candy level was pretty cool I recall.

... oh wait that was the Castle of Illusion's library / candy level. Whoops, nevermind,

Every time I had to lower a rope for my friend, it chipped another fragment off my soul.

...and then they climb...and climb...

[j-man]

WOOB...

...

WOOB...

...

WOOB...

And then... then you get to a stage that is entirely you climbing a mountain. With the rope. WOOB. FUCK.

[Crazy Penguin]

I recall the Master System Castle of Illusion being good, as far as Master System games go. My cousins had the Mega Drive version, with the decidedly less cheerful forest. The graphics were clearly better because it had twice as many "bits" and it was cool that you could carry multiple apples around with you, but the lack of a blue sky was a dire oversight.

[gr4yJ4Y]

This is really exciting news, but it's one of those things where you know they aren't going to meet the standards of the original. Or at least how I remember it. It's just not possible at this point. At the same time I'm glad it's being acknowledged at a time where almost every classic is getting a re-release or sequel. The 8/16-bit Disney games aren't receiving the same treatment because of licensing issues. I was hoping for Castle to at lest show up on Virtual Console, but this is probably better.

[James McGeachie]

I recall the Master System Castle of Illusion being good, as far as Master System games go. My cousins had the Mega Drive version, with the decidedly less cheerful forest. The graphics were clearly better because it had twice as many "bits" and it was cool that you could carry multiple apples around with you, but the lack of a blue sky was a dire oversight.

The Master System version was awesome.

Since most people here probably haven't played it, have a gander.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVmLTMNidW8

As much as I want to, I'm not going to make any claims to its superiority, but after looking at a few videos, I do think its held up well over time, both in terms of visual design and gameplay. Of course, this is obviously bullshit nostalgia talking.

Man most Disney games in the 90's were definitely great though. Well...if they were sidescrollers...in the early 90's.

[James McGeachie]

Actually, Land of Illusion on the Master System was definitely the better game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdH88Yww ... ure=relmfu