Epic Mickey

[a7xoff]

I've been meaning to post this for a little while now, but never really got around to it. Anyway... Several weeks ago I was browsing the internet trying to find information on the new Kingdom Hearts game and something called Epic Mickey popped up. Seeing as I enjoy most Disney games I clicked the link and straight up got wowed. This game takes Disney to a totally screwed up level in which Mickey Mouse is driven to suicide and the rest of the lovable Disney cast of characters goes basically insane to the point where apparently Goofy becomes a Zombie robot thing, Epcot is like broken, and there's what looks to be some sort of beach invasion as well as a twisted version of the Disney Castle. This game does not have a release date, but it is said to be coming out as a Wii exclusive. I'll post some of the concept art and leave the link to the page where I learned about it.

 

[Lee]

When I saw this thread I almost closed it because I thought it was completly made up. It's funny what two months brings.

The game now has a release date of quarter three of 2010 and the plot is as followsL
In the game's fiction Yen Sid, the sorcerer first seen in 1940's Fantasia during The Sorcerer's Apprentice, creates a Cartoon Wasteland for Disney's forgotten and retired creations. The first inhabitant of this wasteland is Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Walt Disney's first cartoon star created in 1927.

As the years pass Oswald starts to resent Mickey's growing fame. When Disney's mouse accidentally warps Oswald's Cartoon Wasteland by spilling paint thinner on it, Mickey is drawn into the warped world.

The screen shots I've seen have looked pretty good, they've gone for the classic mickey look which gives him a bit more of an edgier feel. i'm quite looking forward to this game as it seems to be that bit different.

 

[Dexter]

I wish it wasn't Wii exclusive as I'd love to see how pretty a game like this could look on a beefier system, but I'll still be getting it.

It reminds me a bit of some other "cute things turned creepy for a video game" ventures... anyone remember American McGee's Alice? Freakin LOVED that game. The concept works if you do it right.

 

[Dave]

I have to tell you, I am completely disappointed that this game is a Wii exclusive.

For so long, I have seen this game through rose tinted glasses and I thought the world of it. Of course nothing has to change but they do. I am really disappointed that the odds are stacked against me ever owning this game since I don't own a Wii. The thing is though, this game alone is not enough for me to go out and buy a Wii and I think that Disney have really fucked up b y making this an exclusive. Sure, there is a lot of Wii owners that will look forward to the game but I assure you that there will be people just like me that are so annoyed that they have limited themselves to the one console.

However, this is about the game and not poor marketing from Disney. Anyway, this game is really exciting. It reminds me a lot of Kingdom Hearts and as such, grabbed my attention right away. When Lee told me about the game and I did some research into the content of it, I was enthralled by the way Disney have decided to do this game. The graphics look really good and should shine on the Wii. More so that that, the artwork for the game looks epic, so to speak. I created a sig for this game that Lee is sporting right now because the graphical artwork is just so impressive. I have high hopes for this game and I hope that by the time it's released rolls around, I will have a Woo to play it on.

 

[a7xoff]

Okay so the original concept art and news I heard on this game was a little off. By that I mean very far off, but the game still looks epic none the less. The graphics look like they're going to push the Wii to it's limits, the concept of the game intrigues me a lot, and the ability to more or less shape Mickey is just simply awesome. From reading GI and stuff online it seems now that the game creators want adults of today to basically have a flashback of how Mickey used to be, a mischievous mouse who always got himself into trouble. They also seem to want the youth of today to realize that Mickey is much more than a happy go lucky mascot. The darker side of Disney is going to be released to today's generation and I can't wait to see it. This is the game right now that I am most excited to come out. More so than the release of Starcraft 2(it'll be out someday....)

 

[Lee]

So the latest official Nintendo Magazine has a preview of this as well as an interview from the creator.

He said his major influences were Zelda and Mario and in turn has said "when dealing with Mickey second rate has been the norm for too long". He pointed out a few things:

1) It is 50% complete
2) The wii remote will be used to repaint the world, this will not be like Okami where you stop play to paint but it's a case of everything else is still going.
3) It has a main plot but you'll be free to dictate how you play hte game.
4) You'll meet other Disney characters and you can decide if you help them or not.
5) Characters will react to the decisions you make earlier. So for example if you help Donald Duck, Scrooge McDuck will help you later. Don't help Donald and he will help (for example).

The preview stated it has platforming elements similar to Mario, the epic adventureness of Zelda, the character interaction from Kingdom Hearts, the paining elements from Okami and the freedom to choose your path from Deus Ex.

The few screen shots in it look amazing, they have the rawness they're trying to achieve yet the vibrance of a typical Disney cartoon. This game is looking incredible.

 

[a7xoff]

I personally love the idea of using the Wii mote to repaint the world. I'm thinking they can do some pretty cool stuff with the concept of erasing and recreating worlds especially in mid battle. Who knows what kind of stuff players will be able to do. Lee your right that this game appears to have a mesh of aspects from other games like Mario, Zelda, and others which will only increase the epicness of this game. The only issue I see with this game is that it's only 50% done. I've been watching stuff about it since the summer and love how it is evolving and can not wait to get my hands on it.

 

[Lee]

Well the game's due for release in Autumn 2010 so for a game to be 50% complete with a year to go is something which is quite good really.

I've also read that Disney hopes this game really pushes Mickey back into the spotlight as he's not been in anything major since who framed roger rabbit. The game is set as a trilogy with also movie spin offs planned. I guess time will see how much of that happens.

 

[a7xoff]

That would be pretty awesome. I'd like to see Disney try to get the character that really propelled them into the spotlight get more attention other than in the Kingdom Hearts series. I mean you see as little bit of classic Mickey in Kingdom Hearts II at Timeless River when he's constantly getting himself into trouble, but other than that Mickey has basically been reduced to a logo for Disney. Should this game do as well as it looks like it's going to I would not be shocked to see more come out related to it. As far as it being 50% done with a year to go. Yes that's usually a good sign I agree, but I want to get my hands on this thing. The fact that Oswald and the Blot are in it is just awesome. I never really got to experience either of them head on, but upon talking to my parents they knew exactly what I was talking about and they too were surprised that this game actually was in the making.