Epic Mickey

The upcoming release of Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two may be coming at the end of the Wii's lifespan, but is probably worth more focus than it's currently attracting. It's worth consideration simply because the original Disney Epic Mickey on Wii was praised for its many positive features, but suffered from some technical and design elements that polarised critics and gamers, prompting mixed responses.

In an interview with Gamasutra, Warren Spector promised that camera issues were being resolved, as well as an improved variety to puzzles and game progression, even going so far as to say that after the intro you can even 'get through the entire game without using paint or thinner'. Spector also shared that, in terms of gamer feedback, Epic Mickey had been a rewarding experience.

I got more emails saying 'your game changed my life' than anything I've ever worked on. The emotional level was so much greater than Deus Ex or System Shock. I'm so proud that we touched people the way Disney touched me years ago. I know that 30 years from now, people will look back and say 'That's what inspired me' or 'That's when I became a Disney fan'.

Spector also addressed the mixed critical reaction, acknowledging the faults in the game but explaining that creating an entirely new franchise and development team had posed plenty of challenges.

The reality is I've made a lot of games. And if you pay attention to Metacritic, the 'worst' game I ever worked on was 82 — and that, I thought, was low. [Epic Mickey] was in the 70s and that got to me. ... I learned to take reviews and ratings with a little more of a grain of salt. I'm a little proud of making a game that polarised people.

With the first game, we built a team, a studio, a world, a code base, created characters and figured out how to work with Disney. If we can do it wrong, we did that. The fact that we made a game that touched people that way, with all of those obstacles is amazing to me. ... Now, we know who Mickey is. We know who Oswald is. We knew we wanted to do co-op multiplayer. And I know what the next [game] is — if we get to do it.

If the sequel and its 3DS off-shoot Disney Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion match the success of the original — the best selling single-platform video game in Disney's history — then we may see more of Mickey in the future.

[source gamasutra.com]