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Epic Mickey no longer a rumour, it's real and Wii exclusive
News reported by 
(Editor-in-chief)
October 06, 2009, 05:39
 
Though there still doesn't seem to be much info on it, but it looks like it is Game Informer's cover story.



Anyone find any details on the story? Hopefully there is SOMETHING new in that issue besides a mere confirmation.

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10/06/09, 05:39   Edited:  04/08/13, 01:44
 
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No, GI got the exclusive reveal on this game I think. It's not just a confirmation, there's going to be some good info in there I imagine. When was the last time an exclusive game on a Nintendo console was on the cover of GI? Red Steel?

And I'm guessing there's going to be some sort of painting mechanic in the game judging my Mickey holding a paintbrush.

Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 05:45
Good point, he is indeed holding a paintbrush. I sort of posted without actually looking.

Anyway, IF done right this game could be huge for the Wii. Disney sells. Though I wonder if making all the popular faces into creepy versions is going to work against sales...

Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 06:07
As long as they have the non-creepy versions of the other Disney characters in there, I imagine it will be OK. :op Disney is like Nintendo when it comes to how their characters are presented in anything. They are very, very protective of their characters and are very aware that a lot of kids are going to be drawn to anything they do.

If the game is really good (which I think it will be from who's working on it), this could be the beginning of a big new Disney video game series, ala Kingdom Hearts. Disney and Nintendo always seemed like a perfect match to me and I always found it strange that Square never considered the GameCube for ports of the KH games last gen.

Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 08:13
Screw ports, I wonder where Kingdom Hearts 3 is headed. They seem to be taking a longggggg time deciding on that one, and I'd bet it is because they're trying to balance the PS3/360 versus the Wii and the Wii is making a strong argument. Unfortunately I'm not sure if the Wii will win that one... we'll see. Not that I personally care, I couldn't stand the first KH and never bothered with the second.

Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 08:20
I don't know how Square could not put KH3 on the Wii personally.

I played the first KH all the way through and I enjoyed it, but it had some glaring flaws. For one, it had the most hellacious camera I've ever had to deal with in a game. Horrible. And then the Gummi Ship thing was completely pointless. It's like that part of the game was unfinished. And I had some other issues with it as well. And yet IGNPS2 gave the game somewhere in the low 9's. :oI Typical. The camera issues alone should have knocked it down into the 8's. I would've scored it 8.3-8.4. No way is KH a 9+ game.

Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 09:10
First details! Stolen from um... somewhere...

Epic Mickey is a tale about the 'forgotten' Disney stars: the rides, the characters, the lesser-known cartoons. When nobody any longer cares, they are cast into a dark void; a forgotten world of broken machines and bitter personalities - a bit like Sid's bedroom in Toy Story, but without the friendly furnishings.

This forgotten world is run by Oswald the Rabbit. He was Disney's first creation, made long before Mickey Mouse, and his jealousy of the newcomer has fermented for years. Now, finally, Oswald is ready for revenge.

He unleashes The Phantom Blot to wipe out Mickey and his cartoon world. The Blot pollutes the Disney universe with sticky black ink that makes colours run and fade (as seen on the Game Informer cover), so it's up to Mickey to restore peace and order. And this is where his tools come in.

Mickey has to draw and scribble his way through levels, mending broken bridges by applying the right colour paint or peering through walls after applying thinner. He can even clear rubble from his path by erasing parts of the world.

Our source told us Epic Mickey is a game about thinking and artwork - laterally considering your environment in order to overcome puzzles.

On top of that is a healthy dose of exploration, plus Mickey will be getting "his first makeover in years". "That's why no one's seen his face yet," our source explained, "But he's far more retro than you've seen him for years."


Posted by 
 on: 10/06/09, 22:32
My goodness!

I'll give my same reply here that I gave on IGN:

Day ****ing one. I know, th'at overhyping it a bit, but the idea sounds great and works well with the concept art we've seen before. It actually feel s like it "fits in" with something Disney is capable of (in the sense that it doesn't feel like that far of a stretch for Mickey Mouse and friends, if that makes sense...?).

I'm all in.

Posted by 
 on: 10/07/09, 04:54
Yeah, this game sounds like it could be cool. I'm *really* digging the art I've seen so far. I'll be keeping my eye on it.

Posted by 
 on: 10/07/09, 20:03
I think it looks awesome. I don't care about Mickey Mouse, but Deus Ex is awesome, and the concept gives a context for the 'edginess'. I'm happy it isn't just Mickey Mouse Galaxy (although that could definitely be cool).

Posted by 
 on: 10/08/09, 21:06
I like it a lot thus far, though it does seem kind of flat. That said, they do have until fall 2010 (IIRC), so they've got plenty of time t spruce it up.

It doesn't seem that far off from the concept art (no more than most games start off as), but the gap is there. That said, I'm kinda' glad for that, some of the earlier concept art seemed quite a bit too far out there compared.

Will be cool to see some gameplay. Right now I'm definitely very interested and can't wait. (^__^ )

Posted by 
 on: 10/16/09, 04:07
Yeah there is a bit of a gap between the art style and the in game graphics. And the (plus? minus?) side is it's a lot more colorful than I was expecting, the original art looked BLEAK.

Posted by 
 on: 10/16/09, 18:17
This does cast a few doubts about the quality of the team Warren Spector has behind him, but there are some BIG reasons behind the look of the screens.

1) The game is very much gameplay focused, and part of that revolves around two clashing art styles. You have two types of environment: inert, dull objects - and interactive cartoony, bright painted objects. The style gives you the cue about whether you can use the brush on it or not, and it does make the finished look a little schizophrenic.

2) You need to see this game in motion, and not just for the usual reasons. The animation in Epic Mickey has a strong stylized feel. Check out this article and the animation test movies in it. Mickey squashes and stretches like the old cartoons. He's even controlled so that the old Disney rule of being able to see both of his ears as circles at all times, is in effect. In motion, he has a liveliness to him that the still shots don't even begin to suggest.

I'm excited!

Posted by 
 on: 10/25/09, 17:13
It sounds like it could be pretty cool. I understand the reasoning behind making it Wii exclusive and I'm not complaining about it. Too bad for all those people who think that for something to be 'cool' it has to be mature, or gory, or ultra - over the top - sleek, their loss.

Posted by 
 on: 10/25/09, 23:07
That's kind of interesting that he mentions not wanting to tackle the Halo and GTA players, not because it's not true, but because I rarely expect many developers to think along those terms. I always assume they start with thinking anything CAN sell on PS3/360 and then make Wii prove itself a better option to them. Hmm, though that shaders comment makes it sound like he is acknowledging something that we all kind of say but not many developers ever come out and say, that you can make lower budget games on the Wii and get away with it.

It's also interesting that he is actively trying to make a new Duck Tales game. Though the TV series is long over with, I think the NES game has enough old school love that a new version could sell... it makes at least as much sense as bringing back Bionic Commando and A Boy and His Blob.

Posted by 
 on: 10/26/09, 04:33
Well Simba, you were right. Called it perfectly. * shakes head *

The whole vibe around Epic Mickey now is "they scaled back the concept art because it's not on the HD systems."

Despite, you know... Spector outright saying that the leaked concept art was just to see how far Disney would let them take it.

Even on the article EXPLAINING it, the comments are hilariously jaded and ignore that fact.

* sigh *

Well, whatever. I'm really digging the current style, though the graphics do need to be pushed up a few notches. But the style is great, story is interesting, and unlike KH I actually get to see/play as Mickey Mouse from the onset.

It might suck, but I'm really holding out for the best, as it looks and sounds like a really, really awesome game thus far.

Alpha: finally watched those animation tests and yes, they were indeed awesome. I still don't get how they can keep his ears always visible like that though, seems like it'd be nearly impossible to do in a 3D world.

...of course, I suck at 3D so...

Posted by 
 on: 10/30/09, 09:10
I don't really see what the huge deal over the concept art was anyway. Isn't most concept art way, way more detailed than the in-game stuff? I remember looking at Metroid Prime concept art and thinking, despite Metroid Prime being absolutely beautiful, that the hand-drawn stuff was on another level entirely.

3D still has a ways to go before it can match 2D hand-drawn detail. A long ways.

As for it not really matching the creepy style, that's not an HD issue whatsoever.

Posted by 
 on: 10/30/09, 17:40
what's so hard to understand when Spector says the original art went way too far on purpose just to test Disney, and never was intended to be the actual game ?

I wish I knew.

I'll be limiting my posting time on other sites for a bit, it seems. With this and the whole "Iwata admits mistakes" things going on, I'm just not in the mood at all. One thing about going back to work next week: my posting time will be severely limited once again, which is a very good thing. (^__^ )

* though I will be here a lot, probably as much as I have been in the past few months.

Posted by 
 on: 10/30/09, 19:11
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