DreamRift

Transcription

Remember when Disney games were awesome? Duck Tales, Rescue Rangers, the Magical Quest, Darkwing Duck...it wasn’t that they were good for licensed games. These were good games, period. Great games. And it seemed like the original Epic Mickey was about to usher in a new era of awesome Disney games. It had problems, sure, but it was still unique, ambitious...and hey, the sequel would probably fix all its issues, right? I mean, obviously. Yeah, that didn’t happen. Don’t tell Donald. And that was the situation. Epic Mickey 2 was identical to its predecessor, both in the good ways and the bad. Nothing broken would be fixed, and that new era of awesome Disney games was still just a possibility. Or so I thought. Then I played this, and like a buxom mermaid who gets all tingly at the sight of a dinglehopper, I was treated to a heavy dose of that platforming Disney magic. We’re not back to the old days, but Power of Illusion is the closest we’ve been. Released on the Nintendo 3DS to coincide with the launch of Epic Mickey 2, Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion was obviously a little overshadowed by its console cousin. Fortunately, it happens to have a shadow seamstress on call. Where Epic Mickey 2 disappoints, Power of Illusion overjoys...trading Epic Mickey’s dark aesthetic for colorful odes to the eras of 8 and 16 bits. Speaking of which, if you grew up with the classic Disney games of old, this one is going to feel instantly familiar...but especially if you’re a SEGA fan. Power of Illusion picks up a baton last carried by Mickey’s Castle of Illusion. The witch Mizrabel has returned, and for the first time in about two decades, it’s up to Mickey to solve the illusions of her mysterious castle. This first thing you notice about Power of Illusion is that...the game looks absolutely stunning. It does lose the trademark Epic Mickey aesthetic, but in its place, you have some of the most colorful and gorgeous sprite work on the 3DS. The characters are hand-drawn, and they look fantastic. As soon you see the Scrooge McDuck sprite, you’re flooded with NES memories as rich as the cranky ol’ duck himself. Now, the gameplay is a little slow, which does take some getting used to. The mouse moves like a turtle, which is a bit of a drag. But the game is intended to be explored, so there’s at least an argument for it. You move from level to level, rescuing lots of familiar faces and unlocking more areas of the castle. There are eventually three to explore, each with locations pulled from classic Disney... Wait, three worlds?! Yeah, there’s only three worlds. And that’s the biggest problem. Power of Illusion is awesome, but it just doesn’t last. In fact, there are a lot of downloadable platformers with more content and levels than this one...but when it comes to charm and magic, that’s another story. Sure, it has its issues, just like Epic Mickey 2...and the dark Epic Mickey aesthetic is definitely missed. But once it casts its spell, Power of Illusion is impossible to resist. Two decades later, it’s a whole new magical quest. And hopefully, the beginning of something great.