Not as fraught with technical difficulties as some would have you believe, but still nothing outstanding.
I have to admit, however, that the aspect of this game being a darker experience than what we would normally expect from Disney made it a bit intriguing. And, to be honest, if it weren't for the fact that my girlfriend wanted to play it and that the Wii's library is a little on the limited side, I probably would have passed this one up. As it is though, I tend to go through games pretty quickly, and Epic Mickey showed enough promise to be a worthwhile game, despite critic reviews. After trying it and playing it for awhile, I have to say that the critics were indeed a bit harsh on this one, but at the same time Epic Mickey is a very static game, meaning that the gameplay is very linear, very repetitive, and doesn't have much appeal in the big picture.
GAMEPLAY - As you've probably guessed, you play as Mickey Mouse, and you're in the middle of this area called The Wasteland. Without spoiling too much, you're going to encounter some pretty familiar areas and characters as you go through the game. You almost feel dirty though, as a lot of these people and locations almost feel like a way of Disney trying to subliminally get players to want to...well, I won't say anymore than that, as I feel I might spoil it for some. Let's just say that Disney is still out to make more than a few bucks with this game. Most of the gameplay is comprised of platforming, with the unique addition here being that you have paint and thinner as your tools. Paint can build bridges, brighten up sets, turn monsters to your side, and just do about all things good. Thinner, on the other hand, erases these aforementioned objects and monsters, and is also seen as being more evil. What makes this game such a repetitive and uninspired experience is that you basically go through the game progressing through each level, completing minor objectives along the way, and going between 3-D areas by way of 2-D areas based on classic Disney cartoons. Now while this would normally be fine, a lot of these quests and "fetching missions" feel more like chores than anything else. It's easy to sit down with this game for a half-hour or so and have fun with it, but any more than an hour and you'll start to feel lazy about having to hop across a pool of thinner and hit an object just to progress. You also get film reels to old cartoons, which is a cool idea, and there are lots of neat little tid-bits thrown in the game that will bring a smile to long-time Disney fans, such as the E-Tickets you collect. Overall though, the gameplay is almost begging to be more diverse. This game would have benefited from having more puzzles, or even the occasional mini-game thrown in. As is, this game feels more redundant the more you play, and is definitely not something you'll want to play for long periods of time. - 5.5/10
STORY - As Mickey, you come across a model of The Wasteland and accidentally dump thinner all over it. You don't really find out that you go into the place until later, but it's pretty much assumed from the opening cinematic what all goes on. When you get there, you find out that it's a place where all of Disney's lost characters have ended up. One such character, Oswald, plays a pretty important role during the game. You find out that he was to be the mascot for Disney before Mickey Mouse came along. It's actually kind of eerie seeing how Oswald redesigned certain things from the real world with his image instead of Mickey's. You do find out that there is a bigger threat that needs to be dealt with, and you basically are on this quest to undo what you did to The Wasteland. - 7.5/10
GRAPHICS - The graphics are pretty dark usually. Sometimes it's hard to see exactly what you're doing. A lot of people complain about the camera. Yes, there are a few points here and there where it will tweak out on you, but never once has it frustrated me nor caused me to die due to not having it positioned correctly. It's just not a very reliable camera, and takes a lot of manual positioning, which can be a pain for some. Overall though the presentation here is good, and again there is definitely some fan service for long-time Disney fans. - 7/10
SOUND - The music is nothing memorable, and the voice-acting is really non-existent. You'll just hear grunts and noises from the person who's speaking, and you'll see the dialogue at the bottom of the screen. This doesn't really bother me much, but with this being such a high-profile game, they could have at least gotten some voice-acting in here. - 4/10
LENGTH/REPLAY VALUE - Once again, this game doesn't stray far from what it does, and can get pretty redundant very quickly. While this doesn't really have to do with the length of the game, this certainly diminishes the replay value. Kids should enjoy this game, but for more experienced gamers, this is definitely a rental or maybe a borrow-from-a-friend game due to the fact that you'll have a tough time just plowing through the game in one sitting. Definitely not much going on here in terms of value. - 4/10
BOTTOM LINE - My score for this game may seem a bit low, but you have to realize that this is a very repetitive, uninspired, and in many ways kind of a flop of a game. Is it something that should be passed up? I wouldn't go that far. It's just nothing special like you almost hope that it will be. It's a very middle-of-the-road game, and while I may have graded it pretty badly, it certainly isn't terrible. It's a below average game that will bring back fond memories of Disney's history, and will satisfy anyone who just has a craving for a platformer. Unless you're buying this for kids though, this is strictly a do-not-buy, in my opinion. The presentation may be up to standards, but the gameplay reminds me of games on past systems like Super Mario 64 and MediEvil with how outdated the gameplay is. It's just very basic platforming in a 3-D environment (mostly). Unfortunately not even the mechanics behind the paint and thinner can help to save this game from mediocrity. - 5.5/10