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0 Thanks to the team at Purple Lamp, we see Disney’s Epic Mickey: Rebrushed returning on a new set of consoles and with a fresh coat of paint. Originally an exclusive for the Nintendo Wii, I missed my chance to play it first time round, so I’ll be going in blind for this one. The game launched on Nintendo Switch, Xbox, Steam and PlayStation today, 23rd September.
Epic tales are told in many art forms.
I own Epic Mickey 2: Power of Two on PlayStation 3. But never dived into it due to not originally playing the previous entry. I do enjoy playing some of Disney’s more interesting properties when their characters are involved, aka when they add dark undertones to their games. Making them seem more mature. The best example I can think of is the Kingdom Heart franchise, with the themes of darkness and light. Another (although not dark) is the mobile game Disney Mirrorverse, which shows their characters in battle attire. That’s why Epic Mickey: Rebrushed caught my attention with this remaster. With that, let’s jump into this review.
Gameplay
The opening cinematic is told in classic Disney fashion and does a great job setting up the story for us. Our titular character Mickey winds up messing with things he doesn’t understand (just like the broom incident back in 1940). This time he messes with a magical paint brush and ends up creating a monster called The Blot. During the struggle to get away, he ends up damaging a book that contains the homes and lives of forgotten cartoons that Yensid had created. Days after the incident, Mickey gets grabbed from his bed and pulled into the same book. Thus leading him on an epic journey to fix his mistakes.
One of the first characters we meet is Gus, who gives us the rundown of what has happened to his world. He also provides useful tutorials and guidance on what to do next as we adventure. In Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, although the levels seem small, it does a great job of making each area feel special and even easier to get around.
The brush
Our primary tool in Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, is the magic paint brush we brought into the world with us. It allows you to use either paint or thinner in the world. The brush itself has two meters for each and will passively recharge the first chunk when depleted. Whilst the brush is infinite in both paint/thinner there are ways to fill the meters faster. Such as finding supplies by destroying some objects, such as bins, chairs or boxes.
Upon starting the game, I was curious as to what the paint effects would be in combat. Thinner obviously was going to be damage but what use is paint in combat? Well, turns out it can turn foes into friends. I liked how this becomes connected with the themes with the story later on. More specifically during boss fights. However I admit it wasn’t until my first boss fight I noticed this!
Don’t paint everyone with the same brush.
As mentioned above in Epic Mickey: Rebrushed there are different outcomes for enemies, especially bosses. I didn’t know this until the trophy popped up letting me know that I could defeat the boss with either paint or thinner and it would actually affect the world. This can also go for the denizens of the world. Some will ask for help and sometimes you can select what I’d says is an evil option. For example, a love-struck pirate wishes to get the favour of a fellow toon. In the end you can choose to give him flowers for her or ice cream, giving the ice cream is bad as the girl is lactose-intolerant.
Traveling between worlds.
I loved that the way you travel through worlds is by using projectors. When doing this, you also get these fun and simple platforming segments that don’t last too long either. I would much rather play these than wait on a loading screen. Overall it is a brilliant feature. The worlds themselves in Epic Mickey: Rebrushed are small yet fun and each has a classic character you’ll come across. In Mean Town, we meet Horace Horse (a classic character that originated in 1929) who is an investigator with quests to offer. These quests will have you looking and retrieving items for his case.
Graphics & Audio
The “re-brushing” of Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is superbly done. The beautifully animated cartoon cutscenes look almost identical besides increased sharpness. Gameplay graphics are beautifully vibrant (but still moody in darkened areas), and environments include added details. Some of these details are more lines on gnarly trees instead of a smooth surface and added shine to metallic objects.
Environments remain largely the same, and things that have changed are improvements. In one area, there’s an elephant carousel, which in the original Epic Mickey: Rebrushed remained static. In this edition, they now move and there’s extra detail to the elephants. Another such example is a poison pit. While it remains in Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, it’s larger and far more detailed.
Despite the added details and tweaks to the environments, Epic Mickey Rebrushed hasn’t lost the essence of what it was. It doesn’t stray too far from the original designs, only looking improved, shinier and more vibrant with better lighting. Although I haven’t played the original, I have watched others play it. I believe this remaster has done the game justice. It treats it well and with care, ensuring old fans will be pleased with it.
Longevity
If you’re looking to 100% Epic Mickey: Rebrushed, then buckle up. The game has a good amount of collectables that come in several forms. There are film reels, which in the end rewards you with a classic cartoon (this was so worth it) after collecting a specific amount. The game itself also has two endings to obtain, which is awesome. I do intend to play through Epic Mickey: Rebrushed again once I have cleaned up any remaining collectables for the other ending.
Final Thoughts
Now in the end, I sadly can’t say if Disney’s Epic Mickey: Rebrushed does the previous version justice. But what I can say is that it’s a blast! The world is fun and with the lighting improvements, it does great at setting a darker tone and look. Seeing classic characters was cool, especially since I love classic cartoons (particularly Rubber hose animation). Combat is enjoyable and not tedious. New enemies get introduced just as I’m feeling bored with the current ones, which helps it stay fresh.
The level designs are easy to navigate, and finding secrets doesn’t seem like a chore. However, I would have preferred if, after traveling to a new world was done, you could just select which area to visit instead of doing the full journey. I also have a small audio nit-pick, in that I wish the developers had partially added voices to the overall game.
For such a small game and also a remaster, I’d say it was artfully done and that Disney’s Epic Mickey: Rebrushed deserves the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
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