Disney Epic Mickey Screenshots
Image: THQ / Disney

Even almost 14 years after it was first released, it still hasn’t really set in that Deus Ex creator Warren Spector’s first game after a six-year break was not only a Mickey Mouse platformer, but one exclusively made for the Nintendo Wii after years of being a PC-only developer. To make matters even wilder, it was a pseudo-edgy re-imagining of decades of Disney iconography with forgotten mascot Oswald the Lucky Rabbit as a central antagonist.

And yet Epic Mickey happened, and what’s perhaps even more unbelievable, given the complications of re-releasing licensed games, is that 14 years on we’d be getting a remade version of the game. But, following the remake of the certified banger Spongebob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom, Purple Lamp is taking the helm of an updated edition of Mickey Mouse’s Wii adventure.

For those unaware of the original tale, Michael Theodore Rodent heads into the workshop of the great wizard Yen Sid (the bloke from Fantasia), and instead of just being polite and not messing around with someone’s stuff, he takes the mickey and happens upon a magic paintbrush. This brush awakens a demon made of paint thinner who drags Mickey into the Wasteland, which is a home built from messed-up versions of Disney park attractions, a home for old and forgotten Disney properties.

Naturally, this being a remake, Epic Mickey: Rebrushed looks miles ahead of the Wii original. The devs told us that the 480p animated cutscenes have been upscaled to 4K, and the game itself has been fully rebuilt and rebrushed in Unreal Engine. We were shown the game running on PC at 4K/60fps. However, we were told that the Nintendo Switch version is set to run at 1080p/30fps docked and 720p/30fps handheld. It was mentioned that getting a version that does the remake justice even on less powerful hardware was a main priority for the team, and while it remains to be seen, we’ve been assured it should be a looker for the system’s standards.

While upgraded graphics are all well and good, what really stuck out with Epic Mickey: Rebrushed were the updated mechanics and gameplay improvements. One of the main points of contention with the original title was the fixed camera — due to the Wii pointer controls being the main input method — this has been changed to a standard third-person camera with a reticule. However, Epic Mickey will support gyro controls on Switch, so those of you who yearn to waggle will still be able to do so. Plus, Mickey’s spin attack is now mercifully mapped to a button rather than a shake.

Even with this updated control system, the team has made changes to the game elsewhere so as to not ruin the balance and difficulty that came with the Wii controls. For example, boss fights will remain in the classic fixed camera angle and instead have a (very generous-sized) pointer reticule. There are also some interesting changes to the enemy AI, such as the paint-controlled enemies who would fight in Mickey’s stead who can now go on to infect more enemies and create an army of minions without you using up all your paint.

Another less-than-well-received part of the original was the 2.5D sections, which could generously be described as ‘interactive loading screens’. These would take Mickey into classic shorts like Steamboat Willie, Clock Cleaners, and Mickey and the Beanstalk, but posed very little challenge. For the remake, these have become more interactive, stage elements (like the beanstalk leaves) now move around, and there are new secret areas allowing you to pick up extra concept art (bumped up to three times as many pieces as the original).

To tell the truth, we didn’t go into the Epic Mickey: Rebrushed appointment with too much excitement. It looked neat, and it was nice to see the game back, but since it’s a bit of a known quantity, we weren’t expecting too much from it. But the enthusiasm the team at Purple Lamp has for the original game won us over very quickly. The studio told us they would constantly be chatting with both Disney and Warren Spector to make sure that any changes made didn't take away from the original’s identity. But most interestingly, the team revealed that they scoured the web, watching 100% runs of the game as well as delving deep into the Epic Mickey fan wikis to see what the people like, and even dropping some nods to community fan theories, too.

Going back to play some of the original Epic Mickey before heading out to Gamescom this year was a rough experience, but everything shown for this remake is so much more than we expected. For what could’ve easily been a cash grab with a well-known IP, Epic Mickey: Rebrushed seems to be handled with as much care as a remake of a bona fide classic, which could elevate the flawed cult classic that was the original to a solid platforming adventure starring that big rat in shorts.

Let’s just hope the Nintendo Switch version runs as well as promised.

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Disney Epic Mickey: Rebrushed launches on Switch and other platforms on 24th September.