Epic Mickey: Rebrushed Review (PS5)
Summary: Epic Mickey Rebrushed does exactly what it says on the tin.
4
Blue period
Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is a beautiful remaster of one of the Wii’s best, but oft-overlooked platformers.
Warren Spectre’s Burton-esque celebration of the early days of Disney presents a unique and deliciously twisted tale from the vaults of The House of Mouse that was clearly a labour of love for both the original developers and the team at Purple Lamp who have done a marvelous job of breathing new life into the cult classic by giving it a much-needed lick of paint.
It’s a rich and colourful world full of deliberate detail brimming with character and a level of minutiae that demands you explore every inch of it.
It also helps that this gorgeous world is heaving with collectibles, secrets, and characters that open up new paths, new side activities, and even more things to see and do.
After sneaking into the Sorceror’s laboratory, Mickey accidentally unleashes hell by spilling a bottle of thinners on a tiny cartoon haven constructed by the grumpy old magician to house the lost and forgotten characters from when Disney made weird shorts, when Mickey Mouse was more than just corporate branding and the lynchpin to the whole Kingdom hearts universe.
After a demonic blot rises from the mess as Mickey desperately tries to fix his mistake, he barely escapes the chaos he’s unleashed. Several decades pass and he becomes a star, but the blot only lingers, until Mickey is dragged into the wasteland he created. A twisted version of Disneyland populated by forgotten characters, built from discarded merchandise, the parts of the park bulldozed to make way for Galaxies Edge, and plans that never passed the blue sky stages of planning.
Armed with a magical paintbrush capable of spraying the world around him with paint, which adds to the world by creating platforms, gears in machinery, and even the occasional chest. or thinner, which removes paint and erases everything it touches, revealing secret passages, breaking machinery, and generally causing a little bit of chaos.
In combat you either splash foes with paint to bring them around to your side or melt them with thinner to erase them in a way that Judge Doom would be proud of. Bringing enemies to your side allows you to give the rest of them the slip, while thinner is mostly a more direct form of attack. Though I also found it incredibly satisfying to erase the ground beneath them so they fall right in the deadly pools and rivers of thinner that run across the wasteland.
Mickey’s moveset has also been expanded and refined and his platforming abilities tightened thanks to new abilities that let him dash and ground pound allowing him to break up mobs more easily. The spim move has also been powered up for times when you need a little more space.
For the best part controlling your brush is easy, made even more so by tilt controls to help refine your aim further, and there’s something incredibly satisfying about seeing the world react in such a direct and palpable way to your actions at any given time.
What is most impressive about Epic Mickey though is its morality system. Yes, you read that right., You see while exploring the wasteland and trying to help its inhabitants you’re often left with a choice in how you approach a mission. This mostly boils down to doing the right thing that will help everyone in the long run, has benefits you often don’t see til much later, and is usually a lot more work, or taking the quick and easy route that ultimately screws someone over in the process.
This is highlighted during its incredible boss battles where you take on a rogues gallery of villains from Disney history including Captain Hook, The Mad Doctor, and Big Pete. Every boss can be vanquished using thinner, which is usually a fairly straightforward affair, or you can take a more creative route and attempt to reform them with a judicious application of paint. Which route you take affects whether your paint or thinner increases, making it more likely that you’ll favour one over the other as well as the game’s ending (There are several by the way)
The best part of epic Mickey Rebrushed though is its 2.5D side-scrolling levels that book end each of its main areas. Acting as a clever way to hide loading screens each of them sees Mickey barrel through a classic Disney short including The Haunted House, Ye Olden Days, and of course Steamboat Willie.
Each looks superb, and although they’re not too challenging each one is a lot of fun to play through. There are also two reels to find in each that unlock a slew of in-game rewards including skins, health, and item upgrades, as well as a trio of classic cartoons for you to watch.
New for Rebrushed you can replay any of the 2D sections in the cinema in Mean Town. So if you miss a Reel the first time around it’s not such a loss.
The Wasteland may be a twisted facsimile of Disney land but it’s still beautiful. It’s a world of broken-down park rides, long-forgotten motifs, and uncanny recreations of famous attractions that don’t quite look right, Purple Lamp has done a superb job of making the visuals as ambitious and gorgeous as the original concept art, which litters every area in the game.
The story is also told via lovely rendered cutscenes (now in 4K) and beautiful cartoon sections packed with wit and humour. The one addition I would have liked is the addition of voice acting for the cut scenes rather than the grunts, whistles, and subtitles present in the original. But this is a minor quibble.
Speaking of audio the score is as Burtonesque as the visuals. If you told me it was Danny Elfman I would believe you. it’s a mass of slow strings and long deep brass notes, and the occasional feeling that you’re being chased by a circus when things get hectic, that fits the tone of the world and the action on screen perfectly.
Final Thoughts
Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is a heartfelt love letter to the early days of Disney and the delightfully weird shorts that built the house of Mouse brick by brick.
More than that it’s the kind of lovingly crafted platformer, with a unique hook, a gorgeous world to explore, and new adventures around every corner. There’s a word to describe it, its just on the tip of my tongue – monumentous?
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