It’s been a long road for Epic Mickey. According to Junction Point Studio head Warren Spector, the Disney think-tank was throwing around ideas way back in 2004, more than a year before Spector was even remotely attached to the project. After a brief hiatus, he turned down a project with John Woo to fully commit to the project in 2007, and after three years of actual development, one of the most ambitious Wii games ever created is under two months away, and Spector couldn’t be happier.
He was smiling the entire time I saw him at one of the numerous round-table discussions he held for the press over the three day PAX weekend, happily answering any question thrown at him; a mark of a highly proud creator confident in his product’s ability to stand on its own. “I think we’ve made the best Mickey of all time, in any medium” is a rather strong statement considering the near century worth of variations on the most popular pop culture creation in human history, but after seeing the game with my own two eyes, he may be right.
Before the round-table began, I headed over to the absolutely gorgeous Epic Mickey booth to try it out. The opening of the demo introduced the combat, as I was greeted by some slimey creatures interested in turning Mickey into a pile of ink. My options consisted of easily disposing of my enemies with paint thinner, or I could paint them to make them into my personal minions who would then attack the remaining enemies.
The paint thinner is the most efficient and easiest way get through most situations, but using the thinner dissolves whatever it touches, so the moral balance involves deciding how much of the world you’re willing to destroy to help Mickey on his quest. “Mickey is a hero, but what kind of hero is he?” was a question posed by Spector, as using thinner isn’t inherently evil since you’re always working towards a common goal, but to what degree decides how the world around you views Mickey.
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