Epic Mickey Disney (Unofficial) Families.com

One of the things I like best in a video game is a good story. Developers make use of advanced computer technology to program sometimes 20-minute-long animated movies to appear throughout certain video games, especially at the beginning and end, to make the experience as much about hearing a story as about playing a game. And those are my favorite games.

kingdom hearts 2

Foremost of them all, in my opinion, are Kingdom Hearts I & II, which fuse the world of respected Japanese gaming franchise Final Fantasy with Disney. The player’s character travels to various Disney locales like Atlantica from “The Little Mermaid” and Agrabah from “Aladdin,” with constant companions Donald and Goofy.

So imagine my excitement when over a year ago I first read reports of a game called “Epic Mickey,” another serious Disney-style video game this time in development from the House of Mouse itself, rather than Japanese company Square Enix. A Disney game meant for teenagers and adults, set in what from early production stills looked like a steam punk Disney wasteland.

Now Epic Mickey is finally set for release in a couple months; although a specific date hasn’t been announced, it’s supposed to come out for the “Holiday 2010.” I know what I want for Christmas.

What especially draws me to Epic Mickey is its story. Way back in November 2009 I posted an article contemplating Mickey’s character development. I mentioned how the original 1930s Mickey was kind of a jerk: a meanly mischievous character who often harassed, made fun of, and took advantage of his friends. That’s the Mickey with which Epic Mickey opens.

The story tells of Yen Sid, whom Disney fans know as the sorcerer to whom Mickey was apprenticed in “Fantasia,” working hard with his magic paints and brushes to lovingly craft a world for the forgotten, making a home for unpopular and underappreciated Disney characters.

When Mickey discovers Yen Sid’s creation, he blithely plays with it, slopping paints and inks all over the map of the world. In so doing he unwittingly unleashes the evil Ink Blot, who brings darkness and destruction to the world of the forgotten. Mickey runs from the scene of his crime and soon forgets all about his foolish actions.

Years pass and Mickey matures into the character we know now, and then he is pulled into the world of the forgotten to face the consequences of his youthful rashness. He finds a deformed world, with both familiar and forgotten faces scattered into pieces across the landscape. Mickey faces a choice: craft the world back together, or continue to disregard what he has wrought.

If Mickey wants to restore the forgotten’s world to its original glory, he needs help to defeat Ink Blot. That help will come from the world’s strongest citizen: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Walt Disney’s first creation who was tossed aside in favor of Mickey. Mickey must win over Oswald’s heart, understandably embittered against his younger brother, to fully fix the mess he has made.

I absolutely adore the complexity and nuance of this story. I find it equally fascinating and exciting that a video game is the first Disney property to fully confront and explore the development of Mickey’s character. I love the lessons that the story brings as well, about the consequences for one’s actions.

Last week the first half of the the opening video animation for Epic Mickey was released. I did find it a little disappointing; gone was the steam punk style, replaced with a much cartoonier atmosphere reminiscent of Mickey’s early days. While that makes sense for the story, I can’t help but long for the darker tone of Epic Mickey’s earliest art.

Disney video games for kids are a dime a dozen; every time Disney comes out with a movie it releases a tie-in game. Those are great and plentiful for kids, so I wish that Disney would have approved a darker Epic Mickey more appropriate just for teenagers or adults. Still, I can’t judge just from the 4+ minutes I’ve seen and Epic Mickey definitely remains on my Christmas list.