Video Game Review #505: Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse

Castle of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse

Sega Genesis

Nostalgia Factor:

I missed out on this game as a kid. I wasn't a big Disney fan, and this title didn't really appeal to me with so many other great games out there to play. I ended up playing it for the first time back in 2014. I liked the game, but I wasn't blown away by it. I remember being able to beat it pretty easily. I filed my memories of the game away in the back of my mind and moved along with my business. I haven't given the game more than a second of thought in the 10 years since then. I can barely even remember anything about it. I remember it being a completely average side scroller, but other than that? That was it.

Well, I decided to come back and give the game another shot so that I could review it for my blog. How would I feel about it in present time? Would it stand out a little bit better this time? Let's find out!

Story:

If you've come for a deep, engaging storyline, you have come to the wrong place. Mickey and Minnie are dancing in the woods when Minnie is snatched by the evil witch Mizrabel, who is jealous of her youth and good looks.

Mickey embarks on a quest to Minnie back. His journey takes him through Mizrabel's Castle of Illusion - where Mickey must gather a set of magical gems in order to create the rainbow bridge he needs to enter Mizrabel's tower. Mickey defeats Mizrabel, and goes back to the woods with Minnie where they proceed to begin dancing again. The end.

Gameplay:

As I mentioned in my opener, I came into this game not remembering much about it. In fact, it often felt like I was playing this for the first time as I made my way through the game. Controls are simple. Mickey can walk forward, jump, and throw items at enemies. Mastering the bounce jump will be critical to your success. You need to be able to learn how to bounce to higher areas by jumping off the heads of your enemies.

Each stage is made up of about 3 levels, each one ending in a boss battle that you must win before you can move onto the next stage. Mickey moves fairly slow. There is no run button in the game. This takes some time to get used to. Mickey also tends to stay in the center of the screen as you make your way through each level. I don't understand why they don't move him over to the left like they do with most 2D platformers. It feels like your rarely have chance to react to enemies, because you are already so close to them when they appear on the right edge of the screen.

Due to Mickey's slow speed and your proximity to the right side of the screen, it is best to be cautious and take your time as you make your way through the levels. Things like to pop up out of nowhere and cheap shot you, so you always must be vigilant. But if you take things nice and slow, the game becomes much more manageable. Some of the platform areas can be a bit challenging, especially given the floaty controls and the tiny margin for error. But it is nothing that is too overly frustrating. 

The thing I found the most frustrating about the game was its hit detection. There were times where I swear I was jumping on an enemy's head exactly as I should, and yet I would take damage. FOR NO REASON WHATSEOVER. This is especially noticeable in the "toy" stage with the wind-up soldiers and the worms that wiggle along the ground. There's almost no rhyme or reason as to why sometimes I take damage when I jump on them, and other times I bounce off of them with no problem. Very annoying.

I did enjoy the boss fights, as pattern recognition comes into play. It's always fun figuring out their patterns and determining their weaknesses. 

On the surface, this is a very basic 2D platformer. In fact, after I beat the game, I walked away from it wholly unimpressed, ready to give the game a C for being an average title. Luckily, I played through it a second time a few days later. I like to do that with a lot of retro games for some reason. I just did it with Skyblazer and I did it again here - with similar results. I appreciated Skyblazer more the second time around, and I appreciated this game more the second time around as well. It's a fun challenge, and I would have absolutely loved the game if I had played it as a kid.

Graphics:

This game looks really good, especially considering it is 34 years old at the time I'm writing this. Sheesh! The graphics are bright and colorful. They really bring the world of Mickey Mouse to life. The characters look good. The environments are magical and fun to look at. While I wouldn't say this game is beautiful and I wouldn't consider it one of the best looking 16 bit games of all time or anything, I still think the graphics serve their purpose and accomplish exactly what it is the game developers set out to do with them.

Sound:

Even though I just beat this game twice, its music has already slipped out of my memory. It must have been nothing memorable or special. Just "good" Genesis music, befitting of a 2D platformer. The music certainly was not bad, or it would have stuck out to me in a negative way.

Some of the sound effects were very familiar to me. I swear there are some Sonic and Ecco sound effects in here. I can't remember exactly what they were, but I heard them, and they always made me smile when I did.

Overall:

This is fun game. I'm glad I made myself play through it twice. I was not too impressed the first time around, but the second time was a different story. I could easily see this game joining my "rotation" of retro games that I play through every few years or so, like Resident Evil, Sonic, Mario, Contra, etc. Just something I can put on at any time and know that I'm going to have a good time playing it.

That said, this is a dime a dozen 2D platformer. Nothing you will see here, you haven't seen a thousand times before. It looks good, it plays good, and it is a fun and addicting challenge. But is the game original? Heck no. 

Castle of Illusion is definitely worth playing if you have the means to do so. But if you don't, I do not believe you'll be missing out on much if you decide to skip on this. It's a fun but not outstanding 2D platformer in a sea of fun but not outstanding 2D platformers.

THE GRADE:

B-

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