Disney Epic Mickey: The Power of Illusion 3DS
Metascore
63 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 40 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 28 out of 40
  3. Negative: 2 out of 40
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  1. Nintendo Life
    Dec 14, 2012
    40
    Disney Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion dripped with potential upon announcement, but the final result is a more smudged affair. A fun, if basic, platformer lies at its heart, yet it's coated with unbalanced difficulty and drawing mechanics that interrupt its flow regularly, while the number of worlds is very disheartening. Disney fans will get a kick out of seeing which characters turn up, but if you're expecting another Castle of Illusion, you're going to be disappointed.
  2. Eurogamer
    Dec 5, 2012
    40
    At its core, this game is also a decent platformer, but the silly drawing gimmick and incessant backtracking spoil the fun.

User Reviews

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User Score
5.5 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 22 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 8
  3. Negative: 2 out of 8
  1. TheBlueBadger
    7
    This game really is incredibly charming, and it's clear that the creators were fans of the disney platformers from the good old days. I couldn't help but smile seeing things like Aladdin showing up and stunning an enemy by throwing an apple at him, or the numerous pete shaped enemies and hazards making me think back to that 2 player game starring Mickey and Donald. On top of that, the graphics are incredibly nice. The backgrounds are richly detailed and colourful and the sprites are easy on the eyes. People have slammed this game for using 2D sprites, but honestly, the console's 3D works best with that kind of style. Just play Mutant Mudds. I'm glad 2D sprite based gaming lives on in spirit. However, this game is far from perfect. It sadly inherits all the problems I had with Henry Hatsworth and Monster Tale. Mickey walks at a snail's pace and his jump is incredibly floaty. Also, this game's idea of difficulty is giving the enemies way too much health and having them everywhere, surrounded by narrow corridors, usually made of spikes. It's nice and at the same time nostalgic to see the level aesthetics and enemies from Aladdin, but while in that game, it takes one swift, satisfying jump to beat down the bad guys, in here, you'll be jumping on them 4 or 5 times before they finally decide to die. I find that combat tends to get rather repetitive because of this. And while you can upgrade Mickey in the shop, it really doesn't seem to make much of a difference. Plus in a 2D sidescroller that harkens back to days of old, I don't feel like I should be required to grind money and buy abilities. Feels like a waste of time. On the topic of time, another problem I had with this game was the drawing mechanic. It works fine at first, but you really notice how long it takes for your drawings to come to life in the second boss fight (which you might remember if you're a fan of a certain SNES game I've mentioned twice). He destroys the platforms you walk on, and you have to redraw them. The fact that it takes a split second for him to destroy them and a good 3-5 seconds for them to re-appear after you've drawn them makes this mechanic feel really flow breaking. Having said that, it's still a fairly decent game. Tolerate the flaws and you'll really be able to enjoy the lovely visuals and creative callbacks.… Full Review »
  2. Alex_Magno
    9
    Great old school 2D action game, for veteran gamers this game will take you back to the beautiful 2d scenarios with a mix of 3d graphics, the music is also awesome, nearly a must have 3ds game… Full Review »
  3. Lordnine
    3
    I was really disappointed by this one. There is a good game in there somewhere but it's buried under awful required touchscreen segments and poor implementation of movement/combat mechanics.

    Game developers need to learn that just because you have access to a new tech or control scheme doesn't mean you need to use it. The touchscreen drawing mechanics here take what would otherwise be an "OK" (but not great) platformer and turn it into a tedious chore. Gameplay is stalled every time the game forces you to stop and trace the all too detailed outline of an object on the touch screen to progress. This will happen 4-5 times per level and even more if you intend to use any of your special abilities or try to collect everything in the game.

    The final "world" also pushes the difficulty through the roof; not because of logical level progression but because the combat mechanics will screw you. To kill enemies you need to stomp on them, often 3-4 times but doing so makes you bounce high into the air. The last world has you working down through platforms with enemies on each layer. Every time you bounce on one you go flying back up multiple layers and have to dodge spikes with each bounce adding to the tedium.

    Making matters even worse the only reliable way to recover health is to draw a magical chest on the touchscreen. You get health from the chest but not very much and in random quantities. In the later sections of the game I spent upwards of 5 minutes after each combat heavy section drawing the chest over and over just to recover enough health to carry on.    … Full Review »
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