Disney Epic Mickey twists classic characters, places

"Disney Epic Mickey" aims to change how everyone views the iconic character Mickey Mouse by allowing players to engage long-forgotten Disney characters as Mickey in a world designed to resemble Disney World with a dark twist.

The action-adventure game, developed by Disney Interactive Studios' Junction Point, debuts on Nov. 30 and is exclusive for Wii consoles.

It features Mickey Mouse armed with only a paint brush and thinner battling blot creatures who have taken over the alternate Disney World setting aptly named the Wasteland.

In "Disney Epic Mickey" the Wasteland was created by Yen Sid, a powerful sorcerer as a place for Disney's forgotten or rejected creations such as Oswald the Rabbit, Mickey Mouse's brother and the Wasteland's first inhabitant.

The main plot of the game revolves around Mickey's discovery of the Wasteland in his bedroom mirror and is very reminiscent of Disney's Fantasia movie.

On his first encounter with the Wasteland, Mickey inadvertently uses Yen Sid's magic paint to create a monster known as the Blot in the game and flees the Wasteland. The Blot, angry at Mickey, then begins to destroy the Wasteland and begins a war against the Wasteland's hero Oswald that rages on for years.

Many years after Mickey's first encounter with the Wasteland, the Blot finds Mickey in the real world of the game and drags him back into the Wasteland in an attempt to steal his heart. No creature in the Wasteland has a heart. Mickey has a powerful heart, so the Blot wants it for himself.

After Mickey escapes from the Blot he discovers that he is responsible for the devastation that has ravaged the Wasteland. Mickey then goes on a mission to save the Wasteland from the Blot and right his wrongs.

"Disney Epic Mickey" gives players the unique experience of being able to walk around well known, albeit twisted, Disney locations and discover characters and places created in real life, but rejected or forgotten by Disney.

The game is unlike any game created before because players are given the opportunity to create and alter their world utilizing Mickey's paint brush and thinner.

Disney demonstrated this game feature earlier this year at E3 and showed how the player can use paint to build bridges where needed and can use thinner to erase walls and ceilings that are in the way.

This feature of the game takes the open world concept found in many video games today to a new level. Normally, in open world games, players are restricted to the world maps created by game developers.

Another feature of the game includes the player's ability to ultimately determine the outcome of the game through the player's actions through the concept of "Playstyle Matters."

"Playstyle Matters" means that the actions you take in the game will have consequences. For example, in quest challenges, the player is given two options on how they can complete the challenge. There is a "bad" or "good" choice and those who complete the "bad" choice will have a darker gameplay experience and players who choose to make "good" decision will experience a happier ending.

Not only are the worlds the player can explore fun and innovate, but even how players travel between worlds are as well. Players travel through 2d side-scrolling levels based on classic cartoon shorts like Steamboat Willie.

Characters that players encounter in the game are both familiar and unfamiliar such as Donald Duck who in the Wasteland is a robot created for Oswald. Enemies are both well-known characters like Captain Hook and new characters created from paint blots like Spadooshes who are large sleeping enemies that explode if awakened.

"Disney Epic Mickey" will also be available in a collector's edition in addition to the standard edition. The collector's edition will include a five-inch "Disney Epic Mickey" figurine, a Wii console skin, remote faceplate and a bonus behind-the-scenes DVD.

"Disney Epic Mickey" re-imagines everything we know about the beloved and fun-loving Mickey Mouse and throws it out the window by creating a darker Mickey capable of destroying the world he's meant to save.