Skip to main content

Long read: How TikTok's most intriguing geolocator makes a story out of a game

Where in the world is Josemonkey?

If you click on a link and make a purchase we may receive a small commission. Read our editorial policy.

Epic Mickey 2 3DS is a follow-up to Mega Drive game Castle of Illusion

Old school 16-bit side-scrolling platforming.

The 3DS version of Epic Mickey 2 is a follow-up to cult classic 1990 Mega Drive game Castle of Illusion.

According to Nintendo Power magazine (via ds.about.com), the 3DS game is not a port of the Wii, PS3 and Xbox 360 Epic Mickey 2, rather, it is its own side-scrolling platformer. Epic Mickey 2: Power of Illusion is being developed by Dreamrift - the same team responsible for cult DS platformer Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure.

It makes heavy use of the 3DS stylus. So, for example, you're able to tap item icons in levels, and paint, or trace, those items into existence. Items include cliffs, cannons and floating platforms. The more precisely you trace, the more effective the items. A well traced canon, for example, will only damage enemies. A poorly traced cannon will damage all characters. You also use the stylus to erase objects.

The game features hand drawn sprites and scrolling parallax backgrounds to give it a 16-bit look and feel. Every level in the game is based on an animated Disney film. There's one from Sleeping Beauty and another from Tangled.

And, every enemy you save pops up in the fortress Mickey calls home - an apparent nod to the Suikoden RPG series.

Castle of Illusion starring Mickey Mouse was a much-loved platformer developed by Sega Japan and praised for its graphics and slick gameplay. It was followed up in 1992 by Land of Illusion Starring Mickey Mouse on the Sega Master System.

Read this next