Buy Castle of Illusion

A heart-felt and beautiful remake of the 1990 SEGA classic: Mickey Mouse and the Castle of Illusion. I had high expectations for this modern reimagining of what is ultimately my favourite game of the Fourth Generation.

+Every level, every detail lovingly recreated and updated
+Stunning art and music design
+Smooth and responsive at 1080P/60FPS
+Full controller support
+Brilliant take on the old Mega Drive classic
+Two music schemes to choose from (original soundtrack or modern soundtrack)

-Does not include the original 1990 game that is included with the retail console version. It's sad to see it missing from the PC release.
-Three to eight hours to complete depending on how completely you explore each level

For Disney fans, platforming fans, and fans of whimsy, this game is a buy!

(Suitable for all ages and skill levels)

An absolute joy but you MUST have a beefy enough graphics card. I enjoyed this far more than the original Mega Drive/Genesis version, which itself was great fun.

The level designs are so slick and some of the graphics (especially the candy/cake section) are fantastic. The remixed music isn't overly impressive, but you can choose the original tracks which is a nice touch. Also, the voice-overs grate (but can be switched off).

It is just a shame the game is quite short and fairly easy, but to me is still worth buying even at full price (which I did).

That evil, no-good hag of a witch Mizrabel (HA, Miserable...get it?) is at it again—no longer content with attempting to murder Snow White for being prettier, she's kidnapped Mickey Mouse's main squeeze Minnie in an attempt to steal her youth. Armed only with his plucky attitude, dogged determination and a mean throwing arm, Mickey immediately sets out to rescue the love of his life from Mizrabel's lair, the titular Castle of Illusion.

Castle of Illusion takes the 1990 Sega Genesis title and spiffs it up with some voice-acting and sharp graphics, but at its core it remains a side-scrolling, two-dimensional platformer.

It looks like Sega Studios Australia enjoyed twisting the concept of "side-scrolling", though. The linear stages mix up the traditional "go right" design by taking advantage of the new three-dimensional engine. Paths weave into the background or curve along cylindrical towers in twisting, circuitous routes that double back on each other at unexpected moments. Some stages even shift to a top-down perspective, allowing Mickey free, unfettered access to all three dimensions of movement.

Also new in this remake is a hub area where Mickey can roam around, viewing anything he's unlocked and can select levels to journey to, provided he has enough gems to unlock them.

The levels are whimsical affairs - Mickey travels through exotic locales like haunted forests, undersea ruins, and a world of sugar and candy found within a cup of tea. Accompanied by the ever-present narrator, Mickey navigates these fantastical lands in pursuit of Mizrabel's henchmen and the seven rainbow gems they carry. These gems will open a path to the boss witch herself at the top of the Castle.

Of course, with new dimensions comes a change in controls. Mickey's jumping skills are serviceable, but feel weightless. This shift makes leaping difficult to control, and the top-down segments can aggravate the problem with the lack of depth perception—it's sometimes hard to know if Mickey has jumped high enough to clear his jump.

Swimming segments are where the controls suffer the most. Mickey has all the maneuverability of a steamboat, and requires constant buttonmashing to travel with any speed. Mercifully, these swimming sections are both infrequent and brief.

Other than the somewhat floaty controls, there are no real flaws in Castle of Illusion. It's a short game that's easy to complete in a night or two, and it offers collectibles for those who want some replay. It's charming and well-polished, but players craving challenge might be disappointed. On the other hand, people wanting to relax with something that doesn't require a huge investment of time or effort should consider joining Mickey on his newest mousecapade.


Be sure to check out Nerd House Gaming for more reviews!

Castle of Illusion is a remake of the mega drive game also called Castle of Illusion. I cannot really compare those 2 games since I never played the old one. But what I do know is that the remake is a hard but fair platformer. You have a commentator in the background that is commenting most of the things you are doing and will never annoy you. The game keeps beeing challenging till the end. It isn't as hard as Rocket Knight or anything similar, but it still needs some practice in the game to get well. Most secrets in this game are hidden very very well. If you are looking for a 100% run , you will have to look around very well. Badly this game is rather short. Can easily be beaten in 3hrs. You will still happen to enjoy the game with the nice commentator, the nice graphics and the beautiful sountrack AND of course the great and challenging level design.

Rating: 9/10

A game remade with lots of love. Superb attention for detail, well executed (occasional) 3D mechanics, respects most elements from the original Castle of Illusion for the Mega Drive/Genesis but SEGA Australia (R.I.P.) still manages to give us a game that feels fresh, has many key differences compared to the original game, and can preserve the original game's essence and respect its color palette.
Also, Grant Kirkhope poured a bit of his soul into it.

A must-buy, fully recommended. Grab it now, it's on sale.