Zero Punctuation: Epic Mickey

[Carbo]

Yeah Disney really copped out on the whole "edgy" angle that Warren Spector had proposed.

To be fair, fans created that expectation on their own. Concept art is always just concept art and implementing ambitious things like that, especially on the Wii mind you, feels like it's overestimating it's capabilities and, when speaking of it from a Mickey Mouse point of perspective, it's purpose. The wasteland concept, story and basis was all there from the start.

This game isn't using the word "Epic" for your standard overused stigma of orchestras and showoffs at the end of the world where the big bad summons thousands of grim reaper mooks. It comes closer to just using that in the sense of how it was before it got subject to the internet, essentially just describing a grand voyage of redemption and purpose of a hero.

Really? 'cause I heard that Warren Spector had to tone it down because of general public backlash.

The only thing I've read into about that was part of the Scrapper mechanic which made Mickey Mouse look more and more like a devilish rat that had fangs and walked like a hunchback, which focus testers made a huge deal over. Instead they changed it so that he leaks ink the more dastardly deeds he does. Although anyone can feel free to correct me on that.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

This is a game I chalk up to the old Bait-and-Switch tactic that so disappointed me with Spore. They lure you in with leaks of something spectacular, but halfway through development cut all the stuff that had fueled any excitement.

After that the end product just seems mocking.

 

[Lightslei]

It actually could've been a good game .

 

[beetrain]

One of your best recent reviews.
I played my brother's copy this week, and the impression I got was that it combined the easiness and storytelling of a "kiddy" game with the dull colour scheme and style of a "mature" game.

 

[HentMas]

Strange I thought that Yahtzee would praise the story (but he didn't talk much about it either). Oh well maybe we will get more info on Extra Punctuation


and I still dont see how this game isn't dark and edgy

because its not.
It doesnt go out of its way, you arent punished by your bad actions and there is no real context in which you might feel bad about doing bad things, i mean, the creator said it himself! "you can go and help the guy so that he gives you his piece of the puzzle, or you can destroy his house and take the same piece out of it" (paraphrased) but there is no real "punishment" or "reward" for doing either... its just "its gonna be more expensive" and things like that.

 

[Folksoul]

So much potential. Such a let down.
I got suckered in by the "edgy" hype and got about 6 hours in before I stopped playing.

Yahtzee was dead on.

 

[Srdjan Tanaskovic]

So these people are at fault for not correctly anticipating that it wouldn't be as good as it looked then? .

more or less yes because concept Art is not the graphics of game *looks at Dragon Age 2*

 

[Srdjan Tanaskovic]

Strange I thought that Yahtzee would praise the story (but he didn't talk much about it either). Oh well maybe we will get more info on Extra Punctuation


and I still dont see how this game isn't dark and edgy

because its not.
It doesnt go out of its way, you arent punished by your bad actions and there is no real context in which you might feel bad about doing bad things, i mean, the creator said it himself! "you can go and help the guy so that he gives you his piece of the puzzle, or you can destroy his house and take the same piece out of it" (paraphrased) but there is no real "punishment" or "reward" for doing either... its just "its gonna be more expensive" and things like that.

But if we have direct punishment then the game moral system would by very black and white which is more of a Bioware thing then Warren Spector

 

[gaming Outlaw]

My god people,don't just take his word for it.yahzee is just....yahzee,not the first person
to come to for buying advice.It's funny that even though he knows the market in games has
stagnated he doesn't speak a word of a game like this being a new, fresh,risk taker.And
thats what it is,even if mickey didn't try to kill him self,which must be the only way
a game can be edgy.



On a side note let me remind you that Disney have(whether you know it or not)
always been the edgiest guys around.Bambi's mother gets shot at the beginning of the
movie and no one has a mom,that edgy stuff.(they just don't want you to think of it that way)

 

[HentMas]

Strange I thought that Yahtzee would praise the story (but he didn't talk much about it either). Oh well maybe we will get more info on Extra Punctuation


and I still dont see how this game isn't dark and edgy

because its not.
It doesnt go out of its way, you arent punished by your bad actions and there is no real context in which you might feel bad about doing bad things, i mean, the creator said it himself! "you can go and help the guy so that he gives you his piece of the puzzle, or you can destroy his house and take the same piece out of it" (paraphrased) but there is no real "punishment" or "reward" for doing either... its just "its gonna be more expensive" and things like that.

But if we have direct punishment then the game moral system would by very black and white which is more of a Bioware thing then Warren Spector

i agree, but in the end it makes no differenc what yo do or dont, and in the end it looked like something was missing, and that takes out the "edge" of doing something "forbiden" or "wrong" it then just boils down into "i´m a jerk" or "i´m not" and if you want all the credits you´ll be a jerk, and if you dont you will not, because there is no real context for doing either thing than money.

but thats my opinion.

 

[Cheebs]

I won't comment on the game itself as I'm not planning on getting it, but I must congratulate Yahtzee, for after three years on nonpunctuated rants I finally fell of his train of thought and had to rewind. It was magic.

Also, I am now afraid of mascots. Those grins were bastardly.

Also, "look, someone farting out of a window" was cause for my biggest burst of laughter this ZP, which in turn made me feel ashamed.

 

[SamThe1]

Mickey suicide comic:
http://theblarg.wordpress.com/2009/07/11/mickey-mouse-suicide/

Also one of the best reviews Yahtzee has made in a long while.

 

[HentMas]

My god people,don't just take his word for it.yahzee is just....yahzee,not the first person
to come to for buying advice.It's funny that even though he knows the market in games has
stagnated he doesn't speak a word of a game like this being a new, fresh,risk taker.And
thats what it is,even if mickey didn't try to kill him self,which must be the only way
a game can be edgy.



On a side note let me remind you that Disney have(whether you know it or not)
always been the edgiest guys around.Bambi's mother gets shot at the beginning of the
movie and no one has a mom,that edgy stuff.(they just don't want you to think of it that way)

OH! but that´s the thing!!!, thats the "BEFORE" Disney, the one that actually treated kids and children like PEOPLE, the NOW Disney is actually more concerned of "what would the parent say??" and have a whole censorship board before them, just so they dont "Traumatize" the kids with movies like (what do you guess??) BAMBI.

Disney WAS edgy and interesting and made you think, but in this world where the people cry in one voice "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" they have to play it safe.

 

[Spawny0908]

Excellent as always Yahtzee! Have a nice holiday!

 

[Srdjan Tanaskovic]

i agree, but in the end it makes no differenc what yo do or dont, and in the end it looked like something was missing, and that takes out the "edge" of doing something "forbiden" or "wrong" it then just boils down into "i´m a jerk" or "i´m not" and if you want all the credits you´ll be a jerk, and if you dont you will not, because there is no real context for doing either thing than money.

but thats my opinion.

I haven't played the game (a Cataclysm got in the way) so I cant say to much about the moral system but from what I heard if your evil them Mickey will change his appearance or something like that

pretty sure that Extra Credit can do some sort of episode about it

 

[Carbo]

OH! but that´s the thing!!!, thats the "BEFORE" Disney, the one that actually treated kids and children like PEOPLE, the NOW Disney is actually more concerned of "what would the parent say??" and have a whole censorship board before them, just so they dont "Traumatize" the kids with movies like (what do you guess??) BAMBI.

Disney WAS edgy and interesting and made you think, but in this world where the people cry in one voice "THINK OF THE CHILDREN" they have to play it safe.

That's the thing though - this game was made in order to reinvigorate Mickey's more mischevious side and rebrand it's market.

 

[gaming Outlaw]

Maybe its not supposed to be.Maybe he did that for a reason.Maybe your jumping to conclusions.
Maybe reflection time is set for the end of the game.

 

[Casual Shinji]

They should make a game around one of those old WW2 cartoons, where Donald Duck takes on Hitler. Now that would be epic.

Unfortunately, the good old days of controversial Disney are long gone.

 

[Translated]

Surprised Yahtzee didn't mention that this was by Spector in this review at all. You'd think after trashing Brutal Legend and Tim Schaeffer, he'd be all over insulting another game designer unfairly.

Yeah Disney really copped out on the whole "edgy" angle that Warren Spector had proposed.

Wait a second...
no mention of Warren Spector? Well, given Yahtzee's opinion, it was for the best.

Essentially, there's two ways to look at this and form an expectation: based on the games Yahtzee has talked about in the past and based upon his explicit mention of specific individuals. Yes, Yahtzee has talked about Deus Ex, Thief: The Dark Project and System Shock as particularly influential titles in the past. Yes, Warren Spector has had a quite an influence on computer games since the early 90s and well into this last decade. But despite the strength of that contribution, Yahtzee has never singled him out in the past for his contribution.

Thus, it's only fair that after not homing in on Spector's career highlights (more of which can be easily gleaned from his Wikipedia entry at present) that Yahtzee remains equally silent about a less well received title.

In addition, the comparison to Tim Schaeffer seems a little odd since (regardless of the merit of the respective work) Yahtzee has never suggested that anyone hurt themselves for not having played a Warren Spector game. Well, at least he hasn't on Zero Punctuation so far: I would hesitate to make grand proclamations about his comments in his personal life.

 

[Ih8pkmn]

where can I find that vintage comic where Mickey tries to off himself?