Castle of Illusion Behind the Scenes: Disney & Sega Stir Up That Nostalgic Stew Just Fine…

Between this remake of the Sega Genesis classic and Capcom’s spectacularly remastered DuckTales coming to gamers, I’m almost ready to forgive Disney for it’s transgressions regarding killing off Lucasarts (although it remains to be seen if their new track for future Star Wars games and content will be as successful as they’re thinking and wanting it to be under new development hands). They have the game’s original director aboard as an adviser, the in-progress work looks gorgeous and if this one is as fun and challenging as the original, there’s going to be a new legion of gamers playing this.  Er… as well as an older generation hogging that console for too long and getting dirty looks from the wee ones who might want to play what dad and or mom is waxing nostalgic over.

Say… If you’re one of those aging hipsters, just break down and buy your own console already, I say. You can let your kids have fun without pretending to show them those classics and somehow never letting them actually PLAY the games…

DuckTales Hands-On: Woo-oo! WayForward Remakes (and Creates) A Classic…

Ever since it was revealed a few months back, I knew WayForward Technologies and Capcom had their DuckTales reboot all buttoned up like Scrooge McDuck’s custom-made spats, but after getting some hands-on time with the first level of the game, I can safely report that any adult who played this as a kid on the NES will feel as if they’ve lost a good 20 or so years when they get to play this one. The game brings the classic into 2013 with all-new HD visuals, excellent voice acting from members of the original cartoon’s cast and a fantastically redone score that takes those familiar tunes you remember and makes them even more memorable.

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Gallery: Castle of Illusion – Disney and Sega Want Your Nostalgic Bones Smiling Away…

Image converted using ifftoany

8149CastleOfIllusion_PackFront_XBLA_no arcade banner copyOK, I can’t stay too annoyed at Disney, as this latest blast from the past actually looks quite good. Granted, this one SHOULD be on MORE platforms (those high resolution screens on the Vita and Wii U Gamepad are begging for more love), but I guess Disney is going first and foremost where they’ll rake in the most immediate sacks of loot. Granted, I’d bet a LOT more Disney fans without Xbox Live or PSN accounts (or a fancy tablet) would want to throw money at this on a disc or cartridge of some sort (with that DuckTales reboot tagging along), but no one ever thinks of catering to that crowd these days unless it’s some crowdfunded project that grabs the collectors where they like it.

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Anyway, the game art and logo above look nice enough and that teaser video is just that (and too short!):

 

but those screens below are dipped in yummy chocolate and ready to eat (and they’re freakin’ HUGE when you click on them – go ahead… you KNOW you want to):

COI Announcement screenshot (1) COI Announcement screenshot (2) COI Announcement screenshot (3) COI Announcement screenshot (4) COI Announcement screenshot (5)

Look for this one this summer on PSN and Xbox Live Arcade. Will Disney Interactive, Sega of America and Sega Europe be able to recapture the glory and thrills of the 1990 Sega Genesis classic? Well, we’ll soon find out, right? So far, it’s looking like a real winner…

Nostalgia: Castle of Illusion Gets The Remake Treatment For A Summer Launch…

Hmmm, so Disney is on a BIG nostalgia kick these days (with Sega along for the ride on this one), despite killing Lucasarts off and pretty much all chances for new Star Wars games. Or perhaps that demise was part of a larger game plan?  Some not so deep thinking shows that between this reboot and the upcoming DuckTales remake from Capcom PLUS the other Disney related games on the way or out already (Kingdom Hearts, Disney Infinity, whatever device and mobile games there are I don’t care about because I don’t like the swipe and drag much), there might be enough loot raked in to put aside a few pennies for the future. As in if that upcoming in development Star Wars flick is looking as it needs some sort of interactive tie-in, whatever is coming will be developed in-house or by a developer contracted to do the job… that has (argh) excellent Metacritic scores for their previous titles.Whatever happened to just making good games, period?

Then again, Disney doesn’t discriminate, as they also killed Junction Point Studios dead after Disney Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two didn’t do so well critically (and it seems, commercially). Yeah, that’s where we are these days, kids – studios shut for spending too much money and their games not garnering great aggregated scores on a faulty site while older games from the back catalog get yanked from their graves and given new life with the hope all will buy and every sin will be forgotten. Yuck. Well, I guess not having to pay $50 – $60 for a cartridge game will draw in more old and new fans of both Castle of Illusion and DuckTales… but there’s still that crowd of noisy ducks who think every game these days should be cheap or free, no matter how much it costs to make…

R.I.P., Lucasarts (Earn It, Mittens. EARN IT).


 

If I were a REALLY cranky and cynical bastard, I’d say Disney REALLY killed off Lucasarts (and pretty much anything Star Wars related in the game space forever) so cheaper to make casual games like Mittens could live. Sacrifice that expensive cash-draining bigger studio and two solid-looking works in progress along with that formerly proud sci-fi IP (that still has a gigantic fan base, mind you) that’s had a bunch of not-so-hot games mixed in with a few winners over the years for this cute kitten and a ton of other faster to cash in mobile and social titles? Sure, why not? Any non-gaming industry analyst worth his salt (and a few who do, I’d bet) will say it makes PERFECT economic sense at the end of the day (albeit at the cost of too many jobs at a newly shuttered studio)…

Hey, all is not lost, right? Disney still has some of its own famous (and new original) properties that are SURELY guaranteed a huge audience based on that company name recognition alone? And hey, NO one will miss Lucasarts save for a “vocal minority” (as we get called by the executive types who trumpet these casual games and their monetizing schemes over “risky” IP with a shaky track record).

Yeah, sure… that’s the ticket…

Fortunately, I’m NOT that guy… I think. So long Lucasarts. Hopefully, the Force will be with those now unemployed.

PAX East 2013: DuckTales Gets The Crowd Going (Therefore, You Must Go As Well)…


 

Yeah, you watched the show as a kid (or a drunken college teenager or early pre-hipster doofus) and yeah, you played the NES game to death. So now you need to show your love or else the game’s upcoming remake will be trapped in development HELL. Not really. I just wanted to see you all singing along to the DuckTales theme song. Corny as hell, but C-l-a-s-s-i-c cartoon stuff from the 80’s!

OK, shut up and sing along. You sing, an angel gets a new kidney or something like that. And a puppy.

YOU SING! NOW!!


Life is like a hurricane…
Here in Duckburg.

Race cars, Laser, Aeroplanes
It’s a… duck blur.

Might solve a mystery
Or rewrite history…

DUCKTALES
Woo-oo!

Everyday they’re out there making:

DUCKTALES
Woo-oo!

D-D-D-Danger moves behind you
There’s a stranger out to find you
What to do? Just grab on to some:

DUCKTALES
Woo-oo!

Tales of derring-do
Bad and good luck tales (Woo-oo!)

Not ponytails
Or cotton tails, no:

DUCKTALES
Woo-oo!

DUCKTALES

Woo-oo!

Now there, don’t you feel a LOT better?

You’re welcome.

Gallery: DuckTales

DT NES_WFT WOO-HOO! What’s old certainly has gotten a MAJOR makeover, as WayForward Technologies takes the classic NES game to the next level with its DuckTales “remake”, set to hit Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii U this summer. Screenshots don’t do this one justice, so make sure to check out that cool and funny trailer (and sing along, too, as you KNOW you remember all the words to that song! “Not ponytails. Not cottontails. DUCKTALES!!!”):

 

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PAX 2013: Capcom Makes My Day: Dungeons & Dragons AND DuckTales Are Back!

 

Dungeons & Dragons: Tower of Doom and its sequel Dungeons & Dragons: Shadow over Mystara have been two arcade games fans in the US have been begging Cacpom to localize for the US. For years, the only ways to play this were flying to Japan, buying an expensive Sega Saturn import or through not so legal emulation means, but now PS3, Xbox 360, Wii U and PC owners will get to get down with some serious D&D arcade action in Dungeons & Dragons: Chronicles of Mystara. Iron Galaxy is handling the dev chores on the two D&D games, which will get the HD remaster treatment and more (read that link for details – I have to warm up my happy dance) with everything set to release digitally in June.

 

 

DUCK TALES RMAs for DuckTales? This NES classic platformer is getting the SUPER royal deluxe McDuck treatment, as its HD remake is being handled by none other than WayForward Technologies, one of the best 2D developers in the business (in my humble opinion). Expect to see this one on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii U this summer.  I’ll post galleries for both games later today or tomorrow, as I have a museum trip and dinner appointment calling me and I’m about to dance on over thataway, happily…

Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 ReMIX PAX East Trailer: Three Ways To Look At It…

 

Oddly enough at the moment, this trailer has so far appeared on everything but the US Disney site, but it HAS to be coming out in North America or there will be riots at Square Enix HQ when rabid series fans dress up like characters from the games and storm the offices demanding a release. Check your local news if you live in the area after PAX East and see what happens. Then again, 99.7% of them will be detained at the airport for carrying giant Keyblades, so the workers at that building will merely need to deal with about fourteen raving people in homemade costumes with picket signs and cardboard swords. ANYWAY, the three things I was getting to:

PS3-only owners will be giddy and thrilled if they’re fans of the popular franchise as the HD boost looks pretty nice and there’s a cool bonus added you’ll see if you watch the trailer above. Of course, this release doesn’t have Kingdom Hearts II on the disc, which means if this sells well, Square Enix and Disney will be hitting you up for more money in a year or less with a new HD update of that game’s Final Mix and other content…

Nintendo-only home console owners will be pissed off because other than the four portable KH games (one for the Game Boy Advance, two for the Nintendo DS and one for the 3DS), there’s nothing for them on a home console to play (and probably won’t be unless the upcoming Disney Infinity adds KH toys and characters to the game down the road).

Xbox 360-only owners completely won’t give a crap, but they certainly wouldn’t mind a good Disney game that doesn’t use than damn Kinect. Fat chance of that happening, but you never know…

Disney Infinity Announce Trailer: Kids… Take Your Toys Outside, But Stay Home!

 

OK, I’m sure Disney won’t be marketing their upcoming (and fun looking) multi-platform game this way and I’m sure those parents who prefer their kids get some actual exercise in a real theme or other park will be rolling their eyeballs as the wallet comes out later this year, but that’s how it goes. New cool tech means old school parental units wondering what the fuss is about. Granted, the game is mixing up the figure collecting fun of Activision’s billion-dollar grossing Skylanders franchise with the ability to create and share game worlds with other players, so there’s more to this than meets the eye. Still, I’m wondering why Disney didn’t ring up Square Enix so both companies could rake in probably half that billion Activision is making furniture out of with a Kingdom Hearts: Infinity game. Hmmmm… I wonder if either company is hiring? I’m an idea guy first and foremost and I’d bet a whole dollar that I’ve got a few good ones rattling around upstairs some folks can make a mint off of…