Mickey Mania

Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse is a 1994 platform video game developed by Traveller's Tales/Psygnosis and published by Sony Imagesoft for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Genesis, and Sega CD. In the game, the player controls Mickey Mouse, who must navigate through various side-scrolling levels, each designed and based from classical Mickey Mouse cartoons. The game was later released on the PlayStation in 1996 as Mickey's Wild Adventure.

Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse
Packaging for the Genesis version
Developer(s)
Publisher(s)
Designer(s)
Composer(s)
Platform(s)Super NES, Sega Genesis, Sega CD, PlayStation
ReleaseSuper NES
  • NA: October 1, 1994
  • JP: March 31, 1995
  • PAL: April 1, 1995
Genesis
  • NA: November 1994
  • PAL: November 1994
  • JP: March 31, 1995
Sega CD
  • NA: November 1994
  • PAL: 1995
PlayStation
  • PAL: March 1, 1996
Genre(s)Platformer
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

Mickey Mania is a platformer in which players control Mickey Mouse as he visits various locations based on his past cartoons, ranging from his debut in Steamboat Willie to the more recent The Prince and the Pauper. Mickey can attack enemies by either jumping on them or by using a limited supply of marbles, which are collected throughout the level. Mickey can take up to five hits, represented by the fingers he holds up on his hand, which can be replenished by collecting stars, whilst extra lives can be gained by finding Mickey hats. Levels offer a variety of challenges such as puzzles the player must solve, escaping from a rampaging moose and fleeing from a flaming staircase.

The levels in the game are based from the following classic Mickey Mouse cartoons:

Development

Originally, Mickey Mania was planned to be released to coincide with Mickey's 65th birthday in 1993. However, as that would have only allowed for six months to develop the game, this idea was soon scrapped in favor of the more compelling concept of Mickey traveling back in time to his own original classic cartoons and subsequently recreating the events of the aforementioned shorts in the process. The game pays tribute to Mickey's early cartoon career.

The success of Mickey Mania led to the development of a sequel which would later be canceled so that Traveller's Tales could instead focus on developing a game based on the then-upcoming film Toy Story.[1] The game was the debut project of game designer David Jaffe.[2]

Version differences

The Super NES version is missing the hidden "Band Concert" level, the staircase sequence in the "Mad Doctor" level, a few special effects, some of Pluto's appearances, and some level-ending sequences. It also adds loading time screens in between each area. The Sega CD and PlayStation versions extend the ending to the "Mad Doctor" level, showing that the Mad Doctor had regressed to a baby, and adds a sequence near the end of the Prince and the Pauper level wherein Mickey must find pencils to call upon the other Mickeys from the six main levels to attack Pete, as well as giving Mickey extensive dialogue relevant to situations throughout the game. The Genesis version lacks the hidden area near the end of the first level. The PlayStation version enhances the graphics (all sprites are remade, the staircase sequences are rendered in 3D, and in the "Mad Doctor" level, crates occasionally come from behind which Mickey has to dodge) and adds a sequence at the end of the Mickey and the Beanstalk level where Mickey must run away from Willie the Giant. Willie makes no appearance in any of the other game versions despite being mentioned in the manuals of all four versions.

Both Sega CD and PlayStation versions utilize a Compact Disc Digital Audio-based soundtrack composed by Michael Giacchino.

Reception

On release, Famicom Tsūshin scored the Super Nintendo version of the game 28 out of 40,[3] giving the Genesis version 30 out of 40.[4][5] GamePro gave the Genesis version a mixed review. They particularly applauded the visual style and the motif of playing inside old cartoons, commenting that "The blend of past and present is magical." However, they criticized that the game is too easy and concluded that "If Mickey's not your thing, you won't appreciate this cart. But if you liked any of Mickey's other games, you won't miss with Mickey Mania.[6] The same reviewer later covered the Sega CD version. He praised its improved graphics, additional voice samples, and new level, but again concluded that the game is too easy to appeal to anyone who isn't a Mickey Mouse fan.[7] A different GamePro reviewer covered the SNES version, and in contrast found that the game's difficulty was too high for younger gamers. However, he praised the responsive controls and sharp graphics.[8]

Maximum gave the PlayStation version two out of five stars. They praised the graphical stylistics, attention to detail, and solid gameplay, but criticized that the action never builds in intensity or pays off, and the game makes no noticeable improvements over the earlier, last generation versions of the game. They nonetheless held it to be far better than the other 2D platformer then on the PlayStation, Johnny Bazookatone.[9]

Next Generation reviewed the Sega CD version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "There's just enough innovation here [...] to make it a must, and if you've got kids, I think it's the law."[10]

Next Generation reviewed the Genesis version of the game, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "Ingenious action like Mickey carefully mixing a potion while being attacked from every side, makes it hard to put down."[11]

References
  1. "Cancelled Mickey Mania 2 !!! Only existing footage of the 1994 prototype!". YouTube.
  2. Fleming, Ryan (January 6, 2012). "Exclusive interview: David Jaffe talks the birth of Twisted Metal, the rise of gaming, and the death of the console". Digital Trends. Yahoo! News. Retrieved September 10, 2012.
  3. NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: ミッキーマニア. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.329. Pg.30. April 7, 1995.
  4. NEW GAMES CROSS REVIEW: ミッキーマニア. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.329. Pg.32. April 7, 1995.
  5. おオススメ!! ソフト カタログ!!: ミッキーマニア. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.335. Pg.116. May 12–19, 1995.
  6. "ProReview: Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse". GamePro (64). IDG. November 1994. p. 88.
  7. "ProReview: Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse". GamePro (65). IDG. December 1994. p. 114.
  8. "ProReview: Mickey Mania: The Timeless Adventures of Mickey Mouse". GamePro (64). IDG. November 1994. p. 126.
  9. "Maximum Reviews: Mickey's Wild Adventure". Maximum: The Video Game Magazine. Emap International Limited (4): 152. March 1996.
  10. "Finals". Next Generation. No. 1. Imagine Media. January 1995. p. 98–99.
  11. "Finals". Next Generation. No. 1. Imagine Media. January 1995. p. 101.
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