"The reality is that we started Wii development in 2008, but before that we were a PC, PS3, and 360 title," said Warren Spector, lead designer at developer Junction Point, in an interview with Official Nintendo Magazine UK. "At that time we were talking about a Wii port and I was begging people - no, we can't just port to the Wii, it's not going to work. It needs to be its own game. A lot of the design ideas just won't work on the Wii, we need to give the Wii its dues. [Disney Interactive executive Graham Hopper] looked at me and said 'What do you think about a Wii exclusive?' And I went 'Holy cow - yeah! They walked away from three other platforms - no other publisher on the planet would have done that. It was a magic moment for me. No one has even mentioned other formats since that point."
Other details emerged, such as the fact that the desolate world Mickey inhabits in the game was created by Yen Sid, the sorcerer from Fantasia. Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, the lead villain in the game, is the first inhabitant of this world that was created as a place where Disney's retired and forgotten creations could thrive.
"The core of this game is the idea of choice and consequence, and how that defines both the character and the player. By putting the mischievous Mickey in an unfamiliar place and asking him to make choices to help other cartoon characters or choose his own path the game forces players to deal with the consequences of their actions," Spector said. "Ultimately, players must ask themselves, What kind of hero am I? Each player will come up with a different answer."
Epic Mickey is set to release in fall 2010 exclusively on Wii.
That is a ballsy move to switch from a multiplatform game to a platform exclusive. Though, seeing how many Wiis are out there and that a Disney game ought to be a good fit for the majority of its owners, that decision might have been easier than one would guess.
