I am kind of resurrecting this year-old post, but I could not help myself. I have recently joined the forum and this topic is about two of my all-time favorite 16-bit games. They are both unique and excellent games, and I think they are two of the best Mickey Mouse games of all time, to be released in any console.
When Castle of Illusion was released back in 1990, there was nothing like it. It was released in Japan in November 21, 1990, which is exactly the same day as the Super Famicom came out. This release date was probably chosen because Sega knew that it had a special weapon to challenge the Nintendo 16-bit console. It was released in the U.S. in December 1990, before anyone else outside of Japan could put their hands on a Super NES.
Castle of Illusion was groundbreaking, especially being an early Sega Genesis game and fitting in only a 4 Megabit cart. The player could feel like being in the shoes of Mickey Mouse, as graphics were so realistic for the time. And it was Mickey (yes!), in a quality videogame. It was the first time a game captured the magic of Disney, and it was so special because most games at the time still had a lot of rough edges.
Sega would only release Sonic the Hedgehog in June 1991, and it would largely follow Castle of Illusion's recipe for what a good platform game should be. But, before there was Sonic, and given that Alex Kidd for Genesis was sort of a disappointment, Mickey was Sega's Mario.
The Magical Quest is a whole different story. It did not break any new grounds. The Magical Quest was released in Japan, quite interestingly, in November 20, 1992, missing by only one day the two year anniversary of Castle of Illusion. It was a great game, for sure, but these two years made a huge difference in terms of the videogame landscape.
The world had already become acquainted with Super Mario World and its many levels. Sega had released Sonic the Hedgehog in 1991, showing how fast and cartoonish 16-bit games might be. The SNES already had 16-bit versions of classic games such as Contra, Castlevania, Prince of Persia, and Double Dragon. TMNT IV: Turtles in Time had been released for the SNES in mid-1992, showing that Nintendo's console could also have colorful cartoonish graphics. Sega had made Ecco the Dolphin for the Genesis. Nintendo had brought Mario Kart to the SNES. And, of course, there was the mighty Street Fighter II, the first 16 Megabit game.
By the end of 1992, many other games were scheduled to be released. Sega would launch the much-hyped Sonic the Hedgehog 2 in November 21, 1992, just one day after The Magical Quest. And it would also release World of Illusion (featuring both Mickey and Donald) and Streets of Rage 2 (the first 16 Megabit cart for Genesis) in December 1992. Konami would bring TMNT to the Genesis also by the end of the year. SNES would get a fast-paced cartoonish game featuring Road Runner and a first game featuring Tiny Toon characters. And, in February 1993, a mere three months away, Star Fox would debut the Super FX chip to take the SNES to new 3D heights.
In addition to al of this, there was Mortal Kombat on the Arcades to take everyone's breath away.
So, The Magical Quest, as good as it might have been, could never have the same impact as Castle of Illusion. It was a very quality game in the middle of several other very quality games. In the end, The Magical Quest may be a better game, especially given how the industry evolved, but the sense of ambiance of Castle of Illusion is unmatched.
The Magical Quest has better graphics. The backgrounds are gorgeous, and Capcom makes very good use of SNES colors. The stages seem like they were taken out of a cartoon. Mickey itself looks good, although, as mentioned, not very animated.
Castle of Illusion features a very animated Mickey Mouse, perhaps with his face a little off-white. But still, many frames of animation. As for the backgrounds, they seem more abstract and less complex than the ones in Magical Quest, but they add another dimension. They are of a darker tone and bring some sense of danger. In The Magical Quest, scenarios look friendly and colorful for the most part, but in Castle of Illusion some of them seem like taken from nightmares which somewhat contrasts with Mickey's happy face.
I overall agree that Magical Quest has better graphics and both add a lot to the respective games.
In terms of
gameplay, Magical Quest also feels like the better of the two. As
jett and
EarthPainting stated, Castle of Illusion can be construed as slow and basic -- and as
Treasure Silvergun also mentions, the sluggier moving Mickey can feel inertia-inducing at times. Magical Quest feels tighter and offers more gameplay variety with its grab 'n toss mechanic, coupled with the costume switching system. You have
no idea how much I always looked forward to getting to the Pete's Peak stage, and utilizing Mickey's Bionic Commando-style mountaineering skills. I would have loved an entire MM game built on this mechanic alone.
