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1%%
2%% Please do not change the image to one from the remaster without creating an Image Pickin' thread.
3%%
4%%
5[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/epic_mickey_3.png]]
6[[caption-width-right:350:''[[{{Tagline}} Unleash the power of the brush.]]'']]
7
8->''"With the tools of wonder and limitless imagination, I built a world for the forgotten. The unloved.''\
9''A once joyous land, now ruined by a [[WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse mischievous mouse]].''\
10''But redemption comes through unparalleled bravery, long lost friends, and the power of the brush.''\
11''Only then can a mischievous mouse become an epic hero."''
12-->-- '''Yen Sid''', E3 2010 teaser trailer.
13
14''Epic Mickey'' is a Creator/{{Disney}} game for the Platform/{{Wii}} developed by Junction Point, spearheaded by Creator/WarrenSpector of ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' and ''VideoGame/SystemShock'' fame and published by Creator/DisneyInteractiveStudios. In an ambitious effort to help Disney [[WinBackTheCrowd restore Mickey Mouse's iconic status]], it brings back the happy memories of [[WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts Disney's classic short subjects]] and [[Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon feature length films]] from their [[MediaNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation Golden Age]], [[MediaNotes/TheSilentAgeOfAnimation Silent Age]], [[MediaNotes/TheDarkAgeOfAnimation Dark Age]], and [[MediaNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation Renaissance Age]] as well as attractions from the Ride/DisneyThemeParks of old... but NOT in the way anyone expected.
15
16The story begins with Walt Disney's original cartoon star, WesternAnimation/OswaldTheLuckyRabbit, after finally getting Walt some success and recognition, being taken from him over both a budget dispute and a contract loophole, fading into obscurity, and being [[CaptainErsatz replaced by his younger half-brother]] WesternAnimation/MickeyMouse. [[ThrowTheDogABone Fortunately]], he becomes the first resident of a world created by [[WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}} the wizard Yen Sid]] for [[WhatCouldHaveBeen forgotten and rejected Disney creations and ideas]]. This world, called [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Wasteland]] (based on the Ride/DisneyThemeParks), exists as a small model on a table within Yen Sid's tower. Oswald takes this world as his own, presenting himself as a king there. Soon after, Oswald teams up with WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor, another early resident of Wasteland -- together, they create the [[MechaMooks robotic]] [[XtremeKoolLetterz Beetleworx]], which serve as construction tools for Wasteland, as well as relocators for new residents of the world, and together they try to make Wasteland a comfortable home for the other lost Creator/{{Disney}} characters who later join them -- but Oswald grows resentful of his younger brother over time due to his increasing popularity. In a vain effort to emulate the life he never had, he makes a ''very'' large family with his [[InterspeciesRomance feline girlfriend]] Ortensia, and has the Mad Doctor build [[RobotBuddy robotic copies]] of WesternAnimation/DonaldDuck, WesternAnimation/DaisyDuck, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} to help him recreate the adventures Mickey went on -- but even this fails to fill the void.
17
18Later on, Mickey himself stumbles into Yen Sid's tower, after being lured in by the wizard's mischevious (or malicious) magic mirror. Shortly after arriving, he sees Yen Sid put the finishing touches on Wasteland. Content with his progress, Yen Sid goes off to sleep, while Mickey decides to put his own touch on Wasteland--he spots the magic paintbrush Yen Sid was using and begins to fiddle with it, but accidentally creates a monster [[EldritchAbomination called the Shadow Blot]] [[NiceJobBreakingItHero and spills paint and paint thinner all over the model.]] Hearing Yen Sid approaching, Mickey tries to erase the Blot and quickly clean up... and ends up spilling even more thinner on the model, creating a gaping hole in it, and then flees back to his bedroom via the mirror before the wizard returns. Despite Mickey's attempt to hide his transgression, the not-so-dead Blot persists and enters Wasteland via the hole; there, it takes over Wasteland, twisting it into a [[DarkerAndEdgier sinister]] and [[CrapsackWorld dangerous]] version of the original, and drives Oswald and any resistance into hiding during the conflict, henceforth called "The Blot Wars". The Doctor promptly stabs Oswald in the back (as he had always wanted to) and sides with the Blot, [[TheStarscream if just to further his own agenda.]]
19
20Decades later, having long forgotten the incident, Mickey is suddenly pulled into Wasteland from his home via the Blot. Mickey manages to grab the magic paintbrush before he is pulled in, so he can create and erase things with paint and [[BlackMagic thinner]]. After narrowly escaping from Dark Beauty Castle and the Doctor and Blot's attempt to remove his heart, as well as having a brief encounter with Oswald, Mickey's initial goal is to simply return home, but his discovery of the miserable state of Wasteland and its inhabitants, including old friends like Horace Horsecollar, cause him to change his plans.
21
22Now the mouse must regain the trust of his resentful older half-brother Oswald, foil the Mad Doctor, and stop the Shadow Blot to save and restore Wasteland, all while trying to keep his heart, the symbol of those who remember and love him, which is all the Blot needs to escape into the real world.
23
24So, if you haven't guessed already, this is one of the ''[[Franchise/KingdomHearts other]]'' series that turns Mickey into a complete badass, has a shadowy (pun intended) evil and heart stealing. It's also been adapted into a couple of kids' books and a prequel {{webcomic}} and graphic novel written by Creator/PeterDavid.
25
26A sequel has been released, ''VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo'' (selected from a batch of subtitles that also included ''Return of the Mad Doctor'' and ''Mystery on Mean Street'') and a portable side story ''VideoGame/EpicMickeyPowerOfIllusion'', both which have their own pages.
27
28Its pacing and design is heavily akin to Platform/Nintendo64 platformers like ''VideoGame/BanjoKazooie''.
29
30A VideoGameRemake entitled ''Epic Mickey: Rebrushed'' is set for release on the Platform/PlayStation4, Platform/PlayStation5, Platform/XboxOne, Platform/XboxSeriesXAndS, Platform/NintendoSwitch and [[Platform/MicrosoftWindows PC]] in 2024. Due to both Junction Point and Disney Interactive being long defunct, the remake is being developed by Purple Lamp [=GmbH=][[note]]formerly known as Purple Lamp Studios[[/note]] (''[[VideoGame/SpongeBobSquarePantsBattleForBikiniBottom SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom - Rehydrated]]'', ''VideoGame/SpongeBobSquarePantsTheCosmicShake'') and published by their parent company Creator/THQNordic.
31
32%%comment%% No Edit Wars between "Phantom Blot" and "Shadow Blot," please.
33'''Examples from ''Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two'' and ''Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion'' should go on [[VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo their]] [[VideoGame/EpicMickeyPowerOfIllusion respective]] pages.'''
34----
35!!Disney's ''Epic Mickey'' provides examples of:
36
37* ActionBomb: Spladooshes will sleep happily, but [[StuffBlowingUp if they wake up...]]
38* AdaptationNameChange: The graphic novel curiously names the Shadow Blot after his predecessor/inspiration the Phantom Blot.
39** In the original cartoon he hailed from, The Mad Doctor's name was given as Dr. XXX on the door to his castle. [[HaveAGayOldTime Because XXX has a much different connotation today than it did in 1933]][[note]]In the 1930's, a XXX mark was a common marking for jugs of moonshine or alcohol in general, making the original name [[PunnyName a punny one.]] Today, XXX is a shorthand for highly pornographic materials, making his original name rather unfortunate sounding now.[[/note]], he is simply renamed The Mad Doctor here.
40* AdaptedOut: The graphic novel adaptation omits several characters, most notably Small Pete, Animatronic Daisy, and Mr. Smee, because it simply jumps over the three sequences they're from.
41* AliceAllusion: It does not feature any Alice, of course, but Mickey accesses Wasteland (which is only a few letters away from Wonderland and intentionally so) by going through a mirror and spends the first half of the game trying to get to [[WesternAnimation/OswaldTheLuckyRabbit a rabbit]].
42* AllThereInTheManual: A free iOS app that has been taken down since Junction Point was shut down had stories of the Wasteland before Mickey messes it up.
43* AmbiguouslyGay: Pete Pan. He's a good fighter, but dear GOD, his body language... He pumps his ass in Mickey's face the first time they meet.
44* AmusementParkOfDoom: Wasteland is, essentially, [[Ride/DisneyThemeParks The Unhappiest Place On Earth]] / [[Music/NoDoubt The Real Tragic Kingdom]].
45* AndIMustScream:
46** [[spoiler:Ortensia]]'s initial fate is to be trapped in stone after having all the Paint thinned out of her.
47** If you [[BlackMagic Thinner]] the Clock Tower, its arms and face will fall into the pool below, leaving it alive and awake with no control over its body.
48* AntiFrustrationFeatures:
49** Mickey's reserves of Paint or Thinner will slowly return to one-third capacity if they ever fall below that amount.
50** Some of the important quests involve finding the body parts of Animatronic Goofy, Animatronic Daisy, and Animatronic Donald. The game autosaving whenever you find quest items as well as its use of DeathIsASlapOnTheWrist means that collecting the body parts isn't too grueling a task. And if you should fail to find all of the missing body parts before beating the levels they are found in, you also have the choice to buy every body part you missed for 1,000 E-Tickets, which would require nothing more than a good deal of grinding.
51* AntiHero: If you play towards the dark side of the KarmaMeter, Mickey can turn into one of these and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.
52* ApatheticCitizens: The citizens of [=OsTown=] and Mean Street doesn't seem to mind that their cities are literally the only places that WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor and [[BlobMonster the Shadow Blot]] haven't conquered yet. Heck, they won't even react when Mickey goes VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto on them. Thankfully averted with the Gremlins, who seems to be the only people around who at least try to help you.
53* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: Subverted. WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor's Swiss-Army-torture-device has four settings: A large pair of shears, a massive corkscrew, a chainsaw, and at its highest setting (labelled with a skull and crossbones), a... toilet plunger? Even Mickey is surprised. [[spoiler:And then he learns it's used for... unorthodox heart surgery...]]
54* ArtAttacker: Mickey uses a brush, magical paint and paint thinner to SetRightWhatOnceWentWrong. He can use the brush itself to physically attack, or use it to create or erase animated objects.
55* ArtShift: Gameplay segments use a relatively orthodox graphical style reminiscent of ''VideoGame/SuperMarioGalaxy''. Cutscenes, however, are 2D and in a style influenced by the late [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Blair Mary Blair]], who did concept art for several Creator/{{Disney}} movies and the art for "It's A Small World."
56* AscendedGlitch: Multiple examples. Theoretically, ''Epic Mickey'' is a game where you must make choices at different points of the story between doing "either this or that"; either of the options will get you a different award or cutscene and you can't get both. However, sometimes you accidentally don't really have to make the choice: you can actually do both.
57** Instead of deciding whether or not to get the treasure or save the gremlin, it is actually possible to save ''both'', by attacking an enemy just next to the treasure, quickly grabbing the treasure, and then hurrying to rescue the gremlin.
58** The most developed example in the game is the Animatronic Captain Hook's boss battle. There are supposed to be three ways of defeating him: either manipulate his trajectory to make him fall in the Thinner Sea and right into the Crocodile's jaw; or make him hit against a wall numerous times, until he falls to pieces; or ignore Hook, climb the High Mast, and rescue Tinker Bell to call for Pete Pan (the ''Epic Mickey'' version of Peter Pan), who will proceed to defeat Hook for you. However, you can defeat Hook yourself either way, and ''then'' still save Tinker Bell and call for Pete Pan, who however probably won't have anything to do. You can, also, defeat Hook one way or another, then go wander around a treasure chest located somewhere else on the boat; when your return to the main deck, Hook will be back, and you can then rescue Tinker Bell and call for Pete Pan who will come and fight Hook again.
59* TheAtoner:
60** Mickey is ashamed after he played a hand in creating the Blot which ravaged the Wasteland. Now that he's been forced to return, Mickey's forced to face the Blot and undo his past mistakes.
61** Oswald blames himself for letting the Shadow Blot ruin his kingdom and agrees to help Mickey mainly to help come to terms with Ortensia's fate.
62* AttentionDeficitOohShiny: Several of your foes can get easily distracted whenever a TV is placed in front of them. Including ''Oswald''.
63* AttractMode: The opening prologue movie is even ''called'' "Attract Mode".
64* AuthorAppeal: The reason why you're collecting pins is simply because Warren Spector himself collects Disney pins.
65* BadassAdorable:
66** Mickey, obviously, since his cartoon design doesn't stop him from fighting robots, pirates, and monsters.
67** Oswald is as cute as a cartoon rabbit can be, but he can still defeat giant Blotlings with lone kicks.
68** The Bunny Kids; they're adorable little bunnies and eat blotlings. [[BreadEggsMilkSquick Wait, what?]]
69* BeingGoodSucks: Not ''sucks'', exactly, but concerning many of the Good/Bad choices you can make in the game, be it using Paint or Thinner or doing a FetchQuest with two possible item choices; usually, the good choice is the harder to accomplish by far (three words: "Save the Sprite"), while doing the bad thing can take about two seconds. That said, it's [[GoodFeelsGood ultimately worth the extra effort though just to see the characters be happy]] and [[GoodPaysBetter to get some added rewards]] (like the optional pins) that you won't get by doing the Thinner path.
70* BenevolentArchitecture: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] towards the end, with Gus saying something about how convenient it is that there's a bunch of chandeliers with strong chains in a tower.
71* BigBadDuumvirate: [[BlobMonster The Shadow Blot]] (now an EldritchAbomination made of paint and [[BlackMagic thinner]]) and WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor, described by Spector as being the "brawn and the brains" of the pairing, respectively.
72* BigDamnHeroes: Attempted, but unfortunately subverted when [[spoiler:Mickey and his friends try to use the Rocket to defeat [[EldritchAbomination the Shadow Blot]].]]
73* BigBoosHaunt:
74** Naturally, Lonesome Manor, based on Franchise/TheHauntedMansion.
75** The Lonesome Ghosts travel map as well, plus the aptly named The Haunted House.
76* BlackMagic: The thinner, which destroys the Paint that animates and gives life to Disney's world. You actually need it on occasion, but if you're doing a "good" playthrough, you won't be using it a lot.
77* BlobMonster: The Shadow Blot is a monster created when Mickey mixed magical paint and paint thinner together, creating an inky creature larger than a castle that reduced a fantastical land to what is now called the Wasteland. Pieces of the Shadow Blot can also separate from it and become sentient monsters called Blotlings.
78* BodyHorror:
79** Quite a bit of this in the early concept art, and there's still some of this in the finished game. See the WesternAnimation/{{Dumbo}} Ride in Gremlin Village? They have no eyes.
80** In the final game, Mickey absorbed some of the Blot when dragged into the Wasteland, resulting in him appearing to ooze drops of ink. If you favor using [[BlackMagic thinner]], lots of ink will float off of him as a result.
81** There was also a notion with Mickey's paint abilities to make it look as if he was channeling HIS OWN PAINT through the brush, but it looked too silly in testing by making Mickey look like he was getting male pattern baldness.
82** Or even earlier when he was channeling thinner/paint with his HANDS, which looks like [[http://hamilton74.deviantart.com/art/Epic-Mickey-Attacking-193974282 this.]]
83** Another concept idea had Mickey radically change depending on his choices. If he made good, heroic choices, he would gain more color, his fur becoming a dark-bluish and his gloves looking golden. If he continually made bad, selfish choices, [[http://hamilton74.deviantart.com/art/Thinner-Mickey-193969166 well...]]
84** And don't even get started on Oswald when he was the main villain... [[http://hamilton74.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d37hkgg Phantom Blot Oswald anyone?]]
85* {{Bowdlerize}}: In the Japanese version, the Thinner Disaster was depicted as vapours draining the paint from everything instead of a tsunami, as seen [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQuniAiHJoY here]].
86* BrainInAJar: Animatronic WesternAnimation/{{Donald|Duck}}, WesternAnimation/{{Daisy|Duck}}, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}} all have glass domes containing their heads before they're reassembled.
87* BreakingTheBonds: How Mickey escapes the Mad Doctor in their first scene.
88* BridgeLogic: An option for getting through the European section of Gremlin Village.
89* BubblegloopSwamp: Bog Easy, based on New Orleans Square from the parks. Of course the "Gloop" happens to be paint thinner...
90* ButThouMust: You can do things either by disregarding others, destroying things, and being a JerkAss, or by helping people out and giving your all to improve everyone's lives, but the story and all but two cutscenes are the same no matter what. The creators were disappointed by this, so making moral choices have a bigger impact became a large focus of [[VideoGame/EpicMickey2ThePowerOfTwo the sequel]].
91%%* CameraCentering: The C button resets the camera. Except when it doesn't (see below).
92* CameraScrew: The camera often swings out of the player's control, even in areas where platforming is necessary. WordOfGod is that developing a camera for a 3D environment where walls and floors can appear and disappear ''at any time'' was a rather difficult challenge.
93* CaptainErsatz: Even though they predate them in initial designs, the game's portrayal of [[DeadpanSnarker Gremlin Gus]] and the Gremlins will remind you ''a lot'' of Papa Smurf and Franchise/TheSmurfs.
94* ChainsawGood: WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor's machine in the opening, among other instruments of torture, almost cuts Mickey in half with a chainsaw
95* ChairReveal: When Mickey gets to the castle at the top of Mickeyjunk Mountain, he comes across a giant chair, only for it to turn around and reveal a small rabbit sitting inside arms crossed: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, Mickey's predecessor.
96* CharacterModelKarmaMeter: Bad actions over time look like drops of ink are oozing off of Mickey, just like the Shadow Blot. If you use more [[BlackMagic Thinner]] than paint, then more ink will ooze off as a result.
97* ChasteToons: Inverted with Oswald, who's had a lot of kids in the years he's been in the Wasteland -- [[ExplosiveBreeder he's a rabbit, after all]]. And much to their father's chagrin, they adore "Uncle Mickey". His girlfriend, Ortensia, is a cat. Female cats are known to be VERY promiscuous.
98* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: The Mad Doctor betrayed Oswald when he lost the Blot Wars, and then he allied with the Blot; he plans to eventually betray the Blot as well, once Mickey's heart has been taken.
99* ClockworkCreature:
100** The Beetleworx enemies are robots constructed from random parts that have the faces of various Creator/{{Disney}} characters painted on them. Defeating them requires erasing the painted parts.
101** The first boss in the game is a giant clocktower from the "It's A Small World" attraction. While normally smiling and colorful, the AntiMagic Thinner surrounding it has washed away everything bright about, exposing its inner mechanisms and piping as it attacks anyone it can as it malfunctions.
102* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: The blue fluid is paint, and the green fluid (resembling acid) is thinner.
103* ComicBookLimbo: This is essentially the Wasteland, a place where every forgotten and underused Disney character can live out their "retirement." Unfortunately, Mickey accidentally released a monster into it that turned what was essentially magical recreation of Disney Land into a dark, dreary shadow of its former self.
104* CompanyCrossReferences:
105** Tomorrow City's boss, Petetronic, is based off ''Film/{{TRON}}''; he shoots disks off his back and can summon rotating shields, and his armor has TronLines. His battle arena also looks like the computerized environments in ''TRON''. His name is also a portmanteau of "Pete", "Tron", and "electronic".
106** There are cameos from non-''Mickey Mouse'' Disney characters; Tortooga has the pirates from ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan'' in it, while a statue of Simba from ''WesternAnimation/TheLionKing1994'' is in Lonesome Manor.
107* ConspicuouslyLightPatch: The main way of identifying what you can use Paint or Thinner on. Surfaces with bright, vibrant colors are composed of Paint, while thinned objects leave ghostly silhouettes behind. Additionally, anything you can spin move to activate or smash for shineys flashes iridescent.
108* CoveredInKisses: [[spoiler:Oswald in the ending after reuniting with a restored Ortensia.]]
109* CrapsackWorld: The Wasteland is a sick version of Disney Land where shadow monsters and killer robots roam free while rivers of acidic Thinner wipe away the color and life remaining in the world. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero And it's Mickey's fault.]] However, the game's plot is about saving it. So it's more of AWorldHalfFull.
110** Mickey can use his own Thinner to make it ''[[VideoGameCrueltyPotential worse]]''.
111* CreativeClosingCredits: Available right from the start in the Extras menu, featuring Blotlings doing various antics with the Brush.
112* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: What happened to the members of Captain Hook's crew that were turned into Beetleworx. [[spoiler:They can get better if you choose to use paint on the machine converting them.]]
113* DarkerAndEdgier: A lovable cartoon rabbit is portrayed as Mickey's jealous and semi-insane half-brother, living in a twisted nightmarish copy of Disneyland threatened by a mad scientist and a demonic monster, and the player has the option of turning Mickey back into the scrappy {{antihero}} he was back in the 30s.
114* DeadlyRotaryFan: There are a series of these in the "World of Gremlins" dungeon (which imitates the "It's a Small World" ride). They spin too quickly for Mickey to easily get through unharmed, but he can use paint thinner to erase some of the blades long enough to pass by unscathed.
115* DeadpanSnarker:
116** Gremlin Gus seems to be a bit of this. Considering [[Creator/RoaldDahl who created him]], it makes sense.
117** Oswald has his moments as well, especially when the player plays the "scrapper" mode.
118-->''"I'd say good luck, but "heroes" don't need luck, right?"''
119-->''"Yes sir. Spatters better watch out for you. You like that [[BlackMagic Thinner]]."''
120-->''"That was an impressive display of destructive firepower."''
121* DefeatMeansFriendship: For the purposes of quests that require combat, using Paint to befriend Blotlings counts the same as defeating them. This even applies to some of the bosses.
122* DemotedToExtra: Animatronic Goofy and Animatronic Donald in the graphic novel adaptation. All they get is a one-panel cameo standing near Oswald.
123* DetectivesFollowFootprints: A series of quests, given to you by the detective, involves you following footprints to the same guy every time, where you have to buy back stolen objects. If you paint all the footprints, the thief will give you the object for free.
124* DevelopersForesight: A requirement, as there's not too much of a way to figure out what you're going to add/remove. One example is the Skull Island Machine, where you can a) do nothing, b) destroy the machine with [[BlackMagic thinner]], or c) make it turn out cartoon characters with paint.
125* DiscOneFinalBoss: The first time you face the Shadow Blot, he appears to be the final boss battle. But as it turns out, [[spoiler:The Shadow Blot you had been fighting in question was simply his avatar and a dripping from his bottle like the other Blotlings. The real Shadow Blot is in fact MUCH bigger.]]
126* DownInTheDumps: Mickeyjunk Mountain is a giant pile of old Mickey Mouse merchandise. Ironically, it's home to Oswald, the person who appreciates Mickey's fame the least.
127* EarnYourHappyEnding: Warren Spector heavily emphasizes the concept "Playstyle Matters". If you defeat a boss with [[BlackMagic thinner]] or fail a series of quests, it's going to affect the game's ending, and it ''will'' turn out worse than if you had redeemed the boss with paint or completed that important questline.
128* {{Egopolis}}: [=OsTown=], named after the former king of Wasteland, Oswald. Complete with images of Oswald absolutely everywhere. Not to mention, according to the comics, apparently all of his children are named after him. All 420.
129* EldritchAbomination: The Shadow Blot.
130* EpicFail: Your first quest for [[CluelessDetective Horace Horsecollar]] has you retrieving a book that he lent to a friend of his but hasn't seen since. Not only is the book in the possession of a store owner just a few feet away from Horace's office (with the last known holder of the book '''directly across the street'''), but just to add insult to injury, the book in question is called ''[[ParodiesForDummies How to Be a Detective]]''. All this from a toon who has been (or at least tried to be) a detective for '''years'''.
131* EraSpecificPersonality: The original KarmaMeter [[WhatCouldHaveBeen would have been based on this]]: Would you play Mickey like the scrappy fighter he was in the early '30s, or like TheHero he was later in his career? You could've also opted to play on the middle of the road, and acted more like the straight man he was in the late '30s, and for a while after.
132* EternalEngine:
133** Gremlin Village has elements of this, in the mass of gears that make It's a Small World work, plus elements in the Utilitunnel sections.
134** The Travel Map WesternAnimation/ClockCleaners is this as well, being set inside a clock tower. It's similar to the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' clock towers, really.
135* EverybodyHelpsOutDenouement: In the good ending of the game, you see all the [=NPCs=] you've helped (like the Gremlins, bosses, and the animatronics) cleaning up messes around the Wasteland and celebrate as paint restores the place to its former glory.
136* EvilIsEasy: Frequently applies to the player. Many times, doing whatever it takes to get the "good" result in a quest requires more work then just blasting your obstacles with thinner. This frequently requires more creativity, too; sometimes, it's easy to fall into accepting the "bad" ending simply because you can't figure out how to resolve the problem with paint.
137* EvilLaughter: Both WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor and The Blot are fans of it. [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by [[DeadpanSnarker Gus]] in a cutscene:
138-->'''[[DeadpanSnarker Gus]]''': WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor, did he go "Nya-ha-ha!"?
139-->'''Oswald''': *flashback bubble to WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor going "Nya-ha-ha!"* Yeah, he did. Why?
140-->'''[[CaptainObvious Gus]]''': "Nya-ha-ha" always means bad news.
141* EvilMakesYouUgly: Averted; while they did design an evil-looking "Scrapper" Mickey during development, they removed it from the final game. While his bad karma is visible, it's more meant to be eerie than ugly.
142* EvilOverlooker: [[BlobMonster The Shadow Blot]] looks down on Mickey in [[http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/8427/7558epicmickey2d00cover.jpg this piece of art]].
143* EvilTowerOfOminousness: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_jJizAUFOqI The first level,]] Dark Beauty Castle, which is distantly visible from the game's main hub, Mean Street.
144* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: It's Mickey Mouse embarking on a truly epic adventure to salvage a lost world that he himself brought to ruin, all while dealing with the inhabitants, the twisted, nightmarish terrain, WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor and his Beetleworx, [[TheWoobie his vengeful, long forgotten half-brother]] who he didn't even know about until he arrived in this world, and the ever-looming menace of [[BlobMonster the Shadow Blot]] Mickey unleashed onto the Wasteland. Epic Mickey, ''indeed.''
145* ExplodingCalendar: Used to show Mickey's sudden rise to fame in the intro.
146* ExpositionFairy: Gus Gremlin, from an unmade feature, occasionally offers some advice on how to proceed.
147* FairyCompanion:
148** Mickey can attract up to three "Guardian Spirits" depending on his use of Paint and [[BlackMagic Thinner]], which can be launched at Blotlings to defeat them in a single shot.
149** Not to mention (for a given definition of "Fairy") Gus, who fits a more conventional version of this role. He hovers about explaining things, introduces the new levels.
150* FatalFireworks: Mickey and Oswald defeat the Shadow Blot by launching fireworks at him.
151* FatBastard: The Spladooshes. Big Bad Pete, and the other versions of Pete (except Pete Pan) could also apply.
152* FatFlex: When Oswald gets mad at Mickey after learning that [[NiceJobBreakingItHero he's the one responsible for creating]] [[BigBad the Shadow Blot]], he [[https://youtu.be/3Jo16VHXTpA?t=1m29s lifts up his waist]], puffing up his chest, and [[BringIt challenges him to a fight]]. However, his waist fat goes back down when he [[OhCrap realizes]] that he's accidentally broken [[SealedEvilInACan the giant cork sealing the Blot's bottle]].
153* FearInducedIdiocy: In a {{flashback}}, the Wasteland floods with paint thinner. As a WorldWreckingWave occurs, several townspeople run for their lives, except for one guy resembling ''WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}}'', who just stands frozen in fear. After the wave passes by, he has disappeared, implying that the thinner caused him to [[ImMelting melt]].
154* FightingAShadow: Mickey's duel with [[spoiler:the Shadow Blot]] on top of Mickeyjunk Mountain.
155* FloatingContinent: Wasteland appears to be made up of this.
156* FollowTheWhiteRabbit: A good part of the opening act is Mickey pursuing Oswald through the Dark Beauty Castle after Oswald helps Mickey escape the Mad Doctor.
157** In the GraphicNovel, Mickey even lampshades the fact that this is kind of like ''Literature/AliceInWonderland''.
158* FlyingBooks: In the [[BigBoosHaunt haunted mansion]] level, you can choose to help Madam Leota get her books back. The only problem is they are flying around and you need to gum up the pages with paint to stop them.
159* FreelookButton: Toggling with the 1 button allows players to see their paint/thinner targets better.
160* FreeRotatingCamera: Using the d-pad does the rotate & tilt form.
161* GambitPileup: WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor is playing the Blot, [[spoiler:Oswald is playing Mickey, the [[EldritchAbomination REAL Blot]] is behind everything...]]
162* GangplankGalleon:
163** Ventureland/[[Franchise/PiratesoftheCaribbean Pirates of the Wasteland]] feature a series of islands (in a sea of acidic Thinner, mind you) controlled by roboticized versions of Captain Hook and his crew.
164** The Travel Map Shanghaied as well. Fitting, considering it links Pirate Voyage to Skull Island.
165* GenreBusting: Well, it ''is'' Mickey Mouse meets ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' and ''VideoGame/SystemShock''. Plus Warren Spector loves to drive Marketers Crazy with this trope.
166* GenreThrowback: The entire game is one big love letter to Classic Creator/{{Disney}} in general, let alone MediaNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfAnimation. Warren Spector even commented that the game is supposed to draw a lot of influence from WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}.
167* GiantHandsOfDoom: The Small World clock boss has giant robotic hands to crush Mickey with. Incidentally, they also serve as its weak points.
168* GoodIsNotNice: Mickey, depending on how you play, can rudely ignore the requests of Wasteland's civilians and actively ruin their lives by Thinning away their homes and friends.
169* TheGoomba: Spatter Blotlings can only attack by running up to Mickey and smacking him with their arms and require no special method to defeat besides spattering them with Paint/Thinner.
170* GrimyWater: It's [[JustifiedTrope paint thinner]], actually, and looks/acts an awful lot like [[Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit the Dip]](understandably, since apparently some of the ingredients it's made of are paint-thinners).
171* GuideDangIt:
172** Seriously. If you value your sanity at all, ''don't'' try to collect everything in this game without a source of help.
173** Using lock-on targeting in combat (you have to place your cursor over the enemy you wish to target, then hold down the C button for about half a second). It isn't mentioned in the manual, and it's so [[DamnYouMuscleMemory downright counter-intuitive]] at first that most reviewers didn't even know the feature existed.
174** There's also the fact that you're supposed to point to where you want the anvils and [=TVs=] to go, which the game doesn't mention. It's entirely possible that you'll end up wasting several as you try to figure out why the [=TVs=] keep spawning 30 feet away above a bottomless pit.
175** Figuring out how to beat the Small World Clock Tower by using paint can stump some people who don't know that you have to keep painting both of its arms until they're both fully blue and hopping on the one that lowers its palms in order to reach the face and then use paint on its face until it's redeemed.
176* HandWave: One is given when Gus explains he can't fix the pipe organ for you because steam power's not his specialty. Oddly enough, this is the only time an explanation for Gus' lack of help is given despite there being many other places that could use one.
177* HauntedHouse: The Lonesome Manor is based off Disney's "Haunted Mansion" attraction and comes fully equipped with a friendly cast of ghosts that you can choose to help along your journey through their. It also contains a sentient piano, flying books, and a painting of [[WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}} Chernabog]].
178* HeartContainer: Defeating a boss will reward you with an increased capacity for Paint or [[BlackMagic Thinner]], depending on what you defeated him ''with''. The player can also acquire (or purchase) upgrades to Mickey's maximum HP and sketches.
179* HeelFaceTurn: Every villain except WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor and [[spoiler:[[EldritchAbomination the true Shadow Blot]]]], assuming you defeated them with Paint. (Since Hook can't be defeated with paint, this involves freeing the Sprite so Pete Pan can fight Hook again.)
180* HeroicSacrifice:
181** [[spoiler:Mickey gives up his heart to rescue Oswald and Gus from the gigantic Shadow Blot towards the end of the game.]]
182** [[spoiler:Ortensia was petrified saving Oswald from the Blot.]]
183* HiveMind: The Blotlings function just like the Flood and the Necromorphs do, with one leading mind, in this case Shadow Blot, controlling the other, smaller creatures.
184* HopelessWar: Before Mickey came to the Wastelands, Shadow Blot and the Mad Doctor had pretty much won the Blot War; they have conquered Oswald's castle and petrified [[spoiler:his wife Ortensia]], an act which sends him into a deep depression and causes him to lose his will to fight, leaving the fighting to small, weak bands of resistance groups. One of them, the crew of Captain Hook, has most of the members dead or turned into Beetleworx and the rest scattered leaderless in the jungle. Another group, The Gremlins, has been more successful in fighting off Blot's forces, but the sheer force of Blot's forces causes most of the Gremlins to be taken as prisoners, and their own village was under siege before Mickey helped in turning the tide.
185* HostageForMacguffin:
186** Near the game's climax, the [[spoiler:true]] [[EldritchAbomination Shadow Blot]] takes Oswald and [[DeadpanSnarker Gus]] hostage and demands Mickey's heart in exchange for their safety.
187** {{Meta}}-example: Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, even after 80 years, was still owned by NBC/Universal, not Creator/{{Disney}}. To get him back into their intellectual property, Creator/{{Disney}} gave Creator/{{Universal}} one of their sportscasters, Al Michaels. Interestingly, Creator/{{Walt|Disney}} himself was happy that Creator/WalterLantz had been using Oswald and had been taken from Charles Mintz.
188* HubLevel: As far as accessing the other levels, Mean Street serves as this, especially considering that its Ride/DisneyThemeParks counterpart, Main Street USA, is probably the best [[RealLife real-life]] example of the {{trope}}.
189* HubUnderAttack: Once the Storm Blot is unleashed, it sends tentacles around the four hub areas, forcing Mickey to destroy all of them and save the hubs.
190* InAWorld: Played completely straight in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ovuo_7p2ntg this trailer]] made for Tokyo Game Show 2010. [[RuleOfCool And it is awesome.]]
191* InCaseYouForgotWhoWroteIt: It's generally referred to as ''Disney's'' Epic Mickey.
192* InterspeciesRomance:
193** When Mickey gets one of Hook's pirates to admit his love for Henrietta the Cow.
194--> '''[[DeadpanSnarker Gus]]''': "Personally, I give them a few months, tops."
195** Oswald and Ortensia; a [[CarnivoreConfusion rabbit and cat]], respectively.
196* IronicAllergy: Henrietta the cow is lactose intolerant, even [[LampshadeHanging lampshading]] irony of it. Despite this, in one mission, she asks you to bring her ice cream just as a reminder of the pirate Damien Salt who she fell in love with.
197* IronicNurseryTune:
198** A non-reversed but creepy "Small World" plays during the Clock Tower boss fight.
199** A somber rendition of the tune of "[[WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty Once Upon a Dream]]'' is incorporated into the music of Dark Beauty Castle.
200%%* {{Jerkass}}: [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Scrapper Mickey.]]
201* IslandOfMisfitEverything: The Cartoon Wasteland was created for the sole purpose of providing a home for forgotten toons.
202* JungleJapes:
203** Well, there's this area in Venture Land called The Jungle...
204** The travel map based on the 1929 short Jungle Rhythm looks to fit the {{trope}} too.
205* KarmaMeter: More along the lawful / chaotic axis than good / evil -- it's a choice between the JerkAss Mickey began as, TheHero he became, or something in between. Both sides have their own abilities via the [[FairyCompanion Guardians]], and some level areas are only accessible to certain alignment choices.
206* LaResistance: The Gremlins. They're one of the few groups still actively fighting [[BlobMonster the Shadow Blot]].
207* {{Leitmotif}}: Mickey and Oswald have their own distinctive themes.
208%% * LimelightSeries
209* MacrossMissileMassacre: A fireworks version is used to defeat the [[spoiler:real Shadow Blot]].
210* MagicMirror: Mickey passes through the mirror in his house in the opening sequence to reach Yen Sid's tower.
211* ManipulativeBastard: WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor is manipulating [[BlobMonster the Blot]] for his own means. [[spoiler:Oswald is manipulating Mickey to build the rocket for him]].
212* MarketBasedTitle:
213** For some reason, the words of the title were swapped in the German version, so it's called "Mickey Epic".
214** The Japanese version just added to the title so it's called "Disney Epic Mickey: Mickey Mouse and the Magic Brush".
215* ImMelting: What happens when you die.
216* MercyInvincibility: Averted... fall into a pool of [[BlackMagic thinner]] without a nearby platform -- or end up underneath one -- and you're almost guaranteed to quickly lose ''all'' of your health pips.
217* MikeNelsonDestroyerOfWorlds: Mickey starts off the game causing an inkpocalypse on the game's world.
218* MinecartMadness:
219** Shown in a concept pic at the London press conference.
220** In game, a variation of this {{trope}} appears in the Travel Map Trolley Troubles. You don't have to stay atop the trolley, but it is necessary to keep it with you and to open gates for it to complete the map. May cross over with a strange type of EscortMission.
221* ModularEpilogue: The ending gets filled in with shots of bosses and important characters behaving friendly and politely if Mickey helped them when he encountered them earlier (with the exception of [[spoiler:the Mad Doctor]]). All of these shots are accompanied with narration from the sorcerer [[WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}} Yen Sid]] that can be interchanged freely but still form a cohesive sentence about people's decisions and how they affect other people.
222* MoneyIsExperiencePoints: E-tickets are the main currency, and can be used to buy items as well as upgrade Mickey’s health and ink capacity.
223* {{Mook}}: [[BlobMonster Blotlings]] split off from the giant Shadow Blot) and Beetleworx (robotic minions serving the Mad Doctor) serve as Mickey's most basic obstacles throughout ''Epic Mickey''.
224* MookMaker: The Beetleworx creators which will spit out another Beetleworx as soon as you've destroyed one. [[spoiler:The real Shadow Blot is one of these too, since all the Blotlings and the small Shadow Blot are just pieces that escaped out of the bottle.]]
225* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor. Emphasis on "ambiguous": While he has helped Oswald by building the robot versions of Mickey's friends and the maintenance Beetleworx, [[TheQuisling he switched to the Blot's side when he started winning]] and is now his partner in the BigBadDuumvirate.
226* MotorMouth: Oswald. Just try to keep up with what he's saying when you first meet him.
227* MultipleEndings: Depending on [[KarmaMeter how you fought the bosses]]. [[spoiler:Although it seems that only what happens to certain characters changes in the various endings.]]
228* MythologyGag: Concept art for the scrapped Scrapper Mickey gives him a similar appearance and pose to Julius Mickey from ''WesternAnimation/RunawayBrain''.
229* NeverTrustATrailer: Lots of people were disappointed that the finished game wasn't the Lovecraftian steampunk-like type of game, with its promising CainAndAbel and JekyllAndHyde subplots, that it was hyped out to be when the first concept arts were released.
230* NewGamePlus: Film reels and pins carry over between playthroughs.
231* NiceJobBreakingItHero: What started the whole mess. Later, the entire mess could have been finished, except [[spoiler:Oswald's WhatTheHellHero starts it over again]].
232* NoFourthWall: Seriously, the plot focuses on cartoon characters who are jealous and/or depressed because they're not popular with audiences anymore! Heck, the only fourth wall the characters don't break is their relation to the actual player.
233* NoticeThis: "Toon" objects (surfaces affected by Paint or Thinner) are lighter and more vibrantly colored than objects surrounding them; even when thinned, they leave a ghostly silhouette behind so the player can recognize that something's supposed to go there. This is similar to the ConspicuouslyLightPatch of traditional cel animations, where foreground objects were lighter tone than background objects due to being placed on a separate layer.
234* NotSoInnocentWhistle: Oswald will shoot faces at Mickey when his back is turned. Turn around to face him again and he'll start whistling innocently. If you turn around while in first person view however, he doesn't stop teasing you.
235* NotTheFallThatKillsYou: Between Mickey's DoubleJump, his spin attack, and his brush techniques, there are many ways to soften his momentum before actually impacting the ground.
236* NostalgiaLevel: The 2D side-scrolling "travel zones," which take their inspiration from WesternAnimation/ClassicDisneyShorts, including:
237** "Clock Cleaners"
238** "Thru The Mirror"
239** "WesternAnimation/SteamboatWillie" (seems heavily inspired by the one in the Genesis/SNES game VideoGame/MickeyMania)
240** "Plutopia"
241** Three Oswald cartoons, including "Oh, What A Knight"
242** "WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor"
243** ''WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty''
244** ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'', based on "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", with butterflies from "The Nutcracker Suite"
245** And one non-2D section, Mickeyjunk Mountain, seems to be designed with this in mind. It's a level made out of old merchandise. A lot of it seems to be ancient, sure, but it also includes Super Nintendo and NES cartridges starring Mickey.
246* OhCrap:
247** Mickey's face [[WideEyesAndTinyPupils when he looks up]] and finds himself strapped down on a operation table in a dungeon.
248** And Oswald -- when he finds out that Mickey caused the thinner disaster he literally dances with rage, challenging Mickey to a fight. He only remembers that he is dancing on the cork sealing the real Shadow Blot just as it cracks. His face and body language are priceless.
249* OlderThanTheyLook: Pretty much everyone. The game basically has NoFourthWall and acknowledges time passed in RealLife. As cartoon characters, no one is really affected by aging. For example, Oswald and Mickey are 83 and 82, respectively, when this game takes place.
250* OneHundredPercentCompletion: Requires multiple playthroughs, as several pins are mutually exclusive rewards of defeating or befriending each boss.
251* OneSteveLimit:
252** Averted; there are two extras named Ian. No attention is brought to this, though the game distinguishes them by referring to the pirate as "One Eyed Ian" and the ghost simply as "Ian."
253** Then there's Constance, the one who was the original owner of the Lonesome Manor who was suspected to have killed all her husbands with the hatchet that you have to find for Horace, and there's the NPC Constance you can randomly talk to in Ventureland if you rescue the pirates.
254* OneWingedAngel: As if things weren't bad enough, one of the concept arts (shown in ''Magazine/NintendoPower'') [[http://doope.jp/media/10q3/img1825_02.jpg shows a painted picture of Shadow Blot, ten times larger than before and having horns a lá Chernabog]].
255* PercussiveMaintenance: [[LaResistance The gremlins]] can fix ''anything'' by whacking it with a wrench. [[spoiler:Also how Oswald gets the rocket to work.]]
256* PersonOfMassConstruction: Mickey Mouse, thanks to his magical paintbrush, can instantly make giant structures appear mid-air. He can't choose where the structures go, but if he slaps Paint in the appropriate place, he can create giant buildings, advanced machinery and the greatest construction of all, [[ThePowerOfFriendship love]].
257* PlayingTennisWithTheBoss: Petetronic.
258* PluckyComicRelief: Mickey's sidekick, [[DeadpanSnarker Gus]], a gremlin veteran from a scrapped UsefulNotes/WorldWarII Creator/{{Disney}} cartoon.
259* PortTown: Pirate Voyage and Tortooga qualify. They are based on the village from Pirates of the Caribbean, after all. Pirate Voyage even has little boats you can ride on.
260* PoweredArmor: Petetronic has this in the form of augmentations to [[TronLines his outfit]].
261* PunctuatedForEmphasis: From the "Clocktower Cleaners" digicomic, Oswald has:
262--> "Don't... bring... up... MICE!"
263* PuzzleBoss: Captain Hook; Paint has no effect on him, and [[BlackMagic Thinner]] merely dissolves his armor. You can either free the captured Sprite from the top of the rigging (with Hook dogging your steps), or use the various tracks scattered about the arena to extend the plank and send Hook down to the animatronic Crocodile waiting for him in the waters.
264** [[SubvertedTrope Or]] you can simply continue to send Hook careening into the ship's walls, masts, and deck boards until he breaks apart from all the repeated impacts.
265* RedemptionInTheRain: Justified. [[spoiler:It "rains" paint during the ending, restoring the Wasteland to its original state.]]
266* RedEyesTakeWarning:
267** WesternAnimation/TheMadDoctor's operating-robot, [[NiceJobBreakingItHero after Oswald breaks its console.]]
268** Also the Slobbers (if you painted them friendly and somehow enough [[BlackMagic thinner]] got on them to turn evil again). They have red eyes only when they aren't under Mickey's influence.
269* RemilitarizedZone: The travel map based on the Oswald cartoon "Great Guns".
270* {{Retraux}}:
271** The Mouse himself, with a design and personality hearkening back to the twenties and thirties. (True to form, his mouse ears shift position to retain the characteristic "Mickey Mouse" shape.)
272** Special mention, however, must go to the "Scrapper Mickey" design, which goes all the way back to "Plane Crazy" for inspiration -- or, at least it did, before getting dropped.
273* ReversibleRoboticizing: In Tortooga, Mickey has to shut down a machine created by the Mad Doctor that is transforming the local pirates into [[MechaMooks Beetleworx]]. Mickey can either use thinner to destroy the machine and make the transformations permanent or use paint so that the machine will reverse the process and turn its victims back to their normal selves.
274* RiseToTheChallenge: One of the 2.5D ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' stages late in the game has a rising flood of paint thinner.
275* RobotBuddy: Oswald [[Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000 tries to keep his sanity with the help of his robot friends.]] [[http://disney.adata.com.tw/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/epic-mickey-5-goofy.jpg They]] [[http://gameinformer.com/cfs-filesystemfile.ashx/__key/CommunityServer.Components.PostAttachments/00.00.03.82.87/Donald.jpg aren't]] all that well put together, though.
276* RuleOfThree: [[WhatCouldHaveBeen Hero, Wastelander, and Scrapper.]]
277* SanitySlippage: Part of the reason the Clocktower went berserk was because it was forced to listen to the "It's a Small World" theme echoing from within itself for years. Mickey even points out how that would be enough to drive anyone mad in the Graphic Novel. The Tales of the Wasteland prequal comic shows that [[spoiler:the Mad Doctor orchestrated this long before the Blot Wars began]].
278* SaveScumming: Averted. The game auto-saves after just about every karma-related decision you make, forcing you to live with whatever consequences result from it, and there is no other way to save the game.
279* SceneryGorn: The Wasteland is [[http://wii.ign.com/dor/objects/786198/warren-spector-game-project-/images/e3-2010-disney-epic-mickey-screens-20100615020110644.html beautiful in its own way.]]
280* SequelHook: After the ending credits, [[spoiler:Mickey is sealed away from the Wasteland... but his finger starts dripping ink, which means that some of the Shadow Blot's ink is still in him]].
281* SequenceBreaking: [[WordOfGod The developers]] actually ''encouraged'' playtesters to sequence break, and then [[ThrowItIn put it into the finished product and called it a feature]]. If anything, this can only continue now that it's released... Here's an example. In [[{{Tomorrowland}} Tomorrow City]], try dropping a TV on the first platform last. This platform is the only one that electrifies the tracks, so you won't have to dodge them to get to the other platforms to power those up. However, unless you had some gremlin aid, the electricity is a much better thing to dodge than the thing it replaces when all three are powered. If you don't sequence break in the above way, you are much closer to the gate after dodging the electricity. Hence, this is actually a pretty equal trade-off.
282* ShieldedCoreBoss: All Beetleworx have a layer of Paint armor that the player must dissolve via Thinner before they can inflict a damaging blow; the Beetleworx regenerate their armor after each hit.
283* ShoutOut: [[ShoutOut/EpicMickey Has its own page, again.]]
284* ShownTheirWork:
285** Besides including some of the more obvious theme park icons, some sketches even feature early [[Ride/DisneyThemeParks Disneyland]] icons like the [[http://www.pacificsites.com/~drhoades/tomorrow.htm Moonliner and Clock of the Future]]. Not to mention that the whole game is about obscure characters (such as an unused version of Smee from ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan'') coming back to the spotlight.
286** [[LaResistance The Gremlins]] are from an unmade UsefulNotes/WorldWarII film, though were still used in some military unit insignia and comics.
287** In at least one interview, Warren Spector mentioned that even such seemingly insignificant elements as ''individual barrels'' were taken from Creator/{{Disney}} history. '''THAT'S''' [[ShownTheirWork showing your work.]]
288** You remember the basketball court inside the Matterhorn? Yeah, guess what, it's actually IN the game in a hidden room on Mickeyjunk Mountain.
289** You can also unlock access to Creator/WaltDisney's firehouse apartment on [[HubLevel Mean Street]].
290* ShowsDamage: All enemies (including bosses) gradually turn blue or green when struck by Paint or [[BlackMagic Thinner]]. Beetleworx in particular must have their armor dissolved away to reveal their weak points.
291* SkippableBoss: Certain boss battles can be avoided if you made the right decisions.
292* SleepyEnemy: Spladooshes combine this with ActionBomb. If Mickey approaches one, it will wake up and explode, thinning out all the paint in the vicinity. Paint will slow down the explosion, and thinner will speed it up.
293* StarfishRobots: The Beetleworx, especially the Spinners and Tankers. Spinners have tick-like bodies and a wheel at the bottom; if Mickey gets too close, they use the wheel to travel as the legs become spinning blades. Tankers are mobile gatling gun turrets, some of which have paint jobs based on the Queen from ''WesternAnimation/{{Snow White|AndTheSevenDwarfs}}''.
294* SteamPunk:
295** Not ''quite'' as heavily present as the concept art led many to believe, but elements of the style are still there - most notably in the Clock Cleaners level and the animatronic designs for WesternAnimation/{{Donald|Duck}}, Daisy, and WesternAnimation/{{Goofy}}.
296** Some of Mickeyjunk Mountain looks a little bit similar to the old SteamPunk concept art, only toned down a whole lot more. Try comparing it to the concept art with the toppled over water tower to some of the places you see in Mickeyjunk Mountain.
297* StepfordSmiler: Isn't it weird on how cheerful and optimistic the peoples of [=OsTown=] and [[HubLevel Mean Street]] are when their entire world is nothing but Godforsaken and dead wastelands, ruled by a EldritchAbomination made by paint and dissolving [[BlackMagic Thinner]] and his traitorous right hand of a MadScientist and occupied by [[Franchise/{{Terminator}} Skynet's]] death-machines and TheHeartless?
298* StormingTheCastle: For the Endgame, of course. [[spoiler:The only way to defeat the Shadow Blot is to activate the Dark Beauty's Castles supply of fireworks, so Mickey has to rush up the castle's three towers to arm them as the Blot tears the Castle apart.]]
299* StoryBranching: Subverted here, where the player's ExpositionFairy explicitly hints that they may solve puzzles and defeat Bosses in multiple ways (typically with either Paint or Thinner) and the player must pick a course of action; this affects [=NPCs=]' opinions of Mickey throughout the adventure, but it has zero effect on the adventure itself, nor its ending (though ending cutscenes do reflect the actual choices made).
300* StrappedToAnOperatingTable: The Mad Doctor ties Mickey Mouse to an operating table in the opening sequence.
301* StrongFamilyResemblance: Mickey and Oswald. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] by the fact that the former was originally created to be a CaptainErsatz for the latter.
302* SuperDrowningSkills: If you even touch a DROP of water or any other liquid that's not [[BlackMagic thinner]] in the projector screen 2D levels, you will lose a health pip and can melt and/or drown.
303* TakeAThirdOption: Unlike the other bosses, there are three ways to defeat Captain Hook. You can make him walk the plank, force him to smash into walls until he breaks, or have Pete Pan fight him instead.
304* TakenForGranite: [[spoiler:Ortensia the cat. She's restored to normal in the ending.]]
305* {{Tomorrowland}}: Tomorrow City, the [[CrapsackWorld Wasteland's]] equivalent of the [[RealLife real-life]] TropeNamer. It even has a ''{{Franchise/Tron}}'' look, complete with TronLines.
306* TheThreeTrials: Mickey has to go through three 2D action stages in [=Mickeyjunk=] Mountain based on old Oswald cartoons in order to meet with said rabbit.
307* TookALevelInBadass:
308** The [[strike:Phantom]] [[EldritchAbomination Shadow Blot]], according to Warren Spector, who says he was a lame villain, and they decided to make him a bit more powerful. By "a bit," he meant that he turned a thief into a gigantic ink demon.
309** Subverted with the gremlins. They get several feet taller, gain {{Teleportation}} and {{Flight}} and go from being able to repair planes to being able to fix (and possibly make) just about anything, but they're ridiculously easy to capture despite this and spend most of the game as [[DistressedDude distressed dudes]].
310* {{Toon}}: Most of the main characters. The [[HostileAnimatronics Beetleworx]], weirdly enough, combine elements of this and EldritchAbomination.
311* ToonTown:
312** [[CrapsackWorld Wasteland]]. A very [[DarkerAndEdgier grim]] example.
313** [=OsTown=] is based on the ToonTown at the parks, so it obviously fits this. [[HubLevel Mean Street]], the [[CrapsackWorld Wasteland's]] version of [[HubLevel Main Street USA]], also has elements of this, since the toons live there as well.
314* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The commercials for the game spoil [[spoiler:the Shadow Blot's defeat by fireworks.]]
315* TrappedInAnotherWorld: The main goal of Mickey's quest is to escape the Cartoon Wasteland and return home. It's eventually revealed that he needs a Heart to escape, [[spoiler:which Oswald schemes to take for himself until his HeelFaceTurn and the [[BigBad Shadow Blot]] steals away from him in the game's final act.]]
316* TraumaCongaLine: Oswald the "[[IronicNickname Lucky]]" Rabbit has been caught in one for ''80 years''.
317* TronLines: Electric gridlines cover [[CrapsackWorld Wasteland's]] version of {{Tomorrowland}}, Tomorrow City.
318* UndergroundMonkey: Spatter Blotlings and Beetleworx adopt different outfits and textures depending on which level you encounter them in.
319* VariableMix: Each major area has three versions of its music (Neutral, Paint, and Thinner) and switches between them based on how many Guardians you have.
320** If you have no Guardians at all, the Neutral version plays.
321** If you have one or two Tints, the Neutral version overlaid with the Paint version plays.
322** If you have three Tints, just the Paint version plays.
323** If you have one or two Turps, the Neutral version overlaid with the Thinner version plays.
324** If you have three Turps, just the Thinner version plays.
325* VideoGameCaringPotential: Dost thou remain an ideally friendly mouse...
326-->'''[[DeadpanSnarker Gus]]''': "It's true what they say about you, you can make friends with anybody."
327** Almost any enemy in the game can be turned into an ally with paint, even the demonic Shadow Blot that kidnaps Mickey in the game's opening.
328* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: ...or regress back to what thou once were?
329** You can even melt [=NPCs=] with [[BlackMagic thinner]]!
330** There's a part in the first level where you can choose to let an innocent gremlin get launched so you can get a few quick bucks. ''Seriously.''
331-->'''[[DeadpanSnarker Gus]]''': "Hey! Our land is barren enough without your help!"
332** You can befriend baddies, then knock them off a ledge, knock them into a space with an unpainted object, then paint in the object, and lots of other cruel methods that won't necessarily influence your KarmaMeter.
333* VisualPun: If you decide to be a good little Mickey and change back the animatronic pirates in Tortooga, one of the many symbols that the reversed machine will show is a screw and a baseball.
334* VoiceGrunting: Yen Sid is the only one who gives any audio narration; everyone else simply grunts, with the actual dialogue in subtitles.
335* WalkThePlank: One of the ways of dealing with Animatronic Hook is to push him along the tracks on his ship to the plank... and right into the maw of Animatronic Tick Tock the Croc...
336* WartimeCartoon: [[LaResistance The Gremlins]] were originally from an unmade one of these -- based on an idea by Creator/RoaldDahl, no less.
337* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The setting is an InUniverse example, with some characters lamenting things turned out differently. Oswald is especially like this.
338* WhatTheHellHero:
339** Most characters, including all of the extras, will call Mickey out on some level if he tends to use and abuse [[BlackMagic thinner]]. Negative major choices will also change how major characters view you. Interestingly enough, some characters will call you out for not being as [[DarkerAndEdgier edgy]] as they would have liked you to be if you use [[WhiteMagic paint.]]
340** And [[DeadpanSnarker Gremlin Gus's]] basic reaction if and when Mickey chooses a treasure chest full of E-tickets over the safety of Gremlin Calvin and sends him flying via catapault.
341** [[spoiler:When Mickey finally admits that ''he'' caused the [[BlackMagic Thinner]] Disaster, Oswald becomes livid. Unfortunately, this becomes ''Oswald's'' time to do a NiceJobBreakingItHero.]]
342--->[[spoiler:'''Oswald:''' I should have known! You stole my life AND ruined my home! That's it! [[BringIt You and me, Mouse! Right now, c'mon!]] I've been waiting for this for years! This is gonna be my moment! (Cue Oswald's fury accidentally breaking the seal on the [[SealedEvilInACan REAL]] [[EldritchAbomination Shadow Blot]].)]]
343** After completing one of Pete's "Bunny Kid Round-Up" quests on [[HubLevel Mean Street]], Oswald will complain if you talk to him.
344* WhereItAllBegan: [[WesternAnimation/SleepingBeauty Dark Beauty Castle]] is both the tutorial level and TheVeryDefinitelyFinalDungeon where Mickey and Oswald make their stand against the [[EldritchAbomination Shadow Blot]].
345* WindowLove: [[spoiler:Mickey and Oswald in the mirror at the end of the game, showing they've become as close as brothers]].
346* WombLevel: [[spoiler:The final level takes place ''inside'' the Shadow Blot, right next to the giant heart it stole from Mickey]].
347* WorldWreckingWave: The [[BlackMagic Thinner]] Disaster, where a bottle of Thinner fell on Yen Sid's Painted land for forgotten characters. The degradation of the world led to it getting a new name, the Wasteland.
348* YouAllLookFamiliar: [[JustifiedTrope Justified]]! Mickey [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] the similar appearances of many characters on his first walk through [[HubLevel Mean Street]]. [[DeadpanSnarker Gus]] describes them as "rough drafts", "extras", and concepts of characters "left and forgotten on the drawing board".
349* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: [[spoiler:It is implied that Oswald planned to steal Mickey's heart and escape [[CrapsackWorld Wasteland]] once he got all the pieces needed to build the Moonliner Rocket]]. Fortunately, he has a change of heart when [[spoiler:Mickey defeats both the Mad Doctor and the [[EldritchAbomination Blot]]]].
350* ZombieGait: [[spoiler:The lost cartoon souls inside the [[EldritchAbomination Shadow Blot]].]]

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