Cleared on July 18th, 2023 (SEGA Genesis Challenge: 32/160)
If you've been keeping tabs on my SEGA Genesis Challenge series, you likely know that I did not enjoy Castle of Illusion for the Genesis. It had some really obnoxious enemy placements, the obstacles and level design can feel really cheap, and the movement did not feel great.
This part of the review is now outdated due to having played Normal mode, refer to the updated Castle of Illusion review for more info.
I also really do not like how saccharine Mickey looked in that game. So when looking at World of Illusion, it already corrected that one issue, making Mickey actually look quite good in that game, but now he has a new companion, Donald Duck who also looks great in 16 bit form.
And it does manage to maintain the environments and the colors of its predecessor which really add to the vibrant magic aesthetic the game was going with as Mickey and Donald were trying to prepare for a magic act before getting whisked into a world of illusions created by a mysterious dark magician that dares them to challenge him to find their way out.
The 2D platformer gameplay is rather different in how you approach the enemies. Instead of being able to jump on them which you cannot do at all, you hit them with a magic cape which is odd. but it functions and fits with the magician theme these two have. The difficulty is manageable although the water level was obnoxious with how it handles its traps not to mention the tedious bubble sequence. The general movement speed remains the same as it did in Castle of Illusion, but the game improves it by letting you press the run button. While it unfortunately doesn't give you extra monument in your jump, I'd say it's still a step up, so that says something. Also, you can play as Mickey or Donald in this game, but they are merely cosmetic and have no gameplay differences, so it's a matter of who you like the most. I picked Donald.
Update: I was tipped off there was a difference in the routes you take although I have yet to verify that for myself. I will update when I replay the game.
The one thing that I felt World of Illusions was a let down compared to Castle of Illusions is the soundtrack which while not bad, isn't that memorable either. It's still leagues better than Fantasia, though, lol. The final boss theme is pretty good; too bad you either die to him too fast or you defeat him too fast to fully appreciate it.
It's a decent game. I wouldn't say it's remarkable; I was debating if this should be a 3 stars or a 2.5, but looking over the list of 5/10s that I have, I realized that I would rather play this game than any of them, so that's not bad.
This part of the review is now outdated due to having played Normal mode, refer to the updated Castle of Illusion review for more info.
I also really do not like how saccharine Mickey looked in that game. So when looking at World of Illusion, it already corrected that one issue, making Mickey actually look quite good in that game, but now he has a new companion, Donald Duck who also looks great in 16 bit form.
And it does manage to maintain the environments and the colors of its predecessor which really add to the vibrant magic aesthetic the game was going with as Mickey and Donald were trying to prepare for a magic act before getting whisked into a world of illusions created by a mysterious dark magician that dares them to challenge him to find their way out.
The 2D platformer gameplay is rather different in how you approach the enemies. Instead of being able to jump on them which you cannot do at all, you hit them with a magic cape which is odd. but it functions and fits with the magician theme these two have. The difficulty is manageable although the water level was obnoxious with how it handles its traps not to mention the tedious bubble sequence. The general movement speed remains the same as it did in Castle of Illusion, but the game improves it by letting you press the run button. While it unfortunately doesn't give you extra monument in your jump, I'd say it's still a step up, so that says something. Also, you can play as Mickey or Donald in this game, but they are merely cosmetic and have no gameplay differences, so it's a matter of who you like the most. I picked Donald.
Update: I was tipped off there was a difference in the routes you take although I have yet to verify that for myself. I will update when I replay the game.
The one thing that I felt World of Illusions was a let down compared to Castle of Illusions is the soundtrack which while not bad, isn't that memorable either. It's still leagues better than Fantasia, though, lol. The final boss theme is pretty good; too bad you either die to him too fast or you defeat him too fast to fully appreciate it.
It's a decent game. I wouldn't say it's remarkable; I was debating if this should be a 3 stars or a 2.5, but looking over the list of 5/10s that I have, I realized that I would rather play this game than any of them, so that's not bad.