[GAME] Castle of Illusion (1990)
Castle of Illusion is an absolutely gorgeous looking platformer. There is some amazing sprite art here in every biome that Mickey travels through - it's a joy to look at. There is amazing attention to detail, like the lights dimming as you swing on a lamp string. Thankfully, the game is pretty solid in the mechanics, department too, although there are parts that feel a little bit dated by today's standards.
My favourite part of the game was the boss battles - they are pretty classic Super Mario Bros. 3 style affairs where you dodge the attacks of the boss and then hit them once you have an opening, but they are executed remarkably well. With the exception of the final boss, they all feel tough but fair, and there's a really nice rhythm between defense and attack.
The ground stomp mechanic, reminiscent of Ducktales, is also very nice, and you can get into a real groove of hopping between enemies as the jump momentum increases. The level design really makes this mechanic shine, and there are some bizarre and interesting ideas here that are used for a level or two and then discarded. In one level, rushing waves threaten to wash you away unless you get to a platform up high quick enough. In another, gravity flips, and you find yourself flipping from ground to ceiling to traverse the environment. It's all very clever, and the game is short enough for these ideas to be executed to completion.
What I didn't care for is the player speed. Mickey moves just too slowly, even compared to platformer contemporaries. Some of the controls can also be sadly a little imprecise - I was particularly frustrated when trying to grab the edge of a rope to swing on. These are all minor flaws, however - Castle of Illusion is a stellar platformer.