Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two

It's never a good sign when you start keeping track of the number of times you've yawned while playing a game.

Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is a dull video game. It has the potential to be fun, but the entire experience is delivered with such a slow, monotonous drone that you'd be forgiven for falling asleep and allowing your Vita to drop out of your hands.

The game sees Mickey return to Wasteland to discover the cause of some earthquakes and fight the Blotworx.

And once again, Mickey's principle weapon is the paintbrush, which allows him to paint elements into the world, and remove them too. Playing alongside sidekick Oswald, Mickey clears a path through the world.

The paintbrush is a fun gimmick that's put to numerous entertaining purposes. There's also no denying that the game is colourful and expansive, with plenty to see and do. If you're a Mickey fan, you may well enjoy it.

But for the rest of us, Epic Mickey 2 is just plain boring.

Not so epic

Part of the issue is that the menu system is bewildering. Trying to work out what your current mission is and where you're meant to be going is a game in itself - and not a very fun one.

Elsewhere, while the 3D platforming is basically fine, the controls don't feel solid enough, and I regularly found myself having to wade through entire sections again because I fell from high platforms.

There's just a general lack of focus, urgency, and challenge to the gameplay, giving the whole production the feel of a children's game.

There are technical glitches with the PS Vita version, too. Frame-rate issues occur here and there, and you'll see characters floating in mid-air sometimes, or sticking to walls.

The omission of online multiplayer from the console version seals the deal, making the Vita version a far less appealing proposition.

Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two is not a fun game by anyone's standards. There's plenty of content, but no real entertainment value to any of it.

Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two

Epic Mickey 2: The Power of Two might suit the kids, but it's too dull and fiddly for anyone else to truly enjoy
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Mike Rose
Mike Rose
An expert in the indie games scene, Mike comes to Pocket Gamer as our handheld gaming correspondent. He is the author of 250 Indie Games You Must Play.