PixlBit

 I wouldn’t blame you if the words “Disney” and “video game” made you frown. After the 16-bit days, the quality of Disney Interactive’s titles took a huge nose-dive, which is a real shame as some of my favorite video games from this era were Disney titles. However, these titles were created by either Capcom or Virgin Interactive. After nearly twenty odd years (and no Virtual Console release), Capcom decided to task Wayforward with remaking their first and most legendary NES Disney title: DuckTales. As far as remastered titles go, does it fall in the same trap as most HD remasters go, or is it a worthy remake of the NES cult classic?

For those who don’t know about the NES game, here is a quick refresher: the main objective of the game is to collect five legendary treasures, each hidden in their own level a la Mega Man. Scrooge’s main attack and means to collect all the hidden diamonds is via his cane jump and cane swing. This type of platforming was very unique to this day, and still is. It wasn’t, however, all perfect; bosses were pitifully easy to beat minus one and in order to enter the African Mines level you had to perform an idiotic backtrack to Transylvania if you completed it first. Also, the final level was just a rehash of Transylvania with a slightly underwhelming final boss.

Wayforward has thankfully added a lot to the experience, and as someone who has completed the NES game many times I welcome a lot of the changes. The core gameplay has remained mostly unchanged with the exception of two brand new levels; you are still pogo jumping and exploring every nook and cranny for hidden diamonds and treasure chests to increase your money score, and the level layouts remain mostly the same. Gone, however, is the time limit and the ability to head straight to the boss; each level now has a secondary objective that unlocks the way to the boss chamber with brand new areas, and each boss has seen changes to their attacks as well, making for a fuller experience. You can even use the money you collected to swim in Scrooge’s money bin and pay for unlockable gallery artwork.

What hasn’t changed are the tight and responsive controls; the original NES game was based off the Mega Man engine after all. However, Wayforward added an option to change how the pogo jump works; in the original NES version, you had to jump, hold down on the control pad and then hold ‘B’ to utilize the move. In this version, you just have to jump and hold a button, which simplifies the maneuver. If you prefer the old-school style of pogo-jumping, you can switch the options at any time in the game’s pause menu on any difficulty, except extreme. However, be warned that the old school pogo-jumping doesn’t always activate. A more encouraging change, are the redone mine cart portions of the game -  they are now akin to those found in Donkey Kong Country, which makes them much more enjoyable.

Yet there are some problems in the gameplay that made me dock a full star from the experience. As I mentioned before, each level now has a secondary objective, which is due to the expanded storyline. Wayforward are obviously fans of the original DuckTales cartoon, and the objectives lead way to voiced cutscenes. As good as the sprite animation, script, and voice acting is, I find it interrupts the flow of the gameplay, despite their brevity. This becomes an even greater problem in subsequent playthroughs.

It’s impossible to talk about DuckTales Remastered without mentioning the facelift it’s received to match the style of the original cartoon. While often considered one of the better looking Disney cartoons of the ‘80s, it has not aged well despite what many people think. Honestly, the game is a mixed bag in looks; the sprite work done on Scrooge, all the NPCs, the enemies, and bosses are wonderfully animated to fit in the style of the original cartoon and NES game. The game also runs smoothly without any slowdown. The backgrounds, however, leave a lot to be desired; in comparison to the concept art shown in the game, to previous Wayforward works, the polygon style really clashes with the 2-D hand-drawn animation. It’s quite a shame, as the NES original was regarded as one of the better looking Capcom games of its time.

Solid throughout though is the audio. While you are given an option to use the original NES audio once you’ve completed the game (on any difficulty), the rearrangements of the original tracks are extremely catchy, with the two standouts being the Moon and Transylvania tracks. Voice acting was also added to the game to flesh out the script, and it’s fantastic to hear Alan Young still voicing Scrooge and June Foray as Magica DeSpell. Some voice actors, however, have replaced some of the original cartoon voices, yet they thankfully do a good job, though I do think Wendee Lee sounds a bit strange as Mrs. Beakly.

I don’t find it hard to justify the $15 asking price for DuckTales Remastered. This isn’t a quick cash-in by any means, as Wayforward showed tender loving care in remaking the game. If you have played the NES game to death, like I have, you will enjoy the changes made to flesh out the experience. Granted, it’s not perfect, but neither was the NES game despite its popularity.