Mickey Mouse gets a makeover in Epic new video game - and this time Disney's giving him a dark side



He’s best known as the cheerful and friendly cartoon icon of the Walt Disney Company.



But Mickey Mouse is set for a makeover – and it looks like the loveable character is headed for the dark side.



Epic Mickey is set for launch on Nintendo’s Wii console next year and will feature the mouse as you’ve never seen him before.

Rebrand: Mickey Mouse's makeover sees him 'naughty' and more rat-like in his appearance in the game, set for release next year

Loveable: The new Mickey is less soft and cheerful than his most recent predecessor

The new platform game is intended to establish the character alongside computer game heavyweights including Super Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog.



‘We’ve pulled Mickey out of the world of cartoons which is where he belongs and feels comfortable and safe and we pull him into a world we call the Cartoon Wasteland,’ game designer Warren Spector told The Guardian.



The game sees Mickey plunged into an apocalyptic-looking world where the formerly squeaky-clean mouse comes face to face with past Disney characters eclipsed by his fame.



Oswald the Lucky Rabbit is the chief inhabitant, a predecessor to Mickey who was abandoned in a dispute with Universal Studios.



In Epic Mickey, Oswald resurfaces as bitter and envious of the mouse’s popularity.



A disembowelled, robotic Donald Duck also features, as does a ‘ twisted, broken, dangerous’ version of Disneyland’s It’s a Small world.



Although cantankerous and cunning, Mickey’s character is above all a hero who must solve problems to stop the Phantom Blot overlord and revive the wasteland.



In an added twist, the more destructive his behaviour, the more the famous mouse begins to resemble a rat.



Mr Spector said: ‘Mickey is never going to be evil or go around killing people.



‘[But] I wanted him to be able to be naughty – when you’re playing Mickey you can misbehave and even be a little selfish,’ he added.

Apocalyptic: The wastelands of Epic Mickey are a far cry from the usual Disney landscapes

Turmoil: Mickey is plunged into a world that needs saving

How he was: Mickey in his 1928 debut in Steamboat Willie

The surprising move to reinvent the mouse comes following a decline in merchandise sales for the character.



Although worth $5bn this year, the decline is a result of the changing tastes of a new generation of cartoon fans, who have grown up with Nickelodeon and Pixar.



It’s hoped the makeover will make the mouse appeal to the modern broods of texting, technologically savvy children who currently make up the markets.



‘There’s a distinct risk of alienating your core consumer when you tweak a sacred character, but at this point it’s a risk they have to take,’ said Matt Britton, a managing partner of Mr Youth, a New York brand consultant firm.

Mickey Mouse made his debut in Steamboat Willie in 1928.



The character, which was originally voiced by Walt Disney himself, has evolved through various costume and anatomical changes throughout the years, although all retained his cheerful and happy demeanour.



News of Mickey's rebrand comes as China finally gave the green light for Disneyland to build a Disney theme park in Shanghai – after 20 years of negotiations.



It is hoped Shanghai Disneyland – which is expected to cost around $4billion - will unlock a giant new market for Mickey and his fellow characters.



