While World of Illusion and Mickey Mania would go on to really show how great animated sprites could be in 16-bit gaming. Castle of Illusion was the original and charming as all get out.
Artistically yes it's maybe a bit weaker than the later Disney titles that gen, but theres a lot of personality in CoM. From the opening that makes you feel for Mickey's plight (even if it's corny as all get out, don't tell me Mickey's expression when Minnie is taken from him doesn't get you even a little) to the cheeky little waiting pose and victory poses he makes when he clears a level and the game tells you "You are one step closer to saving Minnie!"
The levels are refreshingly varied, sure theres the classic run and jump formula. But some levels ask you to traverse rivers, climb crumbling ruins, explore a topsy-turvy toytown,and the game always changes up things just that little bit more to keep it fresh. It's not just the same level design copy-pasted onto a new graphical template. The later World of Illusion did it even better and with co-op too. It's odd that doesn't get as much love.
Still I'm super excited for CoL HD - the trailer was a little off for me but those screens look beautiful. I just hope unlike Dreamrift they learned what made the original so great and actually applied it here, rather than distracting with pretty graphics and cameos