Difference between revisions of "Ariel the Little Mermaid"
From Sega Retro
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==Gameplay== | ==Gameplay== | ||
| − | The player controls either Ariel or King Triton, who both have a normal weapon with unlimited uses and a limited-use super weapon. By default, the Mega Drive version maps the normal weapon to {{B}} and the super weapon to {{A}}, while the Game Gear and Master System versions map both weapons to {{1}}, with {{2}}+{{Up}} being used to switch between weapon types. The D- | + | The player controls either Ariel or King Triton, who both have a normal weapon with unlimited uses and a limited-use super weapon. By default, the Mega Drive version maps the normal weapon to {{B}} and the super weapon to {{A}}, while the Game Gear and Master System versions map both weapons to {{1}}, with {{2}}+{{Up}} being used to switch between weapon types. The D-pad is used to make Ariel/Triton change direction and swim in the direction pressed. |
The objective of the game is to locate the polyps in each level and restore them to merpeople by either touching them directly or shooting them with the normal weapon. Every polyp must be found in order to access the level's boss whose entrance is hidden somewhere in the level. As the levels are labyrinthe in design, there is a map system that can be accessed by pausing the game. The flashing dots on the map indicate polyps that the player needs to locate, and the red X indicates the boss's location (only marked on the map on Medium difficulty). Also located somewhere in each level is Scuttle's Magical Collection, which is a shop screen where the player can spend collected treasure on various items and Fish Friends. | The objective of the game is to locate the polyps in each level and restore them to merpeople by either touching them directly or shooting them with the normal weapon. Every polyp must be found in order to access the level's boss whose entrance is hidden somewhere in the level. As the levels are labyrinthe in design, there is a map system that can be accessed by pausing the game. The flashing dots on the map indicate polyps that the player needs to locate, and the red X indicates the boss's location (only marked on the map on Medium difficulty). Also located somewhere in each level is Scuttle's Magical Collection, which is a shop screen where the player can spend collected treasure on various items and Fish Friends. | ||
| − | If the player's health meter is drained completely, one try is used to refill it. If there are no more tries left, the game ends. The player gets four | + | If the player's health meter is drained completely, one try is used to refill it. If there are no more tries left, the game ends. The player gets four continues in an Easy game, two in a Medium game, and only one in a Difficult game. |
The gameplay suffers from frequent slowdown, particularly when there are a lot of sprites on screen at any point. | The gameplay suffers from frequent slowdown, particularly when there are a lot of sprites on screen at any point. | ||
===Fish Friends=== | ===Fish Friends=== | ||
| − | Fish Friends are characters who can be summoned to aid the player with specific obstacles. In the Mega Drive version, the player must press {{A}}, {{B}} or {{C}} on the map screen to select a Fish Friend, then press {{C}} during gameplay to summon the selected friend. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, button combinations need to be pressed to select and summon Fish Friends. | + | Fish Friends are characters who can be summoned to aid the player with specific obstacles. In the Mega Drive version, the player must press {{A}}, {{B}}, or {{C}} on the map screen to select a Fish Friend, then press {{C}} during gameplay to summon the selected friend. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, button combinations need to be pressed to select and summon Fish Friends. |
{{InfoTable|imagewidths=50| | {{InfoTable|imagewidths=50| | ||
{{InfoRow | {{InfoRow | ||
| Line 133: | Line 133: | ||
===Levels=== | ===Levels=== | ||
| − | {{InfoTable|imagewidths= | + | {{InfoTable|imagewidths=320| |
{{InfoRow | {{InfoRow | ||
| title=The Reef | | title=The Reef | ||
| − | | screenshot= | + | | screenshot=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 1.png |
| − | | screenshot2= | + | | screenshot2=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 1 Boss.png |
| + | | tabs=yes | ||
| desc= | | desc= | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{InfoRow | {{InfoRow | ||
| title=The Sunken Ship | | title=The Sunken Ship | ||
| − | | screenshot= | + | | screenshot=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 2.png |
| − | | screenshot2= | + | | screenshot2=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 2 Boss.png |
| + | | tabs=yes | ||
| desc= | | desc= | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{InfoRow | {{InfoRow | ||
| title=Atlantis | | title=Atlantis | ||
| − | | screenshot= | + | | screenshot=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 3.png |
| − | | screenshot2= | + | | screenshot2=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 3 Boss.png |
| + | | tabs=yes | ||
| desc= | | desc= | ||
}} | }} | ||
{{InfoRow | {{InfoRow | ||
| title=The Cave | | title=The Cave | ||
| − | | screenshot= | + | | screenshot=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 4.png |
| − | | screenshot2= | + | | screenshot2=Ariel the Little Mermaid, Stage 4 Boss.png |
| + | | tabs=yes | ||
| desc= | | desc= | ||
}} | }} | ||
Revision as of 19:31, 18 May 2022
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| Ariel the Little Mermaid | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| System(s): Sega Mega Drive, Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Publisher: Sega
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Developer: BlueSky Software, Disney Software | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distributor:  | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Licensor: The Walt Disney Company | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Sound driver: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Genre: Action[1] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of players: 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Ariel the Little Mermaid is an action game for the Sega Mega Drive, Sega Master System and Sega Game Gear based on the movie with the same name. The Master System version was exclusive to Brazil.
Contents
Story
The game's story has very little to do with the plot of the film. The evil Sea Witch, Ursula, has attempted to conquer the seven seas, turning legions of merpeople into polyps and bewitching various sea creatures. She also kidnaps an important member of the royal family of Atlantica (King Triton if playing as Ariel, and vice versa). It is up to either Ariel or King Triton (depending on the player's choice) to defeat Ursula and restore order to the seas.
Gameplay
The player controls either Ariel or King Triton, who both have a normal weapon with unlimited uses and a limited-use super weapon. By default, the Mega Drive version maps the normal weapon to 
and the super weapon to 
, while the Game Gear and Master System versions map both weapons to 
, with 
+
being used to switch between weapon types. The D-pad is used to make Ariel/Triton change direction and swim in the direction pressed.
The objective of the game is to locate the polyps in each level and restore them to merpeople by either touching them directly or shooting them with the normal weapon. Every polyp must be found in order to access the level's boss whose entrance is hidden somewhere in the level. As the levels are labyrinthe in design, there is a map system that can be accessed by pausing the game. The flashing dots on the map indicate polyps that the player needs to locate, and the red X indicates the boss's location (only marked on the map on Medium difficulty). Also located somewhere in each level is Scuttle's Magical Collection, which is a shop screen where the player can spend collected treasure on various items and Fish Friends.
If the player's health meter is drained completely, one try is used to refill it. If there are no more tries left, the game ends. The player gets four continues in an Easy game, two in a Medium game, and only one in a Difficult game.
The gameplay suffers from frequent slowdown, particularly when there are a lot of sprites on screen at any point.
Fish Friends
Fish Friends are characters who can be summoned to aid the player with specific obstacles. In the Mega Drive version, the player must press , , or 
on the map screen to select a Fish Friend, then press during gameplay to summon the selected friend. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, button combinations need to be pressed to select and summon Fish Friends.
| Flounder | |
|---|---|
Can be summoned to push rocks out of the way. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, press + to select him, then release while holding to summon him.
| |
| Sebastian | |
Can be summoned to scare away sea creatures. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, press + to select him, then release while holding to summon him.
| |
| Digger fish | |
Can be summoned to dig up items from soft mounds of sand. In the Game Gear and Master System versions, press + to select it, then release while holding to summon it.
|
Items
The items listed here can either be found in the open, inside treasure chests, or purchased from Scuttle's Magical Collection:
| Key | |
|---|---|
| Used to open treasure chests. | |
| Treasure Chest | |
| Contains items, but requires a key to unlock. Float above a chest to open it. This uses up one key. | |
| Little Heart | |
| Slightly restores the player's health. | |
| Big Heart | |
| Completely restores the player's health. | |
| Sparkle | |
| Awards an extra try. | |
| Star | |
| Gives the player another super weapon shot. | |
| Gem | |
| Adds to the player's treasure count. | |
| Coin | |
| Adds the player's treasure count. |
Levels
| The Reef | |
|---|---|
| The Sunken Ship | |
| Atlantis | |
| The Cave | |
Production credits
Mega Drive version
- Game Design: Barbara Michalec
Sega Credits
- Producer: Stewart Kosoy
- Lead Tester: Unni Pillai
- Testers: Marianne Arotzarena, Michael Baldwin, Tom Bryne, Brenda Daverin, Alex Fairchild, Ivan Foong, Richie Hideshima, Lawrence Jeung, Tony Lynch, Matt Macchia, Julio Martinez, Heather Meigs, Jon Van, Gabriel Watts
- Test Manager: Steve Apour
- Assistant Product Manager: France Tantiado
Disney Credit
- Producer: Patrick Gilmore
- Account Executive: Cathy G, Fortier
BlueSky Software Credits
- Programmers: Barbara Michaelec, Karl Robillard, Ron Thompson
- Artists: Dana Christianson, Geoff Knoble, Tom Moon
- Animation: John Roy
- Manual by: Ruth Zultner Writing Services and Arcadian Design
Magazine articles
- Main article: Ariel the Little Mermaid/Magazine articles.
Promotional material
FI advert (1993)
Mega Drive print advert in Mega Force (ES) #8: "Diciembre 1992" (1992-xx-xx)
Mega Drive print advert in Mega Force (ES) #9: "Enero 1993" (199x-xx-xx)
also published in:
also published in:
- Hobby Consolas (ES) #16: "Enero 1993" (199x-xx-xx)[10]
Game Gear print advert in Mega Force (ES) #12: "Abril 1993" (1993-xx-xx)
also published in:
also published in:
- Hobby Consolas (ES) #19: "Abril 1993" (1993-xx-xx)[11]
Game Gear print advert in Micromanía (segunda época) (ES) #58: "Marzo 1993" (1993-0x-xx)
also published in:
also published in:
Mega Drive/Game Gear print advert in Ação Games (BR) #36: "Junho 1993" (1993-06-01)
Physical scans
Mega Drive version
| Sega Retro Average | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
58 |
|---|---|
| Based on 23 reviews | |
| Mega Drive, US |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart  Manual  Cart (alt) |
| Mega Drive, US (cardboard) |
|---|
   Cover
|
Cart |
| Mega Drive, EU |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart  Manual  PCB |
| Mega Drive, SE (rental) |
|---|
 Cover
|
| Mega Drive, AU |
|---|
  Cover
|
 Cart  Manual |
| Mega Drive, BR |
|---|
  Cover
|
 Cart  Manual |
| Mega Drive, KR |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart |
| Mega Drive, Asia |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart Manual |
Master System version
| Master System, BR |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart |
Game Gear version
| Sega Retro Average | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
 |
55 |
|---|---|
| Based on 12 reviews | |
| Game Gear, US |
|---|
  Cover
|
 Cart  Manual |
| Game Gear, EU |
|---|
   Cover
|
Cart  Manual |
| Game Gear, PT |
|---|
|
| Game Gear, BR |
|---|
 Cover
|
 Cart |
Technical information
ROM dump status
| System | Hash | Size | Build Date | Source | Comments | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
512kB | 1992-10 | Cartridge (US/EU) | ||||||||||
|
|
256kB | Cartridge (BR) | |||||||||||
|
|
256kB | Cartridge (US/EU) |
References
- ↑ File:AtLM GG EU Box Back.jpg
- ↑ GamePro, "September 1992" (US; 1992-xx-xx), page 30
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 GamesMaster, "January 1993" (UK; 1992-12-03), page 14
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Computer & Video Games, "January 1993" (UK; 1992-12-15), page 86
- ↑ MegaTech, "December 1992" (UK; 1992-11-20), page 13
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Sega Pro, "April 1993" (DE; 1993-03-26), page 54
- ↑ Sega Visions, "February/March 1993" (US; 199x-xx-xx), page 100
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Sega Force, "May 1993" (UK; 1993-04-01), page 34
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Sega Zone, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-02-11), page 59
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Enero 1993" (ES; 199x-xx-xx), page 24
- ↑ Hobby Consolas, "Abril 1993" (ES; 1993-xx-xx), page 10
- ↑ Todo Sega, "Abril 1993" (ES; 1993-03-15), page 3
- ↑ 1700 igr dlya Sega, "" (RU; 2001-xx-xx), page 21
- ↑ Alaab Alcomputtar, "" (SA; 1995-06-xx), page 80
- ↑ Aktueller Software Markt, "Avril 1993" (DE; 1993-03-08), page 133
- ↑ Consoles +, "Février 1993" (FR; 1993-0x-xx), page 98
- ↑ Cool Gamer, "9" (RU; 2002-10-13), page 17
- ↑ Game Power, "Marzo 1993" (IT; 1993-0x-xx), page 81
- ↑ Joypad, "Février 1993" (FR; 1993-0x-xx), page 106
- ↑ Sega Mega Drive Advanced Gaming, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-xx-xx), page 40
- ↑ Mega, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-02-18), page 56
- ↑ MegaTech, "January 1993" (UK; 1992-12-20), page 38
- ↑ Player One, "Décembre 1992" (FR; 1992-12-10), page 140
- ↑ Play Time, "4/93" (DE; 1993-03-10), page 114
- ↑ Power Up!, "Saturday, January 23, 1993" (UK; 1993-01-23), page 1
- ↑ Power Play, "3/93" (DE; 1993-02-10), page 104
- ↑ Score, "Červen 1994" (CZ; 1994-06-01), page 59
- ↑ Sega Power, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-02-04), page 31
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 64
- ↑ Sega Pro, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-02-11), page 64
- ↑ Sega Force, "3/93" (SE; 1993-05-13), page 19
- ↑ Sega Force, "January 1993" (UK; 1992-12-10), page 84
- ↑ Tricks 16 bit, "Tricks Sega Gold 800 igr" (RU; 1998-03-20), page 15
- ↑ Video Games, "3/93" (DE; 1993-02-24), page 85
- ↑ Consoles +, "Avril 1993" (FR; 1993-0x-xx), page 123
- ↑ Mean Machines: The Essential Sega Guide, "" (UK; 1993-11-18), page 164
- ↑ Gamers, "März/April 1994" (DE; 1994-03-04), page 78
- ↑ Joypad, "Février 1993" (FR; 1993-0x-xx), page 113
- ↑ Mega Byte, "March 13, 1993" (UK; 1993-03-13), page 1
- ↑ Mean Machines Sega, "March 1993" (UK; 1993-02-28), page 68
- ↑ Player One, "Mai/Juin 1993" (FR; 1993-05-10), page 109
- ↑ Sega Power, "June 1993" (UK; 1993-05-06), page 48
- ↑ Sega Pro, "April 1993" (UK; 1993-03-11), page 44
- ↑ Supergame, "Maio 1993" (BR; 1993-05-xx), page 36
| Ariel the Little Mermaid | |
|---|---|
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