Ariel the Little Mermaid who the player selects, both characters play the same, and feature two attacks for defeating enemies, a "normal" and a "special". Side characters from the film, like Flounder and Sebastian make appearances, and can aid the player in their quest. There are a total of 5 stages, 4 regular, each featuring a boss fight at the end, with the fifth one being exclusively a final boss fight against antagonist Ursula. The Genesis version of Ariel the Little Mermaid has received mixed to negative reviews. "AllGame" gave the game a somewhat positive review, stating a young child may enjoy it, but
Ursula (The Little Mermaid) as "A total success" despite sharing some similarities with previous Disney villains. Janet Maslin of "The New York Times "described Ursula as "a fabulously campy creation embodying the film's well-developed sense of mischief." Describing the character as an "inventive high-camp villainess," the "New York Daily News"' Kathleen Carroll cited Ursula as a prime example of the film's "outstanding" animation. Hailing the character as "a visual feast," "Variety" considered Ursula to be among "the film’s more inspired inventions". William Thomas of "Empire" described Ursula as "truly quake-inducing", while "Time"'s Eliana Dockterman enjoyed the fact that, unlike previous Disney villains, "Ursula doesn’t