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
The Little Mermaid (1989 film) the juvenile humor and the human characters' eyes. While still giving a positive review, they stated that the film "can't compare to the real Disney classics (which appealed equally to both kids and adults)." The staff of "Variety" praised the film for its cast of characters, Ursula in particular, as well as its animation, stating that the animation "proves lush and fluid, augmented by the use of shadow and light as elements like fire, sun and water illuminate the characters." They also praised the musical collaboration between Howard Ashman and Alan Menken "whose songs frequently begin slowly but build in