Developer: Probe Publisher: Hudson Soft Release: 1994 Genre: Action
Beauty and the Beast, like nearly all of Disney’s legendary animated films from the 90s, saw its fair share of licensed titles. But unlike the likes of Aladdin and the Lion King its subject matter does not lend itself well to an action platformer as was typical of the time. Both Sunsoft and Hudson Soft tried different approaches and sadly they both fail to capture the magic of the movie. Sunsoft even tried twice on the Genesis! Hudson Soft were more successful in their effort but it is still not something that I would recommend under any circumstances
This version of Beauty and the Beast plays like a slightly more competent version of Sega’s Roar of the Beast. The Beast has a few basic claw attacks and can use them to climb certain walls. In addition he has a loud roar that can terrify enemies and freeze them in place. They can then be used as platforms or are open for a nice swipe. Power-ups are few with the most important being rose petals to keep the game’s timer at bay.
As far as first impressions go Beauty and the Beast makes a very bad one in its initial stages. The castle levels lay bare all of the game’s flaws for the world to see and will turn many away. The bad hit detection makes killing even basic bats a frustrating endeavor. The unfocused level design has blind leaps, unclear delineation between the background and foreground objects, and the worst is the platforming. On the surface it should be simple: the Beast has nice momentum and range with his leap. Unfortunately the game has a stupid teetering animation anytime you approach or graze a ledge. This dumb animation will lead to many cheap deaths as it happens constantly. The roar is used for light puzzle solving to cause platforms and other objects to move but its implementation is lame. That you must suffer through four levels of these flaws is damning.
I can at least say that it gets a better once you leave the castle. From there the game moves from one set piece to the next as it loosely follows the film. The forest levels are open areas that feature multiple paths of progress. The library can be a little frustrating as it relies heavily on platforming and as I have outlined that is a point of contention. The worst that happens here is that you must retrace your steps if you fall. The castle exterior leading to the finale should be riveting. Unfortunately on top of the existing control issues you also must deal with wind. It should be obvious by now that the pieces are there for what could have been a solid game. But the execution fails at almost every level. You can see that work was put into the game but it never comes together.
I do not know who the intended audience for Beauty and the Beast is but the game is probably more difficult than intended. Part of this is because of the sluggish controls and imprecise collision detection. Watching the Beast trip over his feet, teeter on the edge of platforms, and whiff basic attacks grows old fast and ruins some of the game’s better levels. Life restoring hearts are in short supply but at least there are not too many enemies until late game. The bad hit detection does make the few boss battles frustrating however. The level design can be confusing at times as there are blind leaps and unclear paths of progression. Using enemies as platforms falls flat as the paralysis wears off too fast, leading to a cheap death. They certainly tried at least.
The biggest issue is the aggressive clock. The timer is very short meaning you must always stay on the move which goes against the measured platforming the game wants. You can collect petals to restore the rose but it barely helps. It eases up somewhat once you leave the castle as the levels are shorter but time is always still an ever present threat. This is a shame as some of the later stages feature legit great design that the game unfortunately squanders. Mix the imprecise controls with a mad clock and you have a game working against itself to its detriment.
Like its Sega counterparts the production values in Beauty and the Beast are high. The Beast animates well and is as lumbering as he appears. The animated film is beautiful and still looks amazing to this day and the game wisely lifts its set pieces. Most environments have at least two layers of parallax scrolling as well as foreground objects which create a striking look. The SNES extensive color palette helps recreate the vibrant look of the movie as well. Even the soundtrack has been recreated pretty well. It is odd; all of the games based on Disney’s classic have problems but boy did the developers go ham with the graphics. I just wish the games were better.
In Closing
The SNES version of Beauty and the Beast is probably the best title based on the film. But it still is not good. The various flaws outweigh its few good points. I will not say it is outright awful. But to appreciate its good elements you need to put up with far too much jank. Your time is better spent elsewhere.
