Hercules

Disney's Hercules for Game Boy is a 1997 single-player action-platform game developed by Tiertex Design Studios and published by THQ. Based on Disney's animated feature, it follows Hercules from his discovery that Zeus is his father through the tests that establish him as a hero. This monochrome handheld release is its own game rather than a conversion of the PlayStation and Windows Hercules developed by Eurocom, with a separate set of levels and a design built around the original Game Boy.

The adventure is structured as nine stages. Hercules travels through locations drawn from the film's Greek-myth setting, moving through hazards and hostile creatures on the way to each stage exit. The route includes grounded platforming, ladders, vines and ropes, while gaps, traps and enemy contact make careful movement as important as reaching the far side of the screen. A health gauge gives the player room to recover from mistakes, although falls are a persistent danger.

The Game Boy controls give Hercules several ways to deal with the course ahead. He can climb, crouch and jump, swing his sword with the A button, and hold that button to dash. A second press of the jump button in mid-air produces a kick. Some encounters use these moves in more specialized ways: the journey includes enemies such as scorpions, cobras, centaurs and rock creatures, and the player can find health-restoring items as well as defensive or offensive aids including a shield and Fire Sword.

Its Disney story moves from Hercules' training and early exploits toward the danger Hades poses to both Thebes and Olympus. Pegasus also figures into the adventure, including airborne sequences that change the perspective from the usual side-scrolling travel. The stages use challenges associated with the film's mythological world, from creature battles and obstacle routes to confrontations that place Hercules' strength in a larger mission to protect the gods.

Progress is supported by a password system, allowing completed stages to be revisited without restarting the whole quest. The Select button opens a labyrinth map, while Start pauses play. The cartridge also supports the Super Game Boy, where it was designed to display enhanced graphics through Nintendo's Super NES adapter. As a distinct 1997 Game Boy interpretation of Disney's Hercules, it sits alongside—not in place of—the better-known console and PC game released for the same film.