The Little Mermaid for NES FAQ/Walkthrough Version 1.0 by Rachel "Triple Rach" Oliver (triplerach@hotmail.com) 12/08/01 ======== Contents ======== 1) Updates 2) Story 3) Basic Controls 4) Items 5) Walkthrough A) Sea of Coral B) Sunken Ship C) Sea of Ice D) Undersea Volcano E) Ursula's Castle F) Final Boss 6) Game Genie Codes 7) Author Stuff 8) Credits ======= Updates ======= 1.0 (12/08/01) - Started and finished. ===== Story ===== After having become human and getting married to Prince Eric, Ariel receives bad news from her old friends: Ursula is trying to take over Atlantica and has turned all the fish evil! Ariel tells her beloved Eric farewell, and returns to her mermaid form to save the ocean from the evil sorceress. Sounds kinda cheesy, especially if you didn't like the Disney movie. But this is a simple yet surprisingly fun game, with lots of neat exploration elements that can keep you busy for at least a little while. ============== Basic Controls ============== Swim - D-Pad Swim Fast - Hold B while moving Splash Fins - A Release/Throw Bubble/Shell - D-Pad + A Jump from Water onto Ledge - Up on D-Pad + A Enter Warp Tunnel in Ursula's Castle - A Pause/Status Screen - Start - Just swim up to a bubble or shell to pick it up. - Swimming fast is really only useful when chasing falling shells or running away from baddies. Otherwise, it's best to just go normal speed as not to bump into any fish. - Splashing your fins around creates bubbles you can use to trap fish, or kicks up sand to find hidden items. - Shells are much heavier than bubbles. Keep that in mind when throwing things around. - When you find a shell on land, just keep jumping to toss it towards whatever direction you're taking it. ===== Items ===== Magic Shells: These are probably the most useful items in the game. They can be found just sitting around or buried in the sand. You can drop or throw them into the various little nooks and crannies to find items, or throw them at enemies, but it's best to save them to throw at treasure chests if there are any nearby. Shells will reappear in the spot you found them if you drop them down a hole, but not if you use them to find and item or open a treasure chest. They don't disappear when you throw them at enemies. Fish Bubbles: Not really items, but they work a lot like the shells do. Once you splash your fins and trap a fish in a bubble, you can use it to attack enemies or find items. They aren't strong enough to open treasure chests, though. They're just bubbles, after all. Barrels: You can push the barrels around with a splash of the tail to send them rolling down onto a treasure chest when you can't use a shell. They'll reappear if they haven't crashed into anything (including walls). Small/Large Rocks: The rocks work similar to the barrels, in that you can push them down onto treasure chests. But the rocks are square, so they don't roll (simple physics ^_~). You have to keep splashing at them to get them where you want em. Small Hearts: You can find these things in the sand or in the little nooks and crannies. They recover 1/5 of your life. Big Hearts: Also in the nooks, crannies, and sand, big hearts recover 2/5 of your life. These are actually much more common than the small ones for some reason. Ariel Dolls: Probably the rarest item in the game, the Ariel Dolls are worth one extra life. But there's not much point in collecting them, since dying in this game is very irritating. You may as well just hit reset if you die anywhere but the first level (unless it's against the first boss). Dinglehoppers: Also known as forks, they don't do anything but garner you 800 points each at the end of the level. And comb your hair. ^_^ Snarfblatts: The little corncob pipes you find hidden around are worth 500 points, and that's about it. Red Pearls: Found only in treasure chests, Red Pearls increase your Power (the strength of your splashing) and give you 1000 points at the end of the level. You can have a maximum of three to increase your Power, but you can collect all you want after that for more points. 0 RED PEARLS - Pick up shells, bubbles, kick up sand, and trap weak fish in bubbles. 1 RED PEARLS - Catch most fish in bubbles, and move barrels. 2 RED PEARLS - Catch all fish, plus bigger sea creatures, and move small rocks. 3 RED PEARLS - Catch enemies in stronger bubbles, and move large rocks. Green Pearls: Also found only in treasure chests, Green Pearls increase your Range (the distance the bubbles you splash go) and give you 1000 points at the end of the level. There is also a maximum of three on the status screen, but collecting more after that is more points. Every time your Power increases, your Range meter clears and starts over at zero. NOTE: You lose all pearls when you die. This becomes a huge nuisance in the later levels. Avoid dying at all costs! Magic Pots: They don't really do anything. It appears after you beat a boss, and you have to collect it to clear the level. - Gathering lots of points can grant you extra lives, but like I said, you don't need them because you don't want to die. Pretend this is an arcade game and only use your high score for bragging purposes. =========== Walkthrough =========== ---------------------------- **Stage One - Sea of Coral** ---------------------------- Head right until you find the shell, then take it to the first treasure chest to receive a Red Pearl. Then keep going right until you reach the next screen. You can use the shell to kill the squids, and then take it up to the treasure chest to collect a Green Pearl. Keep going up, and if you turn the fish up there into a bubble and throw into the little nook in the left wall, you might receive a Big Heart. Head off the right to the next screen, and you can swim down one of the holes to find an Ariel Doll. Take the shell to the treasure chest to get another Green Pearl. Don't rush off past the chest, though, wait for all five starfish to go off the screen before continuing, and stay low to avoid being hit by one of them falling. Then keep going right until you reach the boss. BOSS: Shark Simple to beat. Just avoid being directly in his horizontal pathway, preferably below him. When the fish come, trap the middle or bottom one in a bubble and throw it up at him. Throwing it diagonally up is the easiest, it's quicker than waiting for him to get above you or for you to get below him (and he'll probably move before you're positioned below him anyways). It takes four hits to beat him. Flounder informs you that Ursula's headed for the Sunken Ship! --------------------------- **Stage Two - Sunken Ship** --------------------------- When you start off, you can find a shell hidden in the sand. Shells found in the sand don't reappear, so if it goes off-screen then it's gone. Those ghosts are just fish with sheets over them, it takes one splash to get rid of the sheet. In the nook in the floor closest to the treasure chest, you can find a Big Heart! If you have the shell, you can use it to open the chest and find a Red Pearl. If not, wait for the lobster to stand up, then get rid of it and splash the barrel down from behind. On the next screen, you'll find a treasure chest and two barrels. Splash the lower barrel to the left, and after it smashes into the wall you can collect the Ariel Doll. Then kick the barrel on the stairs down to the right, and follow it as it opens the chest that contains a Green Pearl. On the ledge closest to the stairs, the right nook holds a Big Heart! You should have two Red Pearls, and that's enough to trap the squids in bubbles now. Up and to the right, on the next screen, you'll notice a shell on the ledge above the water. Knock it down into the water, then throw it up at the treasure chest to get a third Red Pearl, the max for your Power. On the next screen, urchins are falling from the sky for some reason. Wait one space below and to the right of their dropping point, then jump up and collect the shell, and use it to open the treasure chest to find a Green Pearl. Quickly dispose of the squid, then head down and splash the small rock off to the left. Once it starts falling, speed up to chase it. When it lands, kick it to the right, being careful to avoid the urchin, and you'll find another Green Pearl in the chest. If you're having trouble with the rock, there's a shell buried in the sand. On the next screen, there's a few shells and fish, but there's no treasure chests. You can find a Small Heart in the third nook from the left. Head right to fight the bosses. BOSS: Flotsam and Jetsam These annoying eels are much harder than the Shark. They randomly appear from one of the holes in the ship. The trick is to stay as close to the bottom as possible, and they'll never touch you. It's the lobsters you have to worry about. There's almost always two of them, and they constantly fall from the sky. Catch the little critters in bubbles, and launch them up at the eels. Once of the eels takes two hits to kill, and then the lone second one will have to be hit three times. Five hits in all. Sebastian now tells you that Ursula has frozen the sea! ---------------------------- **Stage Three - Sea of Ice** ---------------------------- This level seems easier than the last to me. On the second ledge on the surface, you'll find a shell. Knock it down to the left, and then swim with it past the first treasure chest (it's empty) and to the second one (surrounded by dolphins and seahorses) that contains a Red Pearl. Once you're in the ice cove, the first nook on the bottom contains a Big Heart! Swim down the hole to find a large rock you can push down on the chest to get a Green Pearl. Head back up and to the right, and take the shell back to the first chest to find another Green Pearl. The second chest is empty, so don't bother with it. The nook just above the chest has a Big Heart! On the next screen, knock the shell down and use it to get a Green Pearl out of the chest. Down and to the right on the next screen, the first chest is empty. Take one of the shells and throw it up on the small ledge (be careful not to get it stuck in the ice!), then bring it over to the second chest, which holds a Red Pearl. On the next screen, take the shell all the way up, and you can get another Red Pearl outta the chest. Keep heading right, avoiding the fish, until you come to the boss. BOSS: Walrus Compared to the last boss, this guy's a cinch. Position yourself in the middle of the space at the top of the water and wait for him to knock down a shell. When you catch one, wait for the next fish cube (??) to drop, then toss it up at him from as close as you can get without being right next to the ice. Four hits is all it takes. Flounder says something's up at the sea volcanoes! --------------------------------- **Stage Four - Undersea Volcano** --------------------------------- This level is much harder than the last. Watch out for the sand fish, volcanoes, and the shrimp, and in the second sand pit you can find a Big Heart! On the next screen, trap one of those annoying shrimp in a bubble and use it in the little nook to find a Small Heart. Once the baddies are all gone, there's a shell hidden in the sand. You can take it down to the two treasure chests if you want, or use the one that's already there, but the one on the right is empty. The left chest has a Red Pearl. Keep going down until you come to the two large rocks. Splash one of them down into the hole, and you'll have room to swim down and collect the Ariel Doll. On the next screen, swim across until you get the shell, then bring it back to get a Green Pearl out of the treasure chest. On the next screen, just swim down, avoiding those annoying shrimp along the way. To the right, the first chest is empty. Knock the small rock down onto the second to get a Green Pearl. Keep heading right to fight the hardest boss yet. BOSS: Soldierfish This guy is a real pain. He'll sit atop the ship, launching either urchins or blue fish from the two cannons. Do your best to avoid them, and carefully catch the fish in bubbles to throw at the boss. It takes five hits to beat him, and it is possible to survive the fight with only one heart! Sebastian explains that you'll now have to navigate through the maze that is Ursula's castle! ------------------------------- **Stage Five - Ursula's Caste** ------------------------------- I think this is the best level yet, cool scenery and very catchy music. But, in exchange for all that good stuff, this level is a maze. You can find a shell in the first sand pit, and there's a Red Pearl in the first chest, the second is empty. In the walls, you'll notice there are dragon heads with their mouths opens. These are actually warp portals you have to use to progress through the level. The trick is that the ones with flashing eyes are the ones you need to go through to reach Ursula. So, head through the first flashing one, and where you come out, that same warp will be flashing, so go back through it. You'll find yourself trapped beneath the ice, so just head through the door you came through again. In this room, you can splash the large rock to the left so that you can swim down to collect the Ariel Doll. Then get the shell, use it on the second one to collect a Green Pearl (the first is empty). In the next room, avoid the big fish, then knock the large rock down and onto the right treasure chest to collect a Red Pearl. Head up some more, and quickly but carefully knock the small rock down and follow it to the left chest to get a Green Pearl. Go up some more, and you can use the shell to open the left chest and collect another Green Pearl. The right chest is empty. In the next two rooms, you'll find nothing but seahorses and warps. They aren't flashing, but there's obviously nowhere else to go. Eventually you'll come to a room with green slimy things sticking up from the ceiling and floor. If you've seen the movie, you'll know that Ursula must be somewhere nearby. The next room, in fact. BOSS: Ursula This battle is fairy simple, at least when compared to the last one. Ursula randomly shoots out fish, seahorses, or urchins from her crystal ball, and you can use the fish and seahorses as weapons to throw at her. Six hits to the face is all it takes. But that's not it... Sebastian and Flounder bring the shocking news that Ursula has returned, and she's increased in size! ------------------------------- **FINAL BOSS: Gigantic Ursula** ------------------------------- You really didn't think you'd get off that easily, did you? Ursula's a bit harder this time, somehow she's gotten a hold of King Triton's trident. She can use it to control the flow of water, making it difficult to swim against whichever way the current is going. Carefully catch one of the three fish, and get right under her head and shoot it up. Even if the water isn't flowing normally, just throw it straight up, the current only effects your swimming power, not throwing power, for some reason. Seven hits to the head are what it takes to reach the happy ending. I won't spoil it for you. ^_^ ================ Game Genie Codes ================ Cheater! :-P Well, if you really don't wanna do it the hard way, there's always the Galoob way. Straight from the official codebook: AASGATZA - Start with one life IASGATZA - Start with six lives AASGATZE - Start with nine lives PASGGTLA + PAXGAYLA - Start with one heart IASGGTLA + IAXGAYLA - Start with five hearts SZSSPLVG - Infinite Lives GZSILLSA - Keep Red Pearls after dying GZSIILSA - Keep Green Pearls after dying PAKKGTAA - Start on second stage ZAKKGTAA - Start on third stage LAKKGTAA - Start on fourth stage GAKKGTAA - Start on fifth stage IAKKGTAA - Start on Ursula stage LAKKGTAA + ILKKTVOV - Start with all Red Pearls LAKKGTAA + TLKKTVOV - Start with all Green Pearls LASIZLAA - Get all Pearls after dying If one of these doesn't work, it might be a typo on my part, let me know and I'll fix it if necessary. ============ Author Stuff ============ If you wish to contact me for questions, complaints, or anything else, I can be reached via email at: triplerach@hotmail.com Or, if you have AOL Instant Messenger, my name is Magikarp46 This document is ©2001 by Rachel Oliver. I have only submitted this to GameFAQs, it should not be appearing anywhere else. If you see this document anywhere else, let me know so's I can get my fists dirty! If you would like to use this on your own site, email me and let me know. I have no problem with it so long as you don't change anything around. ======= Credits ======= Well, I couldn't have done it without these people: Disney - Thanks for getting me obsessed with The Little Mermaid when I was a little girl. All those toys and dolls...before I'd even seen the movie the first time... Capcom - For making a simplistic yet fun game. With lots of fishies! ^_^ Me - For keeping both of my NES's and all the games and instruction booklets in good condition so I could write this thing. Game Genie - For helping me to beat Ursula before I got any good at the game. I can't get the dumb thing to work anymore, so it's a good thing I've improved. GameFAQs - For being the greatest video game website there is. And thank you for your time. Bye-bye!