Unfortunately, I don't think that said age group would enjoy this title much more than I did. It's an interesting little title, and not a bad one, but it's way too short and easy for its own good, and the mini games that come with it aren't quite enough to make the whole thing worth it.
You play TLM2 as both Ariel and Melody. The first five levels are an abbreviated version of the first movie, and the last six are of the second. You play as Ariel, obviously, in the first five levels, as well as one of the later ones. And in one of Melody's levels, she walks instead of swimming. All that being neither here nor there, the gameplay is pretty much the same in each level.
The object of each level is to get to the end. (Duh.) However, there are fifty coins and five pearls in each level. One of the pearls is gained by collecting all fifty coins, but the other four are in various places. The only way to open up the three bonus games is by collecting enough pearls. So, although you may be able to run through a level quickly, getting pearls might take a little effort. When you control a mermaid, there are a few different actions you can do. You can swim, or charge (reminiscent of Ecco's charge), or swipe your tail. Most of the time, you attack enemies by simply charging through them. Only a few times will you find it necessary to actually throw or swipe your tail -- notably, the bosses.
The problem with the game is twofold. First, the controls are imprecise. During the fight with Ursula, I missed more than half of the bottles because I couldn't get Ariel to hit them correctly. I'd press the button, and nothing would happen. Argh. Second, the levels are way too short. Most of them are beatable within five minutes or so, with perhaps the longest being the second level, mainly because you've got to make sure you get rid of the shark before you do much of anything else. A little more playability is added by finding all of the pearls, but most of them are quite easy to find. If they aren't, chances are Flounder will point out where they are anyway.
The three bonus games are entertaining for a few minutes, but in the end, nothing special. The first is basically a poor-man's Parappa or Space Channel 5. The second is a version of the old Namco game Motos, played with characters on top of snowballs trying to knock each other into the ocean without getting hit themselves. And the third is an exercise in tedium -- blow bubbles under items to make them float to the top of the screen. The first two are mildly amusing, but once you beat them once you know how to do it again and again. The games themselves are relatively true to the movies, and they show actual film clips from them, but chances are great that anyone who buys this game already owns both of the movies as well.
Am I saying all of this just because I'm a 'gamer,' and definitely not the target market? No. The controls were frustrating even for me, and young kids might have even more problems with them.
