Pearls from the past: Disney s Hercules forced me to cry, covered with a demo on PSX. Surprising how few people know this game

Children are terrible. They do not have a developed social sensitivity. They can be ruthless for their peers. They also blackmail emotionally. I used such blackmail myself, trying to force the poor, beloved parents of Disney's Hercules. Yes, I fixed myself on the demo of a great platformer, that getting the full version was a matter of life or death for me.

Although 20 years have passed, I remember it today. A black disc, which when inserted into the drive the first PlayStation displayed a psychedelic menu on the CRT TV. This is called Demo One - a collection of demo versions included on the CD included in the console. Demos varied depending on the region and date of purchase of the console. I had several Demo One albums in the collection, but I particularly remember the fifth revision, burned to the Polish market in Austria. It was thanks to this disc that I discovered Hercules.

On the screen dread horrible graphic spots on the fashion of the former Windows Media Player. The menu contained several blocks with game titles: Abe's Odyssey, Overboard, Porsche Challange, Rage Racer, Rapid Racer, Lifeforce Tenka, Kurushi no and of course he - Hercules. The fifth revision had lesser-known productions, but that's what I liked the most. Every PSX owner already had Tekken, Spyro or Tomb Raider. The fifth Demo Disc allowed in turn to discover something completely new. For example, the adventures of son Olimpu.

I remember the demo of Disney's Hercules by heart. The level in the Greek polis was splendid.

The creators of the already closed Eurocom have recreated an animated line from the cinema fairy tale, thanks to which the game looks very charming. Today, it can be compared to Cuphead and it will be only a partial comparison. The visual layer was ticking, serving the players with animations almost directly from the cinema blockbuster. In addition, in Hercules, the whole world of 2.5D was vibrant with life. Volunteers walked the streets from time to time, doing something funny. The second and third plan lived their own life, full of hand-painted Disney magic.

Although we are talking about a two-dimensional platformer for (not only) children, Hercules possessed an amazingly wide range of skills. The demigod used a sword, fought on fists, used a powerful chin, bent down, set the ground in vibrations with powerful jumps, and used special skills. Herc could fly fiery bullets, beat enemies with electricity, and even perform a 360-degree blade cut. Other platformers from 1997, in which the enemies were eliminated by jumping on their heads, were funny when making Eurocom.

Exactly - fighting. It was not anything. Numerous opponents had a lot of stamina, and one blow did not end the case. At Disney's Hercules, he fought seriously, taking care of the opponent and learning his range of blows. The clash with the city bandit was a completely different one, and differently with the forest centaur. The player had to adapt, experiment and get to know the enemy. The same was true for bosses. Winning with them almost always required discovering the weakness of the opponent.

Although Hercules is a 2D game, the creators of Eurocom have great draws to the third dimension.

During the game, feel how the developers are trying to break out of the simple world in which the only directions of exploration are the front and back. Therefore, Hercules has many vertical inserts, such as a road with speeding carriages crossing the city promenade. By exploring the forest you can move in the thickets not only to the left and right, but also to the front and back. Herc goes then between the first, second and third plan. The same applies to urban streets.

In three missions the perspective of the game completely changed, and the camera moved behind the back of the demigod. Hercules then ran forward, avoiding moving obstacles. I do not hide - bad missions, not precise, with a difficult to estimate distance from the threat. However, ambition can not be denied to former Eurocom employees. Unfortunately, games with space were better designed in games from the end of the 80's.

Hercules was the best for me in the old Disney games like Aladdin and the Lion King.

I loved playing Lion King and Aladdin on the pirate version of SNES. They were really great, visually rich, extensive and varied platformers. The very motive for character development - from a lion cub, through a young predator on a vegan diet, to a dignified lion - he built a sense of communing with unique production. And this is the whole jumping on the heads of giraffes and hippos ... Platform poetry. These were times when film license games could be damn good.

Disney's Hercules was one of the last titles in which the appeal to the blockbuster movie was a great added value. Later, in the era of PlayStation 2 and PlayStation 3, the quality of licensed games fell headlong. If a title was made on the basis of a summer blockbuster, we all knew at once that it would be at most average. In the 90s it was the other way round. The King Lion, Aladdin or Hercules brand guaranteed that we would get something extra.

Playing the adventures of my son Olimpu I had a smile from ear to ear. Such honest, naive, childish. Unfortunately, the same childishness made me torture my parents day after day, week by week, and finally let me get the full version of Disney's Hercules for PSX. When they finally did it ... the game turned out to be too difficult for me. Already the first level, based on training under the watchful eyes of Phil, gave me sharply. Of course, I was not discouraged. In the 90's difficult games did not put aside on the shelf. You played them until you got it. Until you succeed.

After more than 20 years, Disney's Hercules returns as a game for personal computers.

A classic from years ago dug up the platform GOG.com . A few days ago Herc was in their offer and it was this message that made me write the text. I have the impression that from the perspective of all Disney's Hercules players it was neither a particularly well-known or particularly important production. When I ask friends about her, also those who have the first PlayStation in the past, most of them shrugs.

For me, Disney's Hercules was a fundamental part of the adventure with platformers. Maybe not as important as Spyro or Crash, but the hero of Disney was right behind the purple dragon and crazy jamraja. He was part of a powerful second line of great platformers, along with Aladdin and the Lion King, reviving the great worlds of the big screen. That's why I am always surprised that so few players remember this gem.

Pearls from the past: Disney's Hercules forced me to cry, covered with a demo on PSX. Surprising how few people know this game