Mickey's Dangerous Chase is a platformer with a limited amount of exploration involved. Each stage has a particular theme (eg the town, the mountain) and there are three sections within each stage. There are stars to be collected distributed throughout each section, some more easily accessible than others.
Another major feature is the block issue. Picking up a standard block allows you to throw it at one of the various adversaries floating around the section. Attempting to pick up a [?] block will expose a bonus pickup - either more stars, one of four crystal balls, or a potion. The potion will make Mickey (or Minnie) invulnerable for a limited time - collecting all four crystal balls in a section will give you an extra life at the end of it. Note that once you move forward, you can only move back about 1/3 to 1/2 a screen - so pick up collectable items while you can. Collecting 100 stars gets you an extra life, as well.
Did you read that correctly? Yes, you can play as Mickey or Minnie. The choice doesn't seem to make any difference to your abilities, but it's a nice touch anyway.
The level designs keep things somewhat interesting - jumping around a river trying to dodge flying fish - a motif used very infrequently, only on, oh, every platform game ever written - a haunted cabin with bats and spiders, a forest area with flying foxes and what appear to be rolling attack armadillos and much, much more - five levels to be exact. Some sections even involve new game mechanics - riding a speedboat that can jump on command (Disney technology is even more advanced than the Coyote's beloved Acme can provide), or holding onto a balloon and floating up to the top of a mountain while dodging eagle attacks... an idea nobody's used before (cough)Pitfall 2(cough).
Mickey's Dangerous Chase is yet another platformer, but it's a fun one. A well-balanced difficulty curve, jaunty tunes for each stage AND sexual equality. Who can ask for more? For people who eat Super Mario Brothers for breakfast and Sonic for lunch, though, it might prove to be a little too easy - especially with the infinite continues helpfully provided.
