Altered Beast is a beat'em up game for Mega Drive, among other systems, published by Sega in 1988.
Athena, the daughter of Zeus, has been kidnapped by the evil Neff and taken to the underworld. The almighty god cannot take part in the conflict, so he brings back to life a once glorious Roman centurion fallen in combat, to rescue her from her before she is sacrificed.
Although the daring warrior is seasoned in a thousand and one bloody battles, this time his human strength will not be enough to face the grotesque beings of hell. That is why Zeus provides him with the possibility of acquiring magical spheres, which contain within them the powers of supernatural mythological beasts.
The centurion must overcome each level using his earthly fighting skills, including punches, kicks and jumps, until he gains the transformed beast abilities. Each phase allows us to become a different creature with a range of specific attacks.
Occasionally we will be attacked by two-headed, blue-hued wolves, which release a power sphere when they die. Each of these spheres will significantly increase our physical abilities. If we capture a third sphere, we will transform into a mythical beast, obtaining absolutely devastating powers and attacks.
At certain points in the stage, one of the monks of Neff's cult will block our way by means of rays. If we have reached the beast stage, the monk will transform into a final boss of incredible strength, who we can only defeat if we manage to find his weak point.
We will face a multitude of beings from hell, such as demons, skeletons, harpies and other nightmarish species. It is important to increase our powers as soon as possible, since they exponentially increase our chances of victory and make us less vulnerable to enemy damage.