Not for experienced gamers looking for a challenge, but definitely worth playing if you're new
If you've seen the movies, then you're aware of what to expect. You get the choose between playing the role of Domino or Oddball at the start of the game but, as far as I can tell, there are no differences in gameplay, so it's really just personal choice. The puppy you choose starts the game by breaking out of a cage where Cruella DeVille has trapped him (you get to see this on the opening cinematic). At this point, you get to jump and run throughout 17 levels, trying to release all of your puppy brothers and sisters, as well as your parents.
As you might expect, the Game Boy Color version of this is considerably different from the one for Playstation and Dreamcast. While they're all Platform games, this one is all in 2D, which actually makes the game far more playable since there's no camera issues to worry about. The animation is also a strong point of this game, and everything has a colorful cartoon look that fits the game theme and should please most fans.
Sound is not the best, but it's above average. The soundtrack has enough variety between levels and, while most tracks are sort of forgettable, there are a few that do stand out mid-game. Too bad the last level, where you'll face Cruella herself, doesn't have the best of themes, but the upbeat song is still fitting.
Gameplay is pretty basic. You use the B button to bark, which is your only "weapon" in the game, and you use the A button to jump. Left and Right are the only movement directions you can make in-game, while Up and Down is exclusive to the options menu and Password entering. At later stages in the game, when you're facing a switch, you can also use the B button to make your puppy switch it on with his nose. That's pretty much all of the controls.
Going a bit more in-depth on what your puppy can do, the Bark "weapon" doesn't kill anyone but it stuns most enemies long enough for you tu run past them. The exception to this rule is the when you have to fight the Brothers in which case you have to bark several times until they "faint" and you can get the key that allows you to leave the level.
In fact, the whole game is about finding a generic key, which is hidden somewhere on the level, and then use that key to either leave the level or free your siblings from cages scattered around the level (the later being the most common). In later levels, you might have to first find a switch that activates a platform which will then allow you to reach the key you want.
It's pretty simple and, if you're not new to platform games, you should complete the game in a couple of hours, on your first try. Young players who get this as one of their first games will likely take longer, but the password system will allow them to jump straight to the last level they played, so completing the game shouldn't take too long either. Once you beat the game, you get two new passwords, each for a mini-game but, sadly, those aren't nearly as entertaining as the game itself.
The first mini-game is a "Match color" game. Basically, you get to see two dog paws on screen, one is of a certain color, while the other is white. The objective is to match the two paws by moving three sliders (each representing Red, Green and Blue, respectively).
The second mini-game is also a matching game, this one with cards. They are all face down, and you turn two, and the image has to match. You have a time limit to match all cards on screen, which adds a bit of challenge to the experience.
That's pretty much it. You'd probably be better off, going back and start the game again with the other puppy you didn't pick the first time. The game will be the same, but you can then use you mad puppy skills to make Time Attack or something. Imagination will be your best friend here and, fortunately, most children have that in spades.
Regardless, if you're an experienced gamer, chances are you'll be bored with this game quickly. However, if you know of someone who's just getting into the world of gaming and you want to offer them something that won't be frustrating, 102 Dalmatians: Puppies to the Rescue, for the GBC, will be a good choice.