It was released in late 1995 and early 1996 depending on the region and video game console, initially coming out for the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo Entertainment System, before being ported to other platforms.

In the third level, "Villi People", the player must guide Jim, in the disguise of a blind cave salamander, through intestinal passages, while avoiding exploding sheep and hazards embedded in the floors and walls.

[15] Yet another, "The Flyin' King", plays as an isometric shooter, which includes Jim on his "pocket rocket", where a balloon with a bomb must be directed to the end of the level, and defended from enemies, in order to defeat Major Mucus.

[13] They were released virtually simultaneously and were largely the same game, the only differences being that the Super NES version had alternate background art,[13] and the ability to switch weapons.

This port featured an upgraded CD-DA music soundtrack, more voice clips and redrawn graphics, but lacked the "Lorenzen's Soil" level.

[13] Versions for the Sega Saturn and PlayStation (both developed by a separate studio, Screaming Pink, Inc.) were also released, which contained the upgraded audio and all the levels from the original.

[13] In a 1994 conference held on CompuServe with Shiny Entertainment prior to its release, David Perry stated that they were considering making a version of the game for the Atari Jaguar, which never came to fruition.

"[40][41] A reviewer for Next Generation likewise felt that the inventive new level designs were more than enough to make the game feel fresh in spite of it using the same gameplay.

[27] GamePro's Major Mike disagreed, contending that changes such as the new backgrounds, remixed music, and loading screens make the game feel fresh and new.

IGN stated "the action tends to slow down in the most unlikely locations ...and the gameplay's inconsistent...load a game where you instantly die for no apparent reason".

[43] Reviewing the Virtual Console release of the Genesis version, Marcel van Duyn of Nintendo Life had mixed reactions on various different gameplay mechanics.