Altered Beast/Round 5

Stage description
The fifth stage takes place in a barren wasteland where all those who have suffered an unfortunate fate in life turn to stone and remain for all eternity. In this realm, several powerful creatures live and serve as guardians. These creatures are not the brain-dead enemies that you've faced up to this point in the game; they are capable opponents who can follow you on and off elevated platforms, so escape is not that easy. You'll have to transform yourself, this time into a werewolf once more in order to face off with Neff, who in turn transforms into his own beast form, and defeat him once and for all in order to save Athena.

Enemies

 * Returning enemies:Lascert Wolves, Slow Feet, Hammer Demons

Transformation
After transforming into a variety of beasts, you return to your original form for the final stage. This Golden Werewolf form of Stage 5 is nearly identical to the regular form of Stage 1, except for the upgrade in power. Your punch attack still throws a projectile ahead in a straight line, and your kick attack still turns your body into a living weapon that travels extremely fast across half of the screen. Now they do considerably more damage. However, since your enemies are also stronger, you may not notice the difference too much. Use the werewolf's speed to put a safe amount of distance between you and any danger so that you can survive the stage and make your way to the final showdown with Neff.

Arcade version

 * Segment 1
 * 1) After getting attacked by a few Gory Goats, two brown wolves will come leaping across the ground from right to left, with a silver wolf appearing behind them.
 * 2) After the first Dark Unicorn appears, some brown wolves will appear from the left and run to the right.  One will appear on the ground while the other will appear up on the ledge.  A silver wolf will follow behind the higher wolf.
 * 3) After the first Rad Boars appear, several wolves will appear high on the ledge and run from left to right.  A silver wolf will appear last and follow the pack.
 * Segment 2
 * 1) After a few Saw Fish attack, and some Dark Unicorns appear, two brown wolves will appear on the low platform on the right, and leap across to the left.  A silver Wolf will follow close behind.  They will pause briefly half way across the screen.
 * 2) When a series of high platforms begins to appear, three brown wolves will appear from the left, and leap across the platforms to the right.  After a pause, a silver wolf will appear on the floor instead of leaping across the platforms.
 * Segment 3
 * 1) Immediately after Neff retreats, three brown wolves will charge across the floor from right to left.  A stationary silver wolf will appear on a high platform above them.
 * 2) More wolves will leap from that same high platform, down to the ground below and continue to the left.  A silver wolf will appear among them, but only if you've removed the stationary wolf first.
 * 3) Two brown wolves will appear high on the left and leap across a high platform to the right.  At the same time, a stationary silver wolf will appear on a middle platform on the right side of the screen.
 * 4) Before that high platform scrolls off the screen, two brown wolves will appear on the right side on the next high platform and leap over to the first one on the left.  A silver wolf will appear behind them.
 * 5) A lone stationary silver wolf will appear on the floor below the second high platform mentioned above.

Genesis version

 * Segment 1
 * 1) As two Gory Goats attack, a brown wolf will appear on the high ledge to the right, and bounce off of it to the ground below.  A silver wolf will appear behind it, but it will drop straight down to the ground before running to the left.
 * 2) After the first Rad Boar appears, a brown wolf will appear on the ground to the left and leap across the floor to the right.  A second brown wolf will appear behind the first, along with a silver wolf.  The second brown wolf will leap slowly, but the silver wolf will leap quickly.
 * 3) When the Skinny Oculus appears, a brown wolf will appear high on the ledge to the left and bounce off of it to the floor below.  Another brown wolf will appear, followed by a silver wolf, and they will leap immediately down to the ground, the silver wolf first, and the brown wolf second.
 * Segment 2
 * 1) When the ledges appear on the right, a brown wolf will leap across the floor from right to left.  A silver wolf will then appear on top of the ledges and jump off of them to the floor below.  It's difficult to hit if you're in the left corner.  You'll need to jump up and attack it before it hits the ground if you want the orb.
 * 2) Before those ledges disappear, a brown wolf will appear high on the left and bounce across the ledges to the right.  A silver wolf will then quickly leap across the floor from left to right, followed by a slower brown wolf.
 * Segment 3
 * 1) As soon as Neff leaves, a brown wolf will leap off of a ledge on the right side of the screen, down to the ground and run to the left.  A silver wolf will then appear on the ground and run to the left.
 * 2) With ledges in the background, a brown wolf will appear on the ground to the left and leap slowly to the right.  A silver wolf appear behind him and leap quickly across.

Boss: Neff (Rhinoceros form)
When the battle against Neff begins, it will look like he's summoning another boss to challenge you, but he is in fact transforming into his own beast form, that of a rhinoceros. As a rhinoceros, he has surprisingly few attacks, but he likes to keep things close and personal. When up close to you, he has a standard punch, as well as a low sweep kick. However, when he feels he is too far away from you to attack, he lets off a burst of steam before he charges at you from across the screen.

Your main goal is to try and keep some distance between the two of you in order to pelt him with projectile attacks. Your body attack move can hurt him on occasion, but it won't go through him, it can be very inconsistent, and it brings you closer to him where he can clobber you. So using the kick attack is not highly recommended in this fight.

Instead, you should attempt to remain on the opposite side of the screen from him, hit him with as many projectiles as you can until you are forced to jump straight up in the air, and then use the kick attack to propel yourself over him and back down to the ground on the other side of Neff. For good measure, you can dash to the opposite corner before turning around and hitting him with more projectiles until you have to leap up again. This is a very slow and steady way to defeat him. Once he takes enough damage, you will rescue Athena, and win the game.