Parasite Eve II

"A game as Beautiful as Aya!"

Parasite Eve II is the hit sequel to the 1998 game, Parasite Eve, for the PlayStation. Parasite Eve hit it off pretty well as an RPG/Survival Horror. In September 2000, Parasite Eve II came out, and in my opinion, in some ways, surpasses the original.

Story 10/10
Wonderful story. It can be confusing on how Aya is how she is and stuff, but the story is nice neither the less. This story differs from Parasite Eve, this time Aya is a NMC (Monster type creature) hunter. The story is more complex, getting into Mitochondria and stuff, but I feel like keeping the story brief.

Game Play 9/10
Thank goodness they took out the ATB (Active Time Battle) out of Parasite Eve, this game belonged to be Real-Time! It's also fun to blast away those monsters with all your weapons; the Game play is very solid. Only thing they could of improved on, was a World Map, like in PE. That would of been cooler.

Graphics/FMV 10/10
Wow! What a MAJOR improvement from PE1. The characters are much more details, and the graphics are less flaky, than they were in Parasite Eve. The FMV's are beautiful, and Aya looks even better in these, and just the environment is much better done.

Music/Sounds 9/10
Once again, another improvement from PE1. Music is much more into the game, and sounds much better. The remix of the intro is simply awesome, possibly the best intro music I ever heard. Sounds are all right, nothing that really I pay attention to, sounds with Aya getting hurt or something to gunfire, nothing out of the ordinary.

Rent or Buy?
If you are a fan of the Biohazard (Resident Evil) series, consider this one AVERAGELY, because it's not much like Resident Evil, I'd say it's much easier, until you unlock the harder modes. If you are new to the Survivor Horror series, then rent or buy this, it's definitely something that you could use to practice on the harder Survival Horror games like Resident Evil and Silent Hill. If you played Parasite Eve, then consider greatly to adding this one to your collection, if not already.

Final Thoughts
Summing up all above: The story is rich, it explains more about Aya's job, less about her if you ask me. Not as complex as Parasite Eve, but good neither the less. Graphics are simply awesome compared to PE1, details are highly good, and FMV's are more beautifully done. Music is creepier and sounds are average. It's a good rent for new people, and a buy for veterans of PE1.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 06/09/02, Updated 07/01/02