Parasite Eve

"The game that made me love my PSX"

Back when this game came out, in '97 or '98, I was still a little cautious. By this I mean that I didn't like my PSX. I was till into what is now considered ''Old School'' games. I am boring and unchanging. I didn't like my new PSX because my Genesis and SNES still worked fine, and I loved those. But I got a PSX with a few games in '96, and never really played it. Until I saw this game. I bought this game one day, because I thought it was awesome that it had a female heroine (hey, we need more of those). When I played it, I was completely stunned.

To tell the truth, when I first played it, it felt a lot more like a Survival Horror game then a RPG. Especially with some of the music and environments. It even has the entire Survival Horror feel to it. This is something rather rare, especially for a RPG type of game. This game also does the impossible: it innovates the stale RPG battle and gameplay system.

As I just said, Parasite Eve plays like a Survival Horror game. That said, it is also an RPG. Now this is a rather confusing match, because at the same time it is science-fiction. Set in the present day world, Parasite Eve is a rare sort of RPG no gamer should miss.

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Story

Alright, now that you have listened to my exceedingly boring introduction, I will try and not blab on and on about the story-too much. Parasite Eve starts off with the main character, Twenty-Five year old Aya Brea, going on a first date to an Opera in Carnegie Hall. This is supposedly a very popular opera, but strangely, Aya has never really been into Opera's before. After naming Aya, you head in, and you watch a gorgeous CG cinema where one of the main mysteries and villains of the game is introduced.

Like many RPG's, Parasite Eve is based off story. In fact, even more so then most games. The story is very science-fiction based, so make sure to prepare yourself for that. If you don't like that type of story, then you will not like Parasite Eve's story.

Parasite Eve is based off the Mitochondrial Theory. For those of you who don't know about it, I will explain a bit. Some scientists believe that all humans can be traced back to 7 women. These 7 women were the ones who birthed humanity today. They are all called Eve. And the Mitochondrial patterns in women (only women) can be traced back to each of these 7.

Parasite Eve is based off something like that. So if you don't like that kind of thing, then you will not like the game. And if that blew over your head...don't worry, you'll get used to it. Other then that, the story is awesome.

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Technical

Parasite Eve is an awesome game in the technical aspect. The CG cinemas are beautiful, and only Final Fantasy IX has better on the PSX. They also have short load times, so you wont be sitting through a black screen for longer then a few seconds.

The normal graphics are also quite good, PSX speaking. The character Aya has three different outfits that she changes throughout the game, and each is varied. Sadly, the game doesn't close in on the characters too often. So you basically just see a woman running around with a gun in her hand. Its quite annoying. What is even worse is the almost hilarious guns. You can equip Aya with any gun in battle, but right after battle, the gun will just turn right back into a handgun. So Aya is always running around with a handgun, even if a Shotgun, Rifle, or anything lese is equipped. And sadly, the graphics are not too well detailed.

But the pre-rendered backgrounds are. The pre-rendered backgrounds are beautiful, and at times look real.They are varied, but they each represent the feeling of the game. Sadly, they represent it too well. A lot of the backgrounds are dark, and it seems like Square is trying to hide the backgrounds for you. So all in all the graphics are dark, and not in a good way.

And one of my personal favorite parts in Parasite Eve is the music. It is far more ''techno'' or ''jazzy'' then a normal type of game, but every song fits the game. The OST is something you will really want to buy with this game. a few times, I remember just letting my menu screen go on listening to the music. That is only a few times, mind you. (bah...Alright, maybe more then a LITTLE)

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Gameplay

The gameplay in Parasite Eve is where the game truly shines. While the story is good, the gameplay is excellent. There are a few flaws, but I will get to those in a minute.

The base gameplay is the same as any RPG, or any other game. Run around, fight enemies, pick up items, solve puzzles, go on. Thats simple, and we all know it. Some people wont like the fact that there are literally NO puzzles in Parasite Eve. There are only locked doors. Of course, others will rejoice over this fact. And the keys are found through other doors, in drawers, or on carcases.

The controls are excellent. They are responsive and tight, and luckily unlike some Survival Horror games (*cough* RE *cough*) they dont use a horrible control scheme. It is more of a FF type control scheme then a Survival Horror or an action game scheme. And we can all give a sigh of relief for that.

The battle system is simply the best part of Parasite Eve. You have free reign in it. You can run anywhere you want on the screen, and dodge the enemies, who will chase you, cast spells at you, or just all around attack you. Dodging skills are imperative, and luckily, the controls are very good so you do not need to worry about it. Even better is the weapon system. Each weapon, depending on its type (Handgun, Shotgun, Rifle, Rocket Launcher, etc) has a specific range and rate of fire. obviously weapons like machine guns are going to shoot faster then rifles, but they will shoot weaker. And weapons like Rifles will be lower then a Handgun, but more powerful. You really have to balance out speed and strength, but it also depends on your style of play. In some battles, you will have an absolutely HUGE are to run around in, and weapons like handguns wont be able to reach the enemies as easily, so you need to switch to a weapon with longer reach, Like a Rifle. This adds an element of strategy that most games lack.

And of course, there is ''magic'' in the game. Magic in Parasite Eve is called Parasite Energy. And, surprisingly, the magic system actually fits the story! *gasp*. There is a bar below your HP total the determines how much PE you have, and how fast it is returning. There is no numbers on the PE bar, so no MP. Each spell takes a different amount of PE, and the stronger spells sometimes even paralyze Aya so you need to think, will I have time to get off this attack, or do I heal my character?

All in all, Parasite Eve feels a lot more interactive then most RPG type games, it also works a lot more with style of gameplay. You can beat the game with any type of weapons and skills, you don't need the ultimate anything to do it.

Another unique, and fun feature is weapon customization. This is almost required to finish the game, but it takes a whole lot to learn and master. Weapons have skills, like how many bullets it shoots (the lower the better, Aya won't be standing in the enemies' path as long), and things that give a type of attack-all, and elemental bullets. Each ability has its uses, and each weapon has a set number of ''Slots'' that the weapon can equip items with. So you may want to have the attack-all skill, or you may want Quickdraw, depending on your situation. It also depends on your style. You can also up the stats on each weapon, leading to even deeper customization.

The one major change in Parasite Eve that makes it different from normal RPG's: replay value. Yes, you read that right. There is actually replay value in this game. Now before you go running in the corner and crying in joy, you need to listen to me. You get weapons, armor, and even an optional side dungeon. Its so awesome. NOW you can go running in the corner and crying in glee.

Sadly, with all the good, there comes the bad. First off, Parasite Eve is very short. A normal player, who has played through the game once or twice will be able to beat the game within 6-8 hours. The first time may take 20, at most. And there is a VERY weird difficulty level. Some bosses in Parasite Eve are hard as hell. And we are talking impossible hard. And some bosses are simple. It is very unbalanced and disorienting. Also, Parasite Eve is linear. I know a lot of so called ''hardcore'' gamers hate that. But just because you hate it, don't overlook the game.

The biggest flaw of Parasite Eve is the limited inventory space. In an RPG, you would normally want hundreds of items, but you can't have that in this game. This makes the menu system extremely annoying, as you have to travel back and forth again and again to drop of items into the storage. And even the storage has limits. The game is most repetitive at these point, though it does fit the survival horror mold.

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All in all, Parasite Eve is an awesome game. It has some major flaws that will turn a lot of gamers off though. But if you read the review, and still want to play, well go buy it. Buy it now. Especially at the cheap Greatest hits price. This is a game you do not want to miss

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/04/03, Updated 07/04/03