Boards.ie Game Club#4 Parasite Eve

Retr0gamer

This months game is the squaresoft forgotten classic:

Parasite Eve



What is it?: Squaresofts action RPG that blends survival horror and RPG. Fast paced, short and lots of fun, it's one of the best Square made on the PS1. The modern day setting of NYC and the fact that it was made by an American team gives it a very different feel to other Squaresoft games of the era. Criminally never got a European release.

Available on: PS1 (also on the US PSN service).

ShadowHearth

I loved it to bits!!! Played through a few times at least and did some dent in the tower too!
Story was cool and I loved combat. The only annyoing thing was the character animation. It was weird. It had run animation very fast, but it moved very slowly. If that makes any sense.
I played it back in Lithuania ages ago and when parasite eve 2 showed up we were all excited. The only issue was that only first part of game was translated and the rest of it was in Japanese... So we all got stuck where you needed to open safe and we had no clue what was the password. Internet back then was not an option. actually I am surprised how mamy games we played in jap language and actually completed a good few lol.

So it actually never released in Europe?!?! Come to think of it, maybe we were playing Russian version and had that translated to English. All games were pirated.

Retr0gamer

Parasite Eve 2 had a European release but the first game didn't, which is strange because the first game is so much better and with the American setting it seemed like a better fit for a European audience. It might well be my favourite Square game on the PS1 and showed that RPGs didn't have to be super long to be exciting and epic.

Apparently Square wanted FF7 to be a detective/noir story set in Midgar that would have clocked in at about 15-20 hours like Parasite Eve but Squaresoft thought it was a bit too much of a departure so made it more traditional. It would kind of explain the difference between the Midgar section which I love and the overworld section which just feels like every other RPG. Parasite Eve was created to expand on the ideas of the initial FF7 pitch, a RPG set in a small environment with a more cinematic storytelling angle.

I've actually beaten the Chrysler building bonus area... it wasn't worth it. I spent hours grinding enemies to make stupidly powerful guns to get through the last few floors of that rogue like area and the ending you get once you do it is hugely unsatisfying.

Solitaire

PE1 never had a PAL release, PE2 did but the games are pretty different tbh. A lot of people moaned about PE1 because it wasn't Resi, even more did about PE2 because it wasn't PE1 or Resi but that's because some people are mortally offended when game from subgenre X != clone of best known game from subgenre X :rolleyes::P Resi is more themed about running for your life, PE takes a more aggressive stance especially in PE2 - you're not just there to survive, you're there to kill it with fire and bullets and lasers and death.

I liked them both, mostly because they're good games but also because I wasn't expecting them to be clones of Resi or each other Never did do much in the way of New Game+ in PE1 though. I fear I may have to go play it again now and see how bad Chrysler Building murders me on the second or third run

*edit* Retro beat me to it

brianregan09

I've never played this and it always intrigued me

Is it expensive on US PSN will it work on ps4 ?

Retr0gamer

brianregan09 wrote: »

I've never played this and it always intrigued me

Is it expensive on US PSN will it work on ps4 ?

6 dollars but it won't work on PS4.

LLMMLL

Retr0gamer wrote: »

6 dollars but it won't work on PS4.

Anyone playing this? Just played the opening. Always loved it. From what i remember playing this 20 years ago I couldn't really follow the story. The usual crazy japanese manga type stuff.

Solitaire

I was before Halloween. Then stuff happened. IT'S CHRYSLER'S FAULT FOR BEING SO FREAKING LONG!!!!

Skerries

just played about an hour of it and man you really have to hunt and seek to get the hit box in this game
I had to look up where to get a key and it was in an area that I had already checked over and over but it still didn't trigger

Solitaire

Yeah, its pretty bad for that in places, like many similar games of that era. PE2 had better zone detection but in many areas every pixel of backdrop had fluff text or something going on with it

LLMMLL

Skerries wrote: »

just played about an hour of it and man you really have to hunt and seek to get the hit box in this game
I had to look up where to get a key and it was in an area that I had already checked over and over but it still didn't trigger

I had to go back to an earlier save point in the theatre from the sewers as I missed new armour even though I'm sure I searched the area thoroughly.

fergus1001

The adds were so typical of a 90's video game ha

LLMMLL

Just finished day 3. Day 2 was torture. Couldn't find the zoo key even though I searched in the correct spot at least twice. Spent half an hour wandering around before consulting a guide and finding that It was in an area Id already searched. Arerghhh

Boss on day 3 was quite difficult. Used all my meds before beating
Him

Can't really figure out the best way to use the modding and tool systems.

Story's a bit bonkers.

Retr0gamer

I think the modding system is just combining the same type of weapons together and making sure you get the buffs you want. It never really comes into play until you go to the Chrysler Building in new game plus... but I'd recommend against that.

I found the game kind of easy overall except the last boss which was really tough... and then unfortunately ends in a chase where if you take a wrong turn get instantly killed... and have to repeat a very long and tough boss fight.

Solitaire

The modding system:

- Build up +stats on your current weapon/armor, then use a tool to transfer those stats to a more powerful weapon/armor
- If a weapon/armor you don't want has a few points of +stats then use a tool to transfer them to your current weapon and your mountain of +stats
- Tools can be used to transfer effects as well, so you could have an SMG that fires AoE blasts But once you have an effect on your weapon or armor other than +stats you'll need to use a Super Tool to transfer one then a regular one to transfer the other over to your shiny new one as regular Tools delete the "donor" item on use :eek:
- Junk Weapons are the best in the game in the US version. An utter pain to get but imba as hell and you can largely forgo super-rare supertools and just stack ALL OF THE THINGS on it for the rest of the save file - your best weapon and armor can be named near the end and transfer into NG+ (or EX Mode as its called here)

LLMMLL

Solitaire wrote: »

The modding system:

- Build up +stats on your current weapon/armor, then use a tool to transfer those stats to a more powerful weapon/armor
- If a weapon/armor you don't want has a few points of +stats then use a tool to transfer them to your current weapon and your mountain of +stats
- Tools can be used to transfer effects as well, so you could have an SMG that fires AoE blasts But once you have an effect on your weapon or armor other than +stats you'll need to use a Super Tool to transfer one then a regular one to transfer the other over to your shiny new one as regular Tools delete the "donor" item on use :eek:
- Junk Weapons are the best in the game in the US version. An utter pain to get but imba as hell and you can largely forgo super-rare supertools and just stack ALL OF THE THINGS on it for the rest of the save file - your best weapon and armor can be named near the end and transfer into NG+ (or EX Mode as its called here)

Ugh didn't realise if you transferred over the +1 stats from other guns they added to the current perks I have. I've got like +20 attack which I keep transferring to new guns I use but I thought if I transferred a +1 to the gun in using it would replace the +20 not add to it.

Anyway I'm on day 5. Just finished Chinatown and warehouse so off to the museum to get some answers.