Parasite Eve (video game)

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Parasite Eve
Image:Parasite Eve Coverart.png
Developer(s) Square
Publisher(s) Square (Japan), Square Electronic Arts (U.S.)
Designer(s) Hironobu Sakaguchi (game producer, original scenario concept)
Takashi Tokita (game director, story)
Tetsuya Nomura (character designer)
Yoko Shimomura (music composer)
Platform(s) PlayStation
Release date JPN March 29, 1998
USA September 9, 1998
Genre(s) Role-playing game, Survival horror
Mode(s) Single player
Rating(s) ESRB: M (Mature) (17+)
Media 2 × CD-ROM
System requirements Memory Card
Input methods DualShock controller

Parasite Eve (パラサイト・イヴ Parasaito Ivu?) is a survival horror role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix). The game is a sequel to the novel Parasite Eve, written by Hideaki Sena. In the North American market it was packaged with Squaresoft on PlayStation 1998 Collector's CD Vol.1; a collection of demos future Squaresoft games.

Contents

[edit] Gameplay

Parasite Eve is a survival horror with many RPG elements. Movement in the various environments is free. Movement in the "world map" (which is a map of Manhattan) is limited to specific destinations. Upon the player walking over a "hot spot," they enter battle mode. Enemies materialize suddenly and though there is no shift to a separate battle screen, the player is bound within a perimeter of unseen barriers until the battle is over, either by defeating all enemies or using the Escape command. In battle, the player has an "Active Time Bar" (ATB) that sets the time for every turn to take action. Upon each turn the player may choose between attacking with their equipped weapon, using PE (Parasite Energy) for defense, assistance or attack, using items, changing weapon or armor, or escaping the battle. If the player chooses to attack, a dome symbolizing the range of the weapon appears. If the enemy is outside of the range, the shot is likely to fail. Even if the shot lands, the damage will be less than normal.

When the player decides to use Parasite Energy, they must choose from the menu the desired PE skill. The same goes for weapon, armor or items; however, if the player choose to escape, experience will be lost. Parasite Energy is slowly recharged over time.

When not in battle, the player has the option of altering the weapon and armor attributes and effects with tools and super-tools. The player selects the "tune-up" option, choosing the weapon that will be altered and the weapon from which the attributes or effect will be taken.

One of the principal RPG elements of the game is that experience-based levels are present. Each time the player's level increases, his/her attributes go up and BP (Bonus Points) are given. These points can be distributed to the ATB, item capacity, or attributes of a weapon or armor.

[edit] EX-game

When the game is cleared once, a new mode appears, called the "EX game." It is different than the normal game in various aspects: the player has access to every item stored in the police station, the game begins with the final weapon and armor the player chose before ending the first game, and the bonus points (BP) given to the player at the end of the game are now available to use. However, the biggest difference from the normal game is the Chrysler Building, a progressive endurance test.

The Chrysler Building test allows the player the chance to save only every ten floors and only after defeating a boss. The items, weapons, power-ups and enemies are of a higher class. The best items, armors, and weapons are here along with the trading cards that allow the player to make customizations to the weapons and get the tool and super-tool kits. It should also be noted that every floor (except floors 1, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70-77) are completely randomized so each floor is like a maze. Most importantly, the boss in the last floor of the building (77) is the true final boss of the game and has the form of Aya's elder sister, Maya. This final boss explains to Aya that Klamp cultivated the cells of the original Eve to analyze. So when Melissa was giving birth to the ultimate being, she created a nest there. In case Melissa and the ultimate being failed, the purebred would remain. Aya speaks with her sister, and they engage in battle against the purebred. After the purebred is defeated, the mitochondria inside Aya begin to rebel against her. The explanation is that Aya's mitochondria have now reached a higher evolutionary stage than Maya’s, but Maya's personality has suddenly become dominant and begun to fight off the Eve persona. Maya eventually wins, purging the Eve persona from herself. Somehow, Maya protects Aya by preventing the original Eve from taking over her. Aya leaves the building by herself, although she apparently has gained some sort of connection with her dead sister.

Maya's body is not physically present in either scenario, only Eve is. What actually happens is arguable due to the scene's lack of camera angles for certain characters.

[edit] Plot

[edit] Setting

The game takes place over a six day span in New York City in 1997. The incident starts on December 24 and ends on December 29.

[edit] Story

The game begins with Aya Brea, an NYPD rookie, attending an opera with an unnamed date. During the opera, everyone in the building spontaneously combusts, except for Aya, her date, and an actress on stage named Melissa Pearce. Aya confronts Melissa backstage, and Melissa says that Aya’s mitochondria need more time to develop. Melissa then mutates into a winged beast and flies into the sewers, declaring that her name is now Eve.[1]

The next day on Christmas, Aya and her partner Daniel go to see a scientist at the Museum of Natural History named Dr. Klamp. He tells them things about mitochondria that they find useless for their purposes. Later that day, they hear that Eve is in Central Park. As they arrive, Eve turns all the people around her into an orange slimy mass. Aya and Eve battle in Central Park, but Aya is knocked unconscious during the fight.

Daniel discovers that his son, Ben, was at the park, but escaped being turned to slime. He also learns that Manhattan is being evacuated due to the threat that Eve poses. While Manhattan is being evacuated, a Japanese man named Kunihiko Maeda manages to sneak into Manhattan.

Aya awakens in an apartment with Daniel and Maeda at her side. Maeda reveals the origins of Eve. A scientist tried to culture the cells of his wife after she was involved in a car accident, and the mitochondria in her cells took over her body. Maeda believes that Eve may be trying to give birth to an “Ultimate Being.”

The next day, the three go to see Dr. Klamp again, and he tells Aya that the nuclei in her cells are fighting Eve’s mitochondria. After he asks a few questions of her, they leave Dr. Klamp and head for the hospital, where Maeda thinks Eve may try to get sperm for the Ultimate Being.[2] When they arrive, they find that Eve is already there. Eve takes the sperm and escapes.

The next day, Aya witnesses the orange mass of people from the park enter the city water supply. She goes to Dr. Klamp one more time, and discovers that Dr. Klamp has engineered special sperm for Eve so that she can create the Ultimate Being.[3] He then spontaneously combusts. Aya finds Eve in another part of the museum, where the orange mass has surrounded her, forming an impermeable shield to protect her while the Ultimate Being gestates in her.

After several failed attempts to attack Eve, the military asks Aya to deliver a nuclear bomb to Eve, because she is the only one that can get close to her. She delivers the bomb, which does kill Eve.

As Aya rests on a naval vessel, the Ultimate Being is born and attacks the surrounding ships. Aya does battle with the Ultimate Being, eventually destroying it.

[edit] Characters

See the list of minor Parasite Eve characters.

 Please help improve this section by expanding it.
Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.


[edit] Audio

Yoko Shimomura composed the game's soundtrack, including the intro, "Primal Eyes", and the ending, "Somnia Memorias", is performed by Shani Rigsbee. A score met with great critical acclaim, it is known as one of her more original soundtracks, using influences from both opera and electronica. A separate Parasite Eve Remix album was also released, containing 10 tracks remixed and remastered from the original game by various DJs.

[edit] Reception

[1]IGN: 7.4/10 (reviewer), 7.9/10 (players)
[2]Gamespot: 7.2/10 (reviewer), 8.5/10 (players)
[3]Game Rankings: 77%
Edge Magazine: 6/10

[edit] Manga

There was also a two-part manga released in Japan called Parasite Eve DIVA that never saw an American release.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Melissa: Melissa: ‘I'm Melissa... No... I am... I'm... I am EVE! (Square Co. Parasite Eve II. Square EA. PlayStation. (in English). (1998-03-29)
  2. ^ Maeda: There's a sperm bank around here? / Daniel: A sperm bank? /Maeda: I don't think Eve's body will last much longer. Right now, the mitochondria are just parasites in her body. /Daniel: So she is trying to create this ultimate being, like she did in Japan. /Maeda: I`m afraid so. Square Co. Parasite Eve II. Square EA. PlayStation. (in English). (1998-03-29)
  3. ^ Klamp: The mitochondria is passed from the mother, but you see, traces of the father can also be found un minute quantities. According to Eve, her sister in Japan was unable to attain her ultimate goal because the father side of the mitochondria caused a rebellion. For Eve to succeed this time, I created sperm without the male mitochondria DNA Square Co. Parasite Eve II. Square EA. PlayStation. (in English). (1998-03-29)

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Parasite Eve series
Games
Parasite Eve · II · The 3rd Birthday
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