Parasite Eve II

The Good
The "Parasite Eve" universe and story line is very interesting. The plot, characters, locations, and music all make up an interactive experience that is, put simply, really cool. One needs only watch the introduction to the first "Parasite Eve" game to get hooked. And hooked was what many people were; naturally when "Parasite Eve 2" was released they bought it. It does continue the story line of the first game by bringing back some familiar characters, foremost the heroine of the adventure: Aya Brea. In addition, the game also delivers a familiar art style: the color pallet, camera set-ups, lighting, and special effects should all seem familiar to players of the first installment.

But that is all that will seem familiar because the gameplay was radically changed from the first game. Instead of an action-RPG, gamers get a more traditional action game with some very basic RPG-like elements. The action is much more like "Resident Evil", which may please some. The approach the developers of "Parasite Eve 2" took seemed to be to simplify and streamline everything in the game. Puzzles are still rather simple, weapon customization isn't quite as deep or necessary as before, and as just mentioned, the battle system is not nearly as complex. The story certainly doesn't weigh anything down.

The Bad
The changes made to "Parasite Eve 2" that some people may have liked will be changes that others despise. The battle system is nowhere near as much fun as in "Parasite Eve". Simplification could also be interpreted as "dumbed-down". The music, while deserving the description of "good" doesn't hold a flame to the original.

Character designs aren't bad, but monster designs, again compared with the original, just simply don't hold up. The first introduction of the monsters in "Parasite Eve" is the rat mutating into a monster. It is certainly startling but one must also appreciate the creativity. In "Parasite Eve 2", a lumbering camel/horse monster just doesn't do it.

Finally, the story, which lacks coherence and interest, serves as a platform to kill monsters, that's about it. For a good portion of the game you don't really know what your supposed to be doing. This doesn't bode well with gamers that require more than mediocre triggering.

The Bottom Line
"Parasite Eve 2" is fun if you have played the original. It is fun because you get to revisit the "Parasite Eve" universe and see some familiar faces. But that fun will probably not last through the duration of the game. The story isn't as good, there are fewer characters than before, the location, (the Mojave Desert or where ever), just isn't as attractive as a wintry New York City. It is a pity the franchise wasn't continued, but if another game meant more of the same than perhaps if it better that "Parasite Eve 3" sleeps a bit longer.

The Good
Well, I'll start by saying that for a period of 4 weeks this game is literally the only one I played. Square created a perfect blend of action and RPG all wrapped up in a compelling Science Fiction narrative that sort of carries over from the original Parasite Eve.

STORY

We begin with Aya Brea doing target training at MIST HQ in Los Angeles. An alert comes through about a nearby hotel being attacked by NMC's and Aya is dispatched to assist the SWAT team that has already stormed the building. After that Aya is plunged into a deep, outlandish but wholly satisfying narrative that you guessed it, is one big conspiracy.

GAMEPLAY

The combat system in Parasite Eve 2 is the biggest change. After the attack phase initiates you can press square to auto aim at your nearest enemy, then pressing square unloads on your enemy. Pressing triangle brings up the PE (Parasite Energy = Magic) wheel which allows you to select a PE to use in battle. Outside of battle you can still do this but you can only select physically enhancing PE's such as Metabolism or Healing. After battle you are given a helping of experience points to spend on upgrading your PE's and Bounty Points which function as money. Unlike most Square RPG's there is less of an emphasis on skill management and character development and more on advancing the story. While you can still develop your character with different weapons, different armor which affect your hit points and augmenting your parasite energies the emphasis is purely on exploration and combat.

GRAPHICS

Environments in Parasite Eve 2 follow the pre-rendered Alone in the Dark formula wherein Aya is rendered (lusciously) as a 3D model and the environments have been painstakingly pre-rendered. These camera angles load quickly and I have never had any problems with them. One of the most impressive graphical nuances of this game is the water effect present in Neo Ark - a shimmering, shifting mass which doesn't really look like water but doesn't seem to be possible on the Playstation because it just looks so beautiful. Particle effects like fire and some of the effects that accompany you casting PE's are impressive and quite pretty.

SOUND

I enjoy Parasite Eve 2's soundtrack. I know some people don't enjoy it, some people think it is generic, however the soundtrack conveys a sense of humility. Square knew what kind of music to use in the game, they knew which kind of music wouldn't take emphasis off the event it was accompanying. While the soundtrack isn't stellar, there are many memorable tracks, most of which are accesible for playback either from a Jukebox or via the target training.

The Bad
MOVEMENT PROBLEMS FLOW INTO COMBAT

Aya moves like a tank. I thought Chris Redfield moved sluggishly but all that equipment must really be weighing Aya down. This is a very irritating aspect of combat as although combat is real time it is also realistic, there is no flashing "invincibility" time and if you get knocked down or backed into a corner you can be pummelled to death within seconds by some of the hardier enemies.

SOME VAGUE, SUPERFLUOUS ITEMS Although there is a large selection of weapons and items some are superfluous and some are completely baffling, such as the Medicine Wheel. The Medicine Wheel simply invites you to attach it to your armor to see what it does, a completely trial and error concept that is tedious and will inevitably drive you to a walkthrough to see what it really does.

AWKWARD ITEM ATTACHMENTS

This brings me to another point. In combat you only have access to items that Aya has attached to her armor. If you run out ammo and more isn't equipped to your armor; you're screwed. If you run out of healing items and you're about to get violently killed; you're screwed. The fact is it doesn't seem like such a big deal when you consider you can increase armor attachments with pouches but it still can be a vile irritation if attaching slips your mind before a big battle (of which there are many.)

TOO MANY LARGE SCALE BATTLES

When I say there are many big battles I'm not exaggerating. At one point in the game there are boss battles within around 30 minutes of one another. Square likes boss battles and don't expect Parasite Eve 2 to be an exception.

The Bottom Line
I love Parasite Eve 2. It's a beautiful game with a solid engine, refreshing combat and adequate RPG elements that don't slow the game down. Unfortunately the game can also be quite difficult if you don't know what you're doing and there is significant trial and error involved in making a successful playthrough. The attachment concept is a little flawed and the over abundance of boss battles slows things down a bit.