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[Junahu]

I miss the 3rd birthday, to be perfectly frank. I want another game with that mix of horror and body-switching gunplay.

It shouldn't have piggybacked off of the Parasite Eve canon though. That was a pretty stupid move, especially since the game couldn't even use the Parasite Eve name to sell itself.

 

[MaverickHunterAsh]

I adore Parasite Eve and Aya Brea was one of the OG badass, thoughtfully-designed video game heroines. I miss this series to death.

The original game is a modern classic and Parasite Eve II is pretty good in its own right in a Resident Evil-ish sort of way. The 3rd Birthday is utter garbage, quite possibly my most disliked game of all time. Not only was the game itself not very good in a mechanical sense, it also managed to completely fart on and irreparably dismantle a wonderful series. I could *maybe* see The 3rd Birthday being somewhat decent as a standalone title/original IP, but it should never have been a PE game... kinda like how The Room should never have become a Silent Hill game.

I hope Square decides to revisit the series someday and give it the modern reboot it deserves. Normally I don't like the idea of reboots in general and would prefer them to stick with the established continuity, but I'm really not sure anything meaningful or positive can be salvaged from the story after how egregiously The 3rd Birthday butchered it.

Man, I hate that game.

 

[Doctrine Dark]

Parasite Eve 1 and 2 are both all time favs of mine. I can play both of them any day and never be bored. Despite all of my experience with Resident Evil, Parasite Eve legit instilled fear into me. Especially when you're in Central Park....

While I preferred Aya's Parasite powers in PE1, I really did enjoy some of her more toned down powers in PE2.

Another thing I really loved about PE2 was the attention to detail it presented. If you pressed X near pretty much any object, window, item, register, picture on the wall, Aya had something to say about it. Whenever I playthrough the game, I always find myself coming across something new that she comments on. That was one of the most enjoyable parts of the game.

I love them both, but Parasite Eve 2 has the slight advantage to me. I personally can't see them revisiting the series, but I'd be super hyped if they did.

 

[Golnei]

Also, while we're on the subject of the games' art direction; I have to mention the rest of the amazing creature designs in the first game, not just Eve. PE2's flabby, awkward-looking mutants were endearing in their own way, and The 3rd Birthday had a couple of nice FFXIII-ish designs, but the first game had one of the best bestiaries in an RPG from a visual standpoint.

They're really memorable crossovers of traditional RPG monsters with naturalistic biological features and horror elements; perfectly suiting the game's fusion of disparate aesthetics.

 

[Doctrine Dark]

As strange as this might sound, I haven't seen the artwork of some of those monsters before. Looks pretty good. Thanks for posting it.

 

[DiipuSurotu]

The first Parasite Eve was the perfect blend of Japanese and Western sensibilities, brought to you straight from Los Angeles by Square USA and veteran FF developers. The Third Birthday on the other hand is pure otaku garbage.

 

[Lime]

Is there a sort of retrospect article on the first game? Like development, reception, cultural impact, and so on?

 

[RootCause]

I got them off the psn sales. Never played it, but the screens remind me of Resident Evil/Silent Hill. Probably why I bought them.

 

[CREMSteve]

The first two games were excellent. Would buy a proper sequel on day one.

Spoiler

Ok, maybe day 60. Games are too expensive in Canada right now!!

 

[Golnei]

Speaking of otaku garbage, I can't get over how thoroughly T3B ruined Maeda. Once you get past the stupid justification and unsavoury behind-the-scenes rationale for "Aya's" personality, it seems to at least sort of fit, and Aya herself didn't seem that badly characterised, though it's hard to tell with the kind of script and plot they were working with. Maeda bears absolutely no similarity to his established characterisation at all - were they just writing an audience stand-in, and decided to slap his name on it at the last second?

 

[News Bot]

I wouldn't say it damaged the series in that regard, but I do think PE2 missed a lot of what made the first game stand out, in terms of narrative and atmosphere. I have no problem with sequels which try to do something different to the originals, (PE1 itself was vastly different from the novel) but PE2's invocation of stock-standard bioweapons, government conspiracies and secret agents felt like a poor substitute for the first game's unknowable alien antagonist and well-characterised, relatively naturalistic urban space. It became another story about covert research facilities and human experiments gone wrong, as opposed to the almost supernatural angle of Eve awakening within humanity.

Parasite Eve suffers the same problem as any horror. It's easier to scare people with the unknowable supernatural, but through PE1 the player learns that everything is caused by a very biological threat. The first Resident Evil "suffers" this as well. There was simply no way to create a Parasite Eve sequel that would maintain the faux-supernatural atmosphere for players who already knew what happened in the first game.

And the first game only got away with that atmosphere because the novel and movie were strictly Japanese. Some of the first dialogue in the game also makes it very clear that you're not dealing with a supernatural threat, as Eve begins talking about cells and her diary reveals her abuse of immuno-suppressants.

Parasite Eve 2 was a natural evolution of the first game's story.

 

[jjasso21]

I only played the first one, but good memories of the game. I always remember doing all 100 floors of the Chrysler Building. I really need to play the other two in the series.

 

[Savitar]

I've always preferred Nomura's original 90's anime-inspired design for Parasite Eve than the new, CGI Serah/Lightning looking design for Third Birthday.

Compared to...

Agreed.

The CGI look is just....bland. Uninteresting. Feels like your suppose to save her, the manga/anime look is more bad ass. Plus I'll never forget the beginning when shit happen she knocks over her date to take care of business and doesn't give a crap about him for the rest of the event.

 

[cj_iwakura]

I miss the 3rd birthday, to be perfectly frank. I want another game with that mix of horror and body-switching gunplay.

It shouldn't have piggybacked off of the Parasite Eve canon though. That was a pretty stupid move, especially since the game couldn't even use the Parasite Eve name to sell itself.

There is some genuinely horrific stuff in T3B... that concert for instance.

 

[Roubjon]

I'm one of the view who actually really enjoyed 3rd Birthday. I thought the gameplay was really good and was addicted for it for a while. The story was interesting to me, but I was never attached to the series in any way.

 

[MaverickHunterAsh]

I only played the first one, but good memories of the game. I always remember doing all 100 floors of the Chrysler Building. I really need to play the other two in the series.

The other two in the series? There's only one other game.

Spoiler

You don't need to play The 3rd Birthday. Trust me, you don't. Benefit from my mistake. It's trash (at least in PE terms) and barely even qualifies as a Parasite Eve game. Do yourself a favor and only play Parasite Eve II.

 

[Phil-NeoGAF]

I'm still waiting for the true sequel to PE2. You all may think I'm crazy, but I loved this series more so than FF. I miss it as well OP.

 

[impact]

Third Birthday on Vita was pretty good. I dunno how the hell it was supposed to play on the abysmal PSP with one analog, but I quite enjoyed the gameplay on Vita. I don't pay attention to the story in any game so to me it was a decent third act. Fun gameplay mechanics and pretty challenging to boot.

 

[Neoleo2143]

Upon replaying PE1. PE1 was a solid game with a great deal of contrived but fun Sci-fi nonsense. However, I can't praise the quiet yet strong characterization of Aya in that game enough. It's distinctly feminine but in that there's strength and she develops solidly throughout the game as well. I get a "Ellen Ripley" sort of vibe. I also enjoyed how various NPCs would shift around in roles because of Story events. It added to their own individual characterizations and managed to both raise the stakes and ground the story via its characters.

Movement Controls were slow but fitting within the way the combat works, which still holds up to this day as something quite satisfying, even if it only reaches its full potential a couple of times in the boss fights. The customization solid but I applaud that enemies at least until late midgame (minus bossfights of course) were reasonably threatening. Parasite powers were pretty damn fun and added extra variables to mess with.

Visually the game's alright, it's fared better than many PS1 games, though not nearly as good as say it's combat spiritual successor in Vagrant Story. But from the perspective of the 90s, I can see how the modern day setting with all the ambiance you could ask for at the time would be mindblowing for a JRPG.

The Soundtrack is excellent and stands as my second favorite Shimomura Soundtrack.

 

[HeelPower]

The second game easily has more on emphasis on RPG elements than the first.

Idk what is it about static combat that somehow renderss games as "more RPG".

The second game lets you customize your PE progression in much greater detail and has a greater range of weapons,more strategic boss fights etc.

Its much better game in terms of combat and
its also a more customizable RPG experience.

You dont become a good RPG because of a fucking cool down meter and random encounters.

 

[HGH]

Can I praise Daniel? Cause I missed the guy after the first game. Best partner a cop could ever ask for.

 

[Sumio Mondo]

I miss PE1's battle system. Bring it back and update it for the modern day.

 

[BocoDragon]

I've always preferred Nomura's original 90's anime-inspired design for Parasite Eve than the new, CGI Serah/Lightning looking design for Third Birthday.

Compared to...

For me this is a rare case of "I love all of them equally".

This isn't Sonic with green eyes or a scarf. Yoshi with a post-Yoshi's Story baby voice. Dissidia-era emo Cloud.....

I legitimately think they are all cool, and definitely the same character. (implying nothing about the quality of the actual 3rd Birthday game)

 

[DiipuSurotu]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhDHKG4O-Uo

I can't believe this has never been translated. Sakaguchi discusses the creation of Parasite Eve, talks about the Square employee that Aya was based on, etc.

 

[luka]

the character design wasn't the issue with 3b - i really didn't mind aya's new look. her characterization and personality, however...

 

[Ray Down]

Me too... But there is a hope.

Spoiler

(or not?..)

Motomu Toriyama secret project:

Didn't Verendus say it's getting a reboot or another game?

Though maybe Tabata will work on it after he's done with XV.

 

[Golnei]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhDHKG4O-Uo

I can't believe this has never been translated. Sakaguchi discusses the creation of Parasite Eve, talks about the Square employee that Aya was based on, etc.

That would be interesting to see translated. Any idea what he meant by "based on?"

Parasite Eve suffers the same problem as any horror. It's easier to scare people with the unknowable supernatural, but through PE1 the player learns that everything is caused by a very biological threat. The first Resident Evil "suffers" this as well. There was simply no way to create a Parasite Eve sequel that would maintain the faux-supernatural atmosphere for players who already knew what happened in the first game.

And the first game only got away with that atmosphere because the novel and movie were strictly Japanese. Some of the first dialogue in the game also makes it very clear that you're not dealing with a supernatural threat, as Eve begins talking about cells and her diary reveals her abuse of immuno-suppressants.

Parasite Eve 2 was a natural evolution of the first game's story.

I don't think the direction 2 took was necessarily incoherent or unrelated to the first - especially with the example of The 3rd Birthday to compare with - but I don't agree that it was the only way to progress the series. It's made clear that the events of PE1 had a pseudo-scientific basis rather than literally being supernatural, but that doesn't impact on the way in which they're portrayed - you learn about the motivations and nature of Mitochondrial Eve fairly early into the first game, that veil is pulled pretty quickly. And yet she's still able to be shown as a transformative force external to life as we know it, carrying elements of the occult and alien in a way that the Golems and shadow government of 2 weren't able to - she was essentially Lavos or Jenova applied to our world. Another part of the appeal of Eve and her creations was that they couldn't be replicated with human-driven experimentation, there was nothing in terms of precedent for them in PE1's setting. If the series continued to treat neo-mitochondrial consciousnesses as forces which upend the normal order of the world without warning; some of that atmosphere could be retained despite featuring characters who had faced similar threats before and a world aware of their impact, however dimly.

 

[Mr_Antimatter]

Agreed.

The CGI look is just....bland. Uninteresting. Feels like your suppose to save her, the manga/anime look is more bad ass. Plus I'll never forget the beginning when shit happen she knocks over her date to take care of business and doesn't give a crap about him for the rest of the event.

So...how does it compare to the CGI designs for PE 1 and PE2 then? Because comparing 2d art to a 3d model isn't really apples to oranges.

Not to mention, the plot twist in 3rd des explain why she looks so different facial expression wise.

Otherwise, I actually liek the vest and jeans look for the character, but not as much as PE2's black dress and jacket combo, that was just dynamite. It's right up there with Jill's RE3 outfit for best 'sexy without showing too much' style.

 

[Lime]

I finished the first game yesterday and it was pretty interesting. I liked the 90's design to it, the RPG/survival-horror hybrid design and the soundtrack. I understand why it is somewhat highly regarded considering the day and age it came out with a lot of FMV action scenes, specific game design, and horror elements. The plot was predictable and somehow I actually felt Daniel was a stronger character than Aya thanks to his family and emotional behavior - more characterization and making Aya more of an actual person would have gone a long way to make her more interesting.

Some more screens:

 

[BkMogul]

PE2 severely hampered my love for the series. The original was perfect in many respects, from it's mature tone, to battle system, to story. Great stuff and something that's actually worthy of a remaster and/or remake.

I will also say this for PE1 (end-game spoilers)

Spoiler

Aya's detective partner went out like a fucking champ. Chucking a clip while on fire! One of the best VG deaths ever.

 

[luka]

Spoiler

Aya's detective partner went out like a fucking champ. Chucking a clip while on fire! One of the best VG deaths ever.

he didn't die

 

[LiK]

never played the sequel but i played and beat the first game and absolutely hated it. bought the third one but never actually unsealed it.