While deep and not properly explained in-game, the weapons and leveling system is just custom enough to make for some very personal builds in both statistics and weaponry. The world is absolutely crazy, transforming New York City into a cesspool of other worldly creatures and modified forms of actual beings like dogs and even dinosaurs. Tackling it now, I’m much more equipped for the type of title Parasite Eve is and I must admit, I get the appeal and love. I’m betting I’m not alone, especially given the response from some of the people writing into the game club, but those that did play and enjoy it back then seem to have a long lasting positive impression of the game. Parasite Eve looked awesome, had fantastic cutscenes, and bloody melty creatures, but I wasn’t going to see any of it because it wasn’t the right fit for me. Couple that with the super quick first and second day of this game and I just assumed, like many of us did in the world of 80s and 90s gaming, that I just didn’t “get” the game. In addition I was getting new weapons and armor left and right, not to mention abilities and items, but it was more complicated than stat tracking with bonus perks, stat modifying, and special effect slots. Right off the bat I was running around, dodging enemies and bullets, but I couldn’t shoot with the precision I was used to – and by “precision” I’m talking Resident Evil controls! The ATB system was foreign to me and made me struggle for seemingly arbitrary reasons. Thankfully I was able to rent and give Parasite Eve a go. In addition, rental stores were common (Blockbuster Video was dominating in my Chicago suburb) but the selection was random.

If you get an opportunity to go into a retro store where they have a wall of Playstation, Saturn, or Nintendo 64 games you will notice that all of the game look impressive with initial presentation. Back then, there was still a lot of judging games by the boxes, only for the first time the boxes showed off actual gameplay footage.

At the time I was deeply embedded in the survival horror genre and had just completed Resident Evil 2 while giving Final Fantasy VII a go. I remember when Parasite Eve first came out. The result is the survival horror and RPG hybrid Parasite Eve, that doesn’t quite capture the hearts of either fan, but is an undeniably unique title. Square Enix, one of the top developers and publishers of JRPGs, decided to create a Western-focused action RPG that was developed by Americans working closely with some of Japan’s top talent. During this time we see many new franchises that never left Japan coming over to the West as well as several franchises from the days of the 16-bit era coming over as enhanced ports on the PS1. Parasite Eve was born from the JRPG rush that flooded onto the original Playstation in the West after the success of Final Fantasy VII.

Parasite eve ps1 gameplay