THE BITTER END: A Survival Horror and Gaming Community

by CowboyFromHell

Since awaiting the release of the PS3 and the much anticipated titles Resident Evil: 5 and Silent Hill 5 (or whatever name they decided to finally rest on), I have had a time of reflection concerning the future of Surival Horror gaming. After much thought I had come to the conclusion that with all of the possible combinations and styles of gameplay, why hasn't someone incorporated more elements into these games to satisfy a number wants that the gamer may have. Then it dawned on me... THEY ALREADY HAVE!

Released in 1998 by SquareSoft, Parasite Eve was a benchmark in hybrid style gaming. SquareSoft's self-proclaimed "Cinematic RGP" title, Parasite Eve, was the first to bring us an amazing blend of Survival Horror and RPG style gaming.

The first time I remember seeing Parasite Eve was in the year 2000 (oddly enough that still reminds me of "The Year 2000" bit sang in high falsetto on the Conan O'Brien show. Ok, I'll get back to the story now...) and a friend of mine, who rarely shared any interest in the same games as I, came over to see if I still had the copy of Nightmare Creatures he had lent me. I handed him over the game and thought nothing more about it. As I was later rifling through a collection of games that he had brought with him in a portable CD case, I came across Dics 1 of Parasite Eve. I asked him what it was and he told me that it was "...some Resident Evil crap that my brother left in my room." Shortly after that he tossed the disc my way and told me that I could have it. Later that day I put the game in my old grey PS1 and sat back to watch a wonderful FMV intro. To make a long story short, I was hooked. I couldn't help but think how awsome it was that I was playing a Survival Horror/RPG and it was from the same makers as the Final Fantasy series. All was well from that point on until... yes, there were no follow up discs and I had just completed the first. Off to the store I went.

Parasite Eve takes place over the course of six days where you will guide your character, Aya Brea, through many battles with strange creatures all to eventually stop Eve, a person whos mitochondria have begun to generate so much energy that they literally have the power to spontaneously ignite those around her.

Beautiful backgrounds and a FF VII style of battle mixed with real-time movements and evasion make this game worth much more than a second look. I really don't know what kept this game from being one of the best selling games of all times. I don't know if it was a little too ahead of it's time, or that the style of gameplay was too much to digest for the average player. Nonetheless, this is more than a solid title deserving of a second chance. Go check it out.

As for more resources, you might also check out these links:

The Official Parasite Eve Site
Urban Evil
M.I.S.T.

All images property of their respective owners.