Gokujo Parodius
Gokujō Parodius | ||
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Arcade system Konami GX | |
Gokujō Parodius ~Kako no Eikō o Motomete~,
Plot
The player character, like the previous game, flies through various strange and absurd locations in order to grab a treasure and reclaim their former glory. They find the treasure in a dance hall, but it turns out to be an anthropomorphic bomb named "Mr. Past Glory", who apologizes about not being the treasure before blowing up the dance hall.
Gameplay
Gokujō Parodius is a horizontal-scrolling shooter, and a parody of the
As in the Gradius games, players can unlock new weapons and abilities by collecting power capsules dropped by certain types of enemies, which will highlight an option on the player's "power meter" — collecting additional capsules will give the player access to more powerful weapons. Some enemies will also drop bells from the TwinBee series that can also yield other abilities; the player can select which ability they want by firing additional shots at the bells to change their color.
The game spans a total of seven stages, each gradually increasing in difficulty.
Development
Gokujō Parodius was created by programmer and planner Tsukasa Tokuda, alongside designer Shūjirō "Shuzilow.HA!" Hamakawa, sound designer Kazuhiro Senoo, and Konami Development Section 2 chief Masahiro Inoue.
One of the first things that the development team focused on was the character roster.
The difficulty of the game was said to be higher than previous Parodius games.
Senoo composed the soundtrack, being his first video game project.[3] He wanted to give the soundtrack the feeling of an American variety show, in contrast to the Japanese-like compositions in Parodius Da!.[3] The development team worked with the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers and Publishers (JASRAC) organization to select pieces of classical music they felt were suitable for the game.[3] Senoo was also a major fan of the soundtrack for Gradius, and was largely inspired by a CD he had that featured remixes of well-known Gradius tracks.[3] The game's subtitle, translating to Pursue the Glory of the Past, was chosen by Tsukasa to express his wish that the Japanese arcade game industry to go "back to its roots" instead of being filled with mostly fighters.[3]
Release
Gokujō Parodius was ported to the Super Famicom on November 25, 1994 in Japan. This version adds the characters Goemon/Ebisumaru from Ganbare Goemon, Dracula-Kun/Kid-D from Kid Dracula and Upa/Rupa from Bio Miracle Bokutte Upa, and an alternating two player mode. In addition, Hikaru and Akane have a Tailgun, Boomerang Shot from Thunder Cross, another shooter game by Konami, and a Shield instead of the Spread Bomb, the Carrot Shot and a force field (named "Star") that they get in the arcade version (as well as on the Deluxe Pack). Similarly, Mambo and Samba are given Homing Missiles, the Reflect Shot (which gives them two options when chosen), Grade Up and a Shield instead of the Bubble Missile, the Control Laser, Search Laser and a force-field (named "Barrier").
Gokujō Parodius was also ported along with
Reception
Publication | Score |
---|---|
Famitsu | 27/40 (SFC)[6] 32/40 (PS)[7] |
Mega Fun | 83% (SNES)[8] |
Total! | 87/100[9] |
Video Games (DE) | 82%[10] |
Maximum | (SAT)[11] |
Gokujō Parodius was a commercial success, with Game Machine reporting that it was the fourth most-successful arcade game of June 1994.
German publication Maniac commended the game's variety in levels, character selection and humor, as well as its usage of classical music. They favorably compared it to the R-Type series for its gameplay, and recommended it for fans of the Gradius series.[14] Mega Fun magazine praised the game's humor, "pleasing" visuals and gameplay, although they disliked its occasional slowdown and graphical flicker.[8]
Famitsu commended Gokujō Parodius Da! Deluxe Pack's accurate portrayal of the arcade original, while also applauding its responsive controls and colorful visuals.[7] GameFan recommended the compilation to Gradius and shooter fans for its gameplay, multiplayer mode and humor, expressing hope of it being released in North America.[15] Maximum said that it is virtually identical to the arcade and PlayStation versions and has very pleasing gameplay, visuals, and music, but is outdated compared to contemporary Saturn games. They summarized, "Konami's first effort [at a Saturn game] has a lot to commend it, but when there are epics such as Panzer Dragoon stretching the shooting genre, it's clear that Parodius is not in the same league."[11]
In a 2015 retrospective review of the Parodius series, Hardcore Gaming 101 commended Gokujō for its humor, multiplayer, soundtrack and interesting level designs. They also applauded the Super Famicom version's accurate portrayal of the original arcade game, liking its graphics, music and additional characters.[2]
Notes
References
- )
- ^ a b c d e f Kalata, Kurt (9 March 2015). "Gokujou Parodius". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab "Gokujou Parodius! – 1994 Developer Interview". Shmuplations. Archived from the original on 30 December 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
- ^ Dan Elektro (May 1998). "Vapor Trails". GamePro. No. 116. IDG. p. 42.
- Hookshot Media. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
- ^ "極上パロディウス". Famitsu. Kadokawa Corporation. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ a b PLAYSTATION CROSS REVIEW: 極上パロディウスだ! DELUXE PACK. Weekly Famicom Tsūshin. No.333. Pg.21. 5 May 1995.
- ^ a b Martin (February 1995). "Parodius 2 - Fantastic Journey". Mega Fun. p. 84. Archived from the original on 24 January 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ Tim (April 1996). "Parodius 3". Total!. No. 52. p. 64. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- ^ "Parodius 3". Video Games (in German). May 1996. p. 101. Retrieved December 24, 2021.
- ^ Emap International Limited: 146–7. October 1995.
- ^ "Game Machine's Best Hit Games 25 - テーブル型TVゲーム機 (Table Videos)". Game Machine (in Japanese). No. 473. Amusement Press, Inc. 1 June 1994. p. 25.
- Future Publishing. Edge. January 1995. p. 98. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ "Parodius 2: Fantastic Journey" (in German). No. 10. Cybermedia. Maniac. August 1994. pp. 8–9. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
- ^ K. Lee (August 1995). "Gokujo Parodius Da! Deluxe Pack - GameFan 32 Review". No. 8. DieHard Gamers Club. GameFan. pp. 34–35. Retrieved 24 January 2020.
External links
- Gokujou Parodius! at the Killer List of Videogames