Parodius
Encyclopedia
, or just Parodius, is a scrolling shooter video game developed by Konami
for the MSX
computer and was released in Japan. The game is notable for being the first title in the Parodius series
, although it is often confused with its sequel Parodius Da! －Shinwa kara Owarai e－ in that respect, which is also titled Parodius in Europe. The name itself is a portmanteau of "Gradius" and "Parody" and, eponymously, the game is a parody
of the Gradius series of space-based horizontally-scrolling shooters. Many of the characters and enemies are derived from that famous shooter series, while other elements are extracted from other Konami titles, such as Antarctic Adventure
and Twinbee
. This game is of particular note in the series as being heavily infused with Japanese culture and folklore.
. However, the characters are replaced with silly characters taken from either these or other Konami games as well as Japanese culture. The music is mostly taken from classical music pieces.
The player can play as either Takosuke, an octopus, the Penguin (father of Pentarou) from Antarctic Adventure
and the exclusive MSX game Penguin Adventure
, Goemon from the Ganbare Goemon
series, the Popolon knight from the MSX game Knightmare or the Vic Viper spaceship from Gradius. The game is composed of six stages consisting of various obstacles and enemies such as penguins and bees, as well as more traditional Gradius enemies such as moai
. As with Gradius, the game utilizes a similar selection-bar based power-up system.
.
for PlayStation, Konami Antiques MSX Collection Ultra Pack for Sega Saturn
, Parodius Portable in PSP
with enhanced graphics.
In addition, it was released for mobile phones in 2006 and for Wii Virtual Console in 2010.
Konami
is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...
for the MSX
MSX
MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s conceived by Kazuhiko Nishi, then Vice-president at Microsoft Japan and Director at ASCII Corporation...
computer and was released in Japan. The game is notable for being the first title in the Parodius series
Parodius series
The Parodius series is a series of horizontally-scrolling shooters developed by Konami. The games are tongue-in-cheek parodies of Gradius, hence the name...
, although it is often confused with its sequel Parodius Da! －Shinwa kara Owarai e－ in that respect, which is also titled Parodius in Europe. The name itself is a portmanteau of "Gradius" and "Parody" and, eponymously, the game is a parody
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
of the Gradius series of space-based horizontally-scrolling shooters. Many of the characters and enemies are derived from that famous shooter series, while other elements are extracted from other Konami titles, such as Antarctic Adventure
Antarctic Adventure
Antarctic Adventure, known in Japan as Kekkyoku Nankyoku Daibōken is a video game developed by Konami in 1983 for MSX, and later for video game consoles, such as NES...
and Twinbee
Twinbee
is a video game series composed primarily of cartoon-themed vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up games produced by Konami that were released primarily in Japan. The series originated as a coin-operated video game simply titled TwinBee in , which was followed by several home versions and sequels...
. This game is of particular note in the series as being heavily infused with Japanese culture and folklore.
Gameplay
The gameplay is very similar to the Gradius games, with other aspects from games such as TwinbeeTwinbee
is a video game series composed primarily of cartoon-themed vertical-scrolling shoot-'em-up games produced by Konami that were released primarily in Japan. The series originated as a coin-operated video game simply titled TwinBee in , which was followed by several home versions and sequels...
. However, the characters are replaced with silly characters taken from either these or other Konami games as well as Japanese culture. The music is mostly taken from classical music pieces.
The player can play as either Takosuke, an octopus, the Penguin (father of Pentarou) from Antarctic Adventure
Antarctic Adventure
Antarctic Adventure, known in Japan as Kekkyoku Nankyoku Daibōken is a video game developed by Konami in 1983 for MSX, and later for video game consoles, such as NES...
and the exclusive MSX game Penguin Adventure
Penguin Adventure
is an action-adventure platform video game released by Konami in 1986. It is a sequel to Antarctic Adventure and has the distinction of being the first game that game designer Hideo Kojima worked on; he was an assistant designer. It has been acclaimed as one of the best MSX action games for its...
, Goemon from the Ganbare Goemon
Ganbare Goemon
, known as Legend of the Mystical Ninja, Mystical Ninja, and Goemon in North America and the PAL region, is a long-running video game series produced by Konami....
series, the Popolon knight from the MSX game Knightmare or the Vic Viper spaceship from Gradius. The game is composed of six stages consisting of various obstacles and enemies such as penguins and bees, as well as more traditional Gradius enemies such as moai
Moai
Moai , or mo‘ai, are monolithic human figures carved from rock on the Chilean Polynesian island of Easter Island between the years 1250 and 1500. Nearly half are still at Rano Raraku, the main moai quarry, but hundreds were transported from there and set on stone platforms called ahu around the...
. As with Gradius, the game utilizes a similar selection-bar based power-up system.
Reception
Parodius was awarded Best Game that Never Came out in the U.S. of 1992 by Electronic Gaming MonthlyElectronic Gaming Monthly
Electronic Gaming Monthly is a bimonthly American video game magazine. It has been published by EGM Media, LLC. since relaunching in April of 2010. Its previous run, which ended in January 2009, was published by Ziff Davis...
.
Ports
Parodius was later included in Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol.3Konami Antiques MSX Collection
Konami Antiques MSX Collection is a series of compilations of MSX computer games released by Konami in Japan for the Sony PlayStation and Sega Saturn between 1997 and 1998.-Releases:Konami Antiques MSX Collection Vol...
for PlayStation, Konami Antiques MSX Collection Ultra Pack for Sega Saturn
Sega Saturn
The is a 32-bit fifth-generation video game console that was first released by Sega on November 22, 1994 in Japan, May 11, 1995 in North America, and July 8, 1995 in Europe...
, Parodius Portable in PSP
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
with enhanced graphics.
In addition, it was released for mobile phones in 2006 and for Wii Virtual Console in 2010.