Developer: Konami Publisher: Konami Released: November 1, 1996 Genre: Shooter Platforms: Saturn, PlayStation
All good things must come to an end. Parodius is one of the best shooter series that barely anyone knows in the West. But after multiple entries Sexy Parodius would be the final entry in the arcade and on consoles. And what an end it is. Sexy Parodius doesn’t do anything new. Instead it does what the series does best; present you with absurd situations that are often comedic while also challenging your shooting skills. This is a great game no matter where you play it and deserves another re-release.
The game’s story is just as wacky as its gameplay. Takosuke the octopus creates an agency that helps people with their problems. All of your favorite Parodius alumni work in this establishment and each level are presented with a mission from some down on their luck sap. Whether you complete these missions in addition to the stage itself is up to you but it does play a part in giving the game replayability.
The base gameplay has not changed in terms of power-ups and such. Parodius combines the Gradius power-up system with the bell juggling of Twinbee to arm you to the teeth. What has changed is the cast. Since this is the fourth game in the series it pulls from the latest games in each title. Hikaru and Akane are playable after being bosses in Jikkyo Oshaberi Parodius. Since Pentaro is now a secretary Ivan/Toby have replaced their team. Shooting Star and Black Viper from Twinbee Yahho take the place of Twinbee and Winbee. In an odd twist Options are playable characters on their own separate from the Vic Viper.
The Parodius games have always reveled in the absurd and Sexy Parodius is no different. Most of the levels start out with some shlub being terrorized by some monster. Stage 4A takes placed in a factory where evil penguins have kidnapped are boxing up go go dancers to ship them elsewhere. The fifth level is a treasure hunt to make the client rich. Stage 3B is a mission to get rid of the mice in the client’s mansion. On its face it sounds harmless. In reality it is a shot out to Castlevania. As nutty as the levels are the bosses are over the top. Tanuko is a giant tanuki with massive balls which are also his weakpoint. Otohime is loosely based on a character from Yie Ar Kung-Fu and is a fun fight. The final boss keeps is one last callback with a funny twist.
Like Jikkyo Oshaberi Parodius Sexy Parodius only has six levels or technically seven since the boss rush is its “level”. The difference is Sexy Parodius has alternate paths through the game. Each level has a particular mission that is optional. These range from collecting three hundred coins to killing ten of a certain enemy. Stages three and four differ wildly depending on whether you completed the previous mission or not. Stage 3A is a very weird bathhouse that has homages to Life Force and Yie Ar Kung-Fu. Stage 3B is a tribute to Castlevania, complete with music and a cool boss fight against Medusa. While it would have been nice to see alternate levels for every stage the two branching paths as well as the special stage give the game more replay value than normal, especially as completing missions is not easy.
For the most part Parodius series has been fair with its difficulty. With a diverse set of characters your experience with each title varied. But at their core they were good old fashioned fun that challenged you at times but never went too far. Sexy Parodius raises the difficulty by peppering the screen at all times. To be fair the game is generous with its power-ups so getting up to speed is fast. But it gets ridiculous at times. The final level presents such a massive leap in challenge it is astounding. Here you are tasked with destroying a number of cores within a time limit. Making it to each core and surviving its destruction is an accomplishment. The number of enemies and bullets is insane and feels near impossible with certain characters. For your trouble you get one of two funny endings depending on your success.
The sexy in the game’s title refers to the risqué elements throughout the game. The series has always flirted with semi nudity and cheesecake art but Sexy Parodius ramps it up. The end level art places the cast in various hilarious situations that hams it up. Some of the enemies are scantily clad such as the mermaids in stage 3. You can even make their clothes fall off with a well-placed shot. The backdrop of the boss rush fully reveals its fully naked woman with an almost nip slip after its initial bosses (who are callbacks to the first game) are defeated. All of the almost nude set pieces are decidedly PG-13 and a gimmick that adds nothing to the game. But at least they are funny at times.
In Closing
Sexy Parodius is a fantastic game and essential purchase for action fans. Great art direction, replay value, and challenging gameplay let the series go out on a high note. It is sad Konami stopped here but they gave it the best possible send off. If only every series got an ending as good as this. Oh well.
