Gameplay Today - Because You're Always Gaming

Oh where, oh where has my Parasite Eve been? It seems like forever since I last threw a disc with Parasite Eve plastered on it into my Playstation 1. In fact, it has been a while. The odd thing is that while I’m joined by a lot of Parasite Eve fans in the joy that a new release is upon us, it’s neither on the PSone, nor is it titled Parasite Eve 3. It’s no surprise that it’s not on the PSone. I mean it has been eleven years after all. I just wonder how many fans of the Eves will be able to find the game since it doesn’t carry the recognizable Parasite Eve name. Despite this being a sequel to a series very rich in history and story, new comers don’t have to worry too much. Square Enix has made sure to include a nice heaping helping of background story in order to catch everyone up that might get lost.

Things pick up one year from where they left off in the last game. As we see in the opening video for The 3rd Birthday, the proverbial poo has hit the fan with a vengeance. New York City looks like utter hell, which is nothing new to the series. Things pick up with Aya Brea who’s come down with a case of amnesia. What – amnesia in a Sqaure Enix game? Unlike most of your old traditional RPGs, Aya’s memory loss benefits the story in this action title. This time around Aya is doing a little Assassin’s Creed style time jumping. With the help of CTI, she’s tasked with going back and rewriting the timeline that led up to the present where things are miserable. It was really hard not to write in a Quantum Leap joke there, btw. Aya fights the Twisted in the past using Overdrive. During her travels back in time, the game does a really good job of posing as many questions as it answers. Is Aya really accomplishing her goals? Will it result in a different and equally unwanted future? Is she even working with the right people? The 3rd Birthday has a very solid story and executes it well.

The gameplay in The 3rd Birthday, which is a solid third-person shooter with RPG elements, is just as solid as the story. Aya and the government agents fight wave after wave of the Twisted. During these fights, Aya is constantly using the aforementioned Overdrive in order to use other people to fight. She can do this with allies and innocent bystanders. Even with the Overdrive ability, things aren’t anywhere close to easy. The Twisted are some of the toughest enemies in any game. Combine their determination to kill you with the confined environments the game takes place in and you have a tough task ahead. The challenge of beating such persistent enemies keeps you on the edge of your seat and makes for one exciting PSP game.

Graphically this game is a winner right out of the gate. The opening movie pulls you in and the in-game action all looks amazing. Sure some of the environments are a little confining, but the positive thing about that is that it’s done in order to drive the gameplay rather than compensate for power. Honestly, it is very hard to believe that this game began its life being designed for mobile devices. I don’t think there’s another handheld on the market that could handle these graphics, much less a mobile device like a phone.

The 3rd Birthday is a game that fans of the series will love. As much as I enjoyed getting answers to questions about the story in the franchise, I feel like Square Enix opened a lot of doors for a possible fourth title. Based on the level of quality in this PSP release, the series hasn’t lost a step. Everything is well done here and left me wanting more. Hopefully we won’t have to wait another decade for the next game. Sadly, the game was released with little advertising and will likely fly under the radar of a lot of gamers. But if you enjoy a great story and want to play a deep third-person shooter, don’t look any further than The 3rd Birthday.