Square Enix has been big on re-releases of late. Sometimes they take the form of remasters, like the modern releases of Legend of Mana and SaGa Frontier Remastered, as well as the upcoming Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake. Sometimes they come in collections, like the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster anthology or the Collection of SaGa: Final Fantasy Legend. There have also been some top-to-bottom remakes like Final Fantasy 7. Square Enix is doing a great job updating its back catalog for newer players, but it feels like one major franchise is still missing in action: Parasite Eve.

Parasite Eve was one of Square’s star PS1 titles in 1998, providing a thrilling, fantasy-infused adaptation of the horror novel and film of the same name. Parasite Eve was Square’s first M-rated game, and its sci-fi writing combined with great gameplay, visuals, and music to kickstart a short franchise. Parasite Eve 2 released the following year, and The 3rd Birthday was released on PSP in 2010. That was the last fans heard from the franchise, but now feels like the ideal time for this trilogy to come back.

RELATED: Parasite Eve Remains One of the Most Underrated Games of Its Generation

Parasite Eve Would Be Great in a Remaster

The two PS1 Parasite Eve games would be excellent in remastered form. Both hold up fairly well in just about every aspect beyond PE2’s plot pacing. A visual touch-up would preserve Parasite Eve’s almost photorealistic backgrounds and horrific monster designs, and 2 isn’t far behind despite adopting a more Resident Evil-styled environment. Yoko Shimomura’s soundtrack would also sound good as ever with some remastering. There are a lot of little touches a remaster could apply to make these games shine.

A larger and possibly more controversial change would be to their controls. Parasite Eve 1’s real-time battle system still holds up and may have partially inspired Final Fantasy 7 Remake. Parasite Eve 2 takes after Resident Evil’s shooting and tank controls, and a persistent complaint has been that its restricted movement is unnecessary. Changing gameplay would significantly alter the experience, but an option to use regular omnidirectional movement instead of tank controls would be preferable to many. Still, these first two titles can get by without many changes.

The 3rd Birthday Needs a Console Port

The often-cited worst game in this set would benefit most from a multiplatform remaster. Unlike the other two Parasite Eve games, The 3rd Birthday is a third-person shooter. Many of the Final Fantasy-like elements are scaled back in favor of gunplay and teleportation. While this style was competently executed, being locked on the handheld PSP did not help its controls. A console remaster of The 3rd Birthday would allow its aiming controls to be revamped for modern controllers, alleviating some of the frustrations players no doubt had with the original.

The 3rd Birthday is also the title most in need of a visual overhaul. While some environments in the first two games still impress today, 3rd Birthday can immediately be pegged as a PSP game. Its somewhat dull urban architecture has not aged well, not to mention the state of Aya’s clothing is meant to give players visual indicators of her health. Cleaning up the models and possibly adding new ones for main characters like in some of Square Enix’s 3D remasters would make The 3rd Birthday more palatable for modern-day audiences. There's no fixing 3rd Birthday's controversial plot, but the rest of the game can be polished into a more endearing state.

Parasite Eve was originally released on March 29, 1998, for the PS1.

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