Star Parodier
Encyclopedia
Star Parodier is a shoot 'em up
developed by Hudson Soft
for the PC Engine CD-ROM
. It is a parody
of the Star Soldier series
, similar to Konami
's Parodius series, and was originally only released in Japan, though it was also intended to be released in North America under the name Fantasy Star Soldier.
The game was later released outside Japan through the Wii
Virtual Console
in Europe on May 16, 2008 after it was released in Japan on May 7, 2008, after a re-release in its home country. It was finally released in North America on August 11, 2008.
modes seen in previous games.
However, in parodying the hard sci-fi atmosphere of the Star Soldier games, Star Parodier takes a light hearted approach by featuring cute, cartoonish graphics and toning down the violence (for example, defeated enemies wave white flag
s in surrender). The players choose from one of three craft to play as in the game: the Paro Ceaser from Star Soldier, a giant flying Bomberman
or an anthropomorphic PC Engine console that shoots HuCard
s and CD-ROM
s at enemies.
Shoot 'em up
Shoot 'em up is a subgenre of shooter video games. In a shoot 'em up, the player controls a lone character, often in a spacecraft or aircraft, shooting large numbers of enemies while dodging their attacks. The genre in turn encompasses various types or subgenres and critics differ on exactly what...
developed by Hudson Soft
Hudson Soft
, formally known as , is a majority-owned subsidiary of Konami Corporation is a Japanese electronic entertainment publisher headquartered in the Midtown Tower in Tokyo Midtown, Akasaka, Minato, Tokyo, Japan, with an additional office in the Hudson Building in Sapporo. It was founded on May 18, 1973...
for the PC Engine CD-ROM
TurboGrafx-16
TurboGrafx-16, fully titled as TurboGrafx-16 Entertainment SuperSystem and known in Japan as the , is a video game console developed by Hudson Soft and NEC, released in Japan on October 30, 1987, and in North America on August 29, 1989....
. It 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 Star Soldier series
Star Soldier (Series)
is a series of shoot 'em up video games mainly developed by Hudson Soft.The first game, named Star Soldier, appeared on the MSX and NES in 1986, and the series has continued on various gaming systems...
, similar to Konami
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...
's Parodius series, and was originally only released in Japan, though it was also intended to be released in North America under the name Fantasy Star Soldier.
The game was later released outside Japan through the Wii
Wii
The Wii is a home video game console released by Nintendo on November 19, 2006. As a seventh-generation console, the Wii primarily competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Sony's PlayStation 3. Nintendo states that its console targets a broader demographic than that of the two others...
Virtual Console
Virtual console
A virtual console – also known as a virtual terminal – is a conceptual combination of the keyboard and display for a computer user interface. It is a feature of some operating systems such as UnixWare, Linux, and BSD, in which the system console of the computer can be used to switch between...
in Europe on May 16, 2008 after it was released in Japan on May 7, 2008, after a re-release in its home country. It was finally released in North America on August 11, 2008.
Overview
Star Parodier is a vertical scrolling shooter, much like the Star Soldier games, and features many of the same conventions, such as collecting power-ups to upgrade the player's weapons, and facing several bosses and minibosses as they progress through the game. The game also features the 2 and 5 minute high score time attackTime attack
A time attack is another term for time trial. The term is commonly used in Japan for individual time trial events for motor vehicles that involves a vehicle running around the circuit in lieu of a qualifying lap and the term is widely adopted outside the country for tuner event and...
modes seen in previous games.
However, in parodying the hard sci-fi atmosphere of the Star Soldier games, Star Parodier takes a light hearted approach by featuring cute, cartoonish graphics and toning down the violence (for example, defeated enemies wave white flag
White flag
White flags have had different meanings throughout history and depending on the locale.-Flag of temporary truce in order to parley :...
s in surrender). The players choose from one of three craft to play as in the game: the Paro Ceaser from Star Soldier, a giant flying Bomberman
Bomberman
Bomberman is a strategic, maze-based computer and video game franchise originally developed by Hudson Soft. The original game was published in 1983 and new games in the series are still being published to this day. Today, the commercially successful Bomberman is featured in over 70 different games...
or an anthropomorphic PC Engine console that shoots HuCard
HuCard
A HuCard is a memory card developed by Hudson Soft. It is the size of a credit card and is used with the NEC PC Engine and SuperGrafx video game consoles. HuCards contain an integrated circuit that is placed close to the connectors and protected by a thin plastic shield...
s and CD-ROM
CD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
s at enemies.