Parappa the Rapper

I haven't completed a game since... December? That's why I'm an Incompletionist. 

While I wasn't the biggest gamer back in the late 90's I do remember the launch of the PlayStation and it's effect on what video games were becoming back then. I loved the PlayStation, and its ability for full motion video sequences, expanded soundtracks, and three dimensional adventure games. The loading screens were somehow tolerable, and games themselves seemed leagues ahead of their 16-bit predecessors.

Parappa the Rapper stands out as one of the most interesting games I owned from that era. I vaguely remember the few commercials that ran sometime around 1997 or 1998. I don't suppose that the game was as incredibly popular in America as it was in Japan, but I could be wrong. I ended up picking it up because I was intrigued with the crazy characters, and the music. I had no idea what the game was like.

While reading some of the first issues of the Official Playstation Magazine, it seemed like the editors were nuts for this game. They went as far as having most of  their photos taken with the iconic Parappa beanie. In the first  issues of that publication, there is constant mention of Parappa the Rapper. I didn't read these magazines until later, so I wasn't part of the initial fanaticism around this game when it was brought over from Japan almost a year after its initial release.

I ended up with the game around 1998 and I was amazed at the goofy lyrics and my inability to match the rhythm with the PlayStation's controller buttons. The songs were memorable, and it was a game that my younger siblings could enjoy as well because it wasn't technically difficult. The game is a early rhythm-music game, much in the same respects as Guitar Hero and Rock Band were a decade later. I don't know if people give Parappa the credit it deserves when it comes to rhythm type music video games, but it definitely was something that stood out amidst the other games that were being made by Sony at the time.

Parappa the Rapper had a spin off called UmJammer Lammy, a sequel on the PS2, an anime television show, and will now be featured in the upcoming game PlayStation Allstars Battle Royale. It seems that folks love this rapping dog.

What's funny is that for the better part of over a decade, I've kept the insert poster on my dorm wall, bedroom wall, and now it is on my office bulletin board. I'm always reminded of Parappa's catch phrase "I Gotta Believe!!"

Origianal Japanese insert poster

North American insert poster

NOTE: There's different poster for the PAL version of the game, from what I can tell, it matches the orange cover. I've looked all over the internet for a scan, but came up empty handed. 

Box Art

PAL cover

Japanese Cover

I like that the Japanese art tries to describe and cram all the stuff from the game on a small CD cover. Was that a nineties thing? Love the flying toilet with wings by the way.

American Cover

PSP re-release cover

Development

The music stands out as the strongest point of the game. Depending on how well you repeat the rap, the key will change and elements of the song start to get crazy. It's almost worth losing a few times on each level to see the different animations for each stage. The games seems limited in terms of content from today's standards, but six levels, a bonus stage, and all of those short full motion movies between stages was a lot for 1997.

The artwork for the game was created by American artist Rodney Greenblat. His work was the basis of the two dimensional look of the characters. He also went on to design characters for the Anime series that aired in Japan, as well as create and produce the popular manga Thunder Bunny.

Sony Magazine cover designed by Rodney Greenblat

The game was developed by Masaya Matsuura who has since created many games that focus on interactions with rhythm and music. He was part of a popular Japanese music group called PSY S. After Parappa the Rapper, Matsuura went on to produce Vib Ribbon and various other music video games. Its interesting that Matsuura has focused his career in video games around music, especially as the PlayStation allowed for better sound quality in games. Perhaps it was ironic that PSY S broke up around 1996.

Results

The first thing I noticed while playing the game is that the full motion videos have really shown their age. They  look like bad quality computer animations from kid television, and at the same time they have this cartoonish appeal that make them worth watching. Each of the stages are as I remember them: freaking amazing. I like how they made everyone two dimensional in a interesting kind of papercraft kind of way. Sequels to the game improve on the graphics of the character, but in my opinion try to make Parappa a more three dimensional character than he was originally designed to be.

Playing through the first couple levels is easy enough, and then the game ramps up the difficulty, or becomes out of sync with the rhythm.. I can't decide which. The hardest level is definitely the 5th level where you must battle rap the other characters in order to cut in line at the bathroom before you soil yourself. I think at the 5th level there's a definite problem with the note delay or something, because it can be difficult. The final level is a breeze and reunites the entire cast of the game for a final song.

If you beat the game you can go back and attempt to reach a "Cool" rating on each song. If you complete every level with that ranking, a secret Bonus Stage opens up. I haven't been able to do that yet. I'm just not that good freestyling the rap, and there are still sync issues with the music and beat. I'll see if I can pull it off later.

Over all, it was a nostalgic trip to play and finally beat Parappa the Rapper.

VICTORY!

statistics:

lives: 2? levels: 6 continues: 1 game overs: 1saved games: 5 approximate time: 30 minutes

Mega Man

This is the first in a series of robotic adventure games made by Capcom. Mega Man (Rockman in Japan) fights against the evil robots and that's pretty much it. Every game in the series follows the same formula: Stage selection of up to eight robot bosses, and once they are defeated you acquire their super robot powers. Then you go to a boss stage or three, repeat some fights, and survive climactic surprise battle after battle against the evil Dr. Wiley. It's a tried and true system that has made Mega Man one of the most popular, and longest series for the NES.

So the game is a platform shooter, and requires a lot of timing, proper use of items and jumping. Mega Man's jumps never seem to quite reach as far as you like, though you'd be surprised how far you'll make it sometimes. Like other NES games you get knocked around when you get hit, so you end up fall in pits or from high places and either die or have to start difficult areas all over again. That's the challenge. 

The Art:

Mega Man is known for possibly the worst box art ever created for a video game. The North American version is a frightening thing to behold. Most video game art from the early days of computer games greatly exaggerated the themes of the game, or took artistic liberties that may have been completely at odds with the actual software content. The interesting legacy of bad box art in the Mega Man series has become a theme of sorts that has been revived in the ninth and tenth sequels.

North American Version

Not sure about the perspective on this piece of work. I like how the picture is cropped above two floating electric grids. That was common for early Capcom titles. The disfigured positioning of the legs makes me wonder if the grimace on his face is from his right leg being completely twisted around. Anyone whose played the game knows that Mega Man doesn't use a gun, and its anyone's guess as to where the tropical futuristic location is derived from. It has been said that this box art actually hurt sales of Mega Man in North America, and made Capcom think twice about a sequel. Wow.

Japanese version

The other localizations of the game use different box art... thankfully. Japan stuck to anime, and the European version portrays a very interesting painting of Mega Man, locked in combat against an unseen foe. The distressed portrait of Dr Wiley in the background makes this box art one of the best. Why couldn't they have done that for the North American market? I would have totally buy that game (or made my parents buy it.

European Version

The Music:

Music for Mega Man was composed by Manami Matsumae. She composed the soundtrack in three months and found that the limitations of the Famicom's music capabilities to be challenging. She was also a member of Capcom's house band Alph Lyla who's work included the Street Figher II theme. She composed the songs for many games, notably the Derby Stallion series during the 1990's. Matusumae recently returned to create the soundtrack of Mega Man 10 in 2010.

The soundtrack of Mega Man is known for it's sense of urgency and fast tempos. While it isn't as memorable as the next two sequels, it did establish the music for stage selection, game overs, and boss fights. It seems different from other game soundtracks, with a definite futuristic or science fiction feel to it. There are similarities in sound with other Capcom games, which is common among game publishers. 

Advertising:

I wonder why Dr. Wiley is the largest character marching with all the bad guys? He's a short old man in the game. I don't think that Capcom made a North American commercial for Mega Man, though they did for all of the sequels. I think they realized they'd have to show that ugly box on television. 

The Graphics:

Mega Man established the graphical design for the remainder of the series. Capcom didn't do much to alter the design of Mega Man himself, though the backgrounds and enemies did improve towards the end. I consider this game a little sparse on interesting backgrounds and textures common to the series. I'll cut Capcom some slack because it was the first Mega Man.

The Results:

Right off the bat I felt the misery of repetitive vertical climbs and enemies that knock you off ladders and crap. Games like this were designed to knock you back all the time. So it would happen often, and timing your shots while avoiding death below and enemies above was tricky. Falling death mistakes resulted in more deaths than anything else. Selecting the appropriate weapon is crucial to winning. Each robot boss is vulnerable to some other robot boss' weapon, so you have to experiment and think what would be the best in each situation. Once you've figured that out, it is pretty easy.

Disappearing blocks make timing jumps difficult.

The levels are short but frustrating. Every level has a few areas where it's jump or die, and with three lives that quickly gets whittled down... Something I noticed that's different from the other Mega Man games is that the area right before the bosses are longer and there are enemies there that can suck away vital life. In all the other games it was just a short hallway area where you could collect yourself before the final battle. The stages seemed repetitive. Screens get reused over and over, or you have to face the same enemies repeatedly.

Falling to my death

Some other things: Total lack of items. Killing enemies in the hope that they might drop some life is just a waste of time. You basically are expected to win with the life you are given at the start of each level. Oh and I'm not sure if its me, but Mega Man slides a little when he moves. Enough that you think you're losing your footing every time you jump. I think they fixed that in later games. There's also a score at the top of the screen. That was dropped in later games. 

Well, I managed to fight my way through all the bosses, and then to Dr. Wiley. After failing a few times and selecting the right weapon I managed to beat him pretty easily. Compared to some of the other bosses, it was just a matter of timing my shots, and avoiding his flying hover science craft. I win!

The final battle with Dr. Wiley and his flying... thing.

VICTORY

Or did he?

Epilogue:

I thought that the game was good. It was awesome to see where the series got started. The game was short, and while most of the boss stages were simple enough to beat though, the last four Dr. Wiley stages were brutal. But I expected that, and I think all of the Mega Mans have brutal last stages. There are some bugs in the game that may or may not have helped me finish the last stage. Dr. Wiley was a pushover compared to some other bosses. The ending was cool enough watching Mega Man run like crazy while the end credits blazed past. I thought it would take me longer, but after two and a half hours that was it. Done. 

Statistics:

 Deaths: 66 Continues: 22 Game Overs: 22 High Score: 314300 Time: 2:40:00

"Calm After the Storm" by Robert Kim

Mega Man®, and all associated video games, music, characters, etc. are owned by Capcom - all rights reserved.