''Parodius! From Myth to Laughter'', released in Japan as and outside Japan as ''Parodius'' (from "Parody

Gradius is a series of shooter video games, introduced in 1985, developed and published by Konami for a variety of portable, console and arcade platforms. In many games in the series, the player controls a ship known as the Vic Viper. Games *''Scr ...

"), is a

shoot 'em up Shoot 'em ups (also known as shmups or STGs ) are a sub-genre of action games. There is no consensus as to which design elements compose a shoot 'em up; some restrict the definition to games featuring spacecraft and certain types of chara ...

arcade video game An arcade video game takes player input from its controls, processes it through electrical or computerized components, and displays output to an electronic monitor or similar display. Most arcade video games are coin-operated, housed in an arca ...

and the second title in the ''Parodius'' series produced by

Konami , is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational video game company, video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machin ...

. The European

SNES The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Euro ...

version is also known as ''Parodius: Non-Sense Fantasy''. The gameplay is stylistically very similar to the ''

'' series, but the graphics and music are intentionally absurd. As a result of its localised title, ''From Myth to Laughter'' is often mistaken as the original game of the series. The lesser known original game, '' Parodius: The Octopus Saves the Earth'', was released for the

MSX MSX is a standardized home computer architecture, announced by Microsoft and ASCII Corporation on June 16, 1983. It was initially conceived by Microsoft as a product for the Eastern sector, and jointly marketed by Kazuhiko Nishi, then vice-p ...

computer in Japan.

Story

Gameplay

As stated above, gameplay is very similar to the ''

'' series with a few differences. ''Parodius'' retains the selectability of different weapons configurations but implements via four different characters:

Vic Viper Vic (; es, Vic or Pancracio Celdrán (2004). Diccionario de topónimos españoles y sus gentilicios (5ª edición). Madrid: Espasa Calpe. p. 843. ISBN 978-84-670-3054-9. «Vic o Vich (viquense, vigitano, vigatán, ausense, ausetano, ausonense) ...

(from ''Gradius''), Octopus,

TwinBee is a vertically scrolling shooter released by Konami as an arcade video game in 1985 in Japan. Along with Sega's ''Fantasy Zone'', released a year later, ''TwinBee'' is credited as an early archetype of the " cute 'em up" type in its genre. It w ...

, and Pentarou. The second main difference is the addition of bell power-ups, from the ''

'' series. These bells act as one-time power-ups, allowing the player to destroy every enemy on screen, fire huge beams of energy, etc. Enemies and environments from the ''Gradius'' games and ''TwinBee'' are mixed in along with a host of

anime is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...

-style opponents, including scantily-clad women. All of the ''Gradius'' elements are integrated in a light-hearted fashion. The Big Core, a regular boss within the ''Gradius'' series, is given a neon look and is called "Viva Core". Moreover, there is a

moai Moai or moʻai ( ; es, moái; rap, moʻai, , statue) are monolithic human figures carved by the Rapa Nui people on Easter Island, Rapa Nui in eastern Polynesia between the years 1250 and 1500. Nearly half are still at Rano Raraku, the main mo ...

(

Easter Island Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its nearl ...

head statues) level, but all of the statues are given a much more animated look. The boss of that level, Yoshiko, fires other moai at the player by spitting them out of her mouth. The final boss, in typical ''Gradius'' fashion, is an unarmed enemy that once defeated results in a destruction/escape sequence.

Characters and weapons

– Traditional Gradius configuration
The missile will fall to the ground, and then move along until it encounters an enemy. The Double mode will fire two blasts, one forward, and one incline forty-five degrees above. The Laser mode is a thin blue laser, identical from Gradius. Octopus – ''

Salamander Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...

'' configuration
This configuration is identical to the weapons presented in the Salamander arcade game. The missile is '2-way' that yields two bomb-like explosives that fall both up and down. The Double is the tail gun present in the second configuration. And the laser is the ripple laser, which fires expanding concentric circles at the front of the craft/person. TwinBee (Colored as Winbee) – ''

'' configuration
This set is the weapons from the vertically scrolling ''TwinBee'', applied to horizontal gameplay. The missile is now the rocket punch, which has a larger impact area than the standard missile. The double is the same tail gun from the Octopus/Salamander configuration. The laser is a 3-way gun which fires shots the same size as the Double and standard weapons. * Due to the color bug, it could be considered that Winbee, rather than

, has the most appearances in video games, however this TwinBee doesn't have the same cockpit windshield design as either TwinBee, Winbee or Gwinbee. Pentarou – '' Gradius II: Gofer's Ambition'' configuration
This set is almost identical to one of the power meter sets in '' Gradius II: Gofer's Ambition.'' The missile is the photon torpedo (spelled here "Poton") that fires one missile that travels along the bottom ground and penetrates multiple enemies. The Double mode will fire two blasts, one forward, and one incline forty-five degrees above. The laser mode is different from Gradius II; instead of a ripple laser analog it fires bullets that create small explosions upon impact.

Stages

Below is listing the stages from the original version: *The first stage is a pirate-themed planet which is being earth-like planet. The music is a remix of "

Thunder & Lightning Polka Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

" by

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ov ...

, during Cat Battleship is a remix of the final part of " Symphony No. 9" by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

, then the boss against Captain Penguinovski the 3rd is a remix of " Flight of the Bumblebee by

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...

. *The second stage is Las Vegas and circus-themed planet. The music is a remix of " Piano Concerto No. 1" and "Dance of the Reed Pipes" by

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

, during Chichibinta Rika is a remix of "The Final Enemy" from ''

Gradius II ''Gradius II'' (also known as ''Vulcan Venture'' in arcades outside Japan) is a side-scrolling shooter game. Originally released for the arcades in Japan in 1988, it is the sequel to original ''Gradius'' and was succeeded by ''Gradius III''. Por ...

'', then the boss against Eagle Eagle Sabnosuke is a remix of the final boss theme from ''Gradius II''. *The third stage is a recreation of floating candy fortress in space. The music is a remix of "Trepak" by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, followed with "

William Tell Overture The ''William Tell'' Overture is the overture to the opera ''William Tell'' (original French title ''Guillaume Tell''), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, af ...

" by

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...

, during boss against Hot Lips, the music is a remix of " Can-can" by Offenbach. *The fourth stage is a Japanese volcanic planet. The music is a remix of "

Sabre Dance "Sabre Dance", ''Suserov par''; russian: Танец с саблями, ''Tanets s sablyami'' is a movement in the final act of Aram Khachaturian's ballet '' Gayane'' (1942), where the dancers display their skill with sabres. It is Khachaturian' ...

" by Aram Khacaturian (Russian folk song "

Kalinka Kalinka may refer to: Places *Kalinka, Kardzhali Province, Kardzhali Municipality, Bulgaria *Kalinka Temple, a temple in northern India *Kalinka, Lublin Voivodeship, a village in the Lublin Voivodeship, Poland *Kalinka, Russia, the name of several ...

" by

Ivan Larionov Ivan Petrovich Larionov (russian: Ива́н Петро́вич Ларио́нов; January 23, 1830 – April 22, 1889) was a Russian composer, writer and folklorist. He is mostly remembered for the famous song "Kalinka", which he wrote in 1 ...

and "

Hungarian Dances Hungarian dance refers to the folk dances practised and performed by the Hungarians, both amongst the populations native to Hungary and its neighbours, and also amongst the Hungarian diaspora. According to György Martin, a prominent folklore expe ...

" by

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

in PSP version). The boss battle against Pig Tide is a remix of Japanese folk song "

Yagibushi The is a popular folk song and dance performed at matsuri (and occasionally Undokai sports days) in Gunma and Tochigi, Japan. It consists of dancers with broad hats called ''kasa'' going in a counter clockwise circle around a mikoshi. The dance i ...

". *The fifth stage is a Moai battleship. The music is a remix of " L'Arlésienne Suite No. 2, Farandole" by Georges Bizet, followed with "The Old Stone Age" from ''

'' series. Boss against Yoshiko uses "Flight of the Bumblebee". *The sixth stage is a pinball planet. The music is a remix of " Gunkan March" by Tōkichi Setoguchi. During the boss against Viva Core is a remix of "Aircraft Carrier" from ''

'' series. *The seventh stage is a planet that full of pink clouds, beautiful girls, and bubbles. The music is a remix of "Waltz of the Flowers" by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. The boss is Honey Mikayo is a remix of "Flight of the Bumblebee". *The eighth stage is the strange alien ice cavern planet. The music is a remix of " Violin Concerto, Op. 64" by

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

and "

Under the Double Eagle "Under the Double Eagle" (), Op. 159, is an 1893 march composed by J. F. Wagner, an Austrian military music composer. The title is a reference to the double eagle in the coat of arms of Austria-Hungary. It was published in the United States in 19 ...

" by

Josef Franz Wagner Josef Franz Wagner (20 March 1856 – 5 June 1908) was an Austrian military bandmaster and composer. He is sometimes referred to as "The Austrian March King". He is best known for his 1893 march "'' Unter dem Doppeladler''" (Op. 159) or "Under t ...

. The boss is Pooyan (a giant pufferfish) is a remix of "Flight of the Bumblebee". *The ninth stage is the graveyard planet with full of ghosts from Japanese and Egyptian folklore, and

lava lake Lava lakes are large volumes of molten lava, usually basaltic, contained in a volcanic vent, crater, or broad depression. The term is used to describe both lava lakes that are wholly or partly molten and those that are solidified (sometim ...

. The music is a remix of "

In the Hall of the Mountain King "In the Hall of the Mountain King" ( no, I Dovregubbens hall, , In the Dovre man's hall, link=no, italic=no) is a piece of orchestral music composed by Edvard Grieg in 1875 as incidental music for the sixth scene of act 2 in Henrik Ibsen's 1867 ...

" by

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the foremost Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwide. His use of ...

and "

Swan Lake ''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoye ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, link=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failur ...

", boss against Iron Maiden MK III uses the final part of Beethoven's "Symphony No. 9", and boss against Yoshiwara Dayuu with ash clouds uses a remix of "William Tell's Storm" by Gioachino Rossini. *The tenth and final stage is a Zeo's fortress in the unknown planet. The music is a final stage theme from ''

'', the final boss theme using "Aircraft Carrier" from ''

''.

Bosses

Below is listing the bosses from the original version: *Cat Battleship *Captain Penguinovski the 3rd *Chichibinta Rika *Eagle Eagle Sabnosuke *Hot Lips *Pig Tide *Yoshiko *Viva Core *Honey Mikayo *Pooyan *Iron Maiden MK III *Yoshiwara Dayuu *Showering Beauty *Golgotha Takobee The platform-exclusive bosses include Penguin Conducter, Madam of Yotsuya Q, Viking Moai, Woon Botton, Crystal Golem, Marvelous Green Mantle, Great Gourmet King Manjiri Kun, Super DX Emperor Penguin, Tako Hyuuma, Penguin Bomb. The NES version replaces Chichibinta Rika with Miss Mishitarina and Honey Mikayo does not appear within the game at all despite them appearing on the European NES cover. Hot Lips, Pig Tide, Honey Mikayo, Iron Maiden MK III and Yoshiwara Dayuu not appears in this Mobile version.

Music

*The soundtrack was produced by

Konami Kukeiha Club is Konami's sound team. It is often confused with 矩形波倶楽部 ( Kukeiha Club), Konami's in-house band that has released albums consisting of their studio performances. They are primarily responsible for the sound and music in the majorit ...

and released by King Records on July 21, 1990 in Japan. It was also reprinted on September 23, 1998. *A CD Arrangement was released on June 21, 1991. *A Ending Music for Parodius for Game Boy Version was a part of ''Konami Ending Collection'', Which was released for CD Soundtrack on October 21, 1991. *In addition, disc 4 of ''

Konami Music Masterpiece Collection is Konami's sound team. It is often confused with 矩形波倶楽部 (Kukeiha Club), Konami's in-house band that has released albums consisting of their studio performances. They are primarily responsible for the sound and music in the majority ...

'', which was released on October 1, 2004, is devoted to this game. *The Songs of ''Parodius Da!'' were: ''Northern Country '90'' and ''Night of the Living Dead'' was contain CD Music what it is part of ''LEGEND COMPILATION SERIES - Classic in Game Music'' on September 21, 2005 in Japan.

Ports

''Parodius'' has been ported to a number of platforms, most notably the

Super Famicom The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in Euro ...

(released on the SNES in Europe) and the

PC Engine The TurboGrafx-16, known as the outside North America, is a home video game console designed by Hudson Soft and sold by NEC Home Electronics. It was the first console marketed in the fourth generation, commonly known as the 16-bit era, though ...

. The game was also ported to the

Family Computer The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit Third generation of video game consoles, third-generation home video game console produced by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan in 1983 as the commonly known as the The NES, a redes ...

(released on the NES in Europe) with several stages omitted but with a new amusement park stage as well as several hidden bonus stages. Most recently the game, along with several other ''Gradius'' titles, has been ported to

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

-based cell phones in Japan. The

Game Boy The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same ...

version (which was also released in Europe) shows the ages of the playable characters, and only has 8 stages, which include stages 1–6, and 10 from the arcade game. Stage 3 was moved to Stage 4. The Game Boy version of stage 3 also has a hidden stage. This version was also re-released in color as part of the ''

Konami GB Collection ''Konami GB Collection'' is a series of video game compilations composed of four volumes released in Japan for the Game Boy and re-released in Euro regions for the Game Boy Color. The compilations were originally released from 1997 to 1998 in Japan ...

Vol. 2''. There was also a Japan-exclusive port for the

X68000 The is a home computer created by Sharp Corporation. It was first released in 1987 and sold only in Japan. The initial model has a 10 Megahertz, MHz Motorola 68000 Central processing unit, CPU, 1 Megabytes, MB of Random Access Memory, RAM ...

. The PC Engine version does not have the arcade Stages 5 and 8, but features a stage titled SPECIAL and a new introduction that features several strange-looking Japanese characters. This is in contrast to the arcade intro, which chronicles the ''Gradius'' legacy up until the time of release. The SFC/SNES version added the bath house and "Omake" stages over the arcade version. In the "Omake" stage, the player immediately continues after dying, instead of at a checkpoint. The PAL version of the SNES port was titled ''Parodius: Non-Sense Fantasy'' and "Omake" was retitled "Lollipop". The Mobile phone version titled was released in 2003 in Japan, and does not have the arcade Stage 3, 4, 7, 8 and 9. ''Parodius'' was also ported along with its sequel '' Fantastic Parodius - Pursue the Glory of the Past'' on the compilation also simply titled ''Gokujou Parodius Da! Deluxe Pack'' in Japan and ''Parodius'' in Europe for

PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...

in 1994 and

Sega Saturn The is a home video game console developed by Sega and released on November 22, 1994, in Japan, May 11, 1995, in North America, and July 8, 1995, in Europe. Part of the fifth generation of video game consoles, it was the successor to the succ ...

in 1995 and in ''Parodius Portable'' for

PlayStation Portable The PlayStation Portable (PSP) is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment. It was first released in Japan on December 12, 2004, in North America on March 24, 2005, and in PAL regions on September 1, 2005, ...

in 2007.

Reception

In Japan, ''Game Machine'' listed ''Parodius! From Myth to Laughter'' on their June 1, 1990 issue as being the seventh most-successful table arcade unit of the month. It went on to be one of the top five highest-grossing arcade games of 1990 in Japan, where it also won the 1990 ''Gamest'' Awards for Best Production and Best Shooting Game. In 1996,

Super Play ''Super Play'' was a British Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) magazine which ran from 1 October 1992 to September 1996. Overview ''Super Play'' covered in great detail the role-playing video game genre. Many of these games were ne ...

ranked the game 93rd on their Top 100 SNES Games of All Time. The described the game as "Gradius on hallucinogens." ''

Mean Machines ''Mean Machines'' was a multi-format video game magazine published between 1990 and 1992 in the United Kingdom. Origins In the late 1980s '' Computer and Video Games'' (''CVG'') was largely covering the outgoing generation of 8-bit computers l ...

'' magazine gave the Super NES version a positive review, giving it a 93% score. ''

Computer and Video Games ''Computer and Video Games'' (also known as ''CVG'', ''Computer & Video Games'', ''C&VG'', ''Computer + Video Games'', or ''C+VG'') was a UK-based video game magazine, published in its original form between 1981 and 2004. Its offshoot website ...

'' gave the SNES version an 88% score, and the PlayStation version an 85% score.

Popular culture

* Captain Penguinovsky the 3rd, Hot Lips and Chichibinta Rika from ''Parodius Da!'' appears in the puzzle game ''Pixel Puzzle Collection'' to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the ''Parodius'' series. * ''Parodius Da!'' is one of the video games featured in the manga titled ''Rock'n Game Boy'', by Shigeto Ikehara and Published by Comic BomBom October 1989 to December 1991. * In the ''Fushigi Shoujo Nile na Thutmose'' episode 20 "The Phantom of Game Center" (1991), Nile Tuthmose is playing a ''Parodius Da!''. * In ''Famitsu Comic '92 Barcelona Olympic'', Tako from ''Parodius'' makes a brief cameo as contestants. * Chichibin Tarika from ''Parodius Da!'' appears as makes cameo in the manga '' High Score Girl'' (2010).

Notes

References

External links

Official Konami Mobile Minisite
* {{Authority control 1990 video games Arcade video games Game Boy games Mobile games Nintendo Entertainment System games Parodius Horizontally scrolling shooters Sharp X68000 games Sega Saturn games Super Nintendo Entertainment System games PlayStation (console) games TurboGrafx-16 games Video games developed in Japan Video games set in outer space