Harmful Park

Last updated
Harmful Park
Harmful Park video game cover art.jpg
Developer(s) Sky Think System
Publisher(s) Sky Think System
Director(s) Kenichi Fujita
Producer(s)
  • Junji Ōura
  • Masahiro Kubota
Designer(s) Hisato Igami
Programmer(s) Tomohisa Yamagata
Artist(s)
  • Chinatsu Shibata
  • Eiji Kuroda
  • Hideki Nishimura
Composer(s) Hitoshi Sawa
Platform(s) PlayStation
Release
  • JP: February 14, 1997
Genre(s) Scrolling shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Harmful Park: High-brow Gag and Pure Shooting [lower-alpha 1] is a 1997 horizontally scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Sky Think System for the PlayStation in Japan. Set in a theme park, the game has been described as a cute 'em up and resembles Konami's Parodius games. It has become somewhat of a collector's item, and one of the rarest shooters on the PlayStation. [1]

Contents

Gameplay

Gameplay screenshot PS1 Harmful Park.png
Gameplay screenshot

Harmful Park is a horizontal scrolling 2D shooting game. [2] [3] Enemies in the game include gorillas, inflatable dinosaurs, and a gigantic woman. [4] [5] The game also features exotic weapons, including jelly beans and ice cream. [6] The game has six stages in total. [7] There are four kinds of shots that the player's ship can fire, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. "Pie spread" for example fires continuously, while "Jelly Boomerang" tracks enemies, but has low attack power. [7] Three additional minigames are available as well. [7]

Plot

The game is set in a theme park, after a scientist named Dr. Tequila makes the rides and machines of the park go berserk. [2] Another scientist orders her daughters to reclaim the park, using flying machines. [2] The park has now been converted into a fortified base. [7]

Development

Harmful Park was developed by Japanese game developer Sky Think System, and it was the final game they developed. [3] [8] The developer intended the game to have comedic elements, and to be enjoyable for a wide variety of gamers of all ages and genders. [9] [10]

Release

The game was released in Japan on February 14, 1997 and re-released in 2012 for the PlayStation Network again only in Japan. [9] [7] [11]

Reception

Upon release, Famitsu gave it a score of 26 out of 40. [12]

Multiple reviewers noted the similarities between Harmful Park, and the Parodius series and described the game as a "cute em up". [3] [8] [5]

In 2014, Eurogamer listed the game among gaming's "most valuable treasures", praising the graphics, humor, and noting that while not difficult, it has personality. [8] GamesTM described it as a cross between Parodius, and Coryoon. [1] Retro Gamer listed it as number 6 on their list of "The 20 Greatest PlayStation Games You've Never Played". [3]

Notes

  1. ↑ Japanese: ハームフルパーク, Hepburn: Hāmufuru Pāku

Related Research Articles

Parodius is a series of cute 'em ups developed and published by Konami. The games are tongue-in-cheek parodies of Gradius, and also feature characters from many other Konami franchises.

<i>Sexy Parodius</i> 1996 arcade game by Konami

Sexy Parodius is a 1996 horizontal-scrolling shooter arcade game developed by Konami. It is the fifth installment of the Parodius series. Like the rest of the series, it is a parody of the Gradius series and other Konami games. It also contains sexual level and enemy designs, as well as risqué innuendo. Many level bosses are women in various erotic costumes or various states of undress.

<i>Quiz Nanairo Dreams</i> 1996 video game

Quiz Nanairo Dreams: Nijiiro-chō no Kiseki is a Japanese video game developed by Capcom. The game is a hybrid of a quiz game and a dating sim.

<i>Twilight Syndrome</i> Video game series

Twilight Syndrome is a horror-themed adventure game series released exclusively in Japan. It was created by Human Entertainment and continued by Spike after Human folded in the late 1990s. The games follow high school students investigating urban legends about ghosts and other paranormal happenings in their school and neighborhood.

<i>Slayers Wonderful</i> 1998 video game

Slayers Wonderful is a role-playing video game developed by TamTam and released by Banpresto for the PlayStation in 1998 exclusively in Japan. It features key voice actors from the Slayers anime versions and a story supervised by the Slayers author Hajime Kanzaka. The game was a big commercial success but received mixed critical reception.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Best (PlayStation)</span> PlayStation budget range in Asia

The Best is a Sony PlayStation budget range in Japan and parts of Asia. Similar budget ranges include Greatest Hits in North America, Essentials in PAL regions and BigHit Series in Korea.

<i>Makeruna! Makendō 2: Kimero Youkai Souri</i> 1995 video game

Makeruna! Makendō 2: Kimero Youkai Souri, also known as Kendo Rage 2, is a 1995 fighting game released exclusively in Japan for the Super Famicom by Datam Polystar. It was re-released for the PlayStation.

Kamen Rider: Battride War is a spinoff video game series of the Kamen Rider Series.

<i>Rapid Angel</i> 1998 video game

Rapid Angel is an anime beat 'em up by Techno Soleil for the PlayStation. It was released in Japan on August 13, 1998. The player plays as three delivery girls who must manage to defeat enemies and deliver goods within a time limit.

AQURIA Co., Ltd. is a Japanese game developer based in Yokohama, Japan. The company is mainly engaged in software development of console games.

Cattle Call Inc. is a Japanese game developer based in Tokyo, Japan. The company was established by former staff of Data East Corporation and is engaged in developing original console games as well as co-developing and porting games for other game companies.

<i>Tōkidenshō Angel Eyes</i> 1996 video game

Tōkidenshō Angel Eyes(闘姫伝承 ANGEL EYES) is a Japanese fighting video game developed and published by Tecmo. It was released in arcades in June 1996, and later to the PlayStation console in December 1997. It is a two-dimensional fighting game featuring all female cast of characters.

<i>Athena: Awakening from the Ordinary Life</i> 1999 video game

Athena: Awakening from the Ordinary Life is a 1999 Japanese video game developed by Yumekobo and published by SNK for the Sony PlayStation. The game stars SNK character Athena Asamiya, who is a normal Japanese high school student who suddenly learns psychic powers and thrust into a science fiction storyline. It is a three-dimensional adventure game where her psychic powers are used to solve puzzles and overcome obstacles. The game was never released outside of Japan. The game's plot was adapted into a 12-episode television series, titled Athena, in 1998.

<i>Detana TwinBee Yahho! Deluxe Pack</i> 1995 video game

Detana TwinBee Yahho! Deluxe Pack is a 1995 two-in-one video game compilation developed and published by Konami for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. It is the second Deluxe Pack release following Gokujō Parodius Da! Deluxe Pack, which included both Parodius Da! (1990) and Gokujo Parodius (1994). Part of the TwinBee series, it includes the original arcade versions of both Detana!! TwinBee and TwinBee Yahho!. In both games, players assume the role of Light and Pastel taking control of TwinBee and WinBee to defeat invading forces of the evil alien Iva and Archduke Nonsense to save planet Meru and the Land of Wonders island after receiving an SOS message sent by princess Melora and Queen Melody.

<i>Bs Log</i> Japanese gaming magazine

B's LOG is a Japanese gaming magazine, published in both print and digital formats, by Kadokawa Game Linkage, aimed at the female market. Games covered in this publication typically fall into the otome and BL genres. According to parent company Kadokawa, it has a circulation of 90,000; its readerbase is 99% female with an average age of 22.

References

  1. 1 2 "Classic Console Quick Reference Buyers Guide". GamesTM (32): 159. May 2005.
  2. 1 2 3 "It Came from Japan! Harmful Park". destructoid. Archived from the original on 2016-07-02. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Top 20 Greatest PlayStation Games You've Never Played". Retro Gamer (137): 40. January 2015.
  4. ↑ The PlayStation Book. United Kingdom: Imagine Publishing. 2015. p. 74. ISBN   978-1785-461-064.
  5. 1 2 Kalata, Kurt (1 December 2008). "Harmful Park". Hardcore Gaming 101. Archived from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
  6. ↑ Sullivan 2013-03-29T22:00:00.87ZFeature, Lucas (29 March 2013). "RadarPlays - Harmful Park". gamesradar. Archived from the original on 2019-03-02. Retrieved 2019-03-02.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 電撃オンライン. "『ハームフルパーク』ポップな世界観と遊び心に富んだ演出が印象的な昔ながらの2Dシューティング【電撃PS×PS Store】". 電撃オンライン (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2017-06-12. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  8. 1 2 3 "A guide to gaming's most valuable treasures". Eurogamer.net. Archived from the original on 2017-11-12. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  9. 1 2 "ハームフルパーク". www.skysea-games.jp. Archived from the original on 2018-08-03. Retrieved 2019-03-02.
  10. ↑ "ハームフルパーク | ソフトウェアカタログ | プレイステーション® オフィシャルサイト". www.jp.playstation.com. Archived from the original on 2017-01-15. Retrieved 2019-03-02.
  11. ↑ 株式会社インプレス (2012-02-29). "週刊 ダウンロードソフトウェアカタログ 2012年3月第2週分". GAME Watch (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2018-08-03. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
  12. ↑ "ハームフルパーク [PS] / ファミ通.com". www.famitsu.com. Archived from the original on 2018-08-02. Retrieved 2018-08-02.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.