Star Warped

Last updated
Star Warped
Star Warped Coverart.png
Developer(s) Parroty Interactive
Publisher(s) Palladium Interactive
Director(s) Steven Horowitz
Ian Deitchman
Producer(s) Dale Geist
Jennifer Abbot Bulka
Writer(s) Mark Cohen
Ian Deitchman
Brian Posehn
Kristin Rusk
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows, Macintosh
ReleaseJune 1997 [1]
Genre(s) Adventure
Mode(s) Single-player

Star Warped is a first-person point-and-click adventure video game that parodies the Star Wars universe, specifically the original trilogy released between 1977 and 1983: Star Wars , The Empire Strikes Back , and Return of the Jedi . It was created by Parroty Interactive, which was a division of the game's publisher, Palladium Interactive. [2] [3] [4] Star Warped was released in the United States and Canada, for both Windows PC and Macintosh, in late 1997 as a follow-up to their debut Myst parody, Pyst . The game is no longer in release, as Parroty's parent company folded after being bought by The Learning Company in 1998. [5] The game invited players to "Be seduced by the power of the Dork Side". Star Warped received mixed reviews from critics: some praised the game's variety, originality, and humor, while others dismissed it as lazy, unfunny, and dull.

Contents

Plot and gameplay

The game is set in the Modesto, California, home of two die-hard Star Wars fans with a " Beavis and Butt-Head mentality": [6] Brian (Brian Posehn) and Aaron (Robbie Rist). [5] They claim to have never left their room since first watching the original Star Wars trilogy. [7] The two have compiled their "favorite snagged, borrowed and stolen" Star Wars merchandise, and the player can interact with these items. [8] Gameplay primarily consists of a series of mini-games, including "Whack! the Ewok" and "Flawed Fighters", a spoof of fighting games such as Mortal Kombat . [9] Characters include Leia I. Joe (a Princess Leia and G.I. Joe spoof), Cool-Handless Luke (Luke Skywalker with a missing hand and a pun on the film Cool Hand Luke ), and Pizza-Flipping Greedo (Greedo as a pizza chef). The game also has several humorous items, such as "scrapped scripts", "gene splicer", and "Tell you, I Will". Clicking on items results in animations and minigames. [8] The minigames also included "U Don't No Jedi", "Death Star Destructo", "X-Schwing", and "Dork Forces". [6]

According to GameSpot 's Helen Lee, Star Warped differs from Parroty's previous game Pyst in that it is a fully-fledged game instead of just an interactive product, and the parody trampled over all aspects of the Star Wars trilogy. [10] [11] As the game was released two years before Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace , it contains no parodies alluding to the prequel series, but there are some fake references to the then-future films. [12] While spoofing the first three films in the Star Wars film series, the game also targets the extended Star Wars franchise, including its merchandise and marketing strategies. [13]

Development

According to Palladium's then-vice president of marketing, Rob Halligan, the success of Pyst opened doors for future parody titles by the company, and Star Warped and The X-Fools (the latter a parody of The X-Files ) were the first two they attempted. [14]

Once Palladium ironed out "legal entanglements", the company hoped to release the game in May 1997. [15] Writers for the project included comedy veterans from Saturday Night Live , The Simpsons , Comedy Central , and The Jon Stewart Show . After the jokes were approved and the writing completed, the developers had the voice actors record dialogue and, afterwards, put the game information onto CDs made available for retail purchase by customers. [8]

The game features notable voice-acting talent in minor roles, including Tom Kenny, Carlos Alazraqui, Jodi Benson, Maurice LaMarche, and Kath Soucie. [16] The game was also released in Germany with dubbed German voice acting. [17]

Release and promotion

Star Warped was featured in a segment on the magazine-style program Splat! about cartoons in video games, which aired on animation specialty channel Teletoon. [5] Following in the footsteps of Pyst, Star Warped had its own website players could access. [18] After buying the game and registering, players were able to enter a member's-only section of the site, where new content was added until 1998. AllGame writer Christopher Michael Baker notes that even unregistered visitors to the website are still able to "check out and laugh at" some activities, minigames, and other content. [19] An online-only quiz-themed minigame entitled "You Don't NoJedi" (a parody of You Don't Know Jack ) was featured on the site, as a teaser for Star Warped. [20] Bonus modules from Star Warped were featured on the CD for "Pyst Special Edition". [14] In 1998, after Parroty's acquisition by The Learning Company, Palladium founder and chief executive officer Ed Bernstein said that "it was a fun business, but not terribly lucrative". [21]

Critical reception

Star Warped received mixed reviews and polarized critics. Positive reviews highlighted the game's humor, originality, and gameplay, with some favorably comparing it to Parroty Interactive's previous title Pyst, which they viewed more as an interactive slideshow than a game. Negative reviews derided the game's humor, comparing it to cartoons like the Star Wars Holiday Special .

Electric Games recommended the game for its "very, very funny" humor, "cartoony" graphics, "hammy" acting, "fun" gameplay, and "impressive . . . highly original" mini-games (praising the "Scrapped Scripts"). [22] Doug Radcliffe of CD Mag praised one mini-game's "Pulp Fiction-style" script, but thought players would get bored after a few hours due to its lacking replay value. [23] Christopher Michael Baker from All Game Guide deemed Star Warped the most "entertaining" of all Star Wars parody video games due to its variety of "fun", "great", and "hilarious" mini-games; the site also found the opportunity to delve into the personal belongings of the Star Wars super fans fascinating, deeming their collection "interesting" and "creative", and ultimately recommending the game for Star Wars fans. [24] Additionally, America Online's Huge Electronic Brain named the game the "Funniest CD-ROM of the Century". [25] [26] Joe Szadkowski of The Washington Post thought the game was "well worth" the $20 price tag, and reminded readers that the game was a parody, not to be taken seriously. [6] Star Warped was the video game that Kill Screen writer Zach Koster credited the game for his decision to become a video game journalist. [5] Emil Pagliarulo of The Adrenaline Vault saw Star Warped as an example of how Parroty Interactive made games that were "completely original simply by capitalizing on unoriginality", and said it "pokes fun at just about every Star Wars game ever made". [27] A writer from CD Access described the game as "hilarious", offering hours of entertaining gameplay. [28]

Interpreting the game as a tribute to nerd culture, Steven L. Kent of The Seattle Times described Brian and Aaron as "charming" and noted the "eerie sense of reality" surrounding their collection of memorabilia, but felt that the mini-games were a "quick diversion", lacking depth. He thought that "Space Zap" and "Death Star Destructo" were the most enjoyable mini-games. [7] Computer Gaming Magazine described Star Warped as a collection of mini-games, while Pyst was simply a "slideshow". [29]

Richard Cobblet of PC Gamer thought the game was "pretty bloody awful", "agonizing", "painful", "uninspired", and "lazy", and compared it unfavorably with the Star Wars Holiday Special , while accusing Parroty Interactive of producing a series of "comedy plague-pits". [8] A writer from Entertainment Weekly gave the game a D, deeming it a "catastrophe" of lowbrow humor, low-rent mini-games, and criticizing the "irritating...obnoxious" protagonists' commentary. [30] A reviewer from The Collection Chamber thought the video game was "unlicensed, unofficial and woefully unfunny". [31] German review site PC Games gave the game 23 out of 100, commenting on the game's lack of a funny bone and "non-starter" gags; it recommended that PC Games readers save their money, and, instead, buy the Special Edition versions of Star Wars. [32] Another German review site, PC Action  [ de ], compared Star Warped to Pyst, saying it offered more variety than the Myst parody, but noted that players would likely get bored after an hour of gameplay. It concluded with saying that the "modest" cost of the game was not worth the "cheap concoction", and that players were better off spending their money on the original Star Wars sextet. [33]

Related Research Articles

<i>Hexen: Beyond Heretic</i> 1995 video game

Hexen: Beyond Heretic is a fantasy first-person shooter video game developed by Raven Software and published by id Software distributed through GT Interactive on October 30, 1995. It is the sequel to 1994's Heretic, and the second game in Raven Software's "Serpent Riders" trilogy, which culminated with Hexen II. The title comes from the German noun Hexen, which means "witches", and/or the verb hexen, which means "to cast a spell". Game producer John Romero stated that a third, unreleased game in this series was to be called Hecatomb.

<i>Pyst</i> 1997 video game

Pyst is an adventure computer game released in October 1996. It was created as a parody of the highly successful adventure game Myst. Pyst was written by Peter Bergman, a co-founder of the Firesign Theatre, and was published by Parroty Interactive, with Bergman, Stallone, Inc. as co-publisher. Mindscape began distributing the game on August 20, 1997. The parody features full motion video of actor John Goodman as "King Mattruss", the ruler of "Pyst Island". Versions of the game were produced for both the Windows PC and Apple Macintosh operating systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parroty Interactive</span> American video game developer

Parroty Interactive was an American video game developer based in Larkspur, California, which acted as a division of publisher Palladium Interactive, Inc.

<i>The Daedalus Encounter</i> 1995 video game

The Daedalus Encounter is a 1995 interactive movie puzzle adventure game developed by Mechadeus and published by Virgin Interactive for Windows. The game was ported to the 3DO by Lifelike Productions and published by Panasonic. The premise of the game is that there are three space marines who have fought as part of an interstellar war. One of them, Casey, has been brought back to life by his partners after a space accident and he is now a brain grafted in a life-support system. In order to save themselves, the three characters and the player solve all sorts of puzzles.

<i>Nightmare Ned</i> 1997 video game

Nightmare Ned is a 1997 computer game for Microsoft Windows that was developed alongside the animated series of the same name. The game was based on a concept by Sue and Terry Shakespeare. It was released on October 7, 1997.

<i>Muppets Inside</i> 1996 video game

The Muppet CD-ROM: Muppets Inside is a 1996 video game based on The Muppets franchise produced by Starwave. The title is a play on Intel's advertising slogan, "Intel Inside". The game's plot consists of several Muppets characters getting trapped inside a computer, and Bunsen sending Kermit and Fozzie Bear into the computer to rescue them.

<i>Star Trek: Starship Creator</i> 1998 vehicle simulation video game

Star Trek: Starship Creator is a computer-based vehicle simulation game developed by Imergy and released by Simon & Schuster Interactive in 1998 for both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS, based on the official license of the Star Trek franchise. Elements in the game were created in conjunction with the technical advisers for the series and films, such as Mike and Denise Okuda. The gameplay in Starship Creator allowed for the player to equip and crew a series of different starship classes from across the Star Trek universe, including those from both the various series and the film series. An expanded version was subsequently released as Star Trek: Starship Creator Deluxe in late 1999 which added further starships, missions and customization. The official website also contained downloads for the characters from the Star Trek: New Frontier series of books. Reception by critics for Starship Creator was negative, with criticism directed at the gameplay and graphics, and the suggestion was made that the game would only appeal to Star Trek fans. A sequel followed in 2000 entitled Star Trek: Starship Creator Warp II.

<i>Star Wars: TIE Fighter</i> 1994 video game

Star Wars: TIE Fighter is a 1994 Star Wars space flight simulator and space combat video game, a sequel in the Star Wars: X-Wing series. It places the player in the role of an Imperial starfighter pilot during events that occur between The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.

<i>Gate of Thunder</i> 1992 video game

Gate of Thunder is a 1992 scrolling shooter video game developed by Red Company and published by Hudson Soft for the TurboGrafx-CD. It was the first game released in North America to support the Super CD-ROM² format and served as one of the pack-in games for the TurboDuo, a two-in-one system which runs both TurboGrafx-CD and TurboGrafx-16 titles, where it was bundled with Bonk's Adventure, Bonk's Revenge and Bomberman on the same disc. In the game, the player controls the Hunting Dog space fighter craft, piloted by space cop Hawk. Alongside his ally Esty, piloting the Wild Cat support ship, Hawk must stop General Don Jingi and his Obellon armada from obtaining the powerful "Starlight" energy source from planet Aries.

<i>Star Parodier</i> 1992 video game

Star Parodier is a vertical-scrolling shoot 'em up video game developed by Kaneko and published by Hudson Soft for the PC Engine CD-ROM² in 1992. It is a spin-off of the Star Soldier series and was localized for North America as Fantasy Star Soldier, but this version was never released. The game was released for the Wii Virtual Console on March 7, 2008 in Japan, March 16 in Europe and later in North America on August 11. The title is also playable on the Turbografx-16/PC Engine Mini Console.

<i>Microshaft Winblows 98</i> 1998 video game

Microshaft Winblows 98 is a 1998 interactive comedy video game for Windows and Classic Mac OS. It parodies the then-upcoming Windows 98 operating system, as well as Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. Released by Palladium Interactive during the United States v. Microsoft Corp. case and at a time when Microsoft, Windows, and Gates were easy targets for jokes, the game offers a satirical take on this ripe subject matter.

<i>Disneys Animated Storybook</i> Interactive storybook video game series

Disney's Animated Storybook is a point-and-click adventure interactive storybook video game series based on Walt Disney feature animations and Pixar films that were released throughout the 1990s. They were published by Disney Interactive for personal computers for children ages four to eight years old. Starting from 1994, most of the entries in the series were developed by Media Station. They have the same plots as their respective films, though abridged due to the limited medium.

<i>Anastasia: Adventures with Pooka and Bartok</i> 1997 video game

Anastasia: Adventures with Pooka and Bartok is a puzzle video game based on the 1997 animated film Anastasia. Developed by Motion Works, published by Fox Interactive and distributed by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment, the title was released on November 25, 1997. It was produced by David Wisehart, who also served as voiceover director. The game had an estimated budget of US$800,000.

<i>Early Learning House</i> 1990s collection of educational video games and compilations

Early Learning House or simply the House Series is a collection of four main educational video games and two compilations for the Windows and Macintosh platforms, developed by Theatrix Interactive, Inc. and published by Edmark software. Each different game focuses on a particular major learning category with selectable skill settings for preschooler, kindergarten and elementary learners. Millie's Math House (1992) on mathematics, Bailey's Book House (1993) on language, Sammy's Science House (1994) on science, and Trudy's Time and Place House (1995) on history and geography. A spin-off, Stanley's Sticker Stories (1996), sees players create animated storybooks with the series' characters. Millie & Bailey Preschool and Millie & Bailey Kindergarten each contain the combined activities from two of the four software products. In addition the programs can be configured by an adult mode to suit students with special needs. Most of the activities in every game have two modes, one to allow learners to explore and try it out for themselves and the other for learners to follow specific tasks set by the game characters. Learners also have the option to print pictures of creative activities and record sounds in phonics activities. Later the games were re-developed by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Learning Technology and re-published by The Learning Company with newer graphics and additional activities.

Madeline is a series of educational point-and-click adventure video games which were developed during the mid-1990s for Windows and Mac systems. The games are an extension of the Madeline series of children's books by Ludwig Bemelmans, which describe the adventures of a young French girl. The video-game series was produced concurrently with a TV series of the same name, with characters and voice actors from the show.

The Arthur video games franchise was a series of learning and interactive story video games based on the American-Canadian children's TV show Arthur. The games were released in the 1990s and 2000s for PlayStation and Game Boy Color alongside Windows and Mac OS computers.

Several video games based upon Blue's Clues, a children's educational television series by Nickelodeon, have been released, educational video games and web browser games based on the show. Most of the PC CD ROM-format titles were developed and published by Humongous Entertainment.

<i>Monopoly Star Wars</i> 1997 video game

Monopoly Star Wars is the 1997 Monopoly Star Wars video game based on the board game and set in the Star Wars fictional universe. It is one of many Monopoly video game adaptions. The game was developed by Artech Studios and published by Hasbro Interactive. It was released exclusively for Microsoft Windows computers. The game employs the same basic ruleset of traditional Monopoly gameplay, but the Star Wars theme includes famous characters and locales in place of the original game pieces and properties.

<i>The X-Fools</i> 1997 video game

The X-Fools: The Spoof Is Out There is an interactive comedic 1997 video game developed by Parroty Interactive. It is a parody of supernatural television series The X-Files, which ran from 1993 to 2018. Released on the Mac and PC, it was the company's third game after Myst parody Pyst, and Star Warped which lampooned Star Wars, and would be followed by Microshaft Winblows 98, a parody of Microsoft Windows 98. The game was distributed throughout North America by Mindscape.

<i>Rocky Interactive Horror Show</i> 1999 video game

Rocky Interactive Horror Show is a point-and-click adventure game developed by On-Line Entertainment in conjunction with Transylvania Interactive and published by On-Line exclusively for Microsoft Windows. A spiritual successor to CRL Group's 1985 video game adaptation, it is the second video game to be released and based upon Richard O'Brien's musical of the same name, who is also a member of the cast. Following the plot from 20th Century Fox's 1975 musical horror comedy film of the same name, the player assume the role of either Brad Majors or Janet Weiss in order to rescue one of the two playable characters, who has been transformed into stone by Dr. Frank-N-Furter's Medusa Transducer, within a set time limit before the mansion becomes a spaceship and takes off to the planet Transsexual Transylvania.

References

  1. ↑ "Parroty Interactive releases Second CD-ROM/Online Comedy". palladiumnet.com. June 1997. Archived from the original on February 12, 1998. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
  2. ↑ Wasserman, Elizabeth (January 5, 1998). "Company's Spoof of Microsoft: Microshaft Winblows". Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Parody zaps Microsoft with games". Star-News. January 6, 1998.
  4. ↑ "Microsoft Spoof: Microshaft Winblows 98 Bill Gates' Empire Is The Target Of Latest Parody By Cd-Rom Maker Palladium Interactive". Knight-Ridder Newspapers. January 6, 1998.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Kotzer, Zack (December 16, 2015). "A few things I learned from the late-90s game about nerds, Star Warped". Kill Screen.
  6. 1 2 3 Szadkowski, Joe (July 21, 1997). "Advice Etc.; roming the Galaxy". The Washington Times. Archived from the original on October 8, 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Business & Technology | Tech Reviews – Star Warped Takes Nerd Jokes To New High | Seattle Times Newspaper". community.seattletimes.nwsource.com. Retrieved 2016-09-17.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "Saturday Crapshoot: Star Warped". PC Gamer . 3 May 2014. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  9. ↑ "Star Warped". www.giantbomb.com. Giant Bomb.
  10. ↑ Lee, Helen (April 26, 2000). "Palladium Gets Warped". GameSpot.
  11. ↑ "Palladium Gets Warped". 2000-02-26. Archived from the original on 2000-02-26. Retrieved 2018-04-23.
  12. ↑ "The Personal Computer Museum, Brantford, Ontario, CANADA – Recycle, donate, and browse your old computers, electronics, video games, and software". www.pcmuseum.ca. Archived from the original on 2016-10-20. Retrieved 2016-09-17.
  13. ↑ The Multimedia and CD-ROM Directory 1998. Palgrave Macmillan Limited. 1998-02-01. ISBN   9780333711699.
  14. 1 2 "Parroty Interactive Launches PYST Special Edition; New Special Edition of PYST Includes a Module of Driven, a Sneak Peak[sic] Parody of the Eagerly Anticipated Riven – Sequel to MYST. – Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2018-03-17. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  15. ↑ Computer Gaming World. Golden Empire Publications. January 1, 1997.
  16. ↑ "Star Warped (1997)". The EndZone Group. Ez Cinemax. Archived from the original on 2019-02-01.
  17. ↑ "Power Play review". February 1998. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  18. ↑ "Star Warped". December 12, 1998. Archived from the original on December 12, 1998. Retrieved 2016-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  19. ↑ Baker, Christopher Michael (2014). "Star Warped". All Game. Archived from the original on 2014-11-17.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  20. ↑ "Parroty Interactive Presents Star Warped". May 30, 1998. Archived from the original on May 30, 1998. Retrieved 2016-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  21. ↑ "Learning Company Acquires Again / Palladium makes genealogy software". December 1998. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  22. ↑ "Electric Games Review: Star Warped by Palladium Interactive/Parroty Interactive". May 16, 2005. Archived from the original on May 16, 2005. Retrieved 2016-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  23. ↑ "Star Warped Review". November 6, 2003. Archived from the original on November 6, 2003. Retrieved 2016-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  24. ↑ "Star Warped – Review – allgame". 17 November 2014. Archived from the original on 17 November 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  25. ↑ "Parroty Interactive Releases CD-ROM Spoof of "The X-Files"; Newest Parody – The X-Fools – Takes Comical Look At Little Green Men And Government Cover-ups. – Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2015-12-07. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  26. ↑ "Parroty Interactive Ships "Microshaft Winblows 98"; CD-ROM Parodies Microsoft, Bill Gates and Windows. – Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-15. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  27. ↑ Pagliarulo, Emil (August 4, 1997). "Star Warped". The Adrenaline Vault. Archived from the original on December 31, 2004.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  28. ↑ "Star Warped – from CD-ROM Access". www.cdaccess.com. Archived from the original on 2016-02-26. Retrieved 2016-09-17.
  29. ↑ Computer Gaming World. Golden Empire Publications. 1997-01-01.
  30. ↑ Walk, Gary Eng (June 27, 1997). "Star Warped". Entertainment Weekly.
  31. ↑ "The Collection Chamber: Star Warped". The Collection Chamber. May 5, 2015. Retrieved 2016-09-12.
  32. ↑ "PC Games review". November 1997.
  33. ↑ "PC Action review". November 1997.
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.