Sexy Parodius

Parodius is Konami's self-parody series, aimed squarely at its own shooters and at Gradius above all. Sexy Parodius, from 1996, is a late arcade entry and one of the most fully developed. It keeps the foundation the series always used: horizontally scrolling action, a choice of character, and the familiar upgrade bar where collecting capsules advances a cursor that decides which improvement you take.

The notable addition is its progression structure. Each stage carries an objective beyond simple survival, whether collecting something, rescuing someone or meeting a condition, and whether you succeed determines which branch you continue along. The game therefore offers multiple routes and multiple endings, unusual for an arcade shooter and a real source of replay value.

The art is deliberately excessive: bright, cartoonish and packed with references and absurd enemies. The soundtrack takes classical pieces and Konami themes and rearranges them, a series trademark by this point. For all the comedy, the difficulty is entirely serious, since this is built for experienced shooter players and the later stages show no restraint whatsoever.

If you have never tried Parodius, this instalment is a reasonable entry point simply because it holds the most content. The character selection helps too, since the available ships and creatures come with meaningfully different equipment, letting you settle on a style that suits how you play.

Sexy Parodius runs here directly in the browser through MAME emulation, with nothing to install.