Proto:Monster Party

This page details one or more prototype versions of Monster Party.

Download Monster Party (JP Prototype) File: Monster_Party_(J)_(Prototype).zip (99 KB) (info)

After repeatedly falling into the hands of collectors that were unwilling to release it to the public, a Japanese prototype of Monster Party (titled Parody World: Monster Party) was finally released on July 3, 2014 for everyone to enjoy. As the original title implies, the prototype features many parodies of movies like Gremlins and Planet of the Apes that were unfortunately removed for copyright reasons, as well as a number of other differences.

General Differences

• The timing code for the status bar split was changed to be less glitchy in the US version.
• It is possible to get stuck in place in the prototype, requiring a reset. Thankfully, this seems to be pretty rare.
• Item drops were shuffled around in the US version. For example, the first enemy drops a pill in the prototype, and nothing in the US version.

Title Screen

Proto	US

The prototype's title screen was a rather gory affair, with blood dripping all over the place. This was changed to green slime in the US version, which was apparently enough to fool Nintendo's censors, as the rest of the game beyond this point is just as bloody as the original.

In addition to the slime change, two menacing eyes were added above the logo, the copyright/licensing information was updated and expanded, and the zombie face cursor was changed to a happy jack-o'-lantern.

Password Screen

Proto	US

• The prototype password system uses hiragana characters, as opposed to the US version's alphanumeric system. There are graphics for numbers 0-9 and capital letters A-Z in the ROM, but they go unused. The only time these would be used otherwise would be for the copyright on the title screen, but those are separate graphics.
• The hidden passwords are functional in the prototype. The format is "あらら-*#*-***" instead, where # is one of the first eight characters from the top row.
• The blood splotches that border the password have an extra white pixel in the US version.

Opening Cutscene

Proto	US

Japanese	English
あるひ、ひろしくんは　いつものように やきゅうの　かえりみち “ああはらへった” などと　おもいながら　あるいていました。 ふと　そらをみあげると、ひときわキラリ とひかる ほしが ありました。	One day, Hiroshi was coming home from baseball practice walking down the same street he always did. He was thinking simple thoughts like "Ahh, I'm hungry," when suddenly he looked up to see a bright flash of light in the sky.
「あれは、もしかして きょじんの ほしでは．．．。」 と、ひろしくんはじっとみつめました。 すると、ほしが すこしずつ おおきく なってきました。	"I wonder if that's the Star of the Giants," he thought as he stared intently at it. It started to get bigger and bigger as he stared at it.
しかし、かんどうで めがうるんでいる ひろしくんは そんなことには きづきませ ん。そして、そのほしは ひろしくんの めの まえに おちました。	Entranced in wonder, he didn't even notice it was happening at first, but then the star dropped down right in front of him!
それは、なんと ほしではなくかいぶつで した。われにかえった ひろしくんは そのかいぶつに いいました。	It wasn't a star; it was a monster! Coming to his senses, he spoke to it.
「あんた、だれ？」	"Who are you?"
「オレは、バリューだ。」	"I am Varyū."
「なにやってんの？」	"What are you doing here?"
「じつは オレのすんでいる せかいで、 モンスターがあばれまわって こまって いるんだ。 それで すけっとを さがしにきたんだ が．．．。ちょうどいいや、ちょっと オレと いっしょに きてくれよ。 すぐすむからさ。」	"Monsters are running amok on our home planet. The truth is, we don't know what to do about it so we came here looking for someone to help us. Hmm, you'd be perfect! Why don't you come with me? We'll be done before you know it!"
｢ちょっと まってよ。ぼく、おなかすい ているし、そんなモンスターなんか やっつけたことないよ。」	"Hold on a sec! I haven't eaten yet, and I how am I supposed to beat a bunch of monsters!"
「そんなことないって。いま もっている その ぶきで ぶんなぐればイチコロ さ。」	"There's nothing to worry about. If you hit them with that weapon you're holding, you'll mop the floor with them!"
「これは ぶき じゃなくて バットだ よ。」	"This isn't a weapon! It's just a baseball bat!"
「バットでもバッタでも なんでもいい や。とにかく いこうぜ。」	"Bat, butt, what's the difference, it's all the same. Alright, let's go!"
そういうと、バリューは ひろしくんの てを ひいてとびさりました。 「きみ、なんてなまえ？」 「ひろし だよ。」 「そうか。ひろしくん、これからいく せかいは ひとりで こうどうするのは きけんだから オレといっしょに こうどうするんだ。」 「どうやって？」	Upon saying that, Varyū took Hiroshi's hand and they flew up into the sky. "What's your name?" he asked. "I'm Hiroshi." "Alright then Hiroshi, since the planet we're going to is dangerous, we're going to work together." "How so?" Hiroshi asked.
「こうやってさ。」 と、バリューは ひろしくんと がったい しました。	"This way," Varyū said as he merged with Hiroshi.
こうして、ひろしくんの ぼうけんが はじまるのです。	And this is how Hiroshi's adventure started!

The main character, Mark, was originally named Hiroshi in the prototype, and had a hiragana "ひ" on his shirt in cutscenes to match. This was changed to an "M" when the character was renamed.

Also note the "Star of the Giants" quote is a reference to the baseball-themed anime Kyojin no Hoshi, which translates to the same thing.

Ending Cutscene

Japanese	English
ついに モンスターたちは ぜんめつしま した。 バリューは ひろしくんに ごほうびの たからばこを あげて、 もとのせかいに おくってあげました。	Finally, all of the monsters had been defeated. Varyū gave Hiroshi a treasure chest as a reward and took him back home to Earth.
いえに かえった ひろしくんは、 わくわく しながら たからばこを あけました。	Having returned to his house, Hiroshi excitedly opened the treasure box.
なんと、なかから でてきたのは とても きれいな ねえちゃ．．．． いや、めがみさまでした。．．しかし。	When he opened it, a beautiful woman— no, a beautiful goddess came out. However...
よろこびも つかのま、めがみさまは とつぜん おそろしい モンスターに かわり、はこの なかからも たくさんの モンスターが あらわれました。	His joy was brief. The beautiful goddess suddenly transformed into a terrifying monster! Scores of other monsters also began popping out of the box!
そして、モンスターに おそわれた ひろしくんも．．．．．	And then, Hiroshi, being tormented by such a nightmare of monsters...
「うわ------っ！！」	"Ahhhh!!"
したから おかあさんが よんでいます。 「ひろしー、ちこくするわよ。」 どうやら、バリューやモンスターのことは ゆめ だったようです。よかったね、ひろしくん。	His mother was calling him from downstairs. "Hiroshi! You're going to be late!" It seems like both Varyū and the monsters were just a dream. What a relief!
「いってきまーす。」	"See ya later."
げんかんを でた ひろしくんを まって いたのは、ゆめの なかでみたバリュー でした。そして、しずかに ひろしくんに いいました。	The same Varyū that Hiroshi had seen in his dreams was waiting for him downstairs. He said to him quietly,
「よし、いくぞ。」	"Alright, let's go."

Staff Roll

The staff roll in the Japanese prototype is completely different from the American version. It is completely in hiragana text, and most of the names of the staff members reference famous horror icons, monsters, and characters.

Proto (Text)	Proto (Translation)	US
げーむでざいん あんでっど・はるな じょーじ・えー・かみや るちお・こばやし どらごん・なかしま	Game Design Undead Haruna George A. Kamiya Luchio Kobayashi Dragon Nakashima	GAME DESIGN CREAM HARUNA KAMIYANKEE DANDY KOBAYASHI DRAGON NAKASHIMA
ぷろぐらまーず ばき・かぺんたー あんでっど・はるな でもんず・とおる ぬりかべ・たろー	Programmers Baki Carpenter Undead Haruna Demons Tohru Nurikabe Taroh	PROGRAMMERS SOKIOSK CREAM HARUNA JAZZY TOHRU DESIRE TARO
ぐらふぃっくす どらごん・なかしま るちお・こばやし ぱずず・さいとう	Graphics Dragon Nakashima Luchio Kobayashi Pazuzu Saitoh	GRAPHICS DRAGON NAKASHIMA DANDY KOBAYASHI WOLF SAITOH
みゅーじっく ふれでぃ・みくも みすかまかす・はしもと	Music Freddie Mikumo Misukamakasu Hashimoto	MUSIC MIKUMONKY HASHIMOTORAVOLTA
ぷれぜんてっど ばい バンダイ しんせい	Presented by Bandai Shinsei	PRESENTED BY BANDAI SHINSEI

• "Undead Haruna" was changed to "Cream Haruna". This is an alias for Hiroshi Haruna.
• "George A. Kamiya" was changed to "Kamiyankee". The original is a reference to George A. Romero, the director of Night of the Living Dead.
• "Luchio Kobayashi" was changed to "Dandy Kobayashi". The original is a reference to Lucio Fulci, a famous Italian director known for his gory zombie movies.
• "Baki Carpenter" was changed to "Sokiosk". The original is a reference to John Carpenter, director of horror movies like Halloween, The Fog, Christine, and The Thing.
• "Demons Tohru" was changed to "Jazzy Tohru". This is an alias for Tohru Hayashi.
• "Nurikabe Taro" was changed to "Desire Taro". A nurikabe is a Japanese yokai that appears most often in media as a giant walking wall.
• "Pazuzu Saitoh" was changed to "Wolf Saitoh". Pazuzu is the main antagonist of The Exorcist and is the demon who possesses Regan.
• "Freddie Mikumo" was changed to "Mikumonky". The original is a reference to Freddy Krueger, the main antagonist of the A Nightmare on Elm Street series. It is only known that this developer's real first name begins with a "T", and their last name is Mikumo, based on several game credits.
• "Misukamakasu Hashimoto" was changed to "Hashimotoravolta". This is an alias for Masaki Hashimoto, and the original is also a reference to Misquamacus, the antagonist of the 1978 horror movie The Manitou.

Level Differences

Round 1

The music does not change after passing the giant cactus in the prototype.

Round 2

The dripping blood hazards present in the final version do not appear at all in this round. Their place in the ROM is instead taken by the shield from the powerups unused in both versions of the game.

Round 3

Proto	US

A flashing effect was added to the background in the US version.

Round 4

The moving blocks seen in the final are not present in the prototype.

Round 5

Proto	US

Although the water in the boss rooms is set up to use a palette animation, it's not actually implemented in the prototype yet.

Round 7

Proto	US

Floor 5's block layout was changed to give Jason, the Elephant Man, and most importantly, the player, room to drop down.

Proto	US

This floor's block layout no longer follows a simple pattern in the US version. Plus, the player can move down now.

Proto	US

Floor 9 was changed to, again, let Jason and the player have a space to fall. Note that in all of these layout changes, the pillars and curtains in the background no longer match the rest of the floors.

Round 8

The level was rearranged a bit in the US version. Instead of starting at the first screen, you start one screen to the right, with a firecracker enemy exploding on top of you. The building with the Giant Dragon boss was moved directly to the left of your starting point, requiring some rather tedious backtracking if you're not paying attention.

Boss Monsters and Rooms

General differences:

• Upon entering a boss room, Mark appears standing in the doorway on the left side of the screen, and the door remains open throughout the boss fight (though you can't actually leave until the boss is defeated). The US version places Mark closer to the center of the screen and closes the door until the boss is defeated.
• Bosses make the same sound as when Mark is reverting from Monster Mode when hit in the prototype. This was changed to a more "monstrous" sound in the US version.
• Defeating a boss in the prototype does not yield a question mark item as it does in the US version.
• The game briefly pauses and the boss music stops whenever a key is obtained. Pausing the game after the music stops causes part of the continue screen music to play.
• All of the references to movies and their associated characters were excised from the US version in order to avoid copyright issues, as documented below.
• Each round has a unique "empty boss room" message in the prototype.

Empty Room Text	Proto	Translation	Final
Round 1	は ず れ	Nothing!	EMPTY.
Round 2	はーずーれっ	Noothiiing!	EMPTY.
Round 3	す か	You lose.	EMPTY.
Round 4	だれも おりまへん	Ain't nobody here.	EMPTY!
Round 5	なんもなし	Nothin' here, either.	EMPTY!
Round 6	(none)		EMPTY!
Round 7	ざんねんでした またどうぞ	Too bad, there's nothing here. Better luck next time!	COME AGAIN.
Round 8	はずれです とっととでてください	This is the end. Please leave quickly.	EMPTY!

Round 1: Entrance to the Dark World

Audrey II/Man-Eating Plant

Proto	US

Japanese	English
＃タラッタ ♪タッ♪ターン	#Tralala~ ♪Lala♪la~~

The plant boss in the prototype is a parody of Audrey II from the film/musical Little Shop of Horrors. The room itself features a microphone and amp, the latter of which can be stood on. The US version altered the boss into a pitcher plant and removed the graphics for the sound equipment, resulting in an invisible platform where the amp once was. An extra spotlight above the boss was also removed.

Proto	US

The boss' design change was carried over to the title screen as well. Note that the original sprite had blood dripping from its mouth; the sprite palettes were not altered in the US version, resulting in a set of very red teeth for the Man-Eating Plant.

Proto	US

The three types of musical notes that the boss spits out in the prototype were replaced with bubbles in the US version.

Planet of the Apes/Pumpkin-Ghost

Proto	US

Japanese	English
つかまえろ！  どれいに   してくれるわ	Seize him! I will give you the honor of becoming my slave!

The Pumpkin-Ghost boss fight was originally a blatant parody of the film Planet of the Apes, complete with an ape riding horseback and a very cartoony version of the famous Statue of Liberty scene in the background. Graphical differences aside, the two bosses behave identically to each other, though you can crawl underneath the Pumpkin-Ghost boss without taking damage. The background graphics were completely erased in the US version, similar to the microphone and amp in the Audrey II/Man-Eating Plant room.

Proto	US

The boss' projectile was changed from a bullet to a cute li'l pumpkin head.

Round 2: Dark World Dungeon

Medusa

Proto	US

Japanese	English
あなたにあげるわ わたしのつちのこ   うふ ♥	I'm going to give you my tsuchinoko. Hee-hee! ♥

Medusa was changed from a humanoid form to a snake-like form, possibly because Nintendo objected to the player hitting a humanoid woman with a baseball bat.

Shrimp Attack

In the US version, you fight three different foods: a shrimp, an onion ring, and shish kebab. The prototype has only the shrimp implemented, though the other two foods are present on the title screen.

Round 3: Dark World Cave

Mummy/Guardian of the Giant Sphinx

Proto	US

Japanese	English
ちょっとまて、 あしがしびれた	One moment, my legs are asleep.

The mummy was changed into a transparent ghost and the background recolored blue in the US version. According to the manual, the boss is the "Guardian of the Giant Sphinx". It was probably changed to avoid any association with the 1932 film The Mummy, even though depictions of mummies themselves aren't exactly protected by copyright.

The Thing/Giant Spider

Proto	US

Japanese	English
へんしん！！ ぶーっーたーいー エ─ッ─ク─ス	Transform!! Form X!

The Giant Spider was originally a grotesque face with legs, a strong reference to John Carpenter's The Thing, considering a part of the Japanese title of the movie is spoken in its dialogue. The Japanese title of the movie is 「遊星からの物体X」 (lit. "Form X from the Wandering Planet").

Proto	US

The serifs were removed from the X projectiles in the US version.

Round 4: Dark World Castle Ruins

Mogwai/Giant Cat

Proto	US

Japanese	English
キャピピピピー グハグハグハ	Kyapipipipi- Guhaguhaguha

In the prototype, this boss is a Mogwai from the film Gremlins which transforms into, well, a Gremlin at the start of battle. This became the Giant Cat in the US version, although its projectiles were not changed.

Round 5: Dark World Lake

Living Dead

Proto	US

Japanese	English
おどりおーどる  なーああら	DANCE. JUMP.

The background was recolored in the US version. The number of zombies were also decreased from three to two, and they were moved out from in front of the tower.

The zombies also cannot be attacked in the prototype, and you cannot take damage from them. Attacking the zombies in the US version causes them to dissolve and reappear, resetting the amount of time needed to watch them dance.

Mad Javelin Man

Proto	US

Japanese	English
おこった　ぞー	I'm... angry.

The Mad Javelin Man's face changes at the start of the battle in the prototype. This was removed to avoid association with the similar daikaiju "Daimajin". His arms were also touched up a bit in the US version.

Round 6: Dark World Haunted House

Chameleon Man

Proto	US

In the prototype, there is only one face, which moves back and forth along the ground. The US version adds three more and has them flying around randomly instead. Additionally, the shadows in the background were extended, and the boss was given some dialogue.

Round 7: Dark World Tower

Alien/Grim Reaper

Proto	US

Japanese	English
クックックッ キシャーゴロゴロ	Heh heh heh. *crackle* *rumble rumble*

A huge, scary robot thing heavily resembling the Xenomorphs from the Alien movie series became the Grim Reaper in the US version. The facehuggers were also replaced with floating heads.

Unused Totem Pole Boss

Japanese	English
あたしは トーテムポール	I'm a totem pole!
さて、だれがしゃべって いるでしょう	Well then, who do you suppose is talking?

A totem pole boss was planned to be included in Round 7, but was cut for unknown reasons. The graphics, programming, room layout, and dialogue are still intact in the ROM, and can be seen by changing ROM address 0x9C6E from 91 to B3 and entering the potato bug's room. It notably speaks in a somewhat "girly" manner, most notably using "atashi".

The boss simply slides back and forth along the ground, and doesn't shoot anything. Although the sprite itself is rather tall, only the two bottom segments can actually hurt you, allowing you to safely jump over it. It's possible that the boss' programming was not finished before it was scrapped.

Three unused, differently-styled faces can be found alongside the used ones in the game's CHR.

(Source: BMF54123, Skrybe)

Giant Spider Redux

The US version adds another (rather lazy) boss to floor 13, a duplicate of the Giant Spider from Round 3, except with a "II" slapped on top. This took the place of the unused totem pole boss from the prototype.

Unfortunately, after adding the boss, the designers neglected to change the number of boss battles required to get the key from two to three. Since the code checks for exactly two bosses, you will lose the key if you fight all three! All you can do at this point is reset the game and try again.

Round 8: Dark World Heaven's Castle

Giant Dragon

Proto	US

Japanese	English
ぼうやー、よいこだ はやくねろ！	You're a good boy. Hurry and go to sleep!

The Giant Dragon starts off in a more interesting place in the US version, curled up in the eye socket in the background.

Snake Man

Proto	US

Japanese	English
ファラオののろいで あごが、のびるぜ	I'll stretch your chin out with my Pharaoh Curse!

The boss floats in the prototype, so the only way Mark can attack him is by jumping.

Final Round: Dark World Master

Proto
US

Japanese	English
よくもおれのなかまを やっつけてくれたな	How dare you finish off all of my friends!
おれをたおさねば もとのせかいに  もどることはできぬ	You cannot return to your world unless you defeat me.
かかってこい ここがおまえの      はかばだ	Come! This place shall be your grave!

• The final boss' dialogue box has no "tail" in the prototype (since the boss takes up the whole room, there isn't much of a point in indicating where the dialogue is coming from). In the US version, the boss apparently speaks with its left eye.
• The boss is missing the protective covering over its nose-eye in the prototype, so it can be defeated very quickly.
• The invulnerability period for the final boss is twice as long in the prototype.
• Mark's palette is glitched in the prototype, giving him blue skin.

Proto	US

• In the prototype, the screen freezes on the boss's flashing palette when it dies.

Boss Translations

While these bosses may not have underwent significant changes, they have something else to say most of the time.

Level 1

Dead Boss

Proto	US

Japanese	English
すみません もうしんでいます	I'm sorry, I'm already dead.

Dead things tell no tales no matter what language it's in. Torigaran speaks in an amusingly polite, formal manner.

Level 2

Shrimp Attack

Proto	US

Japanese	English
こ、これは、 まったりしていて、 それでいて しつこくなく・・・	Th-this has such rich flavor; and yet, it's not too rich either.

Fried jumbo shrimp to go. This boss is likely a pun on the The Fly, reinterpreted as "The Fry" since the word "fly" and "fry" are pronounced the same in Japanese (フライ).

Unlike the US version, it doesn't change forms when you beat its first form.

Haunted Well

Proto	US

Japanese	English
1まい. 2まい、、、 やっだ-ちゃんと 10まいあるしー	One plate, two plates... What!? There's exactly 10 plates.

This is a boss you can count on. This boss is a parody of Banchō Sarayashiki, a Japanese ghost story.

Level 3

Giant Bull Man

Proto	US

Japanese	English
もおーーーー イヤッ	Enooooough NO MORE!

They're still milking the pun for all it's worth. The text "もお" is also an onomatopoeia for a cow's moo. Unfortunately, it doesn't moo when hit like in the US version.

Level 4

Giant Samurai

Proto	US

Japanese	English
お、、、 おもい、 う、うごけないい.	So... heavy... can't m.. move...

He...is a slowpoke.

Punk Rocker

Proto	US

Japanese	English
ただいま ぜんこくツアー まっさいちゅう、 ヨロシク!!	Welcome! I'm in the middle of my cross-country tour. Nice 'ta meetcha!

He's much more of a nice guy in the Japanese version. Why would you want to hurt a nice celebrity? The English version changes this a bit.

Level 7

Giant Caterpillar

Proto	US

Japanese	English
イーモームーシ ゴーロゴロ	Cat-er-pil-lar *rumble rumble*

In the English version he's Royce. And he rolls. Get it?

The giant caterpillar idea may be inspired by Edogawa Ranpo's The Caterpillar, a story of a veteran badly injured in war. Another possibility is that it's an homage to famous horror manga artist Hideshi Hino's Bug Boy. It's about a strange child obsessed with caterpillars who transforms into a giant one himself in a bed that looks very similar to the one seen here. The last possibility is that it's a reference to Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis, a novelette where a travelling salesman wakes up one morning to find that he's a "terrible insect".

Level 8

Hand Creature

Proto	US

Japanese	English
おまえにこのけんが みきれるか	Are you able to see all of these rock-paper-scissors?

Let's give this guy a hand, folks!

Enemy Differences

Dracula

Proto	US

As per proper vampiric folklore, this vampire metamorphosed into a bat-like creature for the US version.

Elephant Man

Proto	US

One of the Elephant Man's eyes is visible through the mask in the US version.

Egg Projectiles

Proto	US

The eggs in Round 2 release Alien facehuggers in the prototype. These were changed to bubbles in the US version, although the eggs were left unchanged.

Jason

Proto	US

To mask (heh) this guy's resemblance to Jason Voorhees from the Friday the 13th series, his hockey mask was changed to an umpire mask. He also takes 48 hits to kill in the prototype, which was changed to just 8 in the US version. This may have been a joke about Jason being nigh-invulnerable in the movies.

Jiangshi

Proto	US

In the prototype, the ghosts were originally jiangshi, or Chinese hopping vampires. As Western players likely wouldn't know what these were, they were changed into a more familiar form, and their hopping behavior was replaced with a more ghostly back-and-forth floating.

Music

To do: Cover the credits

Game Over

Proto	US

The latter half of the Game Over song was recomposed to be more energetic (read: Faster notes, and more of 'em).

Ending

Proto	US

The lead instrument in the first part of the demon princess track is louder and more intense in the US version. The second part of the track also has an extra layer of sound in the US version.

Cheat

A cheat that was disabled in the final version is intact in the prototype: Before the Round 1 title card appears, hold Up + Down + Left + Right + A + B on Controllers 1 and 2, the easiest way being to hold Up + Left + A + B on the former and Down + Right on the latter. It greatly increases the time Mark spends in Monster Mode during his first transformation.

(All translations: Bast)