Phantasy Star Online

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Phantasy Star Online
File:Pso cover.jpg
Developer(s)Sonic Team
Publisher(s)Sega
Platform(s)Dreamcast, PC, Gamecube, Xbox
Release2000 (Japan), 2001 (North America, Europe)
Genre(s)Online Hack and slash RPG
Mode(s)Multiplayer, Singleplayer

Phantasy Star Online (PSO), released in 2000, was an online title for Sega Dreamcast. A bugfix/upgrade edition was released the following year, entitled Phantasy Star Online Ver. 2. This version was also later ported to Microsoft Windows, but this version was only released in Asia. Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II was later released for Nintendo GameCube, and Xbox. In turn, this version got ported to Microsoft Windows too, with enhanced graphics and server-side saving of save data, as Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst. Phantasy Star Online Episode III was later released with a changed gameplay formula.

The Phantasy Star Online titles are a sub-series of Sega's Phantasy Star series of games that began in 1987. The PSO games themselves are simple hack and slash type role-playing games where the player slays monsters, levels up, buys new equipment, etc. Episodes I and II differ from the previous games of the series by offering a real-time -- rather than turn-based -- approach to combat and seamlessly integrating this with the exploration/plot development aspects of the game. Episode III reverted back to a turn-based combat system.

Game story

Unlike the rest of the Phantasy Star series, PSO's prologue starts on the planet of Coral. Coral was becoming unsuitable for life, so a pair of colony ships, Pioneer 1 and Pioneer 2, were sent to the planet Ragol, thought to be uninhabited by intelligent life, to colonize it. Pioneer 1 reached Ragol safely, and constructed a colony there. But when Pioneer 2 arrived seven years later, a sudden explosion engulfed the Pioneer 1 colony as they attempted to communicate. The Player(s) take the role of Hunters, mercenaries/bounty hunters/troubleshooters sent down to the source to determine the cause of the explosion, and find any survivors.

Episode III takes place twenty-one years after Episodes I and II. Pioneer 2 is still orbiting Ragol, its people still not yet allowed to come down to their new home. A new technology called C.A.R.D. Techonology has been developed, and is being tested by a group of Hunters under the C.A.R.D. Lab. Meanwhile, a group of Hunters and other citizens have become dissatisfied with the actions of the Principal Government, which they have come to see as corrupt. They have fled down to the planet's surface, and formed the Arkz, an Eco-terrorist-like group that seeks to expose the government's corruption, and keep them from overdeveloping the planet for their own gain.

Episode IV, released as part of Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst, involves a meteor that was detected and predicted to miss both Pioneer 2 and Ragol, but a burst of light from the planet caused the meteor to instead narrowly miss the ship (but still partly damaging it with fractions) and impact on the planet surface. The Principal then sends Hunters to investigate the resulting crater.

Character classes/races

Phantasy Star Online has three character races, and three Character Classes. This combination of race, class and sex are used to initially identify their character, and provide a template for their appearance.

Races

  • Humans -- As normal for most RPG's, Humans have no real advantage or disadvantages. Well balanced and can be any class.
  • Newmans -- Newmans are genetically-engineered people created in the MOTHER Project by the two genius scientists Professor Osto Hyle and Professor Jean-Carlo Montague. They're not that physically strong, but are good with Techniques (magic). Newmans can be Hunters or Forces. Newmans will regain lost Technique Points (TP) while standing still (Episode I & II only). Based on the "Numan" Characters Nei and Rika from the original games.
  • Androids (Humanoids In Episode III) -- Intelligent robots with a human-like design created in the MOTHER Project by the two genius scientists Professor Osto Hyle and Professor Jean-Carlo Montague. Physically powerful, and immune to most status ailments(poison, paralysis, etc...), but cannot use Techniques at all. Can be HUnters or RAngers. Androids are always aware of nearby traps and can even set their own. Health Points (HP) recover while standing still (Episode I & II only).

Classes

  • Hunters -- While all the classes can collectively be called "Hunters", in this case, it means a focus on melee attacks. Hunters are excellent close-range, and can generally take a hit while in the thick of things. Can use Sabers, Daggers, Swords, Partisans, Slicers, Handguns, and Mechguns.
  • Rangers -- Rangers are hunters with an emphasis on ranged combat. Because they are not as strong or tough as Hunters, Rangers should fight from a distance. Can use Sabers, Slicers, Handguns, Mechguns, Rifles, and Shots. Since Episode I & II, they can also use Partisans.
  • Forces -- The spellcasters of the game. Like most Spellcasters, they're not very good up close. Can use Sabers, Slicers, Handguns, Mechguns, Canes, Rods, Cards, and Wands.

Available combinations

A character's true class is a name symbolizing their race, class, and sex:

  • HUmar -- Hunter, Male Human
  • HUnewearl -- Hunter, Female Newman
  • HUcast -- Hunter, Male Android
  • HUcaseal -- Hunter, Female Android (*)
  • RAmar -- Ranger, Male Human
  • RAmarl -- Ranger, Female Human (*)
  • RAcast -- Ranger, Male Android
  • RAcaseal -- Ranger, Female Android
  • FOmar -- Force, Male Human (*)
  • FOmarl -- Force, Female Human
  • FOnewm -- Force, Male Newman
  • FOnewearl -- Force, Female Newman

(*) These three classes did not exist until Episode I & II for GameCube.

The pivotal plot character, Red Ring Rico, would be a 13th class, HUmarl (Hunter, Female Human), were she playable. A cheat code does exist to play as her, however. In addition, there were a few combinations that were not added to the final version of the game due to time constraints.

Communication system

Communication between players is achieved via a combination of direct 2-line text entry, Symbol Chat and Word Select. As PSO online servers support international co-operative play, the Symbol Chat and Word Select features encouraged players to attempt communication with others, regardless of language.

Symbol Chat allows the player to define a collection of symbols within a speech bubble, in order to convey an emotion or simple instruction. These symbols could then be invoked via a player-defined shortcut, or accessed via an in-game menu.

Word Select acts as a limited phrasebook, allowing sentences to be constructed through a hierarchy of menus. Once complete, a sentence is automatically translated into the configured language of other nearby players, thus bridging the language gap encountered in cross-cultural multiplayer games. (Word Select was removed in Phantasy Star Online Blue Burst)

Keyboard users can also trigger a number of gesture during chats in the online lobby.

The Xbox version (Episodes I & II) also allows voice communication with the Xbox Live headset.

Modes of play

The first two episodes of PSO (excluding the original Dreamcast version prior to the Ver.2 revision disc) offered the following game modes:

  • Story mode

This is the plot-driven bulk of the game, in which a player or group of players fight through a number of levels spread over four distinct areas. Each area has a boss at the end. Upon defeating the final boss, the credits roll and in some cases, an extra feature will be unlocked.

In addition to the main story, players can also take Hunter's Guild sidequest, which explore the lives of Pioneer 2's citizens, and further delves into the backstory behind the game. The rewards for these sidequests are the Meseta for the job, the chance to explore the stories behind Pioneer 2 and meet some interesting NPC, the opportunity to get special weapons that can't be found anywhere else, and of course, whatever weapons, experience, and Meseta you can get while fighting on these missions.

  • Challenge mode

Challenge mode sets all participants to a set level with set equipment when beginning (this is temporary and does not alter other important data in any way), and requires the team to reach a predefined point in a series of specially-designed levels that are different versions of areas seen mid-game, but have their appearance drastically changed. This includes laser barriers, buttons, and so on, and sometimes strategically placed enemies/types of enemies. Players may only die once (unless given a spare Scape Doll by another team member), so teamwork is encouraged; if one player is disqualified, the entire team also fails the challenge.

  • Battle mode

This is a deathmatch mode. In this mode, players are permitted to attack each other. A team may play the normal game while able to attack allies (as well as monsters) to create their rules, or they may play one of several predefined sets of battle rules.

Offline vs online play

Despite the 'online' in the title, all games in the Phantasy Star Online series except Blue Burst may be played offline, allowing the player to develop their character between online sessions. Some versions (PSO Episodes I&II) also support split-screen offline multiplayer modes, but these suffer badly from reduced draw-distances, awkward cameras and visible greediness (online, it was not possible to tell if someone was being greedy, but it is offline). However, the Xbox version of PSO Ep. I&II requires the user to have an active XBox Live Silver account to play the game, both online and offline. Also all versions besides 'Blue Burst' are bug ridden with many player harmful codes making online play less enjoyable.

It should be noted that the Sega Dreamcast version of the game was susceptible to cheats from the U.K. Xploder Dreamcast cheat disc, which operated similarly to the more famous Pro Action Replay, but without the latter's American legal constraints. Codes provided with the Xploder included instant lvl. 99, instant lvl. 200 MAG of your choice, max out "time played" (which was rumored to affect probability of finding certain items), and infinite Meseta.

Episode III

A third chapter in the PSO saga, Phantasy Star Online Episode III: C.A.R.D. Revolution was released for the Nintendo GameCube. The battle system in this episode differs from that of first two episodes, and reverts to the traditional turn-based battles common in games such as the Final Fantasy series and originally popularized as a major video game genre by Dragon Quest. However, the turn-based battles are presented in the form of a dice/trading card game similar to Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game or the Pokémon trading card game, crossed with a strategy RPG like Shining Force.

Episode III includes the same items and monsters of episodes I and II but features an all-new cast of characters: one of each of the twelve classes for the two opposing sides of the game.

Also distinctly different is that the offline gameplay mode presents a tangible storyline. Continuing 21 years after the events of Episodes I & II, the plot picks up at the beginning of a revolution, hence the name C.A.R.D. Revolution, of a rebel organization called the Arkz (referred to in-game as Darkside). They claim to fight against the Principal Government's corrupt, oppressive treatment of the people onboard their immigration ship Pioneer 2, utilizing Compressed Alternate Reality Device technology (C.A.R.D.s) stolen from the government. In addition, they intend to stop the rampant overdevelopment of the planet Ragol and often interfere with government construction, research, and development teams. On the other side, the Government hires Hunters (referred to in-game as Heroside) to counter the renegade faction's activities and does not mention at all the legitimacy and ethics of their pursuits.

Episode IV

Episode IV was exclusively designed for PSO: Blue Burst, only available on the Windows operating system.

Episode IV features unseen enemies to those that have only played Episode I, II and III. Including with the new monsters came with new maps and items.

The new maps include Crater, Crater Interior and Subterranean Desert.

Episode IV is notable for being significantly more difficult than the other chapters of the Phantasy Star Online game.

Version list

Version Platform Release Date
Phantasy Star Online Network Trial Edition Sega Dreamcast Q3 2000 (Japan)
Phantasy Star Online Sega Dreamcast 21 November 2000 (Japan)

29 January 2001 (North America)

23 February 2001 (Europe)

Phantasy Star Online Ver. 2 Sega Dreamcast 6 July 2001 (Japan)

24 September 2001 (North America)

1 March 2002 (Europe)

Phantasy Star Online Beta Microsoft Windows Q4 2001 (Japan)
Phantasy Star Online Microsoft Windows 20 December 2001 (Japan)

2002 (Asia)

Phantasy Star Online Demo Microsoft Windows 20 December 2001 (Japan)

January 2002 (UK)1

Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II Trial Edition Nintendo Gamecube May 2002 (Japan)
Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II (ver 1.0) Nintendo Gamecube 12 September 2002 (Japan)2
Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II (ver 1.1) Nintendo Gamecube 29 October 2002 (North America)

November 2002 (Japan)2

7 March 2003 (Europe)

Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II Microsoft xbox Q1 2003 (Japan)

15 April 2003 (North America)

23 May 2003 (Europe)

Phantasy Star Online Episode III C.A.R.D. Revolution Trial Edition Nintendo GameCube June 24 2003 (Japan)
Phantasy Star Online Episode III C.A.R.D. Revolution Nintendo GameCube 27 November 2003 (Japan)

2 March 2004 (North America)

18 June 2004 (Europe) 3

Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II Plus Nintendo Gamecube 27 November 2003 (Japan)

15 September 2004 (North America)

Personal Phantasy Star Online Server 4 Microsoft Windows

Sega Dreamcast

17 December 2003 (Worldwide)
Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst Beta Microsoft Windows 21 May 2003 (Japan)

10 May 2004 (North America/Europe)

Phantasy Star Online: Blue Burst Microsoft Windows 15 July 2004 (Japan)

23 June 2005 (North America/Europe)

Phantasy Star Online: Episode IV Beta 5 Microsoft Windows November 2004 (Japan)
Phantasy Star Online: Episode IV 5 Microsoft Windows Q1 2005 (Japan)

1 Demo included on January Issue of PC Gamer (UK)

2 Contained a serious item duplication bug, fixed in ver 1.1 in Japan, and discovered before the North American and European versions were mastered.

3 The GAME retail group had an exclusive deal, allowing them to distrbuite the game from the 11 June 2004

4 Homebrew server for PSO on Dreamcast and Microsoft Windows. More Info

5 Episode IV expansion pack included with the North American and European versions of Blue Burst

Server Shutdown Dates

Phantasy Star Online Episode III C.A.R.D. Revolution Trial Edition - 15 September 2003
Phantasy Star Online/Phantasy Star Online ver. 2 (North America) - 1 October 2003
Phantasy Star Online (Microsoft Windows) - January 2004

Third Party Code Error

Phantasy Star Online for Gamecube connects to the server by first resolving the address through a DNS server. By using a third party DNS server, it is possible to setup a program that will send code to have the gamecube reboot and load code streaming from the network adapter. For a long time, this was the only way to load up third party code. It is now possible to just use a modchip.

See also

External links


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