Phantasy Star Online


Phinally online phor everyone!


Sega, in all its genius, decided to take its classic RPG series which had been out of action since Phantasy Star IV and make a new game out of it. Taking various plot and visual cues from all 4 games as well as some of the Japan only gamegear games this game took the PS series not only into space, but online! Like a rabid mob, Dreamcast owners who actually had the bright idea of taking their systems online got to enjoy something no console had offered before, an online RPG. To say it was popular was an understatement, To call it successful would be selling it short, To say I regret not paying for a phonejack so I could take my DC online is obviously true. All sorts of things new to DC owners like chat and Party adventures, etc. were possible and with the addition of PSO 2.0 there were tons of new things added, unfortunately... it wasn't free anymore. A credit card is now required for online play. Fortunately, there's also an offline game on either version of PSO where you go through both a main story where you explore all 4 main areas of Ragol and the Hunter's Guild jobs which provide more background on the story and offer a number of interesting side quests. And let's not forget the fun of designing your character!!! With choices of races, classes and various styles of heads, hair, face, color, etc. you are able to create a character suited almost entirely to your preferences. My viewpoint is from that of a HuCast Hunter, so in my case I've got access to all sorts of melee weapons and handguns, but the drawback is that I cannot use poles, rifles or any other weapon intended for either Force or Ranger classes. The other drawback for being an android is that I cannot use techniques (basically spells), but on the bright side I can see traps other classes cannot, my speed and attacks are hard for a ranger or Force to match and being an android the only status ailment that hits me is paralysis. So it balances out. Having to make decisions like that is sort of a pain, but it adds a lot of depth to the game. But is this game, no matter how deep, worth getting for you? Read on.

Why it sucks: After playing this for awhile I crave to hear someone's voice. I guess beause I'm so used to hearing voice-overs and such because when you're in town there's NOBODY talking out loud, in fact there's very few people hanging around. ^_^; Scary. Then again, according to the story the TOWN is actually a stupidly massive spaceship filled with refugees. Yowza! And this shows when you walk around and see the beatiful detail off in the distance and see the blinking towers, freeways and even nearby as police cars blast by with lights flashing, sirens blaring... but you never get to see these incredible sights up close. You only have access to the hospital, bank (check room), Hunter's Guild, Principal's Office, Marketplace with Tekker, Weapons, Items and Armor shops and the teleporter room. As much as I love stomping around lush alien worlds forever, I'd like more encounters with people and more man-made structures. Basically, if you don't go online you don't get to see the other structure which is the lobby. An often crowded place with varying amounts of gamers anxious to chat, explore or play around in the lobby (playing games on PSO 2.0). Again, this is ONLY available online and you have to pay in order to use it now (which is reasonable because Sega sure ain't selling Dreamcasts anymore).
In a more game related annoyance, it can be wayyy too easy to get surrounded and for those new to the game should be prepared for tons of death. Getting used to the camera controls are difficult, getting accustomed to aiming is also a chore and assuming your class doesn't suit you, it's going to be tons of fun watching yourself die repeatedly. Another problem is that when you go online with your pathetic Level 15 character, you should be prepared to endure tons of scorn from people at say Level 70 and up (all the way to 200 in PSO 2.0). Being green doesn't help except to mingle and pleading for help in the lobby doesn't really make you look any better. I got dragged into "Nightmare LV3", a mission which is basically to exterminate everything you see and yields fantastic amounts of experience while at the same time killing your worthless butt repeatedly. Ouch.
To sum up the cons, unless you're willing to pay to go online with your DC (assuming you have one) and pay the added fee it costs to play PSO... You'll be stuck with a long and fairly boring main game coupled with some side jobs which range from "okay", to "fun", to "mommy make the bad man stop". Playing solo, the game becomes awfully lonely and considering all the whack jobs there are online it can be just as bad when you go online.

Why it rules: As a longtime PS fan, I have to say I'm simply giddy that this came out. Numans, androids and all sorts of nostalgic stuff dot the entire game all the way up to the final boss. The entire game has some just incredible esthetics. While somewhat gaudy, the neon EVERYTHING does lend a great deal of "sci-fi" atmosphere to the ship and the incredible looking environments like the lush forests, the fiery caves, the mechanical mines and the dark, forboding ruins. Each environment has a great soundtrack backing it up and making for awesome mood music which will change when you enter battle. The fun of choosing your class makes for more than a little replay value since you can create a character based on your whim and save one character per VMU. Then there's the awesome fun of taking your character online! That's more than half the fun of have the internet on your DC! Going on a quest is a lot of fun since you're teamed with living, breathing people who you can coverse with, but if you don't have a keyboard talking to people takes forever. Then there's the fun of interacting with others in the lobby and all the totally sweet interactive things to do like the 2-player deathmatches and the silly ball game as well as the new level (which is only available online). The sci-fi theme is a relief from the usual swords and dragons fare of typical online PC games and has a rich legacy of the PS series to fall back on.

Overall: While there's plenty out there online these days with X-box live and PS2 online, it's good to know Sega has kept this gem of a game going even though Dreamcasts are no longer being produced. It's a very different kind of game that's definately not for everyone and it's not always fun playing with other people, especially those who manage to get their gameshark on and kill other players and take their stuff. ^_^; And then there are those who seem to live only to test Sega's "swearing" filter. So bloody annoying. >_< I like the game enough to want to take this thing online and hopefully download some extra Hunter's quests, but until you do there's the seriously LONELY main game where you must venture alone through Ragol all the way to the stupidly huge final boss which requires a substantially higher level than I currently have. In many ways, one of th ebest reasons to own a dreamcast while at the same time being a deterrent to those who avoid online games. I've hesitated mostly because I don't like using the phone line to go online since I've got cable internet in my home. I may do this eventually because I like the game that much, but watch out~! Unlike in the beginning there's fees to be paid now which require a credit card. >_< Ewwww. In the end, love it or hate it, It's Phinally online.