Phantasy Star Universe: Online for Playstation 2/PC Winter

Post by **Popcorn** » Mon Mar 21, 2005 8:29 pm

http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.off ... Id=3138974

Well, turns out it's PS2-only after all. What a bummer.

CM August · Post by **CM August** » Mon Mar 21, 2005 8:46 pm

Dache wrote:

I'm going to have nightmares about this, i'm sure.

Double-S- · Post by **Double-S-** » Mon Mar 21, 2005 8:48 pm

Yeah, EGM's the one who asked the question, and Naka just said it was interesting.

Omni Hunter · Post by **Omni Hunter** » Tue Mar 22, 2005 7:48 pm

Just... interesting!?

Double-S- · Post by **Double-S-** » Wed Mar 23, 2005 12:33 am

So, don't know if anyone's noticed this, but the PSU website had an "update". Or more like an announcement of an upcoming update.

http://phantasystaruniverse.com/

Radrappy · Post by **Radrappy** » Wed Mar 23, 2005 11:07 pm

there are screens of actual in game engine action at the Magic-Box. I have to say I'm sold. It looks incredible.

CE · Post by CE » Thu Mar 24, 2005 10:00 am

It looks like an off-colored Pokeball. But what is it really?

Baba O'Reily · Post by **Baba O'Reily** » Thu Mar 24, 2005 3:12 pm

Perhaps a Jell-O mold gone horribly wrong?

Post by **Popcorn** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 2:19 pm

We finally have some new Phantasy Star Universe information from some magazine written in crazy Japanese nonsense-words. The images can be viewed here:

http://www.uploda.org/file/uporg63910.jpg
http://www.uploda.org/file/uporg63908.jpg

Post by **Popcorn** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 2:25 pm

Here's some specific tidbits for offline, as requested by someone in my EGM rumors thread:

Offline - 40-hour quest. It's a linear story, but you can explore the world as you please. It has everything you'd expect from an actual RPG -- huge towns, more than 20 dungeons, more than 15 bosses. You can have up to three members in your party, and while you don't directly control them, you can assign them commands. The single-player mode will have cutscenes, dialogue, an in-depth story, character development, etc., etc. Some people will have to join you for missions, but when you just want to explore and build levels, you can apparently select anyone to go with you. By the end of the game, you'll end up exploring three planets. It starts on the hume world, Parum, which gets attacked by weird aliens. You visit Neudaiz, a water world of "newman people," and Motwob, the planet of the beast people - desert planet. THe main character's name is Ethan Waber. He decides to fight because his sister gets attacked. Gameplay remains relatively similar to PSO, but there will be more puzzles and stuff in dungeons -- and not just flipping switches.

Okay, online:

No longer jobs, just character races. Each of the four races has its own strengths, but you can develop them as you see fit. For example, casts are the best with guns, but that doesn't mean you can't build up their other characteristics and make them good magicians. Character customization is apparently incredibly improved. You can change colors of lips, eyebrows, eyes, hair, clothes, shoes, you can mold faces and bodies, create large or small breasts, make them firm or jiggly. That's an example the lead artist gives. HDD is NOT supported, because Sony pulled the support. It looks substantially better on the PC, and EGM recommends that version. Voice chat, regardless, has not been confirmed, for either platform.

Combat remains relatively similar to PSO, but there are differences, There are six-hit combo strings now, but you insert custom technique attacks into the combos to change them up. Strafing has been adding, and button-timing is supposed to be quick, for combat. Like John said, the number of party members is much higher, but Sega hasn't revealed how many it will be yet. Characters can dual wield different weapons now, so a gunner can have a short range gun and a long-range one equipped at the same time. Mags are gone, robot partners are in. Downloadable content will be more frequent and more substantial.

Stiffy.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 2:55 pm

I want to see the boobies.

Baba O'Reily · Post by **Baba O'Reily** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 3:27 pm

Full on boob customization?
Could life get any better?
I submit that it cannot.

Radrappy · Post by **Radrappy** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 3:35 pm

are these screens from the ps2 version or PC version then?

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 3:52 pm

I wonder if there will be any male characters roaming around?

It presents me with kind of a difficult decision, though. Of course I'll want the best version of the game I can get, but my PC probably can't handle it, certainly not at its best spec, to say nothing of the fact that there exists an emotional barrier between me and my PC that prevents me from playing games properly on it. But there's no way I can stomach the PS2 version with the knowledge that there is a far superior version available.

All I can do is hope against odds that I'll have a decent enough job by that time to afford a PC upgrade.

Post by **Popcorn** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 4:09 pm

Green Gibbon! wrote:I wonder if there will be any male characters roaming around?

It presents me with kind of a difficult decision, though. Of course I'll want the best version of the game I can get, but my PC probably can't handle it, certainly not at its best spec, to say nothing of the fact that there exists an emotional barrier between me and my PC that prevents me from playing games properly on it. But there's no way I can stomach the PS2 version with the knowledge that there is a far superior version available.

All I can do is hope against odds that I'll have a decent enough job by that time to afford a PC upgrade.

To quote myself from an older thread: Playing console games on PCs creates some kind of spiritual barrier between me and the game and I tend to lose interest within an hour.

Unless the game is specifically designed with the PC in mind, I generally won't get on with it. HL2 is the only PC game I've properly played in the last five years or so. I'm really torn over this format war, too.

Rlan · Post by **Rlan** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 4:28 pm

I think it's from the same magazine, or a new one, not sure.

Radrappy · Post by **Radrappy** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 6:00 pm

the difference cant be THAT great can it??

Opa-Opa · Post by **Opa-Opa** » Fri Mar 25, 2005 7:38 pm

I guess it can.

Professor Machenstein · Fri Mar 25, 2005 7:42 pm

Yar, the game shimers like precious booty. It looks at good as the new Zelda game, but sci-fi and on Playstation 2. I guess I'll have to get a PS2 just to try it. That, and the new Fantasy Zone remake on SEGA Classics Collection.

Protodude · Post by **Protodude** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 3:00 pm

Oh, I got the Classics Collection yesterday. I didn't really like Fantasy Zone. Or most of the other stuff, either.

Post by **Green Gibbon!** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 3:30 pm

What's the deal with the Sega Ages stuff, anyway? I haven't heard a single good thing about any of them. Aren't they basically supposed to be the exact same games with updated graphics? (The whole notion of which I find rather absurd, but.)

Protodude · Post by **Protodude** » Sat Mar 26, 2005 5:23 pm

Well, some are just updated, like Outrunner, but others are kind of...remade. I've played the original Outrunner, but other than that I'm not really familiar with the other games on the collection, so I can't say if they stay true to their original versions or not.

Opa-Opa · Post by **Opa-Opa** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 12:55 am

Yeah... I'll have to get a PS2 to try the new Fantasy Zone too, and the Phantasy Star remakes...

I guess Fantasy Zone is one of those games that was kind of remade. Actually, the only main difference I found on the screenshots was the boss battle, which is now in Space Harrier-like 3D. I believe it's kind of a homage to the unreleased Space Fantasy Zone for the PCEngine...

Omni Hunter · Post by **Omni Hunter** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 9:05 am

I'm looking forward for the new Phantasy Star 2. Thank fuck they didn't remake 3, I hated the auto-fight music and the enemy sprites, heck, I couldn't even tell that the Killer Moose was a Moose and not a strange brown blob. 4 is my biggest anticipation so far though.

Baba O'Reily · Post by **Baba O'Reily** » Tue Mar 29, 2005 11:30 am

My dad was hugely into the original Phantasy Star...
He could play up to 8 hours at a time.