Well, Phantasy Star Universe was announced at least 2 years ago if I'm correct. Finally, it's close to being released. The game is set to be released October 24 this year, for all versions.
Here are some trailers.
Trailer, it has an annoying pop song, but shows some of the characters you'll meet in offline/1-player mode
A bunch of different trailers
Now, let's go through some of the improvements that have been shown/promised.
1. Graphics of course, these graphics are great! The first two Phantasy Star games were simply imported from the Dreamcast which explains the lackluster graphics.
2. 1-player/offline mode will be MUCH longer. 60+ hours of gameplay just for offline action. That's a lot, in fact, some people are saying that's too much for a game like this.
3. Combat, the combat is going to be a lot smoother as you can see from these trailers. Also, dual-wielding is now available.
As for the 1-player mode, you play as Ethan(brown-haired kid). The other playable characters are people who can join your party, your party can be up to 6 people at one time.
Gameplay Additions
Races
First of all, there are no more "classes". It may not be a bad thing though, each race has certain strengths this time around. Some of the races have been renamed, so bear with me here.
Humans Basically the same as PSO, the most well-balanced race. They specialize in close-combat but can now use a gun and a sword at the same time if you want them to. Basically a Hunter and a Ranger combined in one. Can also use a little bit of magic, not really strong in one department.
Newhumans Specialize in magic use. That's pretty much it...
CASTS The robot guys! Basically a human except they can't use magic
and are a little bit stronger.
Beasts An all-new race just recently introduced. Specialize in close-combat too, but have lower accuracy with stronger killing moves. Much stronger killing moves, plus they look cool(depending on how you make them) which is a plus.
Other things to do other than party
SEGA recently announced that you'll now have a home in-game, along with a Partner Machine. Imagine them as MAGS(little machines who fly along with you on your adventures and give you stat boosts), but with a bigger impact. They don't follow you right away, but eventually do as they level up.
Also, they added a bunch of weird stuff too. By weird, I mean cafes and dance clubs. Oh yeah, vehicles are there too.
Your room
PMs, basically MAGS, are there to store some of your items, weapons, money, etc. Eventually go on missions with you once it levels up enough.
You can also sell stuff, which'll be a big aspect of the game when searching for items or finding them to create things.
The creepy thing is, anyone can go into your room at anytime, even when you're offline, which is incredibly creepy.
Online
Obviously, it wouldn't be a sequel Phantasy Star Online if it wasn't online. No one really cared when it was rereleased on the Cube, Xbox and the PS2, but it made a HUGE impact on online gaming when it was originally released on the Dreamcast. One of the greatest Dreamcast game, and that's saying something. It was recently released in Japan,(we don't get nice things as soon as they do)and there have been problems with the online play. They've added a new server which has helped the problem, hopefully it'll go smoothly when it's released here in the US.
This game looks like it's going to be massively delicious.
Here are some trailers.
Trailer, it has an annoying pop song, but shows some of the characters you'll meet in offline/1-player mode
A bunch of different trailers
Now, let's go through some of the improvements that have been shown/promised.
1. Graphics of course, these graphics are great! The first two Phantasy Star games were simply imported from the Dreamcast which explains the lackluster graphics.
2. 1-player/offline mode will be MUCH longer. 60+ hours of gameplay just for offline action. That's a lot, in fact, some people are saying that's too much for a game like this.
3. Combat, the combat is going to be a lot smoother as you can see from these trailers. Also, dual-wielding is now available.
As for the 1-player mode, you play as Ethan(brown-haired kid). The other playable characters are people who can join your party, your party can be up to 6 people at one time.
Gameplay Additions
Races
First of all, there are no more "classes". It may not be a bad thing though, each race has certain strengths this time around. Some of the races have been renamed, so bear with me here.
Humans Basically the same as PSO, the most well-balanced race. They specialize in close-combat but can now use a gun and a sword at the same time if you want them to. Basically a Hunter and a Ranger combined in one. Can also use a little bit of magic, not really strong in one department.
Newhumans Specialize in magic use. That's pretty much it...
CASTS The robot guys! Basically a human except they can't use magic
and are a little bit stronger.
Beasts An all-new race just recently introduced. Specialize in close-combat too, but have lower accuracy with stronger killing moves. Much stronger killing moves, plus they look cool(depending on how you make them) which is a plus.
Other things to do other than party
SEGA recently announced that you'll now have a home in-game, along with a Partner Machine. Imagine them as MAGS(little machines who fly along with you on your adventures and give you stat boosts), but with a bigger impact. They don't follow you right away, but eventually do as they level up.
Also, they added a bunch of weird stuff too. By weird, I mean cafes and dance clubs. Oh yeah, vehicles are there too.
Your room
PMs, basically MAGS, are there to store some of your items, weapons, money, etc. Eventually go on missions with you once it levels up enough.
You can also sell stuff, which'll be a big aspect of the game when searching for items or finding them to create things.
The creepy thing is, anyone can go into your room at anytime, even when you're offline, which is incredibly creepy.
Online
Obviously, it wouldn't be a sequel Phantasy Star Online if it wasn't online. No one really cared when it was rereleased on the Cube, Xbox and the PS2, but it made a HUGE impact on online gaming when it was originally released on the Dreamcast. One of the greatest Dreamcast game, and that's saying something. It was recently released in Japan,(we don't get nice things as soon as they do)and there have been problems with the online play. They've added a new server which has helped the problem, hopefully it'll go smoothly when it's released here in the US.
This game looks like it's going to be massively delicious.
