IGNcube, current home of former N-Sider staffer and good friend Mary Jane Erwin, recently had the opportunity to speak with Yojira Ogawa, Director of Sega's Sonic Team. In the interview, Mr. Ogawa discusses the team's newest game, Phantasy Star Online Episode III: C.A.R.D. Revolution. The game is currently slated to release March 02, 2004 for the GameCube.
The following are a few highlights from the interview:
Q: Is there any particular reason why Phantasy Star Online Episode III is currently only appearing on GameCube? Is it because you like the hardware or do you think GameCube has the largest PSO fan base? Are there any plans to port it to the Xbox, PC, or PS2?
Yojira Ogawa: We have not announced plans to bring the PS series to other platforms, but I can't tell what will happen in the future. Certainly it is easy to create a title for GameCube, but Xbox also has the same level of hardware performance and has made it easy to create content for, too. Perhaps we should port Episode I&II to PS2 if we ever decide to do so. Not that we are planning that!
Q: Why do you continue to support GameCube online when no one else does? How do you think PSO Episode III will perform online in the United States compared to Japan since the broadband adapter isn't widely available here?
Yojira Ogawa: There are users who purchased the broadband adapter just for Episode I&II, so it would become a waste if we don't release at least one more sequel in order for them to take advantage of it. (smiling) It is truly sad that broadband adapter is not more readily available. Although we created the game so that it can also be enjoyed in the offline mode, I believe players will feel a bit of culture shock to see the amount of online events and the number of human opponents they can challenge online if they jump onto the network. I want players to get their hands on a broadband adapter anyway they can and go onto the net. I am optimistic that Episode III will sell well because Episode I & II still continues to sell in the US and I continue to receive information that additional broadband adapter units will become available in the US.
To read the full interview, follow the link below.
Source: IGNcube