2000-2002 Sonic Team / SEGA
During a time of neo-apocalypse; a brave world is forced to leave its dying planet and search the galaxy for a new place to call home. Two passenger ships embark on the journey throughout the cosmos with the hope of survival. The first passenger ship, Pioneer 1, suddenly loses contact with Pioneer 2. The distress signal leads Pioneer 2 to a new planet inhabited by several types of mysterious creatures. As an officer aboard the Pioneer 2 ship, it is your job to investigate the new planet and eliminate all menacing threats as you search for Pioneer 1 and attempt to make this savage land your new home.
Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II is a compilation disc featuring the original Dreamcast Phantasy Star Online versions under Episode I, and a new GameCube adventure under the subtitle Episode II.
Features
- Phantasy Star Online: Prequel and Sequel in one disc.
- GameCube Online Support: 56k Modem : Ethernet Adapter
- Multiplayer RPG action over a worldwide network. Play with people from America, Japan, and Europe!
- Collaborate with other players to slay monsters and achieve goals in a real-time battle system.
- Advanced chat feature allows conversation without language barriers.
- Swatch's BEAT system unites the world with a single time zone.
- Co-operative Multiplayer
- Battle Mode Multiplayer
- Mini Games like Lobby Soccer
- Only for Nintendo GameCube
N-Side The Game
Worlds
- Episode 1
- Forest - The first world and customed for beginners. A very tranquil setting filled with slow moving monsters.
- Caves - Dark inner terrain filled with several poisonous enemies.
- Mines - Futuristic mines full of circuits and all sorts of new age technology. Robot guardians are trained to kill anything insight.
- Temple - The final and most difficult level of Episode 1.
- Episode 2
- Beach - New world where players can now fight on the shallow waters. Physics come into play both in the sand and shallow water movement.
- Sanctuary Surface - Remodded from its original form. Once only used for battle modes in the Dreamcast original (version 2). Now on the GameCube Episode 2, it's a full blown level.
- Jungle - A savage and cluttered darker cousin of the Forest level. Featuring some of the toughest enemies.
- High Top Planes - Taking place high on top of all the other worlds. Elevation and constant inclines and declines are very present.
Characters
Rangers - Artillery based offense. Great attack range and accuracy from long range but weaker in close combat.
- Type: RAmarl, RAcaseal, RAcast, RAmarl.
Hunters - Weapon based offense. Extremely agile and dangerous in close range combat. Weakness very apparent in long range attacks.
- Type: HUmar, HUnewearl, HUcast, HUcaseal.
Force - Weapon and magic based offense. Magic attacks and staff weapons give the Force class the ability to combine the strengths of the other two though neither as good.
- Type: FOmarl, FOnewm, FOmar, FOnewearl.
Outlook
Phantasy Star Online was an amazing experience on the Dreamcast. I was initially unconvinved that the game would run smoothly online, but was happily proven wrong when I became addicted to one of the smoothest and most intuitive online experiences I have ever had. Unfortunately, I missed out on the minor update titled Phantasy Star Online Version 2 on the Dreamcast which was basically a bug fix and added new things like the ultimate mode and the long awaited battle mode. This new GameCube version is NOT a port ladies and gentleman! It is including the original version 1 and version 2 compiled in Episode 1, alongside a new set of worlds in the GameCube sequel Episode 2. On top of the Chapter 2 levels, the game also has a host of new characters, expanded options, enhanced visuals for the older levels (new levels obviously are going to take advantage of the GameCube hardware), new music, and even a 4-player splitscreen offline option. I can only hope to control my anticipation and await the game's tentative Summer to Fall American release date.
--Anthony J C