PSOv2
is the much-awaited 'update' to
Phantasy Star Online
- not a sequel as such, more of an enhancement as it includes the entirity of
the original game with some extras thrown in for good measure. Note, that it's
a stand-alone game - you don't have to have owned/played PSO to play PSOv2.
I've personally spent a HUGE amount of time playing PSO since its US Launch in
February 2001 (almost 500 hours!) and therefore when PSOv2 was released in Japan in
early June I just had to be amongst the first online!
Pay to Play
Unlike the US and UK releases of PSO, Japanese PSO requires you to pay for a
'Hunters Licence' to gain online access. I understand that the US release of
PSOv2 (due in August) will have a similar 'pay-to-play' system. All I can say
is that I hope it's as reasonable as the Japanese system which costs a mere $9 (£6ish)
for 90 days access...
What's New - Offline Mode
Nothing new here until you beat Dark Falz on Very-Hard mode at which point you
gain access to Ultimate Mode. More on this on the Online section below...
What's New - Online Mode
The good news is that PSOv2 players can mingle and play with PSO players as
before, although any V2-specific items they've found will disappear from their
inventories whilst they're playing outside V2-specific games for obvious
reasons.
To find and/or use the new items or play the new game modes, PSOv2 players must
create a V2-specific game. These games are 'invisible' to PSO players although
they're on the same ships and can be in the same lobbies. PSOv2 players also
have access to new lobbies on each ship though (11 upwards) which are where
'Chu Chu Football' is played.
There are also 3 new modes in PSOv2 - Challenge, Battle and Ultimate.
Challenge mode requires at least 2 players (max of 4). Each time you start a
Challenge Stage you are reset to Level 1 with a minimal inventory. The
'Challenge' is to survive and find items as you go - you cannot transport back
for supplies and there are a LOT of monsters to kill as well as puzzles and
co-operative problems to solve. The game continues until ANY player dies at
which point its game over, so co-operation and planning are required to
complete a Stage successfully.
Battle Mode is a 'Quake Deathmatch' Player-versus-Player competition with 4
different sets of 'rules' determining what items can be taken into the arenas,
how long the game lasts and what the objectives are. The arenas are all new
levels called Spaceship and Temple which are exclusive to Battle Mode. They are
quite large and 'windy' with lots of hiding places and warps to keep your
enemies guessing.
Ultimate Mode is set in 'remixed' versions of the existing levels and is where
all your new weapons, items, monsters and bosses are to be found. Put simply,
Ultimate Mode is TOUGH and serious effort is required to progress. The new
weapons are, of course, much more powerful, but they're only found in Ultimate
Mode of course, so there's some 'chicken and egg' going on here!
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