Phantasy Star Universe - Everything we know in all the universe!
[ Lee_yoshi - March 27 2005 - 6:27 PM ] - 34795 hits
PSU

Phantasy Star Universe on Ragol.co.uk - The Foremost Phantasy Star Online Resource 

[Last Updated: 11th May 2006]

Phantasy Star Universe - Everything we know in all the universe!

Phantasy Star Universe - PlayStation2 NA NTSC Box Art - Click to EnlargePhantasy Star Universe - PC NA Box Art - Click to EnlargePhantasy Star Universe - Xbox360 NA NTSC Box Art - Click to Enlarge

  • Phantasy Star Universe
    • Players: TBA
    • Genre: RPG
    • Online Enabled: Yes
    • Format: PlayStation2, Xbox360 & PC
    • Release Date: TBA 2006 (Japan), Autumn 2006 (Europe), Autumn 2006 (America)
      • Note the release date constantly changes - The dates given above are officially noted dates only and will only be changed when official changes are made!

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Phantasy Star Universe is the exciting return to the world of Phantasy Star, that many have eagerly been awaiting further information on since it's first unvieling in the form of a small trailer shown during E3 in 2004.

The Game

SEGA have not revealed a huge amount of information about this game until recently where they have shown the title off in 2 magazine features, and in a revamped website, which you can visit at http://phantasystaruniverse.com.

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Phantasy Star Universe is not the new Phantasy Star Online, it is instead a continuation of the SEGA Megadrive Phantasy Star games from many years ago, combined with elements of gameplay and online aspects thrown in from successes with the Phantasy Star Online games.

The Story

The game is set in the Grail Star System, made up of 3 planets, each of which has its own cultures and life forms.

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Because of the planets differences, a great war took place, with the intentions to settle the differences (as people do in wars!). However, the battle ended with the formation of the Three Planet Commonwealth so all planets in the Grail Star System could collaberate with one another without the use of knives or very big guns!

Universe starts right in the middle of the 100 year anniversary celebrations of the forming of the Commonwealth. However, during the celebrations, a great meteor shower kicks off in the sky, taking effects on all the fleets of Guardians Ships, in the sky flying around as an air show was supposed to take place for the celebrations.

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Many Ships crash down and huge fires blaze out on the grounds surrounding the Guardians Colony on the planet. However, this wasnt a natural occurance, it was infact the work of alien life forms otherwise known as 'Seed'. As the fires continue, the 'Seed's proceed attacks on the Guardians in the hope to take them all out.

Ethan & The Guardians Colony

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The main character is named 'Ethan Webber', a human aged 17, who we first encounter watching the celebrations of the Commonwealths Anniversary, from the Guardians Colony, with his younger sister Lumia. The Guardians Colony is the interstellar base for the peace-keeping force, known as the 'Guardians', who keep the Commonwealth in alignment and intact.

After the Guardians Colony is destroyed by the 'seed's, his sister Lumia is lost amongst the debris, and he makes it his quest to find her.

Click to EnlargeThe Guardians Colony is pretty much the central location in this game and is comprised of many cities, populated by lots and lots of inhabitants. Everyone has their own room in the colony, including Ethan (The player you control) which you wait in to recieve special new missions, should you need to. You can also use this room to house special items you've collected from either the main game or online trades with other people, which you can find more about below, just as an added extra incase you get bored! Moving out into the Colony Halls, you'll find many inhabitants that you can speak to that will serve as vital information sources, friends, quest party members, item sellers, and locations of rest!

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The whole game isnt mission based though, as you'll also be there to explore the environments of the colony at certain times in the game. The main aspects of the gameplay have not yet been revealed by SEGA.

Gameplay

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Phantasy Star Universe is being developed as a true RPG, which focuses on the adventures of Ethan and on his growth as a Guardian. You'll be able to travel between planets in the Grahl Star System with the use of Star Ships, and make use of vehicles such as Air Bikes to travel around the planets surfaces quicker!

As mentioned above, the game also entails aspects of the Phantasy Star Online series, while keeping to the Phantasy Star storyline. Such aspects include the battle system, which is very much action orientated, alike the systems used in Phantasy Star Online, Episodes I & II, fighting with swords, guns, and magic spells, including combination attacks.

In the offline game, you will take control of your main character, while the other team members are AI controlled, although you can give them commands to cast magic spells or use certain items, for example to heal you while you're in the middle of an intense battle... or maybe because you're too lazy to!

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The online gameplay will see you fighting alongside many players alike in PSO, with the exception of the limit of the teams sizes, which has yet to be announced, but believed to be much bigger then the 4 allowed in PSO online games - In fact over 100 people are believed to be able to play in the same game at the sametime!

The Characters

Human

Human

They're like you and me, they act just as well, they're just as versatile, and they age! In Universe, Humans are the most common race in the Grahl Solar System, and are quickly outnumbering the other races amoung the planets populations. Humans are the basis of the solar system, and if something has happened, you can be sure the Humans will get it first! Most of the humans live on 'Parum', and as a character in this game, they're pretty much in the middle of it all.

Playing as humans in Universe will get you 'average' attack, defense, accuracy, evasion, mental, and technique statistics & abilities.

  • Ethan Waber
    • Male
    • 17
    • Guardian Affiliate
      • Living in the Guardians Colony and around at the time of the first SEED strike during the 100th anniversary celebrations with his sister Lumia Waber, Ethan becomes a trainee of the 'Guardians' (A private planetary security organisation) working under Karen Erra.
  • Hyuga Ryght
    • Male
    • 17
    • Guardian Affiliate
      • Similiar to Ethan, Hyuga entered 'Guardians Training School' in the same year. However, the two have become rivals since, competing at every opportunity for the chance to come first in the 'Fraballu Tournament'. Serious Minded at heart, he's a bit of a smart ass and never misses an opportunity to try for the girls!

Newman

Usually residing on Neudiaz, Newmans are a superior race over the humans, being created after humans themselves went about breeding 'super humans'. Because of this, many of their properties are better when compared to humans, including the likes of thinking power, memory, reaction timing, etc. However, what they make up in knowledge and power, they lose in physical performance. Attack power is much poorer, compared to mental and technique abilities which are much stronger. Newmans tend to have much better spiritual strength, turning ordinary attacks into effective hits you dont want to be on the recieving end of! Evasion and Accuracy are also slightly better then those of humans.

  • Karen Erra
    • Female
    • 17
    • Guardian Affiliate
      • Fighting with the Guardians for the last 3 years, Karen serves as Ethan's mentor. Karen is a stubborn character, after going through the experience of having her mother killed by native creatures while she was young. Despite being a Newman, she also doesn't use 'technics', in hope of training to be strong.
  • Mirei Mikuna
    • Female
    • 17
    • Guardian Affiliate
      • Mirei is a divine maiden who symbolizes the communion of Gurhal. She offers great mental and spiritual sustenance for people in the Gurhal System, coming from her charisma and beauty! Mirei is also very compassionate and affectionate, even when she isnt in the position of the maiden.

Beast

In a beast's lifecycle, they start off by having their genes altered so they become part of an effective labour force and complete tasks such as mining where others can't such as in horrible environments on resource mining planets. They have a very strong spirit and can be the most powerful race in the game.

Normally calm, if a beast doesn't like you, you'll know about it when they do their nut and throw you halfway across the planet! However as i say, normally, they're nice beings that get along well with other civilians. They have excellent hand-to-hand combat skills and have a special ability to turn into a 'Beast-Man'! They also have great attack power and evasion skills, while lacking somewhat in mental and technical skills.

You'll find beasts normally around Moatoob.

  • Leogini Santosa Berafort
    • Male
    • 31
    • Guardian Affiliate
      • Leo (As he likes to be known) came together with Ethan when the SEED was first seen attacking, giving Ethan the chance to battle with him and become a part of the Guardians. Leo is a very family orientated character who cares more then you would think normal for a beast! He even has a wife and a 3 year old son living in the Guardians Colony.

Cast

Renvolt Magashi is the leading commander officer of the 'Endrum Collective' - A group born within the 'A.M.F' with the sole purpose of protecting the 'Relics'.

Renvolt is not a class of any kind but is instead of civilian personnel, who is very dangerous and likes to think that everyone who exists is made to exist, only to be killed by him!

He loves his job, and he carries out his duties of the 'Endrum Collective' happyily knowing that another battle draws closer with every passing minute!

Built by Humans, Casts are machines which have evolved and developed free wills. However, over time Casts living alongside all other races have now sent themselves aside for independance, and setup a system to control the human society. They are rational beings, each one big on control, and follow rules and regulations strictly setup in their race.

With powerful defense and attack power, their stats quickly outweigh those of humans. However they can only use limited techs with weak technical and mental abilities, while concealing their great strength in terms of power and evasion. They also specialise in using guns.

Casts alike Beasts however also have one extra ability that cannot be used by Newmans and Humans.

Rogues

The Rogue of all Rogues as others see him, Alfort is a very evil and angry man indeed, coming from a big past in space piracy. However saying this, he isn't all big on killing and violence, but isn't afraid to use those skills if necessary.

Alfort Tylor in action! Click to Enlarge"Kill not uselessly, deprive not the poor and betray not others" is his personal principal and is in charge of the Pirate Ship 'Landeel' (Pictured right, below).

You will no doubt see and encounter Alfort a lot through the story of Phantasy Star Universe, but will he come through in the end? Well we'll have to wait and see when the game gets its release next year!

The Rogue Pirate Ship - 'Landeel'The 3 Vol Brothers are 3 rogues who love what they do, and don't ever want to stop making other lives miserable. The name 'Vol' is from pirate ancestory, going back through several generation of pirates within the family, working under Alfort.

The eldest brother is Hiru Vol who has the aim to make it big time in the world of rogue life, forming the '3 Vol Brothers' in the aim to become the best, most feared and known throughout the system. Hiru's former name was 'Hiraneiru Takura' and takes the role as the 'Big Brother' by being the brother the others look upto. Whenever they're in a tight spot, Hiru is the one with the brainpower and technical speciality the others admire!

The second brother in the group comes from a great merchant's past from Parum which failed in business! No Vol conatins much pride in his work, keeping himself alive the "the glory of his past". No is the best part of the labour force in the team, excelling in long range combat and 'Shoot' weapon handling. However he fears his looks worrying that his face will someday look 'old'! (Whatever takes your fancy i suppose!).

Last but not least comes Do Vol. A timid, pure minded little rascal who was previously bullied in life for his 'scary appearance'. Within the group, Do is the mechanic of the three, taking responsibility behind all machinery powered by the Vol Brothers. Do also appears best at high powered close combat despite his frankly large looking shell!

Because all the info Sonic Team release is all in Japanese, it's hard for us to tell who is who, so we'll just list those other characters... here!

The Other Characters of Phantasy Star Universe

The Bad Side of the Universe

There's of course a dark side of Universe, and boy is it looking ugly! With some of the enemies/bosses you'll be battling with in-game shown above, and more below, it's going to take some time to get through this game in one go! To the left is a dragon looking creature that has already been shown in many screenshots posted by Sonic Team previously, and just as an extra treat, we've got more screenshots below! The dragon isn't alone though, we've also got screenshots of the other two enemies shown above below too! Ouchy mama! Click to Enlarge them:

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AHHH!!!

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The S.E.E.D. are the whole reason this game takes place. War has broken out and they're at the heart of the conspiracy...

The S.E.E.D. seem to be a range of very immobile creatures once they've planted themselves into the ground, transforming into quite a race indeed! Below to the bottom right are weapons that Sonic Team themselves have picked out... maybe better against defeating the S.E.E.D. then other weapons?

What used to be, and what is now!

New Weaponry, developed with Anti-Seed Technology!

Ragol.co.uk Forumer Tycho has posted up a rough translation of exactly what Sonic Team of Japan have been mumbling on about on their official website alongside these image updates:

"SEED Corrosion

The methods by which the SEED cause corrosion
When the seeds of SEED fall onto the ground, they rapidly augment root-like treestumps , and settle on the ground, covering it. Furthermore, they make flower-like things bloom, and then, like a virus, emit corrosion cells like pollen (although the SEED virus have no effect on human bodies). The SEED core that sticks onto the ground develops a special barrier called Blume (= flower).

Exterminating SEEDs

Regular arms have no effect on Blume whatsoever. In order to be able to destroy them with just power, nothing but overwhelming firepower at the level of the allied armies' would be feasible. Accordingly, the Guardians developed specials tools called the 'Photon Eraser' and the 'Photon Reflector'. While even carrying these tools they cannot directly attack the Blume, by exposing the stems that play the role of the Blume's roots to these weapons, they have been able to make the Blume wither and launch a special attack on the real form of the SEED core. Again, using goggles to discover things like the stems and Photon Spots invisible to the naked eye is crucial.

The enigmatic life-form 'SEED' suddenly started flying into the Gurhal solar system. The SEED spread out on the outskirts of the site they had settled on, made flowers bloom from the tree stumps they had made sprout, and scattered corrosion-causing pollens. It is understandable that the calamity caused by SEED not only caused harm to the soil of the outskirts, but also caused a phenomenon turning the primitive life-forms ferocious."

Planets of the Gurhal Solar System

  • Parum

A land of all things wonderful through the Universe as the monsterous city encases just about everything you could ever need before you left the place and went about the lands in search of a good ol' fashioned laser sword fight.

ParumParum

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  • Neudriz

NeudrizNeudriz

Encompassing a huge futuristic (Modern to them!) shopping district (As seen in the images below), make your way away from the city when you've been prepped and around the planets surface in search of more clues as to just what the hell is going on!

Gotta love the choice of carpet there!Looks like an ordinary Autumn day yes? Those tree's however kill people in their sleep!

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  • Moatoob

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Surely every engineers temple is Moatoob with it's manmade factory-esque buildings built into mined out mountains of rock encasing the home to Moatoob's small shopping district should you be more of a tourist then a planets workman! When you're done with that, get your ass in gear and go and start making your way through the deserted rocky landscape that is Moatoob's surface. 

A place in need of designated smoking areasAll it's missing now is the tumbleweed and it'd be perfect!

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Weaponary & Action System

The weaponry in Universe is all organised into 3 categories:

  • The Hit System
    • Mainly Swords, such as Sabers, Partisans, etc.
  • The Shoot System
    • Mainly Guns, such as Handguns, Rifles, etc.
  • The Hou System
    • Mainly Wands, such as Rods, Canes, etc.

Ethan using a 'HOU' weaponEthan using a 'HIT' weaponEthan using a weapon from the 'Shoot System'

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The new part to this is that you can use two different weapons at the sametime (Dependant on character type and weapons)! This exciting new feature comes with the options to give you ease of play so you dont have to keep switching through menu's to do exactly what you want to do. However saying this, it will only work in certain combinations.

For starters, you have to use two different weapons from two different categories outlined above. Also, one of these has to be from the 'Shoot System'. This is because of the way the characters hold the weapons. The only type of weapon you can hold in your left hand is a 'Shoot System' weapon. The weapon in the right hand has to be either a weapon from the 'Hit System' or 'Hou System'. Got that? Lets try some examples:

  • You Can't Equip...
    • Left Hand: Saber
    • Right Hand: Handgun
  • You Can Equip...
    • Left Hand: Handgun
    • Right Hand: Saber
  • You Can't Equip...
    • Left Hand: Cane
    • Right Hand: Rifle
  • You Can Equip...
    • Left Hand: Handgun
    • Right Hand: Saber

If you don't have a gun on you, your left hand simply isnt used when you're in fighting mode.

Shoot & Fist ComboHit & Shoot ComboHit ComboHou ComboJust Fist Combo

Above are the icons that represent the weapon combo's you can have (As in weapon per hand, as discussed below). From left to right, the combo's you can have are: Shoot & Fist, Shoot & Hit, Hit (Big Sword), Hou, or just Fist! 

The Weapon Combo Selection MenuWhile playing, you can select the menu to change your combo strategy by pressing the R1 button

As the screens above show, while playing through PSU at anytime you can change your weapon combo strategy by pressing the 'R1' (Right Shoulder Button on your PlayStation2 joypad) to bring up a small menu in the bottom right hand corner of the screen. You then use the analog stick/D-Pad to adjust your weapon combo, dependant on the weapons you currently own and have accessable to you.

A quick an painless move so you can always change your weapons whenever you need to. Say for example your fighting an air enemy and you've got a sword equiped... when then, who ya gonna call? (No, put the phone down, this isn't ghostbuster time, it's just time to press R1!).

Menu's & ShortcutsPictured to the right is what the menu and Hunters statistic pages look like (In Japanese of course!) as you can see it has listed which weapons are currently equiped and their relative stats while the other menu's let you assign shortcuts and let you choose weapons through the menu pages.

If you wish to use techniques, you really need to have a 'HOU' weapon on you, otherwise it's pretty pointless! All techniques are defined by the 'HOU' weapon you have equipped.

Pulling off a combo with two weapons is different yet again. For this you have a 'CounterAttack' action system. When you want to pull off a combination attack, whether it's with technique ability or just weapons, you use this system to pull do it right! However, because this is all done through a menu, Sonic Team realise you dont always want to have to fanny around with a menu to pull off a nice combo, so you can save your favourite attacks into a shortcut of joypad button combinations. To then pull off a combo, you start the 'LinkCombo' attack by holding down one of the shoulder buttons (At a guess!) and then start to press a sequence of buttons to pull of your combo correctly. I think this maybe a good time for another example:

  • Combo 1
    • LinkCombo + Cross, Triangle, Square
    • LinkCombo + Triangle, Circle, Cross

You can also link up your combo's for super combo's! However, pay attention to how this works...

You can link up your shortcuts for a triple attack by pressing the same action combo shortcut 3 times in a row:

  • Triple Action Combo (Hard Attack)
    • LinkCombo + Shortcut Combo, Shortcut Combo, Shortcut Combo

You can also do what i can only call a double, triple attack to pull of a 'Sudden Death' combo. Sounds good eh? But you can only pull this off by putting two different combo's together:

  • Enemy 'Sudden Death' Combo
    • Link Combo + Shortcut Combo 1, Shortcut Combo 2

Thats enough of confusing combo's i think, but as you can see, it's going to be action packed for sure. I dam well like the fact of there being a 'Sudden Death' Combo!

It's not just what they do, but it seems it's also, how they do it, as Phantasy Star Universe also comes with a FPS mode! By clicking the R3 Trigger on your PlayStation2 joypad, any type of gun (Or maybe arrow as shown off in the 4th screenshot above!) can be fired in First-Person Shooter Mode, bringing up a crosshair on the screen for those precision shots. These are shown off as below:

BOOM! Headshot!Careful now... don't choke...

Any weapon has certain statistics you're likely to want to raise, well, you still can!Sticking to the Weaponary theme here in this PSU update, continuing from Phantasy Star Online comes the Grinder system. You'll be able to grind pratically any weapon you collect it seems to give your weapons a more customised feel.

It's unclear whether these grinders stay coming in the form of Monogrinders, Digrinders, and Trigrinders however.

Raise the statistics of your favourite sword, gun, or cane, by grinding up your weapons with any grinders you find, in 3 easy steps as Sonic Team show you below:

1, 2, 3 and Bang! It's a whole new weapon!

As the screenshots above show, weapons seemingly have different levels, of which you can buy new items to use in conjunction with the weapons you like to power them up even more! With every weapon you select, in the box just underneath appears what type the weapon is, and with which other types of weapons you can combine it with, to either use at the same time, or otherwise. As always, those vital statistics are shown in the box to the bottom right.

Techniques and Stat's

It appears that with Universe, Sonic Team have traced back to the routes of the SEGA MegaDrive series more then you would have believed. Various characters in the game will have various amounts of 'Photon Points' which are used when casting wizzardry spells, last seen from Phantasy Star IV. You can also combine your spells (Dependant on PP) to give off a much bigger attack! However, if you have no PP, you can't cast. One example of possible technique combinations can be seen below:

  • Low amount of PP: Ice & Blizzard Combo
  • Average amount of PP: Ice, Blizzard & Paralysis Combo
  • High amount of PP: Ice, Blizzard, Paralysis & Shock Combo
  • Maximum amount of PP: Combo using all techniques (One hell of an attack!)

The amount of Photon Points you have depend on your character and weaponry. If you upgrade your weapon, your max. possible amount of PP will increase (Similar to using a Monogrinder on a weapon in PSO). Some of the techniques currently announced include (Alike above): Ice, Blizzard, Paralysis, Shock, and Power Attacks. Aparently the techique combo system is similiar to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (Should you have played it!).

Photon Points aren't all that'll be returning in Phantasy Star Universe stat-wise, as we also see the re-appearance of Gravity Stats, which currently stand at Gra, GiGra & NaGra.*

Amazing shots of the techniques can be seen below:

Electrical Storms a plenty!

Laser-tronic

Now who loves Barta?

Do you like them well-done?

No doubt thats a double flash camera

Photon Art, oooooh!Goodbye Pests! 

Ground Breaking!It's Art... but it's also smelly! 

Up, up!And all around! 

So c-c-c-c-cold!Confused? 

Truely Shocking Artwork!Ethan's on fire!

Special Moves

Got Beef?

The first set of special attacks allow your characters to use special weapons all otherwise known as an 'S.U.V. Weapon'. Looks silly doesn't it? Poor little Lou carrying those huge guns, well her power doesn't go to her head, more to her arms so she can carry such artillery. Is it worth it? Ooooh yes!

Here it comes...and..... BOOM!

As the image above (left) shows, it seems like you build up power for this special before you are able to use it in it's entirity (Like a Photon Blast, where you have to build up PB before you can let it go).

Rawr! Nanoblasts mean Beastmen!

RAWR!

The 2nd 'Special Attack' is the NanoBlast which allows you to become super strong and take down pratically anything in your path!

Again alike a Photon Blast from PSO, you first build up your 'Nano Points' to the point where you've got 100% and then let this special attack go. This attack however unleashes special power to your character, particularly used with the 'Beast' character line-up, allowing them to turn into a 'Beastman'.

Catch a Ride

Riding GoGo!Making its Phantasy Star debut, comes the vehicle riding system!

While roaming the lands of the Universe, you can travel between planets on ship, or you can travel across land quicker then running by using different vehicles, and, as has also been announced for Universe, particular and peculiar looking animals too!

No, it's not a kangaroo...

The new riding system as it's titled see's this particular creature (And maybe more) available throughout various points in the game which you can use just to hop on top of and ride around on at your pleasure! Should make the time go a bit quicker instead of running all over the planet!

Online Mode

Sonic Team of Japan have finally given away a little more info regarding the online play of Phantasy Star Universe in the form of the Character Creation mode - A mode thats been totally revamped from what we all know in Phantasy Star Online. Here you can change anything you want from hair shades to eye colours and nose length! Whether you want a big muscled Human or a big breasted Newman is upto you and you alone, as it's all possible in this game! However you can only use this character in the online mode, where as in the offline story mode you will have to use the story characters provided!

Below are some great new shots of how the online Character Creation mode works, as Sonic Team of Japan shows with a Human and a Newman.

We've also got a few more snapshots from the Character Creation mode, which Sonic Team of Japan demonstrate how custom your online characters can be if you choose a more robotic lifestyle!

After you've made your character though, you can also change your characters costume at certain times in the game:

Getting Changed? You'll need a Menu for that!

Cha-Ching!Yes, that's right, in Phantasy Star Universe you can change your characters costumes, and there's a much bigger wardrobe available to you then there is with our much loved Phantasy Star Online. As the image aside shows, you simply take yourself around to an appropriate store in the Shopping Centre held within the lobby, and buy yourself new clothes whenever you want to change your look! Maybe shorts in the Summertime instead of fleeces and santa red in Christmas-time? Well whatever look you want, go get it at your local shopping centre, and store your old clothes in your rooms wardrobe should you want to change back later! More on that in a moment. Luckily enough, Sonic Team have shown us just how different costumes might look when you've changed... exciting stuff no?

Next up for online play, Sonic Team reveal how the lobby system works. As you can tell from these snapshots, the chat bubble system is still kept from Phantasy Star Online, but with a much more colourful approach. Again alike PSO, the lobbies let you roam around freely within the main building of the planets. Aparently the amount of people you'll be able to play with online at any one time will be at least 100, with all the lobbies... or cities as they're now known and styled in Universe divided into several floors, which you can travel between using escalators and lifts! The 1st floor is a meeting place (Maybe alike a park), 2nd floor being more transportation orientated (With players even able to travel between planets in the lobbies/cities), 3rd floor having many shops, and the 4th floor holding the Guardians Headquarters (So the interview reads).

The next big change you'll soon notice when you go to play Phantasy Star Universe online is the PSU equivilent i suppose of Symbol Chats... exciting named 'Cut-In Chat'! This feature lets you get your mugshot on the screen across the lobby/game for all to see as you make a announcement or just have something to maybe show off!

 Better then a video phone!"Would the owner of the big shiny sword deposited in lot 6 please contact reception... thank you"

Special Attack: Ugliness ScareHmm... look's like a dragon is around here somewhere...

Here's a few screenshots of online 'Party' play, which is when you're actually playing the game, fighting through the area's, slaying the monsters, etc etc! The maximum amount of people allowed to play together at any one time is 6. Not a hugely impressive number after we were told to expect LOADS of people to be able to play together at the sametime compared to Phantasy Star Online, when infact, it's only 2 more... Sure, maybe the lobbies will see loads more people on the screens at anytime, but it's not the biggest improvement. Something to look forward to with Next-Gen Phantasy Star i hope!

Oooh, it's purdy!Hey, 2 swords? That's cheating...

"My daggers is SO much better then your saber buddy!"In PSO it took 4 people to kill a dragon... This time, you need 6... so it's safe to assume the monsters are at least 50% harder then in PSO!

Finally, Sonic Team have shown off your personal room area's! Look at how big these places are! Basically your room acts as your personal area where you can not only access certain menus, but you can also use to sleep, perform certain actions, and as if that wasn;t enough, you can decorate your room with wallpapers, carpets, and items which you can trade with other people and find on your journey across the landscapes of Universe in a more Animal Crossing-esque style!

A video from Tokyo's Game Show shows off the online mode in more detail as to how precise your characters can actually be customised too, what the rooms look like in motion, and what you can do in the many huge lobbies! There are some snapshots below, or to see the footage in all its glory, head over to this link from GameTrailers.com TV.

It's all pink... maybe for the more feminine gamer? Click to Enlarge!That's a level up! Click to Enlarge!Certainly an attention grabber! Click to Enlarge!

Having a dance in the lobby! - Click to Enlarge!A big range of lobbies to roam! Click to Enlarge!Some people just don't give up! Click to Enlarge!

The more stylish look - Click to Enlarge!The more custom look! Click to Enlarge!

Fully kitted out! Click to Enlarge!Would you meet him in a dark alley? Click to Enlarge!

  • General Online Gameplay Screenshots

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Screenshots & Trailers

Ragol.co.uk is first with all the news, so why should we hold back on the illustration eh?

Here's some official Sonic Team snaps from the game to have a good browse at:

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  • High-Res Screenshots

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Ragol.co.uk also plays host to the original Phantasy Star Universe Trailer shown at E3 in 2004.

Click Here to Download the Trailer

Alternatively visit our 'Files/Downloads' page.

The trailer is a .wmv file and has been reduced in quality for all users to enjoy at 6.4Mb.

Not enough for you? Then check out even more Ragol.co.uk media for Universe below!

What a combo! Click to Enlarge

This video compilation shows you gameplay footage taken from many battle scenes of Phantasy Star Universe. Be sure to keep a look out for the many wierd bosses and enemies you will be encountering throughout the game! Freaky!

Click Here to Download [6.53Mb, .wmv file]

Flashy Weapon Effects - Click to EnlargeJust who are these guys? Click to EnlargeThe group look on in ashtonishment - Click to Enlarge

  • Phantasy Star Universe: Network Play

Fat or Thin? The choice is yours! Click to EnlargeThis video was first seen at the Tokyo Games Show of 2005 and shows off many aspects of the online gameplay within Phantasy Star Universe including the new Character Creation system, lobby chat and 'shout' function, and the 'My Room' feature, which also includes a tiny bit of footage regarding the PSU equivilent of PSO's MAG's - The Partner Machinery.

Click Here to Download [9.28Mb, .wmv file]

Evolution Baby! Click to EnlargeParty in the lobby! Click to EnlargeShout it! Click to Enlarge

  • Phantasy Star Universe: The Gurhal System (Worlds)

A lovely fireworks display, what could go wrong? Click to Enlarge

This video shows you various locations through Phantasy Star Universe including the Guardians Colony, Parum, Neudriz, Moatoob, and also shows you scene's of how the S.E.E.D. have invaded the space which used to be once a tranquil and peaceful system!

Click Here to Download [11.4Mb, .wmv file]

Approaching Parum from afar - Click to EnlargeFlashy buildings? They're here! Click to EnlargeNature Calls! Click to Enlarge

  • Phantasy Star Universe Showcase
    • This HUGE compilation shows you everything you needed to know about Phantasy Star Universe in one big trailer, including the characters themselves, in a large video file, also including the Japanese Trailer for Universe.
    • Click Here to Download [50.1Mb, .wmv file]

Universe has also been subject to special features in many magazines recently, its biggest in Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM). Ragol.co.uk's own Decswxaqz has uploaded the games pages to read and view in our forums. Click Here to go to the thread containing these files.

Finally, if you want something to take home for yourselves to keep the drool warm, then check out our downloads section where you can find Universe wallpapers and screensavers for your very own desktop! Click Here to go to Ragol.co.uk's Downloads sector or click 'Files' at the top of each page.

Coming Soon...

Click to EnlargeThats all the news we have at the moment concerning Phantasy Star Universe!

Why not take this time to be a part of the latest discussions concerning the game over in our forums by clicking here!

Be sure to check back for all the latest developments as they happen here at Ragol.co.uk - The Foremost Phantasy Star Online Resource!

Credits

Article by: Lee-yoshi
Images by: Lee-yoshi (Used from Sonic Team of Japan)
Special Thanks: *PSO-World.de (For passing us news of Weaponry & Technique Usage)
© Ragol .co.uk

[DUE TO TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES THIS ARTICLE WAS RE-SUBMITTED TO RAGOL.CO.UK ON 28TH MARCH 2005]


Official Phantasy Star Online images and artwork are © SEGA 2000-2003. All characters, logos, images and trademarks are property of their respective owner. Editorial content is property of the poster, everything else © 2003 RAGOL.CO.UK. This site is in no way associated with Sega of America, Japan or Europe.

 
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