Phantasy Star I, II, & IV - Q&A

[CaptainPlanet]

As I mentioned in another thread within Classic General, I am an avid fan fiction writer for the classic games. As I do deeper research into the games that are relevant to the Algol System (I, II, IV) I find myself accumulating more and more questions and stumbling upon questionable facts from questionable sources along the way. It is my hope that you guys help to answer these questions. I'll start with what I can remember off-hand. I have watched entire playthroughs of PSI and II so far and from what I can see, there is no mention of a lot of the details I'm digging up. There are some really deep details that I'm finding that just don't seem to show up in the games and I'm wondering if they even have a valid source. Before I submit a serious fan fiction (and begin writing the movie script for Phantasy Star Prime 2), I want to be able to separate fact from fiction.

1) I have read on at least two different sites (cited below) that the Algol System from the classic titles exists within the Andromeda galaxy, yet I don't remember any mention of that within the games. Upon further research, I found that there is also a star named Algol that is approximately 100 light years from Earth. Is this purely conjecture, or does this claim originate from a valid source?

Sources:
http://wapedia.mobi/en/Phantasy_Star_II
http://www.psalgo.com/myths.html?sid...13310f30093001

2) Before I continue my research, can anyone tell me if the background information on the Fringes of Algol (second site) is true? Take the biography below for example. The site gives an explanation of Nero, Alis' brother, that is way more elaborate than anything you could possibly derive from the original title. It even has his height, job title, etc! Were these new details released with the remake, Phantasy Star Generation: 1? I'm finding details on everything classic Phantasy Star-related on that site that are exaggerated to that degree and I'm wondering if any of it is true.

Source:
http://www.psalgo.com/profiles/nero.html

This is a very important topic for me, as silly as it may sound, so I appreciate you all helping me. Not only do I take my fan-fiction writing seriously, but I am also a member of a group of independent filmmakers who strive to end the trend of horribly written, horribly thought-out, poorly researched video game films (fan film, in this case, though we shoot for Hollywood quality, or at least close to it).

[Drac_Mazoku]

1) It's never mentionned in game per say. But yes, this Star system do exist in real life near (well "near" is a big word) our own star system. Surely the name was inspired by that, and that may also explain why we have men from Earth at the end of PSII. But no, they will never tell you in-game "Only at 100 light-years of our own star system exist the Algol Star System". All there is, is a source of inspiration.

2)You mean the adoption part and all? Yes it's true. Various source are found in the official Phantasy Star compendium and such others official book. For translation of the Phantasy Star Compendium, go there: http://www.sceneryrecalled.com/trans/ps.htm

Read everything on this page, it's the best source of translated official info, and will help you get a better start for your fanfic. Most interresting part is the translated official timeline, filling some gap in-between the games, or before the original game.

PS: If you have questions for the classic saga, you should really join the community at Fringes of Algo (I'm always there). The site is one of the last place mostly dedicated to the classic saga still alive, and it's really a fun place to hang in general.

[CaptainPlanet]

So, yes, I can trust all information at Fringes? I thought about joining, but wanted to make sure their information was legit first. The Andromeda question is still a bit fuzzy though. On the one hand, it would make more sense for the humans to have arrived in II if Algol was in the Milky Way, but on the flip side, Gurhal takes place in another galaxy, as stated in the cinematic intro to every story chapter in Universe, so either the humans or natives of Andromeda would have had to develop intergalactic travel. Also, our local Algol system, from what I have read, has three stars.

[Drac_Mazoku]

Like I said, they just took the name from reality. The rest is purely fictional. When creating your fanfiction, I don't think mentionning the proximity of our Star System and the one of Algol is really important. If you have to talk about the Earthmen, just let it the way it is right now: The Earth being really a mysterious planet from an unknown location to the people of Algol.

And most informations at Fringes of Algo come from official source, so yes, you can trust them.

[CaptainPlanet]

My dilemma with the proximity and location of the system is actually pretty crucial to the writing. The situation with the 4-part film saga (without giving too much away) is that it takes place roughly 1,000 years before PSI on Earth. Basically, they have already colonized the moon (or Luna, as the first film describes it) and Mars, and now have their sights set on the Algol System (Palma in particular) I don't know how many of our potential viewers will be reading this particular thread, but I suppose it would make more sense if I described a bit of the core driving plot of the 4 films.

Basically, the white-haired bearded man (aka the leader of the Earthmen at the end of PSII) is originally from an alternate timeline far into the future (roughly around the PSU era). He comes from a time when the human race has conquered a great number of inhabitable planets within the Milky Way Galaxy and has established intergalactic travel. Naturally, the first thing that the human race instinctively does with this technology is attempt further conquest. They travel to the Andromeda Galaxy where the first solar system they encounter is Algol. At this point, the alternate universe Algol is not much unlike that of the Gurhal PSU nature. They have pretty much the same technology. The humans wage war on Algol prematurely and are fought back. Protecting themselves from further attack by the Earthmen, the people of Algol begin building a fleet of warships to protect their borders. In light of their recent defeat, and seeing the fleet progression of their enemies, the Earthmen declare an all-out intergalactic war on the Algol System. At this particular point in time, Algol's resident technology outpaces that of the Earthmen and its superiority is shown in the battlefield of the vaccum. Eventually, the Earthmen are driven completely back into the Milky Way and, over time, are put on the defensive.

Back to the bearded man from PSII. In the films, we decided to give him a bit more of a background. In this alternate timeline, he was an A-Photon research physicist living on Zarmina (the newly discovered Earth-like planet we just recently discovered IRL). He had been kept abreast of the current events of the war and was a passionate human extremist. He was put in charge of a project to reverse-engineer the technologies procured during battle with the Algolians. One day, Zarmina was caught off guard by warship cannons from orbit. The only thing going through the middle-aged man's mind during the bombardment was, "If only we had a second chance, we would be prepared. We would get the job done RIGHT!" Then he suddenly recalled a pet project he had been working on over the years utilizing the physics of A-Photons and anti-matter. It was a hand-held piece of tech he had been working on to be a crude prototype for a time-travel device, though he wanted to keep it to himself until he had perfected it. He figured that if he was going to die that day, he was going to die trying to save humanity. He quickly grabbed a data disc that contained all his research over the years and his pet bio-monster (which was still an infant incubating in a small tank/jar), punched in a few coordinates on his device, and vanished before the facility caved in on him.

He arrived on Earth roughly 50-100 years from now (no specific date will be given, as we can't project how soon the moon and Mars will really be colonized, and we want to maintain the validity of the information in the film. Yeah, we're kind of finicky like that). He chose Earth at that specific time for several reasons. He had heard of the planet Earth being the original home of the human race (in his time, it had already fallen victim to the death of our sun), and also, he knew that the technological research he possessed from the future would mean leaps and bounds for the human race in the past. He knew that he would be able to get a leg up on the Algolians if he arrived at that particular place and time. He wasn't about to just hand over his research to the government however. He was going to use his knowledge of the future to gain control over the corporations of the world and spearhead his ambition to destroy those who nearly wiped out his people and take over the Algol System, not only for the real estate in the name of humankind, but now, for the added insult that Earthmen would settle on the planets where the graves of billions of Algolians would lie.

The bearded man quickly devised a false identity for himself and assimilated within the shadows of the corporate ladder. He was very selective of who he gave what technologies to. First, he laid out a long-term revenge plan, then looked into the progress and prosperity of local industries. Eventually, he approached an advanced technology and munitions corporation called FiestCorp with the NanoTransformer and photon-based weapon technologies. After sitting back and seeing if the technology would catch on with modern scientists, he then turned his research into the proposed 'Mother Brain' project over to a rival company (working name). After fitting two of the world's largest technology/munitions corporations neatly into his pocket and encouraging them to play nice with each other, he quickly began a program to build a new kind of starship, one capable of faster-than-light, intergalactic travel. He eventually calls the ship Noah, after his son who was lost in the Algolian war.

Thus begins his plot to wipe out the Algolians before they outpace mankind.

Also, in regard to his claim that mankind was responsible for the death of the Earth, that is a plot twist in the films that I don't want to give away just yet, but I promise that it is validated.

That is pretty much the backstory to the films. I haven't mentioned anything from the actual films to the public though, save for a select few, just to see what kind of reaction we would get. The first film is completely written and this backstory will gradually come into the light over time beginning with the second film. The first film focuses mainly on a new set of heroes fighting FiestCorp and, eventually, Dark Falz.

Dark Falz, that is another elaborate story in the films.

In the films, he appears on Earth to possess William Fiest, the CEO of FiestCorp and the most influential figure in the modern corporate food chain. In the films, Dark Falz has encountered Earth once before. Rather than re-type the explanation, I am going to reveal a small excerpt from the first movie:

!!!!! SPOILER ALERT !!!!!

(To put it into context, Arthur is the middle-aged uncle of William Fiest and was, until recently, a revered astronomer, until be hit the streets preaching about doomsday. The three protagonists, Neon, Michael, and Sarah, find him in a local library pouring over texts of ancient Mayan culture. They approach him to ask about his claims of doomsday, because both parties agree on one thing: William Fiest needs to be removed from power as soon as possible. He tells them to keep an open mind about what he is about to tell them.)

Arthur:
In the ancient Mayan city-state of Palenque, there once lived a great and powerful ruler named Lord Pakal. At the age of 12, Pakal ascended the throne and became the leader of his people. At some point during his thirteenth year in power, a strange celestial body eclipsed the sun. Since that event occurred, Lord Pakal seemed to exhibit inhuman behavior and immense, godlike power. The Mayans saw this and were quick to warship Pakal himself as a god. Now, the current belief is that Pakal eventually had two sons, Chan Bahlum and Kan Xul, both of whom assumed the throne after his death. I can assure you, however, that Pakal, in fact, bore three sons. His third son was named Janaab Pakal the Third. It was this son that saw his father for who and what he really was. It was recorded that he believed his father was possessed by some kind of 'dark force', the essence which gave him his power. He gave a name to this force, but the translation is still up for debate. It translates roughly to either 'Dark Force' or 'Dark Falz'. I personally believe it to be the latter. Pakal the Third described this force as an essence that permeates all living things, bending them to its will and deteriorating their forms over time. Even though Pakal the Third and his two brothers were born after the ominous planet settled between the sun and the Earth and they all carried the taint of this dark force in their blood. Young Pakal knew that there was no way to save his family or his people from the clutches of the dark force. So, while he still kept some of his sanity intact, without saying a word, he left his people for good. Some time after Lord Pakal's death, the essence of this dark force gathered the ensnared Mayan populace and ascended to the planet above, which has been roughly translated to be called, 'Rykros'. It was then that the planet that lingered above for so many years finally left our solar system on a rogue path throughout the galaxy.

Michael:
Wait, so you're saying that William Fiest is-

Arthur:
Is the direct descendant of Lord Pakal. Not only that, but he is also in a position of great power. With the right influence, he could possibly rule the world if he played his cards right.

Neon:
A world run by William Fiest is not a world that I plan on living in.

Arthur:
It's not what William is that you should be concerned with, but what he will become. Rykros is coming back. It will eclipse the sun once again and the dark force that dwells within it will select the most powerful and influential of Lord Pakal's descendants to be its vessel.

Michael:
What makes you so sure of all of this? What makes you think the taint still exists, assuming it ever existed at all?


Arthur:
When Rykros left our solar system, the darkness left behind in young Pakal's blood became inert. Now that the dark essence of Rykros is returning, the taint is awakening within each and every one of Pakal's descendants. Over the centuries, it has had time to assimilate and evolve silently within our gene pool. As the taint is reawakening from centuries of slumber, I feel the effects of the return of Dark Falz, as I know William must be feeling it as well. It’s… quite painful to say the least.

Neon:
Does he know about this?

Arthur:
No. He never cared to listen. He was always more concerned with the here and now.

Michael:
Why did you say that no one of your bloodline should be allowed to hold a position of power?

Arthur:
If events unfold the way they did centuries ago, Dark Falz will target the most influential person around to play his primary host. Were it anyone else in his position, it would take some time before that person would fall completely under Falz's control, and maybe people would have time to notice and respond, but where William already has the touch of Dark Falz in his blood, the process would probably be almost instantaneous. If this were to happen, I doubt anyone would be able to stop him. I'm afraid that the fate of the world will be determined within the next few days.

Michael:
... Cool story, bro. I really hope we don’t encounter this 'fantasy star' of yours.

[Sarah elbows Michael in the side]

Sarah:
Michael!

Michael:
Ow! What?!

***** END EXCERPT *****

As far as Rykros being a native of the Andromeda galaxy, that too will be clarified within the films. It is yet another detail I want to keep a mystery until the films are released.

But yeah, that's basically the backstory to the films in general. It's kind of like what they did in the Star Trek movie with the timelines, only the reverse of that. The timeline caused by the time travel becomes the main continuity for the game series. As I'm sure you can probably tell, I am a very detail-oriented writer and the location of the Algol System, as well as other small details, could prove crucial in getting these movies right. Unlike Hollywood, we believe very strongly in doing a video game franchise justice within the film industry and we don't want to disappoint as single fan as far as getting the lore right goes. I myself have been a fan since the early 90's and would be equally disappointed if we got something wrong. I see this saga we're building as a beautiful work of art. Well, more like an adaption to a currently existing work of art, but you get the idea.

Also, if I've gotten something wrong in any of the story material that I just posted, please let me know. This particular script is still subject to changes and has undergone many rewrites as a result of finding new details about the source material.

If you've managed to make it this far, I congratulate you and appreciate you taking the time to read all this! I can get pretty wordy sometimes. :P

[Drac_Mazoku]

I will take the time to read it all...BUT I want to tell you about one thing where I stopped reading for now. Are you sure you want to connect PSU to the classic saga? Even if this is an alternate timeline, PSU and the classic saga are in no way related to each other, as stated by Sega themselves (plus many phan, me included, don't like to mix the classic saga with the other series, more "online" oriented).

Anyway, more comments will follow, after I finish reading this later

[CaptainPlanet]

Hmm, I figured that PSU was within the same continuity, albeit in the distant future from PSO. So you're saying that PSI-IV aren't related to any other games in the series, including PSZ and PSO? When I originally thought of the idea for the film, I wanted to figure out a way to work in the PSU-style photon weapons without ruining the story. I don't consider PSU to be as epic as the rest of the games in the series (in fact, it almost feels like they tried to reboot the series with it due to all the similarities to the original series), but the one thing I really like about PSU is the weapon styles. Plus, without the fancy, futuristic photon weapon/NanoTransformer technology, the rest of the films' plot kind of falls apart.

Hmmm... I need to rethink a few things...

[Drac_Mazoku]

Indeed, PSU is in no way related to the classic saga. In fact, according to Sega, PSO, PSU, Zero, and the Classic saga were all their own little world. Just sharing some of the similar name a la Final Fantasy (similar name, totally different universe). And yes, even Zero and PSO were confirmed to be NOT LINKED, even with the mention of Coral...

NOW, that was before Sakai, the current producer for the Phantasy Star series totally BS on everything. You see, when PSU was initially released, in an interview, he stated that PSU had no link to any previous series...at all. As the years passed, he started to put more and more PSO cameo in PSU, to satisfy the fan...and now in 2010, he made a total 180 on his previous statement, by saying that Phantasy Star Portable 2 Infinity (part of the Univese saga) will officially link with the Online Saga.

You see, since he can come back on what he said 4 years later, there's no way to know if maybe later down the road, he'll try to kill the continuity of the classic saga, and link it to PSU and PSO too. But the series were never made originally to be linked to begin with. So I really hope from all my heart that Sega will stay true to their word, and let the classic saga as its own world, blocking Sakai in any attempt he may have to destroy the memories of this wonderful series (Talking about the classic saga here, everything starting with Online, I consider it to be another series totally, just using the Phantasy Star name to make some cash with a boring hack-and-slash grind fest without any good story)

[CaptainPlanet]

When it comes right down to it, I have to agree with you entirely. I liked PSO, even though its controls were rigid and the gameplay was repetitive, but PSU, even with it's flashy Photon Art mechanic, wears dull after a while. It's a vicious loop really. Kill things to get stronger to kill bigger things to get even stronger. It's a game of numbers. The classics had a very engaging story that you could really get immersed in. The newer stories are kind of... meh.

Now what I can do, without making any major changes to the writing, is say that in the old man's native timeline (the alternate timeline) they went to war with the Algol System chronologically after PSIV and after the people of Algol had advanced to the point of developing photon weapons and NanoTransformer technology (without being in any way related to PSU. They had just advanced to that point.). I know it sounds like it may still be a slight anchor to the PSU series, but like the rappy and other common ingredients, I suppose the photon weapons/NanoTransformers could be another common element among certain select universes, though implemented in different ways (in this case, the Earthmen come into possession of this technology before the people of Algol could even conceive of it. It seems like the old man's native timeline, where it is completely fictional anyway, might be an open canvas as long as it is post PSIV.

I want your honest opinion, as a very knowledgeable fan of the classic games, how do you feel on this take? You are pretty much a prime specimen of the target audience we're trying to reach. If you heard of an upcoming Phantasy Star film(s) that was going to add on to the classic continuity in the form of a prequel that tells the Earth side of that time period, makes a plethora of plot tie-ins to the classic PS titles, both major and subtle, and tells the Earthmen perspective of the events of PSII and you heard beforehand that the backstory was going to consist of what I just described to you (the modified version in this particular post, patching the rest of what I posted in my earlier, gigantic post. Let's pretend you read it in a magazine or an online article), what would be your personal take on it?

[Drac_Mazoku]

You know, way before PSO was released, fan of the series find the best way to make the earthmen appear in Algol was to use Phantasy Star III. One of the ending of Phantasy Star III was that Dark Force managed to make the spaceship Alisa III go through a Black hole...The result was that the Alisa III went through time and space, and when they emerged, they arrived right in front of the Earth. Now this is a fact.

What become speculation before PSO was that the Earthmen used the technology find inside the Alisa III to build their own spaceship program. Also, since the Alisa III came from Algol, this is how they manage to find the coordinate of it.

For a long time, it was the best fan-theory everyone could agree on. Then Sega created PSO, and this theory was rejected. After that many other Universe was created. Zero used both the Earth and Coral name for the planet we were on, making it a possible link to both the classic series and the Online series...both once again, Sega said "No, it's his own entity"

So to this point, I guess that everything is possible. How would I feel if PSU was linked a little to the classic series (well not really from what I read from your last point, but you can see my point)? Being a big phan of the old PSIII theory for the earthmen, I would feel a little bit sad...BUT to this point, and how Sakai is handling the series, everything could be possible. So I'll say go for it. Alternate timeline and universe can always explain many things easily...though a story with the earthmen not touching any other saga is very much possible using only what the classic saga is using.

PS: I still have to read the big synopsis. So some of my comments may yet still be a little bit off